Be a HERO

Daddy bought a new toy—a GoPro HERO7 Black. Woo hoo! I upgraded from my HERO3+ Black to take advantage of the following features in the HERO7 Black: waterproof body, 4K60 video, HDR photo mode (and an enhanced HDR option which they call SuperPhoto), image stabilization (which they call HyperSmooth), a touch screen interface, and GPS tagging. There are other nifty features such as live streaming and voice control, but I don’t expect to use them much. However, while playing with the settings in the GoPro iOS app, I was pleasantly surprised to learn of 2 more features that were not well advertised on the GoPro website.

The first feature is RAW image file format. When browsing the touch screen interface, you’ll see a RAW option in the photo settings that you can toggle on or off. Note that this setting does not appear to be available in the GoPro iOS app. When toggling the RAW setting to on, the GoPro stores both a .JPG and .GPR file. The .JPG file allows you to view the photo in your camera, while the .GPR file can be processed like any other RAW image file in Photoshop or Lightroom. One of the things I like most about RAW image files is the ability to reduce noise from images taken in low light as well as the ability to adjust highlights and shadows (to a much greater degree than .JPG files). The .GPR files averaged 6-7 MB for 12 MP photos taken at 4000x3000 resolution. Interestingly, unlike the GoPro HERO3+, there is no option in the HERO7 to save photos in smaller resolutions (not that I’d use those options, which is probably why they no longer exist). See What is RAW Format? for more information. For a nice overview of photo features, see this article.

The second feature is H.265 video compression, also known as high-efficiency video coding or HEVC, which basically means that videos are compressed more efficiently than ever before. While this setting does not appear to be available in-camera, the GoPro iOS app lets you toggle between “Most Compatible” (H.264) and “High Efficiency” (H.265) options. With H.265 video compression, files are approximately half the size as compared with H.264 for the same recording quality. See HEVC Explained for more information.

So far I’ve just been experimenting with my new GoPro at home, but I’ve been impressed with all the new features that have been added in the last several models. I can’t wait to start shooting actual events with my new toy.

Delayed Voice Messages

It happened again today. I received a notification that I had received a voice message on my iPhone 6 Plus running on the Verizon Wireless network. Strange, I thought, since I was using the phone at the time, and it did not ring, nor was it silenced. Looking at my voice messages, there were 3 new messages. One message was recorded right at that time, but the other 2 had been recorded in the past, one as early as January 4, 2019 (17 days ago).

Something similar also happened to me in December 2018 after an airplane flight from Los Angeles to Indianapolis. I thought at the time that maybe switching time zones and synchronizing with another Verizon tower might have triggered the display of several voice messages, some of which were recorded weeks prior.

This forum appears to address an issue that sounds similar to mine. The user's issue was resolved by resetting the network settings. I reset the network settings on my phone, and after a short pause, it force-restarted the phone. FYI that it had also erased my WiFi networks and passwords, so don't do this unless you have to. Fingers crossed that I'll be receiving my voice messages in a timely manner. If I haven't responded to one of your voice messages, please text me or call me again!

Earthquake Alerting

About an hour ago, I felt a small earthquake and found details on the USGS website:
https://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eventpage/ci38423128/executive

While I felt only a small jolt, I did wonder if the shaking would continue to increase in intensity or if the worst was over. Fortunately that's all I felt.

Recently I downloaded ShakeAlertLA and wondered why I did not receive an alert and if the app even registered the quake at all. Launching the app, it looks like this particular earthquake did not register in its system:

I do understand that there are many "small" earthquakes that are detected every day, so it does not make sense to alert users to every single one that is detected. However, I could not find a setting where I could set an earthquake magnitude parameter, above which I could get an alert and visualize it on the map. I suppose that would be nice, although I am also guessing that alerting capabilities might vary depending on the magnitude and other features of the earthquake.

In doing some research, this article states that ShakeAlertLA will issue alerts for all earthquakes and aftershocks in Los Angeles county of magnitude 5.0 or greater. In any case, it is also clear that the early warning system is still undergoing research and development, and I applaud the work in progress which I believe will eventually save many lives.