Better Framing Easier, For Free!

[kurtvert 0]

I've been a camera-flyer for 20 years. I've shot around 5000 tandem videos and was the camera-flyer for a skydiving nationals medal winning, open-class, artistic freefly team. I've been using this system for camera sighting since 1995 and highly recommend it. It gets me a lot of compliments on my framing. Check it out!


Ring-Sight vs Frame-Sight

A Frame-Sight is safer.
It has no snag-points for a line to catch on, and will not put your eye out if you crash.

A Frame-Sight gives you more information.
Not just where to point your camera, but also how close to fly: It shows you not just where the center of your frame is, but also shows you the edges of your frame. Simply put your subject in the center of the frame and fly closer until they fill the frame. What You See Is What You Get -WYSIWYG.

A Frame-Sight is free.
All you need is some electrical tape (because it's black on the back)

A Frame-Sight cannot be bumped out of adjustment.
You're set until your goggles get scratched and need replacement.

A Frame-Sight makes you look less like a Borg and more like a Cylon.



How To Make A Frame Sight

You'll need: Your helmet with the camera installed, goggles (I've found that Sorz work very well for this, but use whatever goggles are comfortable for you and stay in the same place on your face well), electrical tape, a straight-edge, a sharp knife, scissors, a helper.


Cut a 6 or 7 inch piece of electrical tape and stick it down straight on a safe cutting surface.

Use a straight-edge and sharp knife to cut the tape into thirds length-wise to make three narrow strips of tape, then cut one of the strips in half width-wise to use as the shorter sides of the frame.

Stand 10 ft or so from a frame to use as a reference. (a window or white-board work well but any well defined vertical and horizontal lines on the wall can be used)

Put on your goggles and helmet.

Power up your video camera and flip out your view screen.

Have your helper aim your camera so that the top of the video frame is resting on the top of your reference frame on the wall, and hold it there. (having their forearms braced against your shoulders can help keep everything steady)

Hold the ends of one of the longer strips of tape. Stick the tape down, in the middle and then towards the ends, so that visually, with both eyes open, the tape rests in a straight line on the top of your reference frame.

Have your helper let go of your helmet. Move your camera and then visually put your frame line on the reference frame line and have your helper check it to confirm that you've got it in the right place. If not pull your tape up and try again. (it can be a little tricky at first, it will help to do it in a well-lit room so you can see your tape-lines well)

After you've got your top line set, repeat the process with the bottom and both sides. Don't worry if the tape is going across your nose.

All that's left to do is use some scissors to cut of the excess tape so that you just have a rectangular box, with a notch for your nose.

The sides of the frame will look curved from the outside but straight from inside the goggles. If you've got any weird wiggles in your lines just pull your tape up in that spot and put it back down in a smoother curve.

The attached jpg is what my goggles look like with the Frame-Sight. I shoot a CX-100 with a .55 wide.

[5.samadhi 0]

well thanks man! Im gonna go straight to frame-sight when I start shooting video. It looks phenomenally better.

[piisfish 140]

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Power up your video camera and flip out your view screen.

that's sooooo 3years ago

scissors beat paper, paper beat rock, rock beat wingsuit - KarlM

[kurtvert 0]

Maybe you're talking about a GoPro, in which case you're probably not a Camera-Flyer. You're a skydiver with a camera on your head.
Big difference!

[evh 22]

COOL!!!

This is almost exactly what I did, even your discription of how you did it is identical.
Only difference: I only use 1 eye for framing, and I use cheap sunglasses instead of goggles. They don't fog up.

And it works great. I've been using this for two years now, mainly for shooting 4-way competition.


Will post a pic later.

[jtval 0]

I used a paper reinforcement ring on my personal gear.
I also used a laser pointer so I would not need a buddy.

Set your camera helmet up. turn on your camera and site it in on an object. place the laser pointer on the helmet and make sure it point to the center of your frame.

(attach your pointer to your helmet while in this position)


now, each time before I exited I would quickly verify my site. Never missed a shot due to the site.

It didn't show the entire frame as your model does but as long as you knew where center was you could adjust your angle to capture the jump.

Since goggles move slightly each time you put them on, If I was beginning to shoot video, I may combine the 2 techniques to ensure a 100% fool-proof plan.

Make your box but put a center point on the goggles as well.

Eventually, you won't even see (or need) the sites.

My photos

My Videos

[evh 22]

This is a pic of my goggles. I used this system for 2 yrs now, it works great! Just before exit and every now and then during freefall I close my right eye to check the framing. What you see is definately what you get!

My new helmet (Flat Top Pro) does have a ringsight, and I find it much more difficult to get the framing right.
There is quite a bit of difference in framing in the air as opposed to on the ground. When the helmet shifts just a tiny bit, so does the ringsight, causing me to adjust my head accordingly, which is a lot.

Only drawback so far: I would need a pair of goggles for both my camera helmets, and if I would accedentally mix them up, I would be screwed

[pincheck 0]

its a interesting subject and not one i have seen mentioned very often nicely done

Billy-Sonic Haggis Flickr-Fun

[theonlyski 8]

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When the helmet shifts just a tiny bit, so does the ringsight

If your helmet and ring sight are shifting, then so are your cameras.

Kinda the idea behind mounting a ring sight to the helmet.

"I may be a dirty pirate hooker...but I'm not about to go stand on the corner." iluvtofly
DPH -7, TDS 578, Muff 5153, SCR 14890
I'm an asshole, and I approve this message

[evh 22]

Quote

Quote

When the helmet shifts just a tiny bit, so does the ringsight

If your helmet and ring sight are shifting, then so are your cameras.

Kinda the idea behind mounting a ring sight to the helmet.

Yeah, except these movements don't totally compensate for eachother.

You can try this experiment (I did!):
Put your camerahelmet on your head and connect the camera to a TV. Hold your head still an now use your hands to shift the helmet around, just like the wind would do in freefall.
Watch the screen, and you will notice that the image does not really move a lot.
This is because a) a few mm's translation is hardly a problem when u are trying to frame a 4way team or a tamdem and b) a few degrees of rotation is not much for a wide-angle lens.

Now look at your ringsite, and you wil probably see a much larger influence. This is because the site is very close to your eye, so even only a few mm's will have a huge impact.

The result is that the ringsite tells you to compensate way too much, resulting in bad framing.

Ofcourse there are ways to overcome this problem, like getting a helmet that fits tight to your head so it doesn't move, and you can learn to compensate for it, but this will cost you some jumps. Or you can duct-tape your goggles

[kurtvert 0]

Here are a couple better pictures of my goggles.

As far as helmet and goggle movement. Set up both so that they do not move, as much as possible. That's a given. Beyond that, any slight movement is going to be completely negligible if you're using any kind of wide angle lens.

A side benefit of this method is that it also will identify if you've got your camera mounted correctly on your helmet. If the the frame on your goggles is askew after you set it up, you'll know your set up is wonky. You're frame should be centered nicely on your goggles. If not, change your mount. If you always have to tilt your head crooked to shoot straight, framing will always be a struggle.

[goobersnuftda 0]

My very first camera helmet was a SkySystems Sidewinder. I think it was a Sony PC-10 or something like that. Anyways, there was no way to mount a site around the visor as it was just a blank point and shoot system (much like the GoPro is now :)

I took one of those clear type vinyl oil change stickers they put on the windshield of your car and cut out the center only leaving the thin red border around the edge. Simple water and I stuck it inside the visor. Had to move it once or twice to get it centered right but there was absolutely no blocking of vision for the left eye at all. Visor worked as it should and it was a great system until I moved up to a D-SLR and had to change the helmet for more top real estate room.