Brian Manzella
Administrator
I bought my first video camera in 1985, and I was drawing lines on my NEC 25-inch monitor with Dry Erase pens the next day.
For three solid years before that, I drew lines with tracing paper over every sequence photo that I could find.
It was a great help to my career at the time, because I learned a lot.
Over the years, video went to high speed shutter with the Sony V9 in about late 1986, early 1987. At 1 1/000th of a sec shutter speed over 30 frames per second, you could see all sorts of great things.
Like the first lie I ever blew up.
And the second lie,
So, I continued to draw lines, until we gave up on them for one important piece of the puzzle.
Path.
You see, everyone thinks that the plane is a flat piece of glass, I don't anymore, I think it warps on the backswing and until the kinetic chain starts snapping, but that is another story for another day.
This plane angle thing has intrigued golfers and golf instructors for centuries. Or at least since Seymour Dunn wrote his book in the early 20th century.
Hogan's pane of glass made the plane a mainstream idea, and folks have been trying to get on some "plane angle," and be able to verify this angle with stills of video or pictures ever since.
For a long time the argument was where to draw the lines.
It turns out, it really doesn't matter.
Why?
Because drawing lines to find out where the shaft is pointing relative to the ground, or what precise angle that shaft is on, or the so-called "sweetspot" plane is on—or pointing to, or what angle an arm or torso is on is just NEVER going to be accurate.
Why?
Parallax!
Look at this photo:
There is lots to learn here...
This the EXACT SAME pose of my IKEA model with different camera angles.
Obviously some are off, ever see the pics that make Sam Snead look like he played a driver off of his right foot, or the ones of Hogan went he is aiming 10-20 yards left of the lens?
It is done ALL THE TIME.
And it ends now.
If you are using angled lines, and you are using them to measure angles, and where things you re drawing them on are pointing to on the ground you are looking at a lie about 99% of the time, as far as a whole golfer goes in one still.
Why?
Because....it doesn't make ANY difference HOW you draw the lines, the LENS of the CAMERA, HAS TO be EXACTLY on the PLANE ANGLE (Vertical Swing Plane) and PRECISELY parallel to the PLANE LINE (Horizontal Swing Plane) of whatever it is you think you are measuring, or what you are seeing—or THINK you are seeing is JUNK.
So, even if you get lucky with the shaft, or the sweetspot plane, or the arm, and have the lens on THAT plane, and have it precisely aligned, the rest of the golfer WON'T BE!!!!!
So, i repeat:
If you are using angled lines, and you are using them to measure angles, and where things you are drawing them on are pointing to on the ground you are looking at a lie about 99% of the time, as far as a whole golfer goes in one still.
So people who do this are taking WHOLESALE GUESSES, and coming up with "junk science."
That's why I say:
Lines are for Dummies!
You CAN use lines that are Horizontal and Vertical and show somewhat more accurately what is going on as far as up and down and side to side movement.
They won't be 100% either.
Some of my critics, bless their little hearts, have called my a hypocrite because I use line in some of my swing analysis on this site, and every now and then when I am on the road, and someone has a line drawing program, or I am giving a seminar, etc.
Sure I do.
By I don't draw them to show precise angles or where one of these angles are pointing to on the ground.
Because THAT would be hypocritical.
The "line drawers" of the world will cry a million tears over all of this.
But, hey folks, that's the way the cookie crumbles.
They make 2 really good 3D machines for all of that. The AMM and the MATT system.
30 to 45 G's each.
Just like TrackMan blew a lot of folks up, this will too.
It's my job.
For three solid years before that, I drew lines with tracing paper over every sequence photo that I could find.
It was a great help to my career at the time, because I learned a lot.
Over the years, video went to high speed shutter with the Sony V9 in about late 1986, early 1987. At 1 1/000th of a sec shutter speed over 30 frames per second, you could see all sorts of great things.
Like the first lie I ever blew up.
Folks do not lift up their heads when they top it.
Most, have their heads go down!!!And the second lie,
"slicers have their hands forward at impact."
Not a chance, as they all try to flip it closed.So, I continued to draw lines, until we gave up on them for one important piece of the puzzle.
Path.
You see, everyone thinks that the plane is a flat piece of glass, I don't anymore, I think it warps on the backswing and until the kinetic chain starts snapping, but that is another story for another day.
This plane angle thing has intrigued golfers and golf instructors for centuries. Or at least since Seymour Dunn wrote his book in the early 20th century.
Hogan's pane of glass made the plane a mainstream idea, and folks have been trying to get on some "plane angle," and be able to verify this angle with stills of video or pictures ever since.
For a long time the argument was where to draw the lines.
It turns out, it really doesn't matter.
Why?
Because drawing lines to find out where the shaft is pointing relative to the ground, or what precise angle that shaft is on, or the so-called "sweetspot" plane is on—or pointing to, or what angle an arm or torso is on is just NEVER going to be accurate.
Why?
Parallax!
Look at this photo:
TOP ROW:
I drew a PIXEL PRECISE red line from a spot on the "left wrist" through a spot on the left shoulder on the first pic on the left.
On each successive picture from the left pic, I re-lined up the red line through the same spot on the "left shoulder."
The green line is the same "idea" as the first red line, same spot on the "left wrist" through a spot on the left shoulder.
Notice the WILD differences.
BOTTOM ROW:
I drew the yellow line as a through the point of the "right shoulder connection plane" through the ball on each pic. Different ANGLE LINES here in each pic, just using the same reference point.
The orange line is the ball through a precise spot on the torso. Different ANGLE LINES here in each pic, just using the same reference point.
I drew a PIXEL PRECISE red line from a spot on the "left wrist" through a spot on the left shoulder on the first pic on the left.
On each successive picture from the left pic, I re-lined up the red line through the same spot on the "left shoulder."
The green line is the same "idea" as the first red line, same spot on the "left wrist" through a spot on the left shoulder.
Notice the WILD differences.
BOTTOM ROW:
I drew the yellow line as a through the point of the "right shoulder connection plane" through the ball on each pic. Different ANGLE LINES here in each pic, just using the same reference point.
The orange line is the ball through a precise spot on the torso. Different ANGLE LINES here in each pic, just using the same reference point.
This the EXACT SAME pose of my IKEA model with different camera angles.
Obviously some are off, ever see the pics that make Sam Snead look like he played a driver off of his right foot, or the ones of Hogan went he is aiming 10-20 yards left of the lens?
It is done ALL THE TIME.
And it ends now.
If you are using angled lines, and you are using them to measure angles, and where things you re drawing them on are pointing to on the ground you are looking at a lie about 99% of the time, as far as a whole golfer goes in one still.
Why?
Because....it doesn't make ANY difference HOW you draw the lines, the LENS of the CAMERA, HAS TO be EXACTLY on the PLANE ANGLE (Vertical Swing Plane) and PRECISELY parallel to the PLANE LINE (Horizontal Swing Plane) of whatever it is you think you are measuring, or what you are seeing—or THINK you are seeing is JUNK.
So, even if you get lucky with the shaft, or the sweetspot plane, or the arm, and have the lens on THAT plane, and have it precisely aligned, the rest of the golfer WON'T BE!!!!!
So, i repeat:
If you are using angled lines, and you are using them to measure angles, and where things you are drawing them on are pointing to on the ground you are looking at a lie about 99% of the time, as far as a whole golfer goes in one still.
So people who do this are taking WHOLESALE GUESSES, and coming up with "junk science."
That's why I say:
Lines are for Dummies!
You CAN use lines that are Horizontal and Vertical and show somewhat more accurately what is going on as far as up and down and side to side movement.
They won't be 100% either.
Some of my critics, bless their little hearts, have called my a hypocrite because I use line in some of my swing analysis on this site, and every now and then when I am on the road, and someone has a line drawing program, or I am giving a seminar, etc.
Sure I do.
By I don't draw them to show precise angles or where one of these angles are pointing to on the ground.
Because THAT would be hypocritical.
The "line drawers" of the world will cry a million tears over all of this.
But, hey folks, that's the way the cookie crumbles.
They make 2 really good 3D machines for all of that. The AMM and the MATT system.
30 to 45 G's each.
Just like TrackMan blew a lot of folks up, this will too.
It's my job.
