"New" member: My introduction

Question Blake, did you have any trouble with your first post, or I should say starting your own thread? I have lurked here quite a while (not 10 years) and posted a handful of times. But last week I tried to start my own thread and got the following message:

"Thank you for posting! Your post will not be visible until a moderator has approved it for posting. You will now be taken back to the forum. If you opted to post a poll, you will now be allowed to do so."

Now, it's been almost a week, and my new thread has not yet appeared on the forum. Did you have this message?

If not, for anyone here to answer, what do i need to do to get my thread posted? Who should I contact? I had a strange situation happen in league last week and was hoping for some opinions. Thanks! And sorry to hijack the thread for a bit.
 
Hi Blake,

Welcome to the forum. Great stuff in your videos (I love the flying squirrel!)

I think an interesting and instructive video would be to take one shot and progressively show how different english effects the cue ball. To keep a tight frame I'd suggest the OB one ball off the rail, one or two diamonds from the corner pocket. It would be great if the frame could show both the spin of the CB and it's direction off the rail. Maybe angle the camera at 45-degrees rather than table level or overhead. The just shoot around the CB:

Center ball
Follow
Follow right (ie. 1:30)
Full right (3:00)
and so on, around the CB.

I'm a beginner. English was pretty much a mystery to me until I saw a couple of Dr. Dave's slow motion videos and a light bulb went off. "Ahha, so that's what's happening!)

What camera do you use? Used on the bike, it must be pretty rugged?
 
Softballmvp,

Yes, I had the same problem at first. Email Mike (see below) and he'll fix things up for you. Keep in mind that your first few new threads have to be approved before they'll show up. Mine took a couple of days, too. I believe that after you've posted (and have been approved) a few times, your posts will appear right away.

HousePro@azbilliards.com

-Blake
 
Everybody,

Thanks for the warm welcome and for your interest in the videos. It's been a while since I put one together, and I forgot how much work it requires!

Shooting slow motion video is a very time-intensive process (no pun intended). If I record 2 minutes of video at 1000 frames per second (33x slower than real time), the video clip itself turns out to be 66 minutes long! Of course, most of that is useless footage (pre- and post-shot), and after trimming it down, I'll probably end up with only a couple of minutes of clips. I was reminded last night just how much editing is needed.

So, let me adjust my video offer just a bit. I think it would be best if maybe I take everyone's requests and put together a few clips, but let's say I'll post them up once a week. This will allow me to really get some good shots and make sure the videos are correctly edited. That will save me a bunch of time, too, since I can edit them all at once.

How does that sound?

Thanks for understanding,

-Blake
 
Well, it took you long enough, didn't it? Welcome aboard.
If you get the chance, sign up for this coming Friday's field trip. We're all going to the Internation Museum of Toenail Clippers, in Piedmont, Iowa.
Should be a great time. I hear there's a pair of clippers that W.C. Fields used, and you can still smell the alcohol on them. :)
 
You've been lurking for over a decade and you are just now getting around to your intro post? How strong is that? ! ? :grin-square:

Welcome to the az forums, Blake. :thumbup:

Look forward to future interactions with you.

Let's see the 7-10 split in slo mo... :wink:

best,
brian kc
 
SloMoHolic said:
Softballmvp,

Yes, I had the same problem at first. Email Mike (see below) and he'll fix things up for you. Keep in mind that your first few new threads have to be approved before they'll show up. Mine took a couple of days, too. I believe that after you've posted (and have been approved) a few times, your posts will appear right away.

HousePro@azbilliards.com

-Blake
Click to expand...

Thanks Blake, I did email Mike and he responded very late Monday night saying he approved all pending posts, but my thread still isn't here. Guess I'll just wait a bit more.
 
Welcome! It's cool you're willing to contribute something few others can, slo-mo videos. There's a big collection on Dr. Dave's site, but there's always more stuff worth seeing.

One thing I'd like to see is more videos showing skid. Dave's site has a straight-in skid with follow, but I don't know of a video showing a typical skid where a cut shot gets undercut, and you see the object ball kind of turn over before rolling.

Also, if it hasn't been done, I'd love to see top-down video of the rack during a typical successful 9b break (wing ball flies in) and 10b break (2nd row ball pops into the side).

Maybe also a version where the 9 is racked on the spot, but the head ball is cut so the wing ball can still go in (and the 1 flies in the side). We saw a lot of these during the mosconi cup.

It would also be interesting to see a typical 2nd-row break in 8b where the 8 is successfully kicked into the side.
 
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Welcome.
How about drawing a line with a cloth tape or a chalk line and with the camera overhead to show swerve?

How about a center of the CB aimed at the edge of the OB to show the effects of cut induced throw and why it isn't 30 degrees? Does the OB move forward before going on track or does it swerve or both?

Thanks
 
I'd like to see a SloMO of Emily Duddy or Borana shooting pool. Can you post that for us to view?
 
SloMoHolic said:
MonsterMash,

Well, I tried again, but honestly I'm not sure my equipment is good enough to really capture that. I'll certainly try a few more times, but MAN, stuff happens fast in pool! I did a few break shots and came up with some otherwise interesting videos but I can't quite capture that chalk explosion. Yet.

[I'll post a vid of my attempts, just for fun]

I know exactly the shot you want to see, and I'll try to perfect it (as much for me, as for you). Give me a few weeks and I'll see if I can find the magic formula of camera angle, lighting, etc.

Keep the ideas coming. I need a good challenge every now and then.

Thanks,

-Blake
Click to expand...

Thanks for trying Blake. I'm a semi-pro photographer and I am considering trying to capture it as a still. If I can get the shot I want I may have some prints made up. :thumbup:
 
Monstermash said:
Thanks for trying Blake. I'm a semi-pro photographer and I am considering trying to capture it as a still. If I can get the shot I want I may have some prints made up. :thumbup:
Click to expand...

I might have a way to get it. My camera can shoot 40 frames in one second at 9 MP. I can also set it to fire upon motion detection, with prerecord. In other words, it records 40 fps constantly, dropping the oldest shot every time a new one is captured, then saves the 10 before and 30 after the motion detection fires off.

Alternatively, I believe I can set the shutter as fast as 1/40,000th of a second if I lower the resolution to 640x480 at 120 frames per second.

Needless to say, I LOVE this camera!

Hopefully one or both of those methods will get us a nice clear photo. I just can't quite get it on video.

I'll give it a shot tonight and post if it works.

-Blake
 
CreeDo said:
... more videos showing skid.
Click to expand...
Aww, man, I just got my Diamond ball polisher! Just a few days ago, I had more skid than Lindsey Vonn. :eek: (Sorry, that was in poor taste, but I couldn't resist. I wish her a speedy recovery!)

Now they just slide right by... I'll see what I can do.

top-down video of the rack during:
- 9b break (wing ball flies in)
- 10b break (2nd row ball pops into the side)
- 9 racked on the spot (wing to corner, 1 to side)
Click to expand...
These I can do.

It would also be interesting to see a typical 2nd-row break in 8b where the 8 is successfully kicked into the side.
Click to expand...
This I can TRY. :smile:

-Blake
 
LAMas said:
How about drawing a line with a cloth tape or a chalk line and with the camera overhead to show swerve?
Click to expand...
Sounds like a plan.

How about a center of the CB aimed at the edge of the OB to show the effects of cut induced throw and why it isn't 30 degrees? Does the OB move forward before going on track or does it swerve or both?
Click to expand...
Absolutely!

I know we're talking about CIT, but I really think spin transfer is my favorite slow motion theme. I think it's one of the most beautiful parts of the game. It happens way more than most people realize. I'll shoot some new shots, but you can already see a bunch of spin transfer in my "Trick Shots" video. Even that sweet little "rail shot" at 2:00 shows the 9 pick up sidespin before it falls in the pocket.

I also like to pay particular attention to the way that follow and draw are converted from spin to translational movement. You can really see the exact moment that all the spin has been removed from the ball and it goes into its natural roll. I think the draw and follow sections of my oldest video are great for "spin spotting."

By the way, I hope y'all don't mind all the links. I'm just putting them there for your convenience. I don't make a cent from YouTube or in any way from any of my videos.

-Blake
 
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Thanks,
I am interested in the magnetude of the arc as compared to a straight line drawn on the cloth during the shot.
 
SloMoHolic said:
Thanks for the warm welcome. I'm happy to be here.

Oh crap, I realize now that I've set myself up to have my stroke analyzed by thousands of players, in every excruciating detail in slow motion. :-) I hope it stands up to scrutiny. I think for the most part it will, but I welcome any feedback.

I'll get the Diamond Polisher "spiral" video up tomorrow. Trust me, it works as advertised.

-Blake
Click to expand...

Welcome to the forums Blake, don't get to dizzy watching them balls spin/spiral in circles, as that really does happen, that's how I designed it to work...and work it does:thumbup:

Glen
 
realkingcobra said:
Welcome to the forums Blake, don't get to dizzy watching them balls spin/spiral in circles, as that really does happen, that's how I designed it to work...and work it does:thumbup:

Glen
Click to expand...

Too late. I was mesmerized for about 30 minutes, unable to move.

Seriously, it does work great! You can clearly see the balls spiraling around, even without the help of slow motion.

Thanks RKC!
 
SloMoHolic said:
I might have a way to get it [MonsterMash's chalk dust break shot]. My camera can do [this and that]...
Click to expand...

Nope, I just can't seem to get a high quality shot of the chalk dust, for a variety of technical reasons which only became apparent after trying and failing for an hour. If you're technically inclined, it has to do with the "rolling shutter" on my camera.

I'll have to leave that one up to you, MonsterMash. Thanks for the suggestion, though. Let us know if you get it. I'll order a print!

-Blake
 
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