Yawn! I’m absolutely cream crackered, and Amanzi is asleep.

Today we hit the second phase of PADI Openwater scuba diver training – Confined Water Dives, a.k.a. Pool Session. There was a 200m swim to complete, a 10 minute float, then entry, donning and doffing gear (in the water and out) and some 20 other skills.

Whew – time for bed.

R42

Day one of our hoilday, and as often is the case, it was a day of travel. Unlike last years trip, however, we weren’t looking down the barrel of 33 hours of travel to Europe, via a night in Korea. But then this year, we’re not even leaving the state. Having said that, many, many people spend thousands of Rubles, Yen, Dollars, and Pounds to come to Australia on holiday, and as far north as Coffs Harbour. So no complaints here, a world class holiday is made from the memories with family, not hefty credit card bills. More on that later.

We planned to leave at 10am for the 6 hour drive to Coffs, and managed to get away at about 1:30. Lu commented on how relaxed I was, apparently a change from my younger years. Of course it helped that we didn’t have a train/plane/bus/boat to catch, but it is true that I’m more relaxed. Last year I took the conscious choice to enjoy every minute spent with the family, especially the girls, whom I spend far too little time with. It doesn’t matter whether we’re delayed in some airport, standing in some customs queue, or listening to a family member regale us with tales of the past, I was going to relish every moment. It’s a decision that lives with me still, and it’s more important to me to be having fun now, than worrying about leaving early.

That’s the theory anyway.

Also this trip is about Amanzi learning to dive. She’s now 12 and has reached the minimum legal age in Australia, and the family precedent, for learning to dive. Unfortunately I didn’t get to getting the theory classes we needed for Amanzi before we left for holidays, so she spent most of the drive going through the PADI manual. Tonight I went through putting the gear together, and tomorrow we start with pool sessions.

Here’s a video I whacked together on the new Canon HF100, which I’m still loving by the way.

R42

September is always a great month in the Lawrence Household, especially here in Australia.

Firstly, it's the month where any bonus I get, is paid. Then there's my Oma's and Dad's birthday's in the first week, Father's Day near the beginning of the month, Leah's birthday towards the end, and in a grand finale we have my birthday, a public holiday week-end and the school holidays.

With all those bonuses and birthdays, it's no surprise then that this is a common time for gadget refresh. Often the resolution of a number of months soul-searching "Do we really need it, can we really afford it" and research "eBay, vendor websites, physical stores, reviews, and of course Twitter"

On Saturday then I refreshed my camcorder, with the Canon HF100. This provides true HD (1080/50i and 1080/25p) like most of the other camcorders on the scene, but there's a couple of other reasons I chose this model:

• Flash memory - the camcorder records directly to SDHC cards. An hr on 8GB. This speeds up the capturing process: Just slip the card from the camcorder into your laptop and edit - sweet.
• Mic and Headphones sockets - For interviewing, or any decent sound, you want to be able to plug in a powered (directional) mic and monitor the sound.
• Good low light capture, and video light
• Accessible and comprehensive manual controls (WB, Focus, Aperture)

Of course there are other features I'm coming to appreciate as well (e.g. sub 1 sec startup), but those were my criteria. Interestingly the only other cameras which had all of those features together, were the Sony's. But they required a change to Memory Stick (expensive and I have none) and were expensive.

I bought the camcorder with the Canon Stereo/Directional Mic DM100, which fits neatly into a "Mini-Hot Shoe." Like the Rhode Video mic I already have, this provides a powered, shot-gun capability. However, unlike the Rhode, it is powered from the camcorder and has 2 stereo option settings (90 deg and 120 deg).

The Canon also has the seemingly unique feature of add-on converter lenses, both for Tele- and Wide-angle.

Yesterday Charis was playing at the Castle Hill Orange Blossom Festival with her School Band. I took the opportunity to test out the camera (in HD) and mic. Here's their rendition of Phantom of the Opera - note you can turn on the HD video by going to the Vimeo website.

R42