Captainbob Posted April 15, 2014 Report Share Posted April 15, 2014 Getting my new Widow NG tomorrow, and so I am watching some of the tutorial videos from Dodd Gross, on youtube. My question is, would getting the Prism DVD be worth the $30 investment, in learning the proper way to fly a Delta kite, or does it basically duplicate what the Dodd videos teach? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SparkieRob Posted April 15, 2014 Report Share Posted April 15, 2014 I've got both the Prism DVD and the Benson one. Honestly, if you have a smart phone go to Dodds YouTube and preview in the field. If you have Facebook, Dodd's Flight School page has all the lessons in the pinned post for easy reference. Spoken instruction is very clear, PIP is great. Well, you've seen them. The Prism DVD "Freestyle Pilot", I found, to be a little hard to hear but I think that is due to it being transferred from a VHS tape rather than a master. The instruction is good and offers sound tips. It was good in the fact it showed with pointers the "initial" and "secondary" inputs as the appear on the kite as well as the spoken instruction. Split screens help. The Benson DVD "Trick or Treat" has written instruction over layed stop/go video which breaks it down simply. Simple tips and instruction. The movie part of the DVD is bluntly "hella cool"! Not sure if there is a sample of the Prism DVD floating around but I know there is of Trick or Treat. Actually watching ToT now!! Save the cash and buy some knuckle duster straps for your dual. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Captainbob Posted April 15, 2014 Author Report Share Posted April 15, 2014 Found the Prism DVD for $9.99 plus shipping, so I ordered it. http://store.kittyhawk.com/Freestyle-Pilot-Stunt-Kite-Instructional-DVD-P4031.aspx Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
3wrapframe Posted April 15, 2014 Report Share Posted April 15, 2014 Just remember with the prism DVD ur movements need to be faster then what u watch. The DVD is supposed to come with a field book to take with u which is really cool. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Captainbob Posted April 15, 2014 Author Report Share Posted April 15, 2014 Just remember with the prism DVD ur movements need to be faster then what u watch. The DVD is supposed to come with a field book to take with u which is really cool. The one I ordered doesn't have the field book, but is $20 cheaper. Don't think the field book is worth that much to me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RobB Posted April 16, 2014 Report Share Posted April 16, 2014 I have all the DVDs and VHS tapes... they're fun to watch, but I could NEVER remember what I was supposed to be doing once I got out to the field. Oh, yeah, I was supposed to be having fun, flying a kite. When you try too hard, it's not fun anymore... 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Captainbob Posted April 16, 2014 Author Report Share Posted April 16, 2014 I have all the DVDs and VHS tapes... they're fun to watch, but I could NEVER remember what I was supposed to be doing once I got out to the field. Oh, yeah, I was supposed to be having fun, flying a kite. When you try too hard, it's not fun anymore... What I did with the JB Tutorials and now the Dodd videos on Youtube, is make some notes on maybe one or two things at most, and that is all I work on at the field till I learn it, before I move on to the next thing. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
makatakam Posted April 16, 2014 Report Share Posted April 16, 2014 I had the Freestyle Pilot DVD -- very good! Best suggestion I can give you is watch one segment until you are sick of it, then go out and try it. If you watch them all and try to remember just one, it will be quite difficult that way. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hadge Posted April 16, 2014 Report Share Posted April 16, 2014 For someone starting out learning trick flying I recommend Dodd's Flight school because it starts from absolute basics right up to some fairly complex combinations in easy steps. Benson's Trick or treat and to some extend the Prism tutorials are good but assume you already have a certain level of skill. Work your way through Flight school and as you get better look on Youtube for Randy Greenway (RandyG) or Martin Madsen ( DPmama74) for some really good tutorials. Best of all try and find some local trick fliers to teach you the basics as you will progress sooo much more quickly - it takes ages on your own from videos! I know! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Captainbob Posted April 16, 2014 Author Report Share Posted April 16, 2014 For someone starting out learning trick flying I recommend Dodd's Flight school because it starts from absolute basics right up to some fairly complex combinations in easy steps. Benson's Trick or treat and to some extend the Prism tutorials are good but assume you already have a certain level of skill. Work your way through Flight school and as you get better look on Youtube for Randy Greenway (RandyG) or Martin Madsen ( DPmama74) for some really good tutorials. Best of all try and find some local trick fliers to teach you the basics as you will progress sooo much more quickly - it takes ages on your own from videos! I know! From what I can gather, Dodd recently put most of his DVD on Youtube, which I have been watching. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tmadz Posted April 16, 2014 Report Share Posted April 16, 2014 I liked the prism DVD but it needs to be updated to HD. I prefer Dodds videos because I can access them anywhere. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Captainbob Posted April 18, 2014 Author Report Share Posted April 18, 2014 I just got the Prism DVD I ordered a couple of days ago, for $9.99. I have read some reviews of people complaining about the quality and the audio, but I found none of these issues. I am playing it through a Blu Ray player, so it is upscaled by the player to 1080 P, but it looks great, I watched about an hour of it, and all moves are very clearly explained, and there are many slow motion segments that show how the moves are made step by step. A great way to learn, especially when you factor in the price of the DVD. I also like the order that the tutorial videos are in, where the newest trick is based on knowing the previous one on the DVD in an organized manner. http://store.kittyhawk.com/Freestyle-Pilot-Stunt-Kite-Instructional-DVD-P4031.aspx Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RobB Posted April 19, 2014 Report Share Posted April 19, 2014 Yeah, the DVD makes it look easy, doesn't it ? Wait until you arrive at the field, and try some of those moves. Poof ! right out of your mind, back to concentrating on just keeping the kite off the ground ! Good Luck ! 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Captainbob Posted April 19, 2014 Author Report Share Posted April 19, 2014 Yeah, the DVD makes it look easy, doesn't it ? Wait until you arrive at the field, and try some of those moves. Poof ! right out of your mind, back to concentrating on just keeping the kite off the ground ! Good Luck ! Already been working on a couple of these moves already with the Niknak and recently the Widow, namely the stalls, and stall landings. Like with the Rev tutorials, I just make some notes on one thing at a time, put them in my pocket, get to the field and work on that one thing until I get it. Then move on to next item. makes it easy. taught myself to fly Helicopters the same way. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RobB Posted April 19, 2014 Report Share Posted April 19, 2014 Well, I'm a slow learner (it took me months to learn how to axel, over a year of working on the 540 before I got it). It could be somewhat blamed on dyslexia, but it just comes down to the fact that if I think about what I'm doing, I screw up. If I just let the flying flow, I get it eventually. I learned to fly RC Helis that way... don't think, just do... I never learned any tricks on the Helis, just lucky to fly & land in one piece... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dmcneil Posted April 25, 2014 Report Share Posted April 25, 2014 I have both Flight School and Dodd's. I find they compliment each other. Dodd's PIP and commentary are realy helpful. I was able to rip the Prism video easily to my PC and use free software to break it into "chapters" and load it to my iphone. Now I can watch it anywhere/anytime. Will probably do the same for Dodd's at some point. But if it's all on You Tube, might not bother. Also, all the stuff in the comments here and other sights will really break down a trick and add valuable real life experience. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Captainbob Posted April 25, 2014 Author Report Share Posted April 25, 2014 A question I have is,Dodd upload some videos from the DVD to YouTube. Is that the entire DVD that is uploaded, or only a portion of it? Sent from my Nexus 4 using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dmcneil Posted April 25, 2014 Report Share Posted April 25, 2014 The entire video is about 1:40. Haven't seen the You Tube stuff yet. I will check it out and get back. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RobB Posted April 26, 2014 Report Share Posted April 26, 2014 I think it's only a portion of it. My favorite part of the Flight School DVD was a bit called 'flying with Dodd'. It was just some freestyle flying with a bit of real life thrown in. I was lucky enough to actually fly with Dodd, hang out, talk about kites and stuff. Great guy, I look forward to the next time I see him on the field. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Captainbob Posted April 26, 2014 Author Report Share Posted April 26, 2014 If there is more on the DVD, I probably will order it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RobB Posted April 26, 2014 Report Share Posted April 26, 2014 Bob, if you don't like it, I'll buy it from you. I gave my Flight School DVD to a friend, and years later, I would like to watch it again. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dmcneil Posted April 26, 2014 Report Share Posted April 26, 2014 Checked out the you tube stuff and it looks like most if not all is out there. Some of the YouTube videos don't look familiar so those are not on the DVD I have Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Captainbob Posted May 3, 2014 Author Report Share Posted May 3, 2014 In the process of converting the Prism DVD to MP4 format so I can load it on my Android phone and watch it at the field. Using a program called. DVDFab which is free to use for 30 days. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dmcneil Posted May 3, 2014 Report Share Posted May 3, 2014 I used another free one called ffmpeg. It is command-line so a little harder to use but works great. If yours doesn't work out I can post the commands I used. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Captainbob Posted May 3, 2014 Author Report Share Posted May 3, 2014 I used another free one called ffmpeg. It is command-line so a little harder to use but works great. If yours doesn't work out I can post the commands I used. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Actually DVDFab worked great. A coworker who copies BluRay and DVD's all the time to put on his computer, told me about it. I just ripped the DVD to my hard drive, and then used Airdroid to upload it to my phone. Didn't take long at all. This way, when I get to the field, if I forget something, I can quickly find it on the DVD and watch it while I am taking a break from flying. http://www.dvdfab.cn/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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