Our summer cruise so far (video)

scubaman

scubaman

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Evening All,

This year our plan was to head west and explore the archipelago in and around Stockholm. We started our holiday on June 22nd and as there was some bad weather coming, made the first leg to Hanko on one go. After several days of waiting for the weather to improve, we finally got to start our 130 NM trip to Sweden against abating head seas. We took the sheltered route to Utö https://www.google.fi/maps/place/Ut...692e3f8a6!8m2!3d59.7793979!4d21.3779501?hl=en from where we headed to the open sea to complete the remaining 60 miles to the north eastern part of the Stockholm archipelago.

Apart to some confused residual swell we had perfect conditions for our crossing. We were lucky with the weather as two days later there were 6,8 meter waves on that very area...

The video below starts from where we entered the Swedish side. Next up is Stockholm, then the beautiful waterways heading east followed by the fantastic Sandhamn and finally a treat on the way back home at the end of the vid.

Stockholm is a beautiful city to visit by a boat and the surrounding archipelago is simply stunning. There are beautiful old houses everywhere and waters are deep and easy to navigate. A brilliant trip and lots more to see for our next trip.

We have since returned to the Finnish side and continue our cruise for a further two weeks or so.



Here is another clip from Sandhamn. It was mainly to practice the use of a slider I bought, but gives some idea of how idyllic the place is:

 
Hurricane said:
Fantastic drone shots.
Are you using any filters and what modes are you shooting in?
Click to expand...

Hi M and thanks. Yep, I'm using PolarPro polarising filters which do seem to make such a difference. As for the mode, I'm using 'Normal' which, iirc, was discussed here and found to be good.
 
scubaman said:
Hi M and thanks. Yep, I'm using PolarPro polarising filters which do seem to make such a difference. As for the mode, I'm using 'Normal' which, iirc, was discussed here and found to be good.
Click to expand...

Great
I bought the small set and then added and ND32P
I was thinking with the bright light of open sea.
Off to the boat at the end of the week so will be giving it a try.

One other question
I've been shooting in the highest resolution (4K)
But that limits the frame rate.
Any thoughts on dropping the res and increasing the frame rates.
 
Amazing stuff K, thanks a lot for sharing it.

Every time I see your drone clips I think you reached a point where you can't improve further, but you always manage to prove me wrong! :encouragement:

Btw, I also loved the second video. It would be a perfect premise for a movie taking place in Sandhamn... :cool:
 
Lovely stuff. I'd get told off for some of those drone shots !

I upgraded my slider a couple of years ago and it really is a top tool for making professional looking videos. There's a temptation to over use it but if I'm honest that's probably more relevant when showing your films to other videographers. Someone off the street wouldn't be so harsh. On holiday I take my slider / camera / tripod for a walk just like you would a dog !

I like the establishing static shots before you introduce movement. It was very cinematic. I was just waiting for the subtitles and slightly uncomfortable police officer getting ready to investigate a murder ?

I'm sure I posted this up at the time. The slider was actually a really cheap little thing, a length of aluminium with a block of aluminium on the top but it captures a few countries around Europe ?



Oh, my current slider is a Konova K5. The only thing I do come across occasionally is people assuming I'm making a commercial film rather than a holiday movie and they want all sorts of permissions. I just have to smile and use my boyish charm ! The Emirates Palace hotel in Abu Dhabi were a bit shirty with me. The Grand Mosque (Blue Mosque) couldn't have been more welcoming towards me though.


Henry :)
 
MapisM said:
Amazing stuff K, thanks a lot for sharing it.

Every time I see your drone clips I think you reached a point where you can't improve further, but you always manage to prove me wrong! :encouragement:

Btw, I also loved the second video. It would be a perfect premise for a movie taking place in Sandhamn... :cool:
Click to expand...

Couldn't agree more MM, fantastic production work.

I imagine there is so much planning/calculating and editing that goes into these excellent videos, from both HF and SM.
 
henryf said:
Lovely stuff. I'd get told off for some of those drone shots !
Click to expand...

Finland is very liberal (their words) in their legislation over drones.
I bought my Mavic to take video of our daughter's wedding in Helsinki - man maths again!!
I contacted the Finnish authorities and explained that I wanted to use the drone for private use in accordance with their recommendations.
They replied saying that I didn't need their approval but their whole approach to drones is very sensible.
Far too many bureaucracies these days legislate for drones without knowing the facts.
It was very refreshing to come across a country with a realistic view.

Being father of the bride and having just broken my ankle, my son was delegated as drone pilot.
He did an excellent job and the Mavic worked well.
On the day, we used all three batteries - giving over an hour of footage to edit.
During the reception group photographs, we had the drone hovering in the same place all the time - just recording the various groups.
Sounds boring but it was great to capture those moments that otherwise would have been missed.
And,, actually, it wasn't noticed that much.
The noise of the drone wasn't obtrusive and it was generally ignored.
And afterwards, I managed to put together a great family video.
 
Thank you Gentlemen for the very kind words!

And sorry for the delayed reply, had a busy day at the Moomin World with the kids...

I'll make more detailed replies separately...
 
Last edited:
Hurricane said:
One other question
I've been shooting in the highest resolution (4K)
But that limits the frame rate.
Any thoughts on dropping the res and increasing the frame rates.
Click to expand...

A tricky one. I try to avoid panning or too fast sideways movement to keep the image as sharp as possible. As a general this seems to work reasonably well so so far I haven't seen the need to increase frame rates to reduce 'flickering'.

BUT, for artistic impression the increased frame rates (and the resulting slow motion videos) can work really well. In fact, to this very end, I bought a Panasonic Lumix GH5 which allows me to shoot at 180 fps, which can produce some really nice shots. I haven't yet tried this with the Mavic but I can see several uses for it.
 
MapisM said:
Amazing stuff K, thanks a lot for sharing it.

Every time I see your drone clips I think you reached a point where you can't improve further, but you always manage to prove me wrong! :encouragement:

Btw, I also loved the second video. It would be a perfect premise for a movie taking place in Sandhamn... :cool:
Click to expand...


Thanks P, you're too kind :).

With the second vid I did some tests to try to achieve a more cinematic look, but the whole art of color grading is still a a bit of a mystery to me.
 
henryf said:
Lovely stuff. I'd get told off for some of those drone shots !

I upgraded my slider a couple of years ago and it really is a top tool for making professional looking videos. There's a temptation to over use it but if I'm honest that's probably more relevant when showing your films to other videographers. Someone off the street wouldn't be so harsh. On holiday I take my slider / camera / tripod for a walk just like you would a dog !

I like the establishing static shots before you introduce movement. It was very cinematic. I was just waiting for the subtitles and slightly uncomfortable police officer getting ready to investigate a murder ��

I'm sure I posted this up at the time. The slider was actually a really cheap little thing, a length of aluminium with a block of aluminium on the top but it captures a few countries around Europe ��

Oh, my current slider is a Konova K5. The only thing I do come across occasionally is people assuming I'm making a commercial film rather than a holiday movie and they want all sorts of permissions. I just have to smile and use my boyish charm ! The Emirates Palace hotel in Abu Dhabi were a bit shirty with me. The Grand Mosque (Blue Mosque) couldn't have been more welcoming towards me though.

Henry :)
Click to expand...

Yep, the slider is a great tool. Mine is a cheapish Kooletron, but it's just about sturdy enough to serve it's purpose. And yes, you don't exactly blend in with the background with the rig :).

I remember your vid from some time back. A professional bit of video.

My main skills project this summer has been to learn to shoot vlog-type videos for personal use. The aim is to shoot the story of a day and supplement it with 'ambience' sequences including slider and drone shots with some music on the background (I hope my choice of words make sense). Several new things to learn, but fantastic fun at the same time. In those ambience bits, the slo mo bits work really well.
 
AndieMac said:
I imagine there is so much planning/calculating and editing that goes into these excellent videos, from both HF and SM.
Click to expand...

As I mentioned in my reply to Henry, I've been shooting vlog-type videos on this trip and the aim has been to shoot and edit a day's 'vlog' on one day. I have actually managed this on a few occasions :). As with everything, it does get a bit easier the more you do it. When shooting, I notice I sometimes already have an idea of what shots I need, and this directly helps when editing. I used to use hours in editing stuff, but now I try to be faster with it and not worry too much about inaccuracies and just put it down to artistic impression :).

To really get any good at it, I'd have to do it every day for a year maybe. But it's a hobby and it's so much fun to learn new stuff.
 
Hurricane said:
Finland is very liberal (their words) in their legislation over drones.
I bought my Mavic to take video of our daughter's wedding in Helsinki - man maths again!!
I contacted the Finnish authorities and explained that I wanted to use the drone for private use in accordance with their recommendations.
They replied saying that I didn't need their approval but their whole approach to drones is very sensible.
Far too many bureaucracies these days legislate for drones without knowing the facts.
It was very refreshing to come across a country with a realistic view.
Click to expand...

Some days ago I was at a marina flying the Mavic and one gentleman got rather irritated by this. I had deliberately flown the thing at a high altitude and on a large arc around the marina, but flying it back took it over his boat and he was convinced that I was shooting him. I wasn't. Anyway, a person from the marina office came to see what the problem was and immediately defended my right to fly a drone even if it annoyed someone. I can see that it does, but then, there are many things annoying people.

Anyway, the subject has been on the news yesterday as EU is imposing some new legistlation on drones that will affect
us.

The rationale behind the relaxed attitude of the authorities has been to encourage finding new and innovative uses for drones.
 
I think this forum is a great cross section of just what drones can do and how they can add to life. We have seen some amazing footage from around the world filmed not by professional film makers but normal slightly overweight middle aged (I'm being generous so roll with it) blokes.

There is a common thread of water and boats but even to someone not into boats they encourage you to get out there and see the world. Then there is the extra dimension to a family gathering. Speaking of weddings my brother got married in Norfolk the other day and we took over an amazing country house. Before we had left on Sunday there was a tangible memory of a great weekend that everyone could share.



Not a huge ordeal to make and what's interesting if you look from 2.00 onwards not at all intrusive into people's privacy. The whole privacy thing is, in my humble opinion a white elephant. The 94º angle of view lens on my Phantom means detail capture falls away rapidly as you move away from the camera. You think you've got a crisp image but you can't actually identify people unless you know who they are.

With my CCTV42 hat on I spend my whole day telling people that a 3.6mm 75º angle of view camera hasn't got crystal clear detail capture up to 20 or 30m like the marketing people claim. At 1080P you can identify someone up to about 5m give or take. At 30m you are a spec in the middle of the screen.

Sure there are some knobs out there flying drones irresponsibly but I think if you take adults flying them the vast majority do so in a sensible way. Why do some people object to drones? Probably because they don't actually realise the limitations of the optics. I could be way more intrusive with my Canon DSLR camera and my 100-300mm telephoto lens. But you wouldn't bat an eyelid if you saw me out on the street with it.

I hope I'm not drifting the thread but drone / video posts on here often turn into a general chat and a pooling of ideas. I know I've been inspired by what I've seen on the forum :)

Henry :)
 
Super nice again Scubaman! You managed to capture the true atmosphere, be it rain or shine the Stockholm archipelago is very plesant. We are currently in Mariehamn -West (Aland islands) after a windy crossing from the newly opened Bodö which is a former coast guard station north of Jurmo. This is operated now as a very nice guest harbour by a young very service minded couple, warmly recommended for anyone in the area :-). Tomorrow we are heading to Havsvidden on the north tip of Aland. On Sunday we plan to escort the Ships participating in the Tall Ships Race on Airisto south of Turku. Maybe we see each other there...
 
henryf said:
I think this forum is a great cross section of just what drones can do and how they can add to life. We have seen some amazing footage from around the world filmed not by professional film makers but normal slightly overweight middle aged (I'm being generous so roll with it) blokes.

There is a common thread of water and boats but even to someone not into boats they encourage you to get out there and see the world. Then there is the extra dimension to a family gathering. Speaking of weddings my brother got married in Norfolk the other day and we took over an amazing country house. Before we had left on Sunday there was a tangible memory of a great weekend that everyone could share.

Not a huge ordeal to make and what's interesting if you look from 2.00 onwards not at all intrusive into people's privacy. The whole privacy thing is, in my humble opinion a white elephant. The 94º angle of view lens on my Phantom means detail capture falls away rapidly as you move away from the camera. You think you've got a crisp image but you can't actually identify people unless you know who they are.

With my CCTV42 hat on I spend my whole day telling people that a 3.6mm 75º angle of view camera hasn't got crystal clear detail capture up to 20 or 30m like the marketing people claim. At 1080P you can identify someone up to about 5m give or take. At 30m you are a spec in the middle of the screen.

Sure there are some knobs out there flying drones irresponsibly but I think if you take adults flying them the vast majority do so in a sensible way. Why do some people object to drones? Probably because they don't actually realise the limitations of the optics. I could be way more intrusive with my Canon DSLR camera and my 100-300mm telephoto lens. But you wouldn't bat an eyelid if you saw me out on the street with it.

I hope I'm not drifting the thread but drone / video posts on here often turn into a general chat and a pooling of ideas. I know I've been inspired by what I've seen on the forum :)

Henry :)
Click to expand...

I saw that vid earlier when you posted it on youtube. Very nice footage and nice bit of flying. At 1:05 I thought 'he's going for it' :).

Agreed, vids like that are a terrific way to capture memories and re-live them in the middle of the winter.

People probably object to drones because they are still new to them. Whenever they see a drone, they assume it's filming them. That said, I can relate to them in that the sound they make can be a bit irritating, but it is in my view a considerably smaller inconvenience than, say, a party on a boat with the stereo on eleven.
 
baylabayla3288 said:
Super nice again Scubaman! You managed to capture the true atmosphere, be it rain or shine the Stockholm archipelago is very plesant. We are currently in Mariehamn -West (Aland islands) after a windy crossing from the newly opened Bodö which is a former coast guard station north of Jurmo. This is operated now as a very nice guest harbour by a young very service minded couple, warmly recommended for anyone in the area :-). Tomorrow we are heading to Havsvidden on the north tip of Aland. On Sunday we plan to escort the Ships participating in the Tall Ships Race on Airisto south of Turku. Maybe we see each other there...
Click to expand...

Hi BB,

We are currently in Naantali and have a berth booked in Ruissalon telakka for tomorrow. Our plan is to watch the ships leave on Sunday and then follow them to Airisto. I imagine there will be quite a few others as well, but will keep a look out for Alexandra. I noticed that during the main event in Turku, it is forbidden to fly drones, but I'm hoping the weather is nice so I can get some nice footage over Airisto.
 
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