CPO : A Pilot in Training : This is my Journey

PPC1052 said:
A tip for cross wind corrections while taxiing: As you are taxiing on the parallel taxiway to the end of the run way for departure, turn the yoke to the same side (right or left relative to you) that you will be correcting on take off, and push the yoke forward. Assuming you are taking off into the wind, this will work so you don't have to try to remember which way to turn the yoke. (This only works as you are taxiing along the parallel taxiway, and not if you are making turns.)
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Great tip! I hadn't seen that one before, and I like it.
 
cipio said:
That's the one I was already familiar with, and the one my instructor used. I guess whatever works, eh? :)
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Yes, and you get bonus points for diplomacy. :)
 
Congrats on getting the first flight in. Thanks for the video.

I tried to go the cheap route for recording cockpit audio - following some suggestions I found (perhaps on this board). I used the basic earbuds to plug into the mic jack of the goPro and put the earbuds in the ear cups of my passenger's headset. That did not capture very good audio at all. Have heard good things about the cable from CrazedPilot and was going to order it yesterday but their site/checkout page was not secured.

Maybe I missed this in an earlier post but are you using a prop filter as well?
 
I'll make taxi controls simpler, "Climb into the wind, and dive away from the wind". If you just always do this with the controls on taxi, you'll never get upside down in a gust.
 
HouTxPilot82 said:
Congrats on getting the first flight in. Thanks for the video.

I tried to go the cheap route for recording cockpit audio - following some suggestions I found (perhaps on this board). I used the basic earbuds to plug into the mic jack of the goPro and put the earbuds in the ear cups of my passenger's headset. That did not capture very good audio at all. Have heard good things about the cable from CrazedPilot and was going to order it yesterday but their site/checkout page was not secured.

Maybe I missed this in an earlier post but are you using a prop filter as well?
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If you use paypal for the transaction, it redirects you to the paypal site for payment which should be secured. That's the way I did it. IF you do decide to buy one, I'd love it if you used my affiliate link (in the description of my video on the cable). Maybe if I refer enough people, they'll send me a t-shirt, LOL! The cable, btw, is solid and works like a charm. What I noticed was that audio was pretty much dead on full volume (0db). Most stuff I record using microphones and such is low on the volume, and then I have to boost it when I do video editing. With the direct connection (and I am assuming with the impedance matching with the cable) the volume is recorded at exactly the right levels. I was impressed.

I am not using a prop filter...but I am considering getting a 1.5ND filter and a larger capacity battery!
 
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cipio said:
Well...folks, this is it. This is my very first time in the airplane with my instructor, Vicki. I've been waiting a long time to get in the left seat. I wasn't actually scheduled for today, but the weather this week is supposed to be bad. I noticed a hole in the schedule and managed to squeeze in at the last minute before the weather degraded. In fact, the lesson after me was canceled because of high winds.

The only thing I didn't get to do was takeoff or land. The wind was just not favorable for my first attempts!

We covered most of the basics, and spent some extra time on the checklist before flight. That should get faster with repetition. We covered: straight and level flight, turning, ascending, descending, flaps, a little stall discussion, trimming, rudder. Next lesson should be fun...as I am expecting to actually do stall recovery. ;-)

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Finally watched it, not particularly fond of the camera angle, it makes my eyes want to go left, it's a bit bothersome, and will provide a completely annoying view of landings. Maybe look into a tripod for the back that secures with a suction cup to the back window.

The horizon indicator is adjustable because it will change with every speed and load change. Normally I don't touch it until I'm stable in cruise.

As to how and why things work, don't take what your instructor says as gospel, she's not quite clear on several concepts. I'm not particularly concerned for you since you study a lot on your own so eventually you'll figure this it for yourself, just don't let her confuse you on things that you feel or know are incorrect.
 
Henning said:
Finally watched it, not particularly fond of the camera angle, it makes my eyes want to go left, it's a bit bothersome, and will provide a completely annoying view of landings.
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You must of missed the beginning of the video (1:02) when I said the camera angle was moved from where I set it and was not where I wanted it to be. I think I bumped it getting in the plane after the pre-flight.
 
cipio said:
You must of missed the beginning of the video (1:02) when I said the camera angle was moved from where I set it and was not where I wanted it to be. I think I bumped it getting in the plane after the pre-flight.
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I don't think you will ever get a visually pleasing shot from that position, and bumping it, as I mentioned before, will be a continuous problem.
 
Henning said:
I don't think you will ever get a visually pleasing shot from that position, and bumping it, as I mentioned before, will be a continuous problem.
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This is the view I intended. I think it makes for a good view of the instrumentation and the view around. Not saying I will never use another angle, but for initial training, I think this gives me most of what I need to see. This is the view I set before I knocked it out of place.

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Exactly, and having that post in the middle of the field of view will be blocking the view of the immediate future making people to want to look around it. Try if you want, but it's still going to suck balls. People don't give 2 bloody craps about the instruments, they want to see out the windows, same as you should be doing. You need to move the camera to a between the seats view.
 
Henning said:
Exactly, and having that post in the middle of the field of view will be blocking the view of the immediate future making people to want to look around it. Try if you want, but it's still going to suck balls. People don't give 2 bloody craps about the instruments, they want to see out the windows, same as you should be doing. You need to move the camera to a between the seats view.
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You probably didn't watch my "getting ready" video, but I did mention this wasn't my first choice in a mounting location. I would've preferred a straight on view as you propose, but alas, it wasn't seeming like it was going to work in the airplane. Feel free to check out the video and let me know if you have any tips. I have even been considering using a compression rod across the back with the go Pro mounted to the middle of it, but I'm not sure that will actually work. And lastly, while the instrumentation may not be of any value to another viewer, that's actually one of the things I'm looking forward to reviewing on my own videos while I'm learning.
 
cipio said:
This is the view I intended. I think it makes for a good view of the instrumentation and the view around. ]
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Agreed. It's a good view of outside and part of the panel. Thanks for sharing all of this with us. I really appreciate the effort you are putting into it.
Congrats on your first flight; I look forward to seeing the next one.
 
Get a small Manfroto tripod and a suction cup mount with an arm clamp and a long enough arm to get the camera where you want it, then set the tripod up beneath it to give it support using a second clamp on the head of the tripod. The feet of the tripod can be wedged under the seat backs and against the back bulkhead, then there are a couple of anchor points back there where you can secure it in place by tying it down with some line.

I understand what you're up against, trust me.:lol: I was securing heavy medium format camera in planes back in the day.

While you found a simple solution, it is not a working solution if you are seeking to capitalize on these videos. Your content has to be pleasing to the eye and mind, and that camera location will never yield either.

One other thing to consider about the content, are you making a video about making a video, or are you making a video about flying? You can do both, but if you choose to, it would be better to segregate those contents, maybe talk about the video aspects of it at the close. Having it mishmashed together detracts from the overall experience IMO.
 
cipio said:
If you use paypal for the transaction, it redirects you to the paypal site for payment which should be secured. That's the way I did it. IF you do decide to buy one, I'd love it if you used my affiliate link (in the description of my video on the cable). Maybe if I refer enough people, they'll send me a t-shirt, LOL! The cable, btw, is solid and works like a charm. What I noticed was that audio was pretty much dead on full volume (0db). Most stuff I record using microphones and such is low on the volume, and then I have to boost it when I do video editing. With the direct connection (and I am assuming with the impedance matching with the cable) the volume is recorded at exactly the right levels. I was impressed.

I am not using a prop filter...but I am considering getting a 1.5ND filter and a larger capacity battery!
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Thanks. I've read positive comments about their cable from others as well. I noticed the Paypal option earlier but I just have a distaste for Paypal due to past transactions.

What I've noticed with my goPro is that after about an hour of continuous recording it seems to shut off on its own. I've wondered if this is due to heat, because when I turn it back on, I can see there is still plenty of battery life left. Any case, good luck with the next flight and on getting some good footage.
 
Get one of those Capuchin Monkeys and tape the go pro to his head. You will get a variety of angles, and it will go viral.
 
Or just do what I did. Stick a gopro mounting foot right on the glareshield:)
 
Well his choice but it's hard to get both effectively. I prefer to see the outside better and especially the runway environment but that's my opinion, others may differ.
 
Henning said:
Get a small Manfroto tripod
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Hmmm...gears turning. I hadn't considered a tripod. I have a great tripod that has a ton of configuration options...thinking... Might have to take a no fly day this week and just go play around in the airplane.

As far as the other point. Message received. It's more about the total journey...not so much a production of one type or another (although a lot of effort seems to be going into that at this point). That's one of the reasons I am hesitant to start adding multiple camera views...because the video work will be more important/time consuming than my learning to fly. I am trying to avoid that slippery slope.

Anyway...soon all of the videos about what happens behind the curtain in getting the video and audio will be done, and it will only be about the flying. But getting this stuff figured out is part of my journey. I know a lot of folks would like to also record their lessons (if only for private viewing) so this information actually becomes quite relevant to a certain audience. Thus far, most of the comments or questions about my videos have been about the equipment.

When I finally go solo, that options up a whole different list of options as the right seat opens up and new camera angles emerge!
 
fiveoboy01 said:
Well his choice but it's hard to get both effectively. I prefer to see the outside better and especially the runway environment but that's my opinion, others may differ.
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I guess it depends if its a flight video or a training video! Right now it's training videos. One day it may be flight videos. :)
 
SixPapaCharlie said:
Get one of those Capuchin Monkeys and tape the go pro to his head. You will get a variety of angles, and it will go viral.
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Where were you before I bought the suction cup! I could have saved so much money just getting a monkey and some duct tape.
 
cipio said:
Hmmm...gears turning. I hadn't considered a tripod. I have a great tripod that has a ton of configuration options...thinking... Might have to take a no fly day this week and just go play around in the airplane.

As far as the other point. Message received. It's more about the total journey...not so much a production of one type or another (although a lot of effort seems to be going into that at this point). That's one of the reasons I am hesitant to start adding multiple camera views...because the video work will be more important/time consuming than my learning to fly. I am trying to avoid that slippery slope.

Anyway...soon all of the videos about what happens behind the curtain in getting the video and audio will be done, and it will only be about the flying. But getting this stuff figured out is part of my journey. I know a lot of folks would like to also record their lessons (if only for private viewing) so this information actually becomes quite relevant to a certain audience. Thus far, most of the cmments or questions about my videos have been about the equipment.

When I finally go solo, that options up a whole different list of options as the right seat opens up and new camera angles emerge!
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Yeah, don't get me wrong, not knocking your efforts, just trying to provide some creative criticism to give you a better result. The best single camera cockpit angle I have found is over the inside shoulder of the right seat with a few degree viewing bias to the left.

To get tricky if I was making a rig to video inside the cockpit, I would mount one of the controllable security cameras on the tripod in that position, monitor it on an iPhone or iPad and Velcro on a coolie hat switch to the yoke so I can control the lens in turns and such.
 
Henning said:
To get tricky if I was making a rig to video inside the cockpit, I would mount one of the controllable security cameras on the tripod in that position, monitor it on an iPhone or iPad and Velcro on a coolie hat switch to the yoke so I can control the lens in turns and such.
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At that point, you may as well go with head tracking, so it just follows head movement. Turn your head to point the camera!
 
cipio said:
At that point, you may as well go with head tracking, so it just follows head movement. Turn your head to point the camera!
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No, head tracking is not good, too much movement, tried and abandoned.
 
Henning said:
Yeah, don't get me wrong, not knocking your efforts, just trying to provide some creative criticism to give you a better result. .
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Thank you. I get that sense. I appreciate the feedback.
 
cipio said:
Well...just saved some money there, then. ;-)
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Just a simple hat switch on a stalk would be the best IMO. All you want to do is provide a view into the future; to effect that the camera view should lead the plane, so it requires a slight turn into the turn, and optimally you mount the base a bit nose down so it sweeps up a bit with the bank angle.
 
cipio said:
Where were you before I bought the suction cup! I could have saved so much money just getting a monkey and some duct tape.
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I didn't want to bring it up before because it seemed like such an obvious thing I assumed you probably already tried it. Plus I wasn't sure how to spell "Capuchin" at the time so I needed to look it up.
 
It's FINALLY going to be a b-e-a-utiful day!.

KBWI 121054Z 00000KT 10SM CLR 01/M02 A3034 RMK AO2 SLP274 T00061022
KBWI 120854Z 1209/1312 00000KT P6SM SKC
FM122200 17006KT P6SM SKC
FM131000 16004KT P6SM BKN070

I'm on the books for a 1700Z flight.
 
cipio said:
It's FINALLY going to be a b-e-a-utiful day!.

KBWI 121054Z 00000KT 10SM CLR 01/M02 A3034 RMK AO2 SLP274 T00061022
KBWI 120854Z 1209/1312 00000KT P6SM SKC
FM122200 17006KT P6SM SKC
FM131000 16004KT P6SM BKN070

I'm on the books for a 1700Z flight.
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Beautiful day indeed. You deserve it after all your earlier delays!
 
Just read the entire thread. Thanks for sharing.

As for the CG comment mention much earlier and how it effects performance aside from the two extreem obvious points... I like a slightly rear CG. A fwd CG will require more horizontal stabilizer down force. More downward force equals more drag. More drag equals for fuel usage. A rear CG will reduce the downward force to maintain straight and level flight thus reducing drag and fuel consumption. A CG too far back though can lead to an unrecoverable stall.

Thanks for sharing your experiences. Keep it coming.
 
LmannyR said:
Just read the entire thread. Thanks for sharing.

As for the CG comment mention much earlier and how it effects performance aside from the two extreem obvious points... I like a slightly rear CG. A fwd CG will require more horizontal stabilizer down force. More downward force equals more drag. More drag equals for fuel usage. A rear CG will reduce the downward force to maintain straight and level flight thus reducing drag and fuel consumption. A CG too far back though can lead to an unrecoverable stall.

Thanks for sharing your experiences. Keep it coming.
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This is not commonly true in GA aircraft, it depends on if the tail has more reserve AOA than the wing. Basically as long as the wing stalls first, the nose will always drop, because when the wing stalls the center of lift transfers to the tail which is far behind the CG.
 
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