Radiance of the Seas on Vimeo

Royal Caribbean Radiance of the Seas, San Diego to Vancouver repositioning cruise. Ports of call: San Diego, San Francisco, Victoria Island, and Vancouver BC.

Panasonic DMC-GH2
Lumix 14-140 & f1.7 20mm lenses
Benro tripod
Manfrotto 700RC2 head

Stunning footage, of course, Dan. Really beautiful, breathtaking.

I wonder though, in the shot at :38 the sky is dark in upper left hand side. Do we know why? It's not light fall-off, I don't think. I've watched it and watched it. If the shot had been underexposed, then the sky on the right would have been dark also, right? I don't know. It was clearly a difficult shot to expose correctly, and it seems you had your settings perfect, but that dark portion? Just weird.

I'm going to shoot some panoramic shots today and that is why I'm wondering if there's anything can be done to avoid that, or if it will even be a problem.

I'm concerned about this because I've read about using graduated ND fileters, and I really don't want to get into them, but there are circumstances where they would be handy for panoramic shots of skylines, etc.

I was struck by how blue your skies were. Were you using a polarizing lens? It sure looks like it.

Really great footage, I am afraid much as I like using my tripod that I am past taking mine on a trip like that.

Stunning footage, of course, Dan. Really beautiful, breathtaking.

I wonder though, in the shot at :38 the sky is dark in upper left hand side. Do we know why? It's not light fall-off, I don't think. I've watched it and watched it. If the shot had been underexposed, then the sky on the right would have been dark also, right? I don't know. It was clearly a difficult shot to expose correctly, and it seems you had your settings perfect, but that dark portion? Just weird.

I'm going to shoot some panoramic shots today and that is why I'm wondering if there's anything can be done to avoid that, or if it will even be a problem.

I'm concerned about this because I've read about using graduated ND fileters, and I really don't want to get into them, but there are circumstances where they would be handy for panoramic shots of skylines, etc.

I was struck by how blue your skies were. Were you using a polarizing lens? It sure looks like it.

Thank you for the encouraging words Jeff. I'm always happy to hear you enjoyed these projects.

That dark area is a polarizing filter effect of the sun being to my left. I usually minimize it by backing the filter off a bit, but was most concerned with glare from the water. Lately, when not dealing with glare, I've preferred the simplicity of an ND filter.

Thanks for watching.

Yes, now that you mention it, I use polarizing filters most time outdoors, but I usually forget to rotate them, there are so many other things to fiddle with. My shoot earlier I shot for an hour and didn't once check the filter's position or adjust it, I completely forgot.

On the good side, I got a gray card and set my white balance with it, and while I haven't seen the footage yet, I feel confident it will be decent color wise.

Very nice video. I enjoyed the recent Alcatraz one as well, and it was good to see it in the overall context of the cruise.

A question if I may - can the GH2 use a linear polariser, or do we still need to use circular ones as per a traditional SLR?

Mark, read the link at bottom for info about polarizing lenses, and scroll down to the section you need about linear vs circular.

It has been told to me we need circular because of the camera's metering system. Also if you get a "rotating" adjustable polarizing filter, make sure you rotate it to the desired setting, rather than just leave it sit on you camera. This has messed me up where I've had it too dark for conditions. I also suspect the Polarizing filter can affect white balance so that if you adjust your filter, you may want to reset your WB, if you are setting it manually.

For critical portraiture, I am setting white balance manually and am happy with the results.

http://www.luminous-landscape.com/tutorials/polarizers.shtml

I should add that my comments about resetting white balance after adjusting polarizer may be in error, I don't really know if is necessary or not. In truth I don't even know how to properly use my rotating PL filters, when to adjust, and where they should be set.

As of today, I'm generally going to keep them on the lighter setting, and then see how that works out. It is difficult when working in the sun to see what effect the filter has, and I just have to keep shooting, practicing and looking at my results and go from there.

Very nice video. I enjoyed the recent Alcatraz one as well, and it was good to see it in the overall context of the cruise.

A question if I may - can the GH2 use a linear polariser, or do we still need to use circular ones as per a traditional SLR?

Mark,

Since they use a contrast based focus system, I would expect the GH cameras to have no problem with linear polarizers.

Always a good idea to perform auto and manual white balance tests with any filter to check for color shift.

Good luck

Dan, that's really useful info about the linear filters, they are supposedly better than circular ones if we can get away with them. Unfortunately I've bought 5 circular filters, but I agree after reading the above link, it sounds like they are unnecesary, as our cameras are mirrorless.

below is a great tutorial on polarizing lenses. I have suspected I've not been using mine correctly, and have been reading everything I can find. I was sent here by a friend at photo.net.

DSLR Tips Workshop: How to use polarizing filters to reduce haze and deepen blue sky (http://www.dslrtips.com/workshops/How_to_use_polarizing_filters/reduce_haze_deep_blue_sky.shtml)

Thanks for the feedback and links.

I like the footage a lot. Hoping I can shoot like that eventually with more practice.

Dan, that's really useful info about the linear filters, they are supposedly better than circular ones if we can get away with them. Unfortunately I've bought 5 circular filters, but I agree after reading the above link, it sounds like they are unnecesary, as our cameras are mirrorless.

below is a great tutorial on polarizing lenses. I have suspected I've not been using mine correctly, and have been reading everything I can find. I was sent here by a friend at photo.net.

DSLR Tips Workshop: How to use polarizing filters to reduce haze and deepen blue sky (http://www.dslrtips.com/workshops/How_to_use_polarizing_filters/reduce_haze_deep_blue_sky.shtml)

Thanks for the link Jeff. I've always enjoyed the Camera Labs video reviews and tutorials.

I like the footage a lot. Hoping I can shoot like that eventually with more practice.

Many thanks Mike. I hope you're enjoying your GH2 journey.

Your welcome Dan, I really meant the link for Mark, but if you can use it great! Nice site, it's new to me.

yeah I love the camera so far. Its going to be quite a while before I get the footage out of it that its capable of but no regrets getting it.

I need another lens beyond the kit so may order one this weekend. Will prob get the 20mm.