artschool, jonkster, AlexJR - thanks guys! Unfortunately, the sky doesn't look too good plus it's cold out, so I wonder if we're going flying today. I'll visit the school later anyway and see if I can do look at the PA-38s and do some setup practice. Not yet sure about when the next "first" lesson will be booked, some issues with instructor availability going forward but this is another topic I'll be taking up with them when I visit later today. EDIT: Looks like the sky's clearing up though! I wonder if anyone has cancelled for this afternoon and I can take his place?
AlexJR - regarding distraction, I was just pointing out that being distracted 10x in a flight vs. having a camera to record everything and then just picking the good moments later on once safely on the ground --- does this mean my method is safer? Yes, we already do other things in the cockpit so one less (or ten less) distraction will help? Not to mention a really expensive loose item in the cockpit! I'm sure your SLR is not as rugged as an action camera!