Frederic

Welcome to the club @salah2u ! If this is your first drive with us, you will need to first join the Absolute Newbie driving coming Friday. We use this drive to introduce all our new members to the club. You will find that drive here:

@Gaurav@Zed @munkybizness@Ashok chaturvedi @Savio Fernandes @Paul Zeitoun @samamara@Niki @AbdullaB @BipinM @Humayun Ghias@Zabi Khan @Joseph Sebastian @Alexander Alcala @varunmehndiratta Thanks for the massive signup and i hope we can make it a joyful session where we can relax and learn from each-other ! A few pointers to make this session go smooth: 1) Upon arrival, please park your vehicle on the designated parking ONLY : https://goo.gl/maps/gofwLBvNe6ihknJs9 If you want to cross the bridge and take photos near the trees, i would like to ask you to take out your gear and walk for that small distance. We will be having 15 cars so let's keep it safe for everyone. 2) People will be setting up their cameras, and we want to keep the area as dark as possible, so please avoid switching on your headlights of your cars during the session or driving around. Carry a small headlight (red light is perfect). 3) Make sure to keep your mask during the session. Same COVID19 guidelines as we do on our Offroad Drives. 4) Bring your Walkie Talkie and tune in to Channel 1: 446.006 Mhz. This way if you need help from someone, you can radio in for assistance. It will be pitch dark in the area so it will also ensure that we know where everyone is. As myself and some other members will be having an off-road drive earlier the same night, we will try to reach the meeting point before midnight. In case we are delayed, do not wait for us but you can start the session. The area is large and open and you can take your time to setup your camera either on the pier, bridge, or near the trees. Please do not cross the bridge with your car, as the sand looks quite hard but i don't want to see cars getting stuck in the muddy patch near the water's edge ! If you have any questions in setting up your camera, please use this discussion topic so we can try to help you out. There is also very useful information on the subject in below post:

Good point @Rizwanm2 but this also depends on the rim width a little bit. If i remember correctly, the 16inch Pajero rims are 7.5 Inch width, so according to below table they are suitable for 265 and 275 tires. So yes in theory the 275 would work as well, and on an Xterra the power loss from a slightly heavier tire will be minimal, but on a Pajero we need to try to preserve every horse

@Zabi Khan @Humayun Ghias @Joseph Sebastian @Alexander Alcala @varunmehndiratta I have added you all to the session as we will be extending the RSVP limit. Please do confirm if you can make it or not.

Hi @Zabi Khan welcome to Carnity ! For now the RSVP is already full and we have 4-5 more members waitlisted, but i hope we can extend the RSVP and accomodate everyone. Which camera and equipment are you bringing ? Do you have prior experience?

Thanks for informing @JeromeFJ see you next time ! @BipinM i have added you to the session. Kindly inform if you will be able to make it.

275 would also make it more heavy and prone to rubbing the fender, so i would advise to go for the 265/70/16 AT. Wider tyres are not necessarily better in offroading.

Below you can the typical Camera Settings as preparation for Astrophotography. Nicely summed up by @Mikhail Lukichev and will serve as a good reminder before starting any night photography session. select RAW mode decrease brightness of the screen to minimum disable long exposure noise reduction disable high ISO noise reduction select manual focus mode turn on live-view zoom in the picture in the live view mode select manual shooting mode (M) disable auto ISO set ISO to 3200 set shutter speed to 15sec set aperture to minimum (f1.8 - F3.5) set manual white balance to 3200-3500K Take a shot, and then play with the ISO and Shutter speed timings to obtain the best possible result. Both have their pros and cons. If your ISO setting is too high you will start getting to much noise in your image. If your shutter speed is too long you will start having "trailing star" issues due to the movement of the earth. Hence the 3200ISO and 15seconds is a good starting point. Equipment List 1) tripod suitable for your camera. There is no need to have an expensive tripod, however, if your camera and lens is heavy, sturdy tripod would be handy. 2) DSLR or mirrorless camera able to shoot in raw with exposure time up to 20 seconds. If you do not have one, you can try to shoot with a simple point and shoot camera or phone, but lack of settings could be an issue. If you have a camera but not sure if it is suitable or not, feel free to ask here! 3) wide angle lens. (14,24,28,35mm would be great) Actually, any kit lens should work fine. Do not bring your telephoto lens or a portrait lens this time, we will not use it. Again, if your are not sure what to bring with you, feel free to ask! 4) a bit of adhesive tape would be handy but not mandatory. This is to keep your manual zoom in place. 5) fully charged battery for your camera. 6) red light headlamp. Red light helps a lot operating your camera and not overstressing your eyes

Brilliant advice @samamara thanks for that. I love the fact that you applied some light to the dune, i would never have thought about that. @Joseph Sebastian to get your image sharp during astrophotography, you will need to use the manual focus and point your lens at the brightest star you can find. Switch on your live-view screen and start turning the lens until the star "white dot" is at its smallest, that would mean it's a the sharpest point. Then you can apply some tape to the lens to keep it at that setting, otherwise you might risk bumping into it and losing focus. Of course, a tripod is needed for this kind of shots, and while a remote shutter is helpful, you can instead use the timer setting, so from the moment you push the release it will start beeping for a few seconds and then take the shot. This will ensure you are not accidentally touching the camera or shaking it. When it comes to lenses, try to use the lens you have in your arsenal with the fastest aperture (F2.8 or less). This will simply make sure you can capture more light. A wide angle lens works great for this kind of photography, so anything from 11-24mm will give a very nice result, but if you do not have a wide angle lens, you can even experiment with a nifty-fifty 50mm lens which will give you a nice fast aperture of 1.8. ISO setting is something you will need to experiment with, and will depend on your camera and lens. You can perhaps start at 1200 ISO and keep increasing but it's best no go too high. You will find that 3200 usually works well. Shutter speed will again depend on the lens you are using and ISO setting. It will probably be around 8-15 seconds but could be higher if needed, but you want to avoid star trailing. The 500 rule or NPF rule will give you a good indication. https://petapixel.com/2017/04/07/npf-rule-formula-sharp-star-photos-every-time/ night-sky-cheat-sheet-new (4).pdf

This is @samamara her shot !

That's a fantastic shot, and i guess the Mk4's sensor allows you to boost your ISO a bit more safely ? I tend to keep it below 3200 on my Mk2, knowing that noise would start to creep in.

Waitlist as per 8 August 2021 1) BipinM 2) Humayun Ghias 3) Joseph Sebastian 4) Alexander Alcala 5) Varunmehndiratta

Hi @varunmehndiratta yes the waitlist is long Let's see if there will be signouts the coming days and if we can slip you in.

Hi @samamara there are a few reasons why i am more a fan of the 3.8 Pajero, but the biggest one is "bang for the buck". Let me explain: - A Jeep Wrangler TJ 4.0 is a fantastic beast in the desert. Plenty of power, but does not have much comfort and is not made for long trips. You might find a clean one for around 25kAED. - A Jeep Wrangler JK with the first series on 3.8 engines is not bad, but this was not a refined engine and many issue were being reported. These models can be found cheaper, and unfortunately many were being abused in the desert and will come with a list of issues. - A Jeep Wrangler JK with the 3.6 Pentastar is an amazing offroader. No doubt about that. If you try to find a clean SWB 3.8 Pajero, most of them will have limited to no off-roading history. That's already a good point. The 3.8 MIVEC engine with 240hp is plenty powerful for a short wheel base 4x4 and they are super reliable and cheap to fix. Pricewise you will find one from 25kAED onwards (2010 model). Having a SWB Pajero now, and also having a LWB Pajero as our family vehicle, i have come to know their strong and weak points, and fell in love with their simplicity yet sophisticated and capable 4x4 system. (4WD Select). So am i biased ? Yes definitely i am, and if i had the budget for a nice 3.6 SWB Rubicon i would definitely go for it. But after having had an FJ Cruiser in the past that still remains my top choice. The back doors are called suicide doors and swing open differently. If you take adult passengers regularly they wont like the claustrophobic feeling due to the small windows. But then you better opt for a Prado which has the same 4.0 Engine, and much more space in the back.

This drive is organized in full compliance with the COVID19 guidelines. We expect every member that joins this drive to go through below information and and strictly follow these guidelines. MUST READ AND TOTALLY AGREE: COVID19 Precautions Ban from Carnity Off-road Club Two Way Radio Guidelines Drive Details Level: Newbie and Above When: 12 Aug 2021, Thursday. Meeting time: 08:00 PM (SHARP - Without any exceptions) Meeting Point: https://goo.gl/maps/3Dhe1fBv7HxxvvH96 Type of Car: Any proper 4x4 with front and back tow hooks and 8-10 inches of ground clearance. What to bring along: Loads of water, snacks (for yourself), face mask, rubber gloves, enthusiasm and willingness to learn. Approximate finish time: 11 PM End Point: Mleiha Archeological Centre Minimum Required Offroad Tools Newbie and Above Levels Tire Deflator and Pressure Gauge ✔️ Safety Flag ✔️ Programmed Radio ✔️ Shovel ✔️ Fire Extinguisher + Medical Kit ✔️ Air Compressor ✔️ JOINING A DRIVE WITHOUT THESE ITEMS IS NOT ALLOWED LIMITED SPOTS AVAILABLE: Limited to 12 cars only. RSVP will close on Thursday - 8:00AM If the RSVP is full and you wish to join, please mention your name on the drive thread to add on the waiting list. Latecomers will be returned back - without ANY EXCEPTIONS. Members without RSVP will be returned back - without ANY EXCEPTIONS. Please withdraw your RSVP, if you aren't joining, so your spot can be taken by others. Repeated no-show members after RSVP will have their account suspended for a month. Please RSVP on the Calendar below

It was an amazing drive and not only @Naveen Rajimpressed me but also @Hasan Wahlan who was the perfect second lead always keeping a cool head and displaying a fantastic self recovery ! Thanks for the support @Lorenzo Candelpergher ! See you all soon in the sand again !

@Danish Mohammad 265/60/18 is a rather low profile tyre which will be more prone to pop outs, but not so very common on a SWB vehicle, so I suspect it’s more to do with fighting gravity or counter steering. Make sure to check your tyre pressure with a second pressure gauge just to make sure it’s accurate. On Vanessas car we changed the rims to 17inch and put 265/70/17 Tyres on it, which has more sidewall and should reduce the risk for pop outs.

@Hasan Wahlan and @Naveen Raj thanks for joining this drive. The Fayah terrain has lots to discover and with the help of @Lorenzo Candelpergher we will be able to stretch our legs a bit and put some miles on the odometer We will be using channel 2: 446.03125 Mhz See you guys at 6AM tomorrow morning. Be careful not to access the roads before 5AM as to not break the curfew rules in AD.

Well made video, and he is using the same steps we teach as well: 1) Step out of the vehicle and assess your situation to see in which direction you could get out easily (fwd or reverse) . Stop applying more gas. 2) Switch over to Low Gear. Activate Rear Difflock if you have. 3) Keep turning the steering wheel full left - full right while applying small amount of throttle (+/- 1500rpm). If there is no movement/improvement at all, take out your shovel and clear the wheels and underbody where needed. Then try again.

The main reason is because these switches are "tricking" the vehicle's ECU. For example the regular kill switch requires you to "ground" a sensor. As the Cronos has different functionalities this sometimes messes with the ECU and leads to blinking lights and other odd behavior. For me, the classic kill switch i have installed myself works fine and i found the Cronos to be above my budget for what it was.

That is a very good point you are bringing. Personally i used to copy/paste the browser hyperlinks into a Word file called "Carnity Articles". But it would indeed be interesting to have a kind of bookmarks configuration. The Search function also works pretty well, and most of the time i use to trace back old articles.

That severely limits the potential areas for flying: https://www.gcaa.gov.ae/en/Pages/NoFlyZone.aspx Al Qudra area is fine, including most of Marmoon conservatory: Al Aweer, Suwaydan, and Maliha areas are OK.

Fantastic video @Enrico Biscaro ! I have two drones, and occasionally try to find the time and space to fly them. Oddly enough, during flying, i am more in awe of the technology the drone has to reach these heights and maneuver effortlessly, and i don't spend enough time on the recording and video-editing part. But looking at your video now i completely get the majestic recording and the soundtrack that gave the right ambience as well. I hope i will find more time to practice and get better recordings. I am looking for the winter to come back soon so we can setup the tent and enjoy the scenery !