Post update: What is it?

The camera part featured in the last installment of “What is it?” is called the “Sync terminal” by Fujifilm, as shown in the following annotated image. The same part is also known as the “PC Sync terminal.”

Parts of the Camera | Fujifilm X-T3 Owner’s Manual

There seems to be some uncertainty regarding the origin of the name “PC Sync,” but it’s certainly true PC Sync is one of the older “standards” for external flash. Notice the word “standards” appears in quotes (there it is again!) because there are many different types of cables that are sold as “PC Sync” cables, so I’m confused — doesn’t “standard” mean all of the cables should look the same, or at least similar? You know, like the USB-C standard. But I digress.

Pluto

I bought the following PC Sync cable for use with my Fujifilm X Series mirrorless digital cameras and Canon EOS 5D Mark II DSLR. [My beloved Panasonic superzoom bridge cameras (DMC-FZ150 and DMC-FZ300) do not feature a PC Sync terminal.]

Pluto PC Sync to 2.5mm Sub-Mini Flash Cable | B&H Photo

One end of the cable has a screw connector for a secure connection with the camera sync terminal. Buyer beware — the other end of the cable can be a potential pitfall.

This type of cable can have either a 3.5 mm male plug or a 2.5 mm sub-mini male plug. Be sure to buy the plug size that fits your external flash unit(s).

All of my “older” Godox TT685 series flashes feature a 3.5 mm female jack. My “newer” Godox TT685C II Flash for Canon Cameras features a 2.5 mm sub-mini female jack.

… the flash includes a 2.5mm sync port for basic wired connectivity. Source Credit: Godox TT685II Overview, B&H Photo.

Name of Parts | Godox TT685C II User Manual

I bought a small adapter that features a 2.5 mm sub-mini female jack on one end and a 3.5 mm male plug on the other end. The adapter enables me to connect my older Godox external flash units with the Pluto PC Sync cable.

Why use PC Sync?

In case you’re wondering why I’ve been experimenting with PC Sync for connecting cameras with external flash units, the answer is simple: focus bracketing.

I love me some wireless remote control of external flashes, but sometimes for reasons only the photography gods understand there can be a problem with “flash dropout.” That’s when one or more flashes don’t fire, and that can ruin a focus stack. If I’m shooting one-off photos and the flash doesn’t fire, hey, no problem — just take another shot. But if reliability is critical, then I think a hard-wired connection is the way to go.

What are the take-aways?

Oddly, neither one of my two older external flash units made by Fujifilm feature a PC Sync jack. My older Canon 580EX and 580EX II flashes feature what appears to be some sort of proprietary PC Sync jack for which I have been unable to find the necessary cable.

I have tested the Pluto PC Sync cable with my Canon EOS 5D Mark II and am pleased to report it works as expected.

My Fujifilm X-T3 digital camera can be used to simultaneously fire flashes connected via the PC Sync cable, a camera-mounted flash, and/or a wireless flash controller such as the Godox XProF II. The flash is Manual mode only. High-speed sync (HSS) works, but you need to enable HSS on the flash itself.

I assume the same functionality is true for my Canon EOS 5D Mark II although I haven’t tested it yet.

Copyright © 2023 Walter Sanford. All rights reserved.

iPad/tablet tripod mount

Did you know I suffer from “decision paralysis?” I do. It doesn’t matter whether a product is expensive or inexpensive, I agonize over the decision to pick the one that’s best for me. This time, I made the decision relatively quickly with little angst.

I knew I needed to get some sort of tripod mount for my iPad mini 6. For a while, I was using a small photography clamp to hold my iPad. It was precarious at best and an expensive accident waiting to happen.

A quick Google search turned up a YouTube video that caught my attention.

The build quality looked good and the price point seemed fair, so I ordered one.

After a month or two of usage, I can say this versatile tripod mount works as advertised. I think the parts that actually support the iPad are a little narrow for my comfort, but they do work — just be careful to center your tablet on the mount and be sure it’s clamped down tightly.

The tripod mount came bundled with several “extras.” Most of them are borderline useless, but one item turned out to be a pleasant surprise.

The small wireless remote control is great for starting/stopping time-lapse videos. You can use the built-in timer featured in the Apple “Camera” app to shoot still photos and start video recording, but you still have to touch the iPad to stop recording video. That can result in “camera shake” that you need to edit out of the video, but hey, I don’t need one more thing to do when the “little remote that could” can be used for clean stops.

Is this the “best iPad mount” as the YouTube video title says? I don’t know. But it’s “good” and sometimes all you need to know is when good is good enough. Please comment if you know of a better product than this one.

Related Resources

• THIS is the iPad/Tablet Tripod Mount YOU NEED! by BenoniTech (2:55)
• Aluminum iPad Pro Tripod Mount Adapter Holder With Cold Shoe Ball Head and Bluetooth Shutter for iPad Pro 12.9 11 10.5, iPad Air Mini, Surface Galaxy Tab, Video Recording 3.5 to 13.5″ iPhone Tablet $29.99 (as of this writing)

Copyright © 2023 Walter Sanford. All rights reserved.

Did you know … ? (plus Post Update)

Did you know that flash power ratios are relative, not absolute? I didn’t, that is until I bought a Godox MF12 macro flash and was testing it in combination with a Godox TT685C Speedlite.

Are flash power ratios absolute or relative? In other words, is 1/16 power the same strength across all devices? When I set my MF12 and TT685C for 1/16 power, the MF12 doesn’t look as bright as the TT685C. Thanks for answering my question! Source Credit: Godox User Group on Facebook.

Sincere thanks to all the members of the group who kindly answered my question! One answer stood out from the others.

Walter Sanford – The TT685 is closer to 65 W, and the MF12 is roughly 12 W. The TT685 at 1/8 + 3 should be close to the MF12 at 1/1. But that can still be off, as the difference in reflector shape can change the output. Source Credit: Samuel Gibson.

The guide number of the TT685C is 197′ (power ratio 1/128 – 1/1); the guide number for the MF12 is 16′ (power ratio 1/128 – 1/1). Clearly the TT685C is the more powerful flash.

Post Update

The Godox MF12 Macro Flash is underpowered, doesn’t support high-speed sync, and doesn’t feature removable batteries. Perhaps now it’s clear why I said “I won’t buy more MF12s.”

Copyright © 2023 Walter Sanford. All rights reserved.

Godox MF12 Macro Flash (plus Post Update)

Do you remember when I announced I bought a Godox MF12 Macro Flash? That’s because I didn’t. I just bought one and started using it.

Maybe you noticed I created a new Category called “Godox MF12.” It’s more likely you didn’t. Please know that I use Categories and Tags in order to make it easier for readers to search for and find specific information.

Testing 1, 2, 3 …

I’m already heavily invested in the Godox flash ecosystem, so when a “usually trusted source” gave high ratings to his new Godox MF12s I decided to buy one for testing. Full disclosure: I hesitated to pull the trigger when I realized the MF12 costs almost as much as full-size flashes such as the TT685 series. That just doesn’t seem fair/right to me!

I think the intended use for Godox MF12s is to mount one or more flash units on a system of rings that fit on lenses with different filter thread sizes. I know a lot of photographers who own MF12s but as far as I know no one actually uses them mounted on a lens, and no one uses them for macro photography in the field.

Instead, the macro photographers I know use their Godox MF12s as small, lightweight flashes perfect for macro photography in the studio. They say several MF12s, set for low power, add up to nice soft light that’s both bright and relatively free of specular highlights. When used that way, the MF12s seem to work well.

Photo courtesy B&H Photo.

I think it’s fair to ask “Do the MF12s work better than larger, more powerful flash units used at lower power ratios with lots of diffusion?” The objective answer is, “No, not really.” During limited testing using flash equipment I own already, my results are comparable to theirs.

No high-speed sync.

But wait, there’s more. Recently I discovered the MF12 doesn’t support high-speed sync (HSS). That’s on me — I just assumed any modern external flash unit would support HSS, especially since most (if not all) Godox flashes do. But the MF12 doesn’t and that’s a deal-breaker for me. Post Update: I think it’s worth noting that macro flashes available from Canon and Nikon do support HSS, although they cost much more than the Godox MF12.

Slower shutter speeds aren’t a problem in the studio when my camera is mounted on a tripod, but when I’m in the field I prefer to use shutter speeds faster than the default sync speed of my cameras. For this reason alone, I won’t buy more MF12s.

There is one “pro.”

Notice the button labeled with an icon that looks like an asterisk. That button toggles a modeling light on/off. Better, some flash triggers such as my new-ish Godox XProF II can remotely power on/off the modeling light plus set the relative power of the modeling light (from 1 to 10).

Photo courtesy B&H Photo.

ALL external flash units should include a modeling light. The MF12 does but in my opinion that’s insufficient for me to recommend the product.

Post Update

In an effort to get right to the point about what I dislike most about the Godox MF12 Macro Flash, I didn’t gripe about its built-in Lithium ion battery. I think it would be better if the MF12 featured a removable battery of some type.

As designed, the internal battery can be recharged by connecting the flash unit (via USB cable) to either an AC power source or portable power brick such as the Anker PowerCore+ 26800 PD 45W.

In my opinion, the fact that you can’t simply swap in a fresh battery makes this flash less suitable for use in the field.

How does the flash perform when its battery is fully charged?

The powerful built-in lithium battery supports approximately 500 full-power flashes with a 0.01 to 1.7 second recycling time. Source Credit: B&H Photo.

I would say 500 flashes might be overly optimistic, based upon my experience using the Godox MF12 for focus bracketing. I don’t have lab testing equipment so I can’t confirm the flash recycling time, but I can say it’s fast enough to fire continuously in burst mode when using lower power ratios.

Related Resource: Godox: #MF12 Macro Flash Operational Tutorial, by GODOX Global (3:25).

Copyright © 2023 Walter Sanford. All rights reserved.

Sometimes you get what you pay for.

I love me some Manfrotto clamps and articulating arms. But — and it’s a big but — two points diminish my enthusiasm for Manfrotto gear.

First and foremost, in my strong opinion many (if not all) Manfrotto products are way overpriced.

Second, Manfrotto seems to be obsessed with slathering many of their products with excessive amounts of grease and lubricants. Almost every Manfrotto product I have purchased required a thorough cleaning before I felt comfortable using it with my cameras and lenses.

SmallRig

On the strength of a rave recommendation from a trusted source (henceforth known as a “usually trusted source”) I bought some clamps and articulating arms made by a company called “SmallRig.”

The price is definitely right and their products work as advertised. I would call SmallRig clamps and articulating arms “less greasy” than comparable Manfrotto gear, but some clean-up is still required before use.

Initially I was pleased with the build quality of the SmallRig clamps and articulating arms. Over time I noticed some of the gear I bought has started to fall apart.

For example, notice the rubber pad on the inside of the jaws of one of my SmallRig Super Clamps has peeled away from the metal.

Close-up of SmallRig Super Clamp.

And the rubber gasket on one end of a small articulating arm has peeled away from the metal. I noticed the problem when a blob of what appeared to be rubber cement got on my fingers when I was setting up external flash units for a photo shoot.

Close-up of SmallRig 5.5″ articulating arm.

What are the take-aways?

Do the products still work? Yes, I guess they do although I must admit my confidence in the brand is gone.

Anyone who knows me well knows I am very gentle with my photography gear so it cannot be said these products are failing due to abuse. Not to belabor the point, but if I should decide to sell any of my equipment then you should buy it STAT because every used item would be fairly rated as “pristine.”

As a service to my fellow photography enthusiasts I am issuing a “Do Not Buy” advisory for SmallRig clamps and articulating arms.

Related Resources

• Manfrotto
• SmallRig Super Clamp w/ 1/4″ and 3/8″ thread 735
• SmallRig 5.5″ Articulating Arm

Copyright © 2023 Walter Sanford. All rights reserved.

“Magic Mylar” Moonlight

In a recent blog post entitled “Magic Mylar” diffusion material (plus Post Update), I shared the results my initial experimentation with a new material for light diffusion. Since then I added more mylar for multiple layers of diffusion and I must say I’m liking the results!

Toy dinosaur.

I used single point focus, positioned over the eye of the dinosaur. See why it’s necessary to use focus bracketing/focus stacking?

By now, some of you might be tired of looking at my toy dinosaur. That’s OK, he has thick skin [Get it?] and can withstand a little good natured griping. But seriously, he’s the perfect model for testing light diffusers due to the highly reflective plastic of which he is made.

“Magic Mylar” — where it all began

A friend and expert in macro photography kindly shared several sheets of diffusion material with which he is getting great results. The material is made of mylar plastic, matte on both sides.

Tunnel of Light II

I created a variation of my friend’s “Tunnel of Light.” Using my set-up, the mylar is almost perfectly round and surprisingly rigid.

Tunnel of Light (front/side view). Don’t mind the background clutter!

A single sheet of mylar is clamped to the white plastic top from a big jug of pretzels. The round top is ~4.5″ in diameter.

The jar top is held in place by a Wemberley The Plamp II. At a price point of $49.00, I don’t recommend buying a Plamp in order to make your “Tunnel of Light” — I just happened to have one on-hand and it does the job. I’m sure you can find a suitable clamp using off-the-shelf materials.

Tunnel of Light (rear/side view).

Three Impact ABS 3.75″ Small Spring Clamps (6-Pack) are used to hold the mylar in place. The orange “pivoting nylon pads for uneven surfaces” snap on/off, and as you might expect, tend to snap off at the worst times! For that reason, I DO NOT recommend these clamps. The price was right [$5.40] but you can’t count on them to perform in a pinch without fail. [See what I did there?]

I’m thinking about replacing the white plastic jar top with a PVC pipe fitting, the advantage being it would support the mylar while allowing a view of interchangeable backgrounds through the tunnel of light.

“Magic Mylar” everywhere …

How I got the shot

The toy dinosaur was placed inside the “Tunnel of Light II.” Two small LED light panels were used to light the scene for both setting exposure and focusing. Two external flash units were added for “pop.” All of the light sources were diffused with “Magic Mylar” plus one or more additional light diffusers such as the Altura flash modifier, shown in the preceding photo.

The goal is to use several light sources, set for low power, that add up to nice soft light that’s both bright and relatively free of specular highlights. Looks like I’m on the right track.

Copyright © 2023 Walter Sanford. All rights reserved.

Helicon Focus: Rendering in action (plus Post Update)

In my last blog post, I shared a composite image that was created using Helicon Focus to focus stack 99 JPG photos taken automatically using my Fujifilm X-T5 set for AUTO FOCUS BKT.

The following video demonstrates two strengths of Helicon Focus.

1. It’s relatively simple to use. Creating a focus stacked composite image can be as easy as a two-step process: add source images to Helicon Focus by drag-and-drop; click the “Render” button.
2. Rendering works quickly. For example, 99 photos focus stacked in ~50 seconds! (~00:08 s to ~00:58 s.)

The main window features two panels: the panel on the left shows the source images as the focus stack is created; the panel on the right shows the final output.

The right sidebar shows a list of filenames for the source images. When a filename in the list is highlighted, the corresponding image is displayed in the left panel of the main window.

Look closely at the final output, shown in the right panel in the main window. Notice the “ghost” artifact that’s visible near the tip of the toy dinosaur’s tail. Otherwise, the composite image looks perfect.

Click here to see a Screen Recording of the Rendering process.

I have no idea what caused the artifact. For whatever reason, some of the composite images I have created using Helicon Focus have one or more artifacts.

In contrast, every time I have used Fujifilm AUTO FOCUS BKT it has worked perfectly. (He said with fingers crossed.)

Related Resources

• https://youtu.be/jr5SMaO4qWI
• When dinosaurs attack! – This blog post shows the final image after I used Helicon Focus “Retouching” to fix the “ghost” artifact.
• Focus bracketing and focus peaking – When I watched the real-time display of Helicon Focus rendering “Method C” for the first time, I was reminded of a blog post featuring two videos I created to demonstrate how focus peaking can show the way focus bracketing works. Those videos aren’t as steady and smooth as I’d like, but hey, not bad for a manual focus rail!

Post Update

When I tested the link to the video I noticed a problem with “flash dropout.” Two small LED panels and two external flash units were used to light the scene. Notice the flash on the right side of the subject didn’t fire in photo DSCF1214.JPG. That flash was a Godox MF12. Up until now, the MF12 flash has never failed to fire. For those who might be wondering, the Lithium Ion battery in the MF12 was fully charged before I started the focus bracket. I’ll watch it more closely to see whether reliability is an issue.

Copyright © 2023 Walter Sanford. All rights reserved.

When dinosaurs attack!

Run for your life!

Toy dinosaur.

The preceding composite image was created using Helicon Focus to focus stack 99 JPG photos taken automatically using my Fujifilm X-T5 set for AUTO FOCUS BKT. The composite image was created using unedited JPGs straight out of the camera.

When you use AUTO FOCUS BKT, you select two endpoints for your focus bracket (Point A and Point B) and the camera sets the step size between shots automatically.

If your goal is to create a composite image with the subject entirely in focus, here’s a helpful tip. As you are looking through the camera viewfinder, or in my case looking at the LCD on the back of the camera, it can be difficult to be sure which point on the subject is closest to the front of the lens and which point is farthest.

For example, looking at the composite image shown above, can you be certain one of the toy dinosaur’s legs doesn’t extend in front of it’s nose? I couldn’t. So what should you do before starting the photo shoot?

I think it’s helpful to look at the subject perpendicular to the camera/lens line of sight, as shown below. In this straightforward example the nearest and farthest points on the subject are obvious — Point A is the tip of the dinosaur’s nose and Point B is the tip of it’s tail. This tip should be useful for subjects that are more complex than my toy dinosaur.

Toy dinosaur (side view).

For what it’s worth, the preceding photograph was taken using my Apple iPad mini 2.

Tech Tips

“Rendering” Method C in Helicon Focus worked best for this subject/composition, but it didn’t work perfectly. There was one artifact that doesn’t appear in any of the 99 focus bracketed photos used to create this composite image, so I knew that in-camera focus bracketing was working properly in my Fujifilm X-T5.

I used “Retouching” to fix the artifact. This was the first time I have used the retouching tools in Helicon Focus. I must admit the experience wasn’t as painful as I was led to believe, but it took a little experimentation to figure out the process.

At this point, I feel like I don’t have enough experience to share directions for how I removed the artifact. But I did take notes so I can refine the process and you can be sure I’ll do a follow-up blog post related to retouching as soon as I don’t feel as lost as I did this this time!

Copyright © 2023 Walter Sanford. All rights reserved.

“Magic Mylar” diffusion material (plus Post Update)

So there I was, working on the next epic sundial-related blog post, when I realized two things: 1) The post needs to be too long to finish before Friday; and 2) The topic probably needs to be covered in a series of posts rather than one long post. Regrettable, because WordPress site statistics shows the sundial-related blog posts are popular with readers of my blog. Anyway, please stay tuned — I hope to finish the next post by Tuesday, 23 May 2023.

In the meantime, I decided to give you a quick update on my never-ending quest for good light diffusers.

“Magic Mylar”

A friend and expert in macro photography kindly shared several sheets of diffusion material with which he is getting great results. The material is made of mylar plastic, matte on both sides.

I should have taken some shots of the same subject with- and without diffused light, but I didn’t have time to do a proper test of the new diffusion material. Qualitatively speaking, I like the look and feel of the test shots in diffused light although I concede there are specular highlights that might require either double- or triple layers of diffusion, as recommended by my friend.

Here are a few shots from a quick studio session. The subject is a highly reflective plastic toy dinosaur. I used a small LED light panel (with added diffusion to supplement the built-in diffuser on the LED) and a Godox TT685C plus a small Altura flash modifier to light the scene. The output from the LED light panel is assumed to be constant, while I slightly increased the distance between the subject and the TT685C from the first to last shot. I estimate the front of the Altura was no more than say 5″ to 7″ from the subject. My assumption is the farther the TT685 was from the subject, the more the LED was the dominant light source.

Closest.

Mid-range.

Farthest.

Where can I get some “Magic Mylar?”

I don’t know whether the results of my test are so impressive that you would like to order some of the “Magic Mylar” STAT. The following image shows the label from a big roll of the mylar.

Comstoc Ink Jet Plotter Media | 3 MIL Double Matte

It’s unclear whether this specific product is discontinued. One source says the art supplier Dick Blick sells sheets of similar material. I will do some research and report my findings, if any. Please comment on this post if you find a source before I do.

Tech Tips

Disclaimer: The following photos show no evidence that I’m actually a fairly good photographer.

Here are two quick-and-dirty shots (taken with my Apple iPad mini 6) that show how I used the mylar to diffuse light from a Sunpak LED 160 light panel. I simply taped an ~8.5″ x 11″ sheet of the mylar to the LED. The first photo shows the LED off; the second shows the LED on.

Sunpak LED 160 light panel. (Off.)

Sunpak LED 160 light panel. (On.)

Looks like I didn’t place the subject at the center of the circle of light. In my defense, the circle of light wasn’t as apparent to me as it is in the photo. Hey, I told you it was a quick-and-dirty test!

More later after further testing.

Post Update

I’m a scientist. No really, I am. I know it’s easier to analyze the results of an experiment that has only one variable. My last experiment included another variable that made it impossible to objectively evaluate the quality of light diffused by adding “Magic Mylar” to a small LED panel.

So I ditched the Godox TT685C external flash unit and photographed the subject using only diffused light from the LED panel.

All photos were taken using my Apple iPad mini 2. Same subject, same “stage.” Notice the subject is closer to the center of the circle of light on the background.

Next I moved the iPad closer to the subject for a better look at the specular highlights, if any.

Finally, here’s the same shot cropped for a closer look at the subject. The white balance is way off, but hey, it’s an iPad camera photo! Otherwise the light has what I would describe as a “warm glow” with fewer glaring specular highlights than the shots from the first test. Maybe now you can see why I am excited by the results of my experimentation with the new mylar diffusion material.

Perhaps you’re wondering, “Why was it necessary to use an external flash unit when you took the first test shots?” I used my Fujifilm X-T5 and 80mm macro lens to take those shots. I wanted to use the same settings that I’ve been using for studio macro focus bracketing. Problem is, the photos were underexposed. Since I didn’t want to change the camera/lens settings, my only option was to add more light. And now you know the rest of the story.

Copyright © 2023 Walter Sanford. All rights reserved.

Thunderstorms, mesocyclones, and tornadoes. Oh my!

As a weather enthusiast, RadarScope is my go-to weather app for tracking the approach and passing of weather systems such as the line of strong thunderstorms that affected the Washington, D.C. metropolitan region on Saturday, 22 April 2023.

Animated GIF created by RadarScope app. (11:44 AM to 11:58 AM)

The following annotated screenshot shows a few basic buttons; their function is described below the graphic.

My location, radar sites, and warnings. (12:01 PM)

1. My location. (See blue reticle, center screen.)
2. Radar sites. (KWLX, located in Sterling, Virginia, is the National Weather Service radar site nearest to my location.
3. Warnings. (Two warnings were in effect when this screenshot was captured.)

A fly-out panel appears when you click on the Warnings button. As you can see, there were two Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in effect at the time of the screenshot. If you click on one of the warnings then RadarScope automatically takes you to a zoomed-in view of the warning area. Click on the button for “My location” to return to your home location.

Warnings. (11:58 AM)

Tornado Warning

Soon afterward, a Tornado Warning was issued for Culpeper- and Madison Counties in Virginia, as indicated by the red polygon. Notice the red polygon is nested inside a yellow polygon that outlines an area where a Severe Thunderstorm Warning was issued.

Tornado Warning (red polygon). (12:30 PM)

Click on the red polygon for more information about the Tornado Warning.

Tornado Warning (information). (12:30 PM)

The next screenshot shows the “Super-Res Reflectivity” radar product, zoomed in on the Tornado Warning area. With a lot of imagination, you can almost see something that looks a little like the classic “hook echo” associated with tornadoes. Almost, but not quite.

Super-Res Reflectivity. (12:30 PM)

Time to switch to the Storm Relative Velocity radar product, shown below. This is where Doppler weather radar really shines. Greens indicate radar echoes moving toward the KWLX radar site; reds indicate radar echoes moving away from the radar site (like brake lights on a car driving away from you).

The following image shows the thunderstorm cell is rotating counterclockwise — this is known as a mesocyclone and is the reason for the Tornado Warning.

Storm Relative Velocity. (12:27 PM)

Within the broader area of counterclockwise circulation there is a tighter area of greens and reds, as shown more clearly in the Super-Res Storm Relative Velocity radar product.

Super-Res Storm Relative Velocity. (12:32 PM)

It’s important to note that the orientation of side-by-side greens and reds typical of rotating thunderstorm cells varies depending upon the location of the storm cell relative to the weather radar site. In the example shown above the greens are on the right and the reds are on the left because the warning area is located to the southwest of KWLX. In contrast, if the warning area were located to the northeast of the radar site, then the reds would be on the right and the greens on the left.

As it turns out, there were’nt any official Tornado Reports for Virginia. Later the same day, a small F0 tornado touched down briefly in Montgomery County, Maryland.

Related Resources

The following resources from the National Weather Service provide excellent background information about Doppler weather radar.

• How radar works
• Composite Reflectivity
• Storm Relative Velocity

More RadarScope-specific resources are available from the creators of the app.

• User’s Guide
• Information Articles
• RadarScope Blog

Copyright © 2023 Walter Sanford. All rights reserved.