TornadoVortex.net | Equipment

MacBook Pro Laptop Dell Studio Laptop

This year after some motherboard failures I upgraded to a MacBook Pro and Dell Studio laptop. These laptops have worked flawlessly and I can't be happier with their performance. I also have tested the MacBook Pro as "chase-ready" out in the field and it worked quite well. It is possible to chase with a Macbook Pro laptop with a program called || Parallels that allows you to run windows programs on your mac in turn giving you the option to run several operating systems at once. I've ran Windows Vista, Mac OS, and Fedora Linux all at once on this beast many times. Macbooks are very reliable compared to any Windows-based PCs and I recommend them over any laptop. Also, both laptops have back-lit keyboards for storm chasing after dark which really comes in handy when the sun sets. Furthermore, I have 2 X-brand laptop stands with a fan-cooling system for both computers to aid in air-flow since well the #1 killer to any computer is heat.

GRLevel3 MobileThreatNet Receiver GR2Analyst

Here's a discussion of software I use while storm chasing: Gibson Ridge software requires Internet-access to get radar-updates while storm chasing and is extremely valuable data. MobileThreatNet (XM WX) requires no Internet access. MobileThreatNet uses a XM radio antenna to receive radar updates and other important weather data. Both have advantages and weaknesses however. MobileThreatNet is a paid service $100/month (top-package). Verizon Broadband Access runs about what a cell phone costs a month based on your plan i.e. $70-80/month. I tend to use Internet-access so I'm not confined to looking at whatever data the service gives me. Yet, if your using a Internet data-card a major weakness does exist. That weakness is the many dead-zones that crop up while chasing storms. Another problem is that now many storm chasers alike are streaming live video and they are overloading the cell phone towers thereby at some times killing the broadband Internet-access in the area. More software that I incorporate while storm chasing are Franson GPSGate, Spotter Network, GR2Analyst, Allison House, and WeatherTap. Franson GPSGate allows me to use my GPS receiver (Microsoft GPS) to be used with several different GPS applications such as Spotter Network, Microsoft Streets & Trips, Garmin GPS unit, and GR software. The Spotter Network records my GPS location on its server every 1-2min in real-time. For archived radar data or super-resolution radar data in the field I have GR2Analyst which works really well and gives you the ability to see storms in 3-dimensions. I also have monthly subscriptions with WeatherTap and Allison House. Allison House provides placefiles to be used with Gibson Ridge software. Depending on what package suits you it runs around $20/month and is very reliable weather data. WeatherTap runs around $6.95/month depending on your subscription as well, but they have the best satellite data on the web in my opinion.

Now for the photography & video aspect of my storm chasing gear...Well to get started, I use three digital cameras for photographing severe storms and extreme weather. My favorite is the Canon Rebel T1i EOS 500D and a close second...the Canon Rebel Xti. I have four lenses that I use from time to time with these DSLR cameras including a Canon EF-S 18-55mm IS lens (stock lens), Canon EF-S 55-250mm IS lens, Canon EF 70-300mm IS lens, Sigma 10-20mm lens (wide-angle), and a Canon Macro EF-S 60mm lens (macro-lens). My favorite by far is the Sigma 10-20mm lens which works great for severe weather photography. The (macro-lens) is used quite often however as well especially during the winter during snowstorms and ice storms. I also have found that it works quite well for convective tower shots in the spring season surprisingly enough. I also have a few accessories with the Canon Rebel's including a 6ft tripod and a Canon RS60-E3 Remote Trigger that I use for night and lightning photography as it's essential. The other digital camera that I use from time to time mostly when I'm driving or as a pocket-cam is the Samsung TL220 which works well for its limited-use, but it's nothing like the quality images the Canon Rebel T1i can produce. However, I like the dual-view LCD screens (front and back) especially for self-portraits. For video: I have recently upgraded to an HD camera, the Canon VIXIA HV40. I'll be using this for chase video from here on out. I'm really excited to see the "difference" from previous video footage with this upgrade especially with the correct editing software. I also have upgraded to the top-of-the-line Mini DV camcorder out there. The JVC Mini DV GR-D870U model. This serves as my "chase cam" for live streaming for ChaserTV and also for video as well. This camcorder works very well for its purpose (small, light-weight & uses DV tapes which is what you're looking for if you wish to stream). I also tend to stick with camcorders that use DV tapes instead of flash memory or a built-in hard drive since well if you drop it and you have awesome footage...good luck trying to recover it. Another addition is a camcorder mount from FilmTools for streaming that mounts to my windshield. I highly recommend them as they have a good selection. I'm also currently editing video with Corel Video Studio Pro X2. It's user-friendly and can be used for standard and HD video. I highly recommend that software as it allows you to edit video in just about any format you're looking for. Of course with video and photography one must have a tripod. I have two actually. One's a 6ft tripod and the other is even bigger. The idea here is to have one small tripod for photography and a large tripod for video. The benefit of a large tripod is its increased weight thanks to its size. The disadvantage is its portablility. Nevertheless, this allows you to get more "stable" time lapses during strong wind speeds thanks to the weight increase with a larger tripod.