HAM RADIO and other Interests

Our "3 Guys with Radios" ham club descended upon Marshall Illinois for Field Day 2023

Having toured Europe several times in the past several years, I decided to go north-- way north to Norway. Most Americans who decide to visit Europe only visit England, France or Germany. These are beautiful countries although I have always had an affinity to Central Europe and now, I am thinking Scandinavia ranks near the top as well when visiting Europe.

Often times I receive the comment, "You can't possibly be doing SSTV with only 3 Watts!" Yes, I can. And very often...sometimes with even lower power!"

Many are not aware how far 3.5 Watts can travel. Here is an example of a radio contact made with Malawi southern Africa from station AI4QT in Huntsville AL. February 8 2023

I never understood why QRO operators look down on QRP. Come-on man, it's a skill to transmit Slow Scan Television using a measly 5 Watts! Anyone can do it with QRO.

Low power HF radio can be a challenge, but it does have its rewards.

GREETINGS Everyone. I created this video to bring back fond memories of the way Bonita was in the past. I hope you will enjoy. Best regards, William (Billy) Robertson

A neat aspect of our radio service is when you can immerse yourself in radio that is not radio itself. Yeah, I know this is an odd saying but when you realize that amateur radio has many dimensions such as getting together with like-minded individuals or as this video explains, developing a hobby of collecting old stock certificates with a radio or electronics theme. Amateur radio can be a gateway to the enjoyment of other related interests. ARTICLE mentioned in video: https://www.nadxc.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/Longpath-March-2022.pdf

Held annually, the Huntsville (Alabama) Botanical Garden display a variety of scarecrows which to enjoy.

The amount of space I have to create a home video studio is small and finding ways to use a green screen challenging. My solution is to use a simple expandable shower rod to support a green cloth. Pesto. It works!

Just paying around with "green screen" effects lately and thought this is a fund one.

Held each year in the small village of Valley Head AL is an event called "Mayberry Day." It is a nice little gathering of folks honoring the iconic television series of the 1960s. Valley Head AL is as likely a place to find a real Mayberry NC in the 21st century--although it is in Alabama not North Carolina.

Always an enjoyable drive up to the Gatliburg TN area. This trip was no exception. Fortunately, living in north east Alabama makes this a short trip but it is still far enough away to make you feel you have gone somewhere.

I acquired this camera a year or so after its release in 2006. The neat thing about this camera is that it has a CCD sensor instead of the common CMOS sensor found in today's digital cameras. CCD sensors apparently are more light sensitive in capturing detail.

Highlighting Yuri Gargarin Night 2022

Thanksgiving 2021 with Friends and Family

Recently I've been experimenting with a variety of cameras that can be used as a vlogging camera. Each one I use will have pluses and minus. The plus on this camera is that it is capable of 4K video but the door where the memory card is located on the camera is underneath it, making it impossible to retrieve unless you take the camera off of its tripod mount. Why in the world SONY designed it this way is unexplainable. Otherwise, the HX99 is a solid performer. NOTE. the camera does not have mic input so I always use a Zoom H1 digital recorder and splice the sound into the video on post.

A look at the annual ham radio day held at Gigaparts in Huntsville AL. This event occurred on March 26 2022

MARCH 10 2022 Hike at DeSoto State Park near Fort Payne and Mentone AL

Have always been a Nikon guy, but recently picked up the entry level Canon EOS T7 DSLR. So far I'm impressed. The only fault for me is that the memory door is on the bottom of the camera making it difficult to remove when the camera is attached to a tripod. However, this is not a big deal since I usually have the camera tied directly to my computer via a USB or wifi. However, this is something that others may need to be aware if considering this camera. The T7 does not have a flip screen nor mic input. Again, these are not a big deal for me since I'm usually using my computer or phone as a monitor and 99% of the time I am also using an external audio recorder like the Zoom H1N.

Using a UV light to showcase my small collection of uranium glass.

I'm continuing experimenting and using different cameras for vlog use. Today it's the Nikon J1, a "bridge" camera that was released about 10 years ago. There was some color grading in post to enhance the video. Overall, I think the colors are pretty good.

As of 2022, the Nikon D3300 is an eight year old camera. Is it still good for vlogging? You decide. Of course, I'm to the best when it comes to color grading, but overall I still think it does a decent job on video albeit at only 1080p

Wanted to give the SONY HX99 a try. I'm impressed. If one uses manual modes with the camera, it does a super job. However, as with any camera I use, I prefer to not use the built-in microphone but a separate one. In this case I used a digital Zoom H1 recorder as the microphone.