[Nick Higgins]

I grew up in Saudi Arabia and went to sleep with the sound of home brewed wine gurgling away quite happily- its actually quite therapeutic. You might not be able to order a beer in a bar but you can certainly get smashed on a daily basis as many expats do.

I’m also no luddite but I’d rather partake in home brew than I would spend countless hours of P2 media management on my lonesome in a hotel room after a long days shoot.

http://www.nickhiggins.com
http://www.doubledogfilms.com

[Nick Higgins]

Thanks for your prompt reply Meryl, much appreciated. I for one am certainly glad to hear that the camera will be around for the next wee while.

Re the book and serial number I would be very happy to send you the details but I cant find your email address in your profile. Mine is nickhigz@prodigy.net

I am assuming that if I bought the camera through a US dealer (Samy’s) then it cant be grey market…………right?

http://www.nickhiggins.com
http://www.doubledogfilms.com

[Nick Higgins]

I just got notification from the company handling the free guide books on Panasonics behalf that the serial number on my camera (that was bought at Samy’s in LA) doesn’t match the ones on their list….???? What a pain. Hope that the camera isn’t discontinued b4 they straighten it out and send out the book.

http://www.nickhiggins.com
http://www.doubledogfilms.com

[Nick Higgins]

My top tip is to add a battery operated computer keyboard vacuum cleaner to your kit. While I do not enjoy cleaning houses I do quite enjoy busting this out and hoovering up my camera body.

https://www.gadgets-weblog.com/50226711/mini_keyboard_vacuum.php

http://www.nickhiggins.com
http://www.doubledogfilms.com

[Nick Higgins]

Not sure why it happened but one time I switched a Varicam F model from 59.94 to 60 to record at 25fps for a 50Hz edit but as soon as I rebooted the camera the viewfinder stopped working. When I switched back it was fine. Thats when you get that cold sweat feel.

http://www.nickhiggins.com
http://www.doubledogfilms.com

[Nick Higgins]

If you plug a charger into a surge protector into a 220 to 110 transformer folk will start to wonder if you really are an engineer, just be mindful of who’s watching!

[Nick Higgins]

Before you plug anything in you should check the back of each device to verfiy that it says its rated for 50-60Hz and 110-220 Volts. If it is then you will be in good shape and can plug away.

Before you do that though you should probably think about plugging everything through a surge protector. The local power might not be as smooth as your devices might appreciate. You should probably be able to get one in country at a local electrical store or you can get one here before you go- just make sure its rated for 220Volts. This is the type of thing you’d need

https://www.voltageconverters.com/itemdesc.asp?CartId={31AD0FA0-A028-4D6D-8BEB-17BE0263AC5EVEREST8}&ic=BB136

Cheers

Nick Higgins
DP-LA

ps . Besides power issues the biggest thing to remember is that if you are shooting the camera in 60Hz mode you will need to shoot at 1/50 shutter speed to avoid flicker from any lights.

http://www.nickhiggins.com
http://www.doubledogfilms.com

[Nick Higgins]

Cheers John,

I ended up getting a set from Birns and Sawyer (NOT cheap!!) and so far so good. You are right about putting it down though- you have to be creative to find somewhere that works.

Nick Higgins
DP-LA

http://www.nickhiggins.com
http://www.doubledogfilms.com

[Nick Higgins]

Cheers Bruce for your feedback- much appreciated. I do run with an ENG lens but am currently investigating ways of alleviating some of the stress on my right wrist when doing long days of hand held work. I broke my wrist playing football (aka soccer) a few years back and it gets cranky if I do too much with it. If I could share the pain by switching between the regular lens handle and another hand-held grip in a different position I think it might help out.

For that matter does anyone have any words of wisdom on shooting with a dodgy wrist. I cant imagine that I am the only one with a 20lb camera in this predicament.

http://www.nickhiggins.com
http://www.doubledogfilms.com

[Nick Higgins]

Leo & co

Just a quick note of thanks for the advice you all gave prior to our West Africa shoot. I’d say the dark background tip was a real winner and really allowed me to expose for the faces without the back end clipping out.