It was dark and windy as we walked up the track towards The Promontory. It was also quite chilly as I was wearing my t-shirt. A couple of vehicles littered the breach car park but we didn’t discover the occupants on the Promontory.
The moon is in the last couple of days of the present phase so contributing little so I’ve been using my head torch to cross the rocks to avoid falling on my face having tripped over. The dogs have bionic vision so wonder why I have this bright red thing on my head. Once we make it to the beach towards Plakaki, the sky is lighter, but I still have no idea where the dogs are unless they’re walking next to me. I have to rely on them not getting into mischief.
Once back at the camping, I had time to Elevate my brain and drink some tea before my bike ride. The wind and general chilliness put me off swimming so I went up to the top of the mountain to lengthen the workout to make up for the swim. It felt quite cool as I set off from the camping but I soon warmed up.
I needed some groceries from Petrakis however Saturday is not the best day for shopping as it can be busier than normal as you’d expect. I was buying mostly fruit and veg so I was in and out quite quickly and on my way back to the camping.
I purchased a pack of 50 envelopes for the office as Maria keeps asking for one and I keep having to scrounge them from Manolis at EKO. Not that he minds but I felt Grammeno Camping could afford €5 for envelopes of their own. Customers sometimes ask for one during the winter and I feel a bit silly having to give them a second-hand one.
Whilst out, I received a message from Anna, as in Dimitris, at the bar. She asked if I’d know how to take a photo with a drone. I replied asking what she had in mind which is when she told me about the Beach Dancing. Georgia had been given a simple drone which she wanted to use to record the dance event. The woman leading the event collared me so I found myself volunteering to make a movie! The thing was, it was arranged for that evening as she is leaving on Sunday.
I went back with the Georgia drone but quickly decided I should use my own drone which had been recharged only the day before. I’ve not used mine much recently due to the wind. I got everything ready and mugged up on using the POI (Point Of Interest) feature which allows you to set a central POI around which the drone circles automatically. This allows the user to concentrate more on composing the shot than worrying about crashing into things!
I went out into the field later on for a practice run as there was only going to be a limited time since we planned to shoot at sunset. Too early and you’re shooting into the sun; too late and you lose the light. I wanted to get it right so found it a little stressful given the pressure of time and I was using a feature I’d not used previously.
I fed the dogs and put the noisier ones inside before going to the beach to see the layout. People arrived but were coming from different sections of the camping. The dancers were mostly camping staff or their hangers-on so were mostly working. Eventually, most arrived so there was a practice and then a more organised session. I took some photos and then used the drone in POI mode to make a video from different angles. I’m a little out of practice so it could have been better.
https://share.icloud.com/photos/0WouXfEJZ-5U6KBjwk4syHzbQ
Now that the dogs are no longer walked on the lead and we’re moving out of the busy season, I want to spend more time making movies. Georgia mentioned she wants to update the camping website with some video footage as several customers have commented on the lack thereof. I plan to try to improve my drone technique and to try to get some decent footage during the autumn and winter when the light is often better and the place is not heaving with people. I shall make a few beach passes during a weekend before the season ends so that I have people and brollies on the beach.
It was getting dark after the photoshoot so I concentrated on feeding myself and chilling out in front of the box. I watched the final part of Cranford which brought more death and destruction. Mr Carter’s ill-gotten gains from the mill were bequeathed to Harry for his education and to found a school and Her Ladyship was able to pay off the mortgage on the family pile. Those remaining were suitably married or had long-lost brothers returned.
I wandered outside at one point to discover a screen had been set up by the end of Janne’s trailer. I asked Maria to investigate and pointed out that Janne and Erica pay for exclusive use of all of that area. It turned out to be a screen set up so that some small boys staying in M4-6 could watch a film so no harm done.
The wind, which had been with us all day, subsided to leave a still evening and night. The forecast is for cooler weather for a few days with the possibility of isolated thunderstorms on Wednesday. It looks unsettled from tomorrow until the end of the week. The air gets cooler at this time of year but the sea is still warm which can lead to unpredictable conditions.
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