We worked on aerial river video this morning. It was forced because my collaborator needs his twin HD cameras back. I wasn't in the mood ( and spent a lot of time last night getting the equipment ready), but the weather turned out to be gorgeous, and thanks to Jesse's early (and generous) arrival, you can see his photo of me adjusting the cameras on John Cotter's trike as the sun rises.
The whole thing is a ridiculously complicated mix of very busy people, digital video (in stereo, don't get me started), John's unique aircraft and flying ability, the weather and geomorphology of Jackson County, and our determination to do some cool river aerials.
We had a beautiful, clear morning with non-bumpy air and amazing fall colors. Last week's 2-3 inches of rain scrubbed the dry landscape and filled the creeks and lakes. John made a few takeoffs and landings to get things set.
I've reviewed most of the tape and we have some awesome 2D (normal) video. The colors are striking, with lots of green, the fall colors, and mostly harvested fields that show a lot of texture and color in the morning light.
I hope the cameras were aligned and separated so that we get good stereo on the low altitude shots. I don't have time to process and render the tapes now, but we'll see. Making stereo video, especially in HD, is not a trivial thing.
In the other photo you can see John (thanks for your great flying and patience) with the cameras on his control bar, and the little Vari-Zoom monitor we rigged for him at left center.Labels: LRRD stereo video
