wtyler

I bought a Bogen/Manfrotto 3221/501 fluid head (I'm not sure which of those numbers is Bogen and which Manfrotto) and 3221 legs. The combination is quite usable, though I suppose that a ton of extra cash would get something even more so.

Tripod leveling is an important part of using a video camera, especially if you want to pan. The 501 head has a built-in bubble level that makes this relatively easy. The trick is to figure out which leg the bubble is closest to, and shorten that leg until it's closer to some other leg. Repeat until level. With a small amount of practice this is faster to do than to describe. Watch out for legs slipping on the dirt after you finish leveling.

Bill

I've had trouble capturing from a Canon GL-1 to any 5400 RPM drives. I get tons of dropped frames, or the capture application won't run at all. I've had no trouble at all capturing to a 20GB 7200 RPM.

Bill

Hi Bob.

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Yes, I'm the same Bill Tyler.

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I just don't see the sharp dividing line between some manipulations and others, and why digital manipulations are worse than analog ones. Over 100 years ago, Henry Peach Robinson was making multiple-negative prints that purported to be single scenes. Was he less a liar because he used 'non-digital' techniques? More recently, someone like Jerry Uelsmann has used a traditional darkroom to produce surreal images that are as seamless as any digital fakery. Uelsmann isn't trying to deceive, but his techniques could certainly be used deceptively. The crucial point is NOT the particular technology, but the intent to deceive.

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Bill

It seems to me that arguments about what digital techniques are acceptable (answers seem to range from none to all) miss the point. Manipulated imagery goes back well over 100 years, and darkroom techniques for an extremely wide range of image manipulations are available. The real issue is whether the technique is being used to deceive, either purposefully or unintentionally. The photographer who frames a scene to show only the bear in the woods, and not the dumpster that the bear has just feasted from, has already committed deception by removing critically important context. Adding another bear digitally might offend some people more, but would be no more significant as an alteration of reality.

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Bill