Bucket,
First of all, this may be incriminating, but, I have to say that we must think a lot alike, because almost every time I read one of your questions about TGM, I think, "I am glad he asked that, because I have the same question." I have learned MUCH through your questions and the answers and illustrations you have posted. Thanks much!

I am trying to set up my practice studio and I still need a digital video camera and a mirror.

What kind of video camera do you have? I want to spend as little money as possible, but still have something that will work for golf swing analysis.

What are the dimensions of your mirror? Is it adjustable? Wall mount or floor standing?

Thanks,
Kit

If you can learn to hit and watch yourself in the mirror at the same time, you can monitor your practice during your practice. Its a bit tricky at first, but you learn to trust your stroke and your plane.

Thanks for the kind words KIT . . . You ever talk to David Hassleoff anymore? You shoulda never drove him to Bay Watch . . .



My "studio"/meth-lab is OLD SKOOL cheap. I have an 8mm video camera. You don't need all that analysis stuff IMO. You just film it and watch it. You'll know what the biggest wobble is.

My mirror is just an old Walmart jobbie. It's adjustable . . . just prop him up against the wall. I got an old TV and VCR down there. I guess could actually film and swing at the same time.

Do crazy stuff down there (not THAT crazy). Experiment. I was hitting chips into the net and letting my follow through happen into the impact bag at the same time. I hit balls with my eyes closed. I hit balls like doing a downstroke waggle drill. I make flickdid swings and video those to just to see how the whole "feel" vs. REAL deal looks . . .you'd be suprised how "normal" the spaz feeling swings look. Hit shots one handed. Do dowel swings and then hit a ball and film it. Experiment with different swing thoughts and see how that changes the motion.

It's a lab . . . experiment . . . muuuuuuuuuuu hhhhhhaaaaa haaaaaaaa!!!!

Gad- that picture drives the German side of me nuts.:laughing1

The Yellow Lab
 

Bucket,

Sounds like Mr. Kelley's garage only more high tech. Are there still dimples on your golf balls?

Get yourself some grease pens and a ruler so you can draw on the T.V. screen (not animals figures) and check out you alignments.

elliskit,

You need a camera with a MANUAL shutter speed as without it the clubshaft will be blurred. Indoors without lighting you can see the clubshaft with a little blurr at 1/250. 1/500 or 1/1000 is better. It will however darken the screen.

With respect to a mirror,
When indoors, I like to put a small 13" TV on the floor, tilted up so you can look at it. This way you do not have to move your head to see your swing when drilling slowly. Lines can be drawn with a dry erase marker. You can set up your own practice lab at home but will need to learn from someone how to position the cameras correctly, esp. the DTL camera when working on plane. You can run a cable from the camcorder video-out to the TV so what is on the camcorder is now on the TV. You do not have to put a tape in if you do not want to. That's the best mirror I know of.

Lee Deitrick

Trying to catch that plane
 

Hello,

Site rookie hear who has turned to the machine. Trying to purge twenty years of articles, tips, theories etc...Just wanted to know if anyone has seen www.explanar.com and if it fits in with G.O.L.F

Thanks,

Mtracy

Camera
 

Bucket,
No, I am not a car.
I like the way you think - CHEAP!

Lee,
Thanks for the input. I have a 13" TV I can use. That setup sounds good.

I was considering a Sony DV/DCR-HC26 camera. It is just under $300, which is about the high end of my price range right now. One of the things that was interesting about this camera is that one of the Auto Exposure modes is "Sports Lesson". It has a max shutter speed of 1/4000sec. One thing that concerned me is that I read in one review that the video quality was "grainy", but I thought that maybe they were comparing it with really high end cameras. Are you familiar with this camera or is there another one in the $300 range you think would work better?

I found a post by Martee in the thread below that gives a pretty detailed explanation of how to set up the camera:
http://www.lynnblakegolf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=231

Thanks,
Kit

Shouldn't we get to know each other better before we talk dimples?

You mean you can draw on TV's with grease. . . man! This is going to rock!

elliskit,

Video may be grainy because of low light. That will happen when the light is low for the shutter speed used. My preference is a camcorder with manual shutter speeds so you can go to say 1/500th. Most Sony's do not have manual, I know Panasonic does. Others may give there opinions here to help.

TV on the floor is a great way to learn to plane the clubshaft.

Lee