I’m planning on cycling Iceland late summer 2024.
This would be the ultimate … — … AND I won’t be doing anything this challenging. 😀
Riders Chris Burkard, Eric Batty, Emily Batty, and Adam Morka.
Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.
Category: cycling
Bicycle Suspension Stems
Multi-pivot stems are recommended for small, repetitive impacts.
Coil springs do the best job of smoothing your ride.
Elastomer springs are less bouncy.
Kinect $189
3 spring rates
Details ➙ Why Suspension Stems Are The Ultimate Comfort Upgrade For Bicycles
Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube. Alee Denham is one of my cycling gurus.
History of Bikepacking
In 2024 — I have to call myself an experienced Bikepacker.
Any trip where you carry enough gear to allow sleeping overnight … somewhere. Even a motel.
A multi-day cycling trip.
For me it was a natural extension of hiking. Fun, enjoyable, exercise outdoors.
Low cost.
I enjoy tenting. So that’s a bonus for me.
Joe Cruz posted a terrific History of Bikepacking article.
People have been cycling overnight trips since the invention of the bicycle.
It’s astonishing to me how little bicycle technology has evolved.
Here’s Frank Lenz, who famously went missing during his circumnavigation of the globe, which he started in 1892.
TESTING Insta360 Ace Pro Features
I mainly want my new Ace Pro as a primary VIDEO CAMERA.
BUT — finally tested it out as an Action Camera.
Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube. (only 720p resolution, by accident. Should be 1080p)
One feature I like is adding Telemetry data. IF you hit record from the iPhone app or Apple Watch, the Insta360 app tracks your GPS and can later add that information to the video.
I have speed and distance added in this example.
I also had the Insta360 app apply blur to make the footage look less digital, perhaps more cinematic.
As you can see, the stability is excellent for a bumpy bike path.
I threw in a couple of 4 second AI edited sections they call AI Warp.
Overall … I’m not all that happy. For some reason it exported in 720p rather than 1080p as I had expected. Also, the in-camera LUT is not nearly as good as it looked in the app on my phone.
More experiments needed.
Here’s how that Telemetry works.
Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.
My NEXT Smart Bike Helmet
review
Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.
Original post from Jan 2024.
I’ve looked at a couple of smart helmets in the past. Not much impressed.
But this one looks worth spending the bucks.
As I post, you can get an early bird price on the full kit for U.S. $300. They expect it to retail for $500.
AURA by UNIT 1
Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.
Details on Indiegogo.
What is Bikepacking?
Any bicycle carrying enough gear to allow you to sleep overnight … somewhere. Even a motel.
There’s a continuum between those who carry panniers. And those who use smaller bike bags.
Those who are trying to make more miles. On rougher trails. Possibly carrying their bike, … I call bikepackers.
I use panniers and call what I do bike touring. I might add a trailer, one day. … Perhaps an electric motor. 😀
Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.
related – WHY Bikepacking ?? … 🚲
For me bikepacking was a logical extension of hiking.
My NEW Insta360 Ace Pro Action Camera
A Christmas present to myself 2023.
Here’s my 1st video using mostly Ace Pro footage.
Videotaping animals and birds is particularly challenging when using cameras without much optical zoom.
Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.
I’d long planned to replace both my old GoPro and my Sony ZV1 camera with one action camera — and finally made the leap when the Insta360 Ace Pro was released December 2023.
My minimum gear for shooting video has never been lighter nor more compact.
- iPhone 13 Mini
- DJI Mavic Mini S.E. drone and extra batteries
- Insta360 Ace Pro
I can use the Ace Pro with all my GoPro attachments.
Action cameras are even more durable than phones.
Of the dozens of cool features available with the Ace Pro, I’ll actually be using very few for my hiking videos.
Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.
Settings
90% of the time I will be shooting:
- 4K 30fps HDR. Stabilization STANDARD.
- Automatic focus.
I like HDR (high dynamic range) and shoot the same on my iPhone. Over-saturated video looks good to me on YouTube. Especially if watching on a phone.
4K 30fps is the most I can shoot in HDR on the Ace Pro. (Better would be 60fps in HDR. That would be my #1 request for future upgrade.)
I export at 1080p 30fps so can crop / zoom down without losing resolution.
Shooting in this setting I can quickly zoom 50% and yet still end up with 4K video whenever I want by double tapping the screen. How does 4K zoom to 4K? … Some sort of digital trickery in camera they call clarity zoom.
Their 8K is 4K with 4 small pixels replacing each normal 4K pixel. So far I haven’t been much impressed with 8K for video.
Ultrawide gives the widest possible perspective for outdoor scenery. I’ll use that mode when shooting BIG outdoor vistas.
Most of the time, I’ll use Dewarp (minimal distortion) as it most closely matches a normal camera with almost no curvature to the image.
iPhone App and Apple Watch App
I’ll be using the Apple Watch app quite a bit. It’s simple. Quick. And intuitive.
I might never use the phone app which is complicated. And really not needed for someone who plans to edit video later on laptop.
Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.
Photos
Initially, I thought I’d shoot photos on iPhone 13. Video on the Ace Pro.
Comparing different photos on the Ace Pro v iPhone 13, so far I’m MUCH preferring iPhone. Seems Apple does a much better job with photos.
On the other hand, it’s bloody convenient to take a photo simultaneously while videotaping with the new camera. A great feature of the Ace Pro.
AND I’m thinking it will be more convenient to take selfie photos and video with the Ace Pro on the tripod using Voice Command.
Voice Command on iPhone seems to screw up a lot for me. I probably won’t use it.
Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.
Voice Command on the Ace Pro works most of the time, even in noisy environments.
This camera has Gesture Control — but it works inconsistently, as it does on every other product I’ve tried with that feature.
Downsides of the Insta360 Ace Pro
The AcePro has no GPS. With iPhone photos and video, I sometimes look up the metadata to see exactly where and when I took the picture — very useful.
It’s possible to use the phone app — or even the watch app — to get the metadata, but that’s too much hassle for me.
The biggest problem now, however, is lack of much zoom on any of my cameras. I’d love to have something with 10x optical, as well.
Since I export at 30fps, in my normal shooting mode I won’t be able to slow down video. In reality, I don’t use much slow mo anyway, so it probably won’t be a problem. BUT I’ll need to remember to switch to slow motion if I ever want some of those captures.
Still experimenting …
YouTube Video – Sound Effects
This is my 2nd experiment in video editing using software called Audio Sound Design to add sound effects.
I MIGHT have overdone it. 😀
The software has 70,000+ royalty free sounds, loops and music cues. But for me it’s overkill. Too complicated. A bit buggy.
Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.
Cycling the Danube
September, 2023.
Click PLAY or watch a 1-minute highlights video on YouTube.
I started in Passau, Germany, cycling to Ulm. About 238-miles (383km) over 5 days.
It follows the rail corridor of the Danube Valley Railway for long stretches. And alongside the river for even more.
To get to the Danube at Passau, I cycled from Salzburg mostly along the Austria / German border. Much along the Inn river, which had recently flooded. Some of the bike paths were still closed. Many more were MUDDY.
About 130km over a day and a half.
Beautiful scenery. In many ways, I liked it better than the Danube as the Inn river is less developed. And you are closer to the water more often.
I arrived Passau very tired —a long day in the saddle. Had to push my bike up this hill to get to the Youth Hostel.
Yeesh. Toughest part of the day.
The official German Youth Hostel is part of one of largest castle complexes in Europe.
After wild camping the first night on the bike, I ended up staying either at youth hostels like this one. Old. Huge. Retro. Something out of the 1960s.
OR …
… simply stopping at one of the small, crowded campgrounds. There’s always space for one more tent. 😀 Cost is less than $15 / night at most.
This one associated with the local canoe club was my favourite.
Though I did do quite a bit of sightseeing along the way, here I’ll present just a sampling of the highlights.
In my own brain 😀 it all merges into one long week of castles, churches, and pretty German architecture.
After a long, hot day into Ulm, Germany, I suffered leg cramps during the night. Decided to quit the Danube for 2023.
Friends in Munich are storing my bike and cycling gear.
As a minimalist, it’s nice to go back to travel with only carry-on luggage. 😀
I might go the other direction towards Budapest next time. OR — more likely — cycle the Rhine north.
The BIG Picture
Passau to Vienna and Vienna to Budapest are 2 of the most popular sections on Europe’s most popular long distance cycling path ➙ EuroVelo 6 (EV6), named the “Rivers Route“.
Part of the EV6 is the Danube Cycleway (de:Donauradweg) from Donaueschingen to Passau in Germany, through Austria to Vienna, and continues on to Bratislava in Slovakia, to Novi Sad and Belgrade in Serbia, before continuing on towards the Danube Delta.
My video/photo editing workflow
Updated April 2024.
A #CovidGoal was to improve my video editing.
Here’s a summary of my video editing journey.
I started a new YouTube channel dedicated to HIKING.
A secondary goal, to improve photos and start sharing them more. I started an Instagram account for my hiking pics – BestHikeVisuals.
Mostly I’ve been disappointed with the many limitations of Instagram. I’m not a fan of that platform. I store my best (64,000 😀) photos on a paid site ➙ Flickr by Smugmug.
I shoot iPhone photos and video in HDR (High Dynamic Range). The BIG advantage of phone cameras is the black magic used in the automatic setting. Most of the time automatic results are better than I can do manually. AND it’s a lot FASTER.
After posting my French Creek tribute,(2021), I declared I was GOOD ENOUGH at video editing for my purposes. Approaching “Concious Competent“. I could sit down at a table with a professional video editor and understand 75% of what they were talking about. 😀
The remaining 25% has mostly to do with colour. Skin tone. Complicated stuff. Creators who can afford it often send their own work out to a specialist for colour correction.
NEXT STAGE = STORY
Story. Story. Story.
Every edit should contribute to the STORY.
I threw this one together quickly as a teaser for my West Coast Trail survival videos. But in some weird way, it’s evocative of that wild and challenging hike.
I’m particularly happy with the audio.
Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.
- I’m usually shooting solo
- 3 cameras: Insta360 Ace Pro Action Camera, iPhone 13 Mini (with-or-without DJI OM 6 gimbal), and DJI Mini 4 drone
- For video I’ve switched from 24fps to 30fps as it’s a little sharper, though less cinematic.
- the Ace Pro is my main camera for video.
- Ignoring advice of most experts, I mostly shoot Intelligent Auto Mode. In fact, I shoot Intelligent Auto Photo Mode almost all the time — as it’s QUICK on the Sony to take a 5472 × 3080 [16:9] photo and QUICK to switch to Intelligent Auto video 4K 30fps. With 4K I have plenty of room to crop or zoom to my final product in 1080p.
- The biggest risk of shooting Auto is shifting exposure during the same scene. When that happens I’ll have to crop scenes so as not to show the flickering. One exception is with the DJI drone — with the exposure is set to Auto while flying, I can LOCK 🔓 it in by clicking the small button bottom lower right of the Fly app display. That’s the case with all cameras ➙ but I often forget to lock exposure.
- Shooting auto I tend to get video more saturated than reality. To that, I add even more saturation and contrast. I like that exaggerated look though it’s considered uncool in 2023.
- ZV-1 Memory Recall #3 = 1080p / 60fps for slow motion (60 is better math when slowing for 30fps output)
- ZV-1 Memory Recall #2 = 4K / 30fps
- ZV-1 Memory Recall #1 = is for Time Lapse photos 5472 × 3080 [16:9]. This setting I use mainly for photos, choosing the best from the collection. 16:9 ratio makes for a time lapse photo that matches the dimensions of my export video.
- PHOTOS
- I often shoot photos in RAW and JPG both — but usually edit in RAW.
- Apple’s free Photos app on the Mac is not perfect, but I’m still using it for organization. And quick edits. It’s a much better photo editor in 2023 than just a couple of years ago.
- I’ve switched to Pixelmator Pro for editing the best of the best photos for Instagram.
- All photos are archived in my Flickr Pro account.
- I quit trying Sony video S-Log2, S-Log3, and other HLG profiles used by the cool kids as it was way too much hassle for gains in quality I don’t really need.
- iPhone 13 Mini on the OM 6 gimbal apps: Camera, Moment, DJI Mimo, SkyFlow
- the 13 Mini probably just as good as the ZV-1 in bright daylight. But I’ll use it mostly for B roll: slow-mo, time lapse, special effects, etc. (always 4K and 60fps for slow mo or speed ramping. 30 fps normal. 24 fps low light). I shoot HDR High Dynamic Range 10-bit. The better quality ProRES is not available on my 13 Mini.
- I’ll probably switch to the dedicated SkyFlow app timelapse app as it’s so quick and simple.
- The 13 has less stabilization than 13 Pro or Max, so I’ll use it on the gimbal as much as possible.
- One great gimbal feature that finally works consistently on the DJI OM 6 is GESTURE CONTROL for tracking myself. It seems like I have a cameraman, though I’m solo. That’s only available on the DJI Mimo app.
- Space on the phone is not a worry as I’ll transfer photos and videos on the fly via a tiny SanDisk 256GB memory stick.
- The 13 Mini will be a dedicated camera and audio player. I’m currently carrying a second iPhone, the S.E. mini as my phone phone.
- GoPro 7 is for B roll: action, water, fake drone, etc. (mostly 2.7K 60fps as 2.7 is the highest it can go with Superview (16:9 aspect ratio) enabled. I’d only switch to 4K if on a tripod.)
- low light set on auto
- ISO min 100, max 400 (400 might be low)
- Protune off
- Head mount, chest mount, handlebar mount, selfie stick, or tripod, depending on the situation.
- Editing video with Final Cut Pro X on a MacBook Pro 14″ 2021 with 16 GB internal memory. That said, the cheapest MacBook Air is sufficient for almost everything I do.
- Export in 1080p
- master file using ProRes 422
- export ‘Computer’
- export H.264 Faster Encode
- Shoot 120 fps only for smoke, fire, fast moving sports, etc.
- As little hand held video as possible. Use tripods. Handheld would only be used to show ACTION. Close-up motion. I don’t shoot much of that.
- Shorter the better for my videos.
- No ads. I gave up trying to monetize anything on the internet years ago.
Keeping electronics powered while on the road is one of my bigger problems.
For hikes where weight is critical, the only essentials are phone and drone.
For bikepacking, I’ve taken EVERYTHING on some long trips. Weight and bulk are not really issues.
For the electronics, I’m now using a UGREEN Nexode 100W wall charger, even for the laptop. I leave the Apple brick at home.
For the GoPro, I’ll carry at least two 3.85 Volt batteries and a tiny charging case. I find these batteries die too quickly.
In 2024, I’ll likely upgrade to a better GoPro or Insta360.
I sometimes carry a solar panel. And I’m increasingly interested in the Shine ultra-compact wind turbine. An even better solution for me than solar — but it’s still a bit too expensive. And too heavy at 3 pounds.
The Sony is my favourite camera. But when it breaks I’m planning to continue using only an Action camera and iPhone, with or without gimbal. Both cameras are small, light and durable.
The top hiking blogger, Kraig Adams, recently sold his big camera and shot only iPhone and drone. UPDATE ➙ Kraig went back to carrying an expensive camera. But he really wants to dump it. He calls himself a minimalist.
Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.
Happy enough with the quality of my videos, my MAIN GOAL 2023 was to produce the same quality FASTER.
Better planning. Shoot less footage with a clearer concept on what scenes I want to capture.
My videos are getting shorter, as well. That’s FASTER too.
Still time consuming is finding the music for each. I’d say audio is at least as important as the visuals.
My favourite audio, so far, is BEST VIDEO Highlights 2022.
Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.
That’s ODESZA. Indeed, my favourite YouTube music 2022 were tracks from that duo.
Once I decide on music, I find it fairly quick and easy to decide the sequence of clips. And do the editing. I have an ✔ EDITING CHECKLIST on Apple Notes app I continually update.
Of course the future of video editing and creating is AI.
Well established for images, artificial intelligence for video is just getting started.
One app I tried is called BeatMark Pro.
Give it the music track. Drag in all video and/or photos you want to include. And the software creates an edit for you. Normally, you click again to watch a different edit. And you can change the length of the music track quite easily. The software tries to find a good place to cut the song.
It’s mainly intended for short, fast cut Instagram, TikTok, and Reels.
BeatMark Pro is amazing. But far from perfect.
To keep it simple I tried a photo slide show. Got a decent result. Then did an additional hour of editing to come up with this.
Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.
My most popular video, so far. Fisherman’s Trail, Portugal.
Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.
Only twice so far has YouTube promoted any of my videos, even though the quality is conspicuously better than hiking videos with far more views. YouTube is terrible at search, I’d say. 😀
Rick McCharles 