Weather has turned into a real pearler. Daylight saving has started here in Australia - in the states with common sense anyway. So will be able to get more done outside tonight after dinner if I'm so inclined. It's almost beer o'clock now though so I'm not holding my breath. Looking forward to the BBQ on Tuesday, big race for many, just an excuse to fire up the bbq, and down a few brewskis for me!
Been hammering away at the 3d software most of the day, it's getting there very very slowly.
Man this software drives me nuts, LightWave that is, I have never seen such an out of touch application in all my life, the interface is hard to read, the tools are difficult to find, there is little logic applied to how the application functions. It has important menus tucked away at the bottom of the screen, it has no Menu bar, no help system on and on the list goes, if this software wants to become the king of 3d apps, boy it's got a lot of improving to do.
Having said all that it's obviously a powerful piece of software to use and is more than capable of fulfilling the pro's needs for this kind of work.
Well unless I manage to make a better image this weekend I will be using this image for the next Coolpix challenge.
Nice little article over here justifying this blog and many others.
God help me if I ever end up getting the volume of traffic some of the sites that get mentioned here?
On a more photographic note, in town last night I had my sites set on a particular shot on a particular corner of the CBD. Been there twice so far and still not happy wit the results, however the second visit produced another idea and I'm pretty happy with this second idea.I will pop it online later today, as I am going to try and beat the damn traffic this morning and leave real early. I'm also thinking of setting up a page or two that demonstrates the process of getting the shot I felt would suit the brief, as I have been to the location twice and produced about 12 or so images already so far. Each image has it's own relative merits and negative points, again stay tuned.
Hit the CBD tonight on the way home from work, got some good shots in preparation for the Nikon Coolpix challenge, stay tuned for the results.
Well here's my first go from the shoot for the competition I mentioned earlier this morning, not that happy perhaps too early for the "crowds" and it's surprising how few people wear any colour in their clothing?
Have some time up my sleeve and have decided to head off to make some images. The question is - where, and, how will I get where ever it is that I decide to go? Possible options, the corner of Swanston and Latrobe, Prahran, or even Fitzroy?
The other issue is, the weather?Will I need a raincoat, not to mention that Nik who is interstate with her work has the iPod? (This limits the number of shots I can take to about 13, (I have a 128 meg card) or I can lug my notebook around or, walk to and from the car if I can find a cheap easy park?)
Stay tuned for the results, some of which I plan on entering in this little online competion.
Well it's no secret, new iPod released hmmm I want one!
Currently I use my 20 gb iPod whilst out and about, as a storage device in conjunction with a belkin card reader, makes those 22 meg raw files insignificant really
As November draws to an end, I am getting excited about the prospect of the arrival of day light saving. This means several things, more opportunity to make images in that awesome light that happens around sunset, more warm days for BBQ's and more of a chance to get my thongs on. These thongs were packed in a box that we sent home ahead of us from our recent trip around the world. I got a real surprise when I opened the box to find them nestled in amongst all the books we had packed. Now if the weather keeps going the way it has been I'll be back in them full-time (outsidework).
It's also graduation season this means, late nights and gab fests, art art and more art. Some years it's fun, others it's a drag - this year, I'm still deciding?
Given up on the 3d software for today, not an easy package to learn.
Here is what appears to be a fabulous photography link especially if you are Interested in Digital Photography
Had a bit of a rant this morning on dpreview.com about using tools like Photoshop to enhance images.
Even though I'm at home crook, I can still post, here are some images from the archives.
Hard to resist the travel-bug with news like this
Opening shortly at Tate Modern in London (Oct 28 to Jan 23, 2005), is a major show of Swiss-born photographer Robert Frank, who will be 80 on 9 November 2004. It features over 150 of his photographs... [From About Photography]
Perhaps one of the more surprising recent announcements is a new Zeiss Ikon M-mount rangefinder system, reviving a well-known old name last seen on cameras in the early 1970s. From... [About Photography]
Frederick Sommer, an inspiration.
Not sure why but have been poking around on the web with this great artist, who sadly passed away in 1999. Many articles acknowledge his ability but all agree that he did not get the recognition he deserved. Ok I admit it I have been thinking about surrealism and photography a bit lately and Frederick Sommer is one of several photographers associated with the Surrealism movement. The question remains though, what would these folks have done with computers and digital cameras?
Have just downloaded this neat little app called "Books". fantastic, as I'm a little bit of a book collector, this allows me to keep a record of what I own along with all it's publishing info (if it has an ISBN). I recommend it to anyone who has lots of books as I do, the auto-completion feature alone is worth it.And while it has nothing to do with Photoshop or Photography really I think it's worth mentioning.
The reason I am using it this morning is because, our box of books and ephemera from the first half of the trip arrived here yesterday, so I dutifully started adding all the NEW books to this data base app. I then discovered that there is a newer version, (updated just days ago), so I downloaded it installed added my backed-up files and away I go. Now the app has more features, yet to be explored, something that I WILL be doing though, is saving the file and exporting it as html and uploading it to my website. stay tuned both of you for the link - if you really want to see the books I own that is! it's a MAC app so here's a picture of of it for you all to see. I'm sure there is a PC equivalent.
Sitting at home twiddling my thumbs, waiting for the arrival of the parcel/box of books from the first half of the trip around the world. Made an image sitting on the couch. Love the wide angle lens on my Nikon Coolpix 5400. Now I especially love the fact that Adobe have released a raw plug-in for this camera, and I have, thanks to the folks over on the Nikon forum at dpreview.com, go it working in Photoshop. Which allows me supreme control over the resulting Photoshop conversion, something I guess I'll add to future versions of my Photoshop workshop series.
During August 2004 while the eyes and ears of the nation were firmly fixed on the Olympic Games, 150 ABC Local Radio listeners ventured into their communities armed with disposable cameras. Their brief? To capture the diversity of sporting, leisure and day to day activities in their region. The result? 3000 photographs illustrating an insiders view of Australian life beyond our big cities.
My 4 all time favourite Tom Waits albums?
Glad you asked.
And in no particular order.
It's Sunday!
I'm fully recovered!
In the backyard!
Online!
Drinkin' beer!
Listenin' to Tom Waits!
It's sunny and warm as only Melbourne can be at this time of year!
Does it get any better?
So here I am sitting at home.
Broadband is set up and now is wireless! And both of us are connected.
Despite feeling ill I managed to drag myself into town today to see the Man Ray photography show at the NGV, which is finishing this weekend. Let me begin by saying how impressed I was! The work is surprisingly interesting. Lots of small intriguing prints(perhaps contact prints), often with marks on them that appear to be ideas for cropping etc. The diversity of the work was excellent as well, I expected lots of solarisation but his work extends well beyond that. Some wonderful portraits, great fashion photography, and some really kooky dadaist images/ideas.
The marks he made, Man Ray, really impressed me. They added to the images in a way that I'm having trouble articulating, and it is of course something that could be easily done using a digital app, such as Photoshop or some other image editing program. The size was just perfect too. I'm sure that they were contact prints. Must buy the catalog, one day.
Something that is running through my mind at the moment is surrealism and digital photography, how would have these guys (the surrealists) handled it all, what kind of images would have they made, or would they have thought it all too easy to just cut and paste and juxtapose using a computer? What was their position on technology and culture? Maybe I'll find out one day, maybe I'll get an oppurtunity to work it all out, who knows but in the meantime, I'm gunna have fun thinking about it I'm sure!
This one turned up in my inbox tonight. Bit un-needed really given that the Liberals are going to fuck up anyway!
Am absolutely stoked about the new Tom Waits album, pure Tom Waits ALL the way!
At last yipee, yahoo, I've got the new album by Tom Waits - Real Gone. What can I say it's up there with my other favourite Tom Waits Albums.
Also purchased, Nick Cave and the bad seeds new one, Abbatoir Blues / The Lyres of Orpheus, and Sigur Ros' Music Split sides. Got some listening ahead of me!
look I'm no writer and I'm still a seething ball of fury after this weeks election results, that appear to be guided by people's hip pockets, no surprises there!
John over at Dog or higher has rather succintly summed up a whole heap of stuff about the current state of play here in Australian Politics, check it out!!He even talks about how the so called free trade agreement impacts on technology here in Oz!
Post Election depression creeps in! However this little snippet helps me keep perspective.
" Number of bald US presidnts since TV age began: Zero
Bald British Prime ministers Zero
Bald Australian Prime Ministers One!"
Source? John S Croucher, Professor of Statistics, Macquarie "University
Does this say something about us as a nation? Are we capable of seeing through the veneer of television, or has our current, and barely hirsuite PM manipulated things the way he really wants through the media? Part of me feels this is the end, other parts realise that life will generally go on for most of us. It's the bottom end fringe dwellers who are going to suffer the most. The marginilised few who slip through the net. these thousands, will feel the pinch the most. I also fear for our Medicare system and wonder about the national Telco, Telstra. Of course again as a big city dweller with a reasonably consistent and reliable income these things are actually choices for me, what about those who have no choice but to use Telstra, or find a bulk billing doctor in their region? And how will they fare in 5 or 10 years time when Little Johnny is long gone from the scene, and some other party hasn't the balls or vision to try and fix things.
Political commentator/writer I'm not. I've been fortunate over the years, I have managed to hang in there, despite a couple of close brushed with homelessnes, and unemployment. I strongly feel that the fabric of this country is slowly unralvelling, no-one in political power makes decisions based on any moral ideals just what they think that most of the populace want. And sadly history judges these people but history may not be enough for those already staring at a range of diminishing choices.
Blast destroys camera. Smart media card survives. This one has been around for a while now, so I'd thought I'd share it with you both.
My two recent loaves weren't too bad(both fruit loaves), I was surprised the first one worked at all as I completely got the measurements wrong!
Yet to purchase Tom Wait's new Album.
Have an upcoming exhibtion, the 20th Anniversary show from where I work. We're also publishing a comemorative book to celebrate this auspicious occasion. I'm hoping a copy of which will end up in the State Library of Victoria.
Some quotes from a book I discovered lying around at home
Good teaching is more of giving the right questions than a giving of the right answers.
Josef Albers
Back into bread baking, one of my ambitions to get a loaf that is fluffy, light, that rises high, and with a nice crust. This is my second attempt since restarting, I used to do it often a year or so ago, now with our new stove I am inspired to get back into it.
This one is good, bit heavy on the crust, but light enough for my liking. Could be a bit sweeter maybe, and not sure how to get a real dark crust yet anyway here's a snap of the bread just before I started eating it.
Googled s2arts and came up with this site (allconsuming.net) linking to mine, bizzare really?
Well known photographer Richard Avedon has died. He died after suffering a brain haemorrhage while on assignment for the New Yorker magazine in San Antonio, Texas.
More on the BBC website
The article mentions his brutally honest black and white portraits. These were a source of inspiration for me for many years, his book the American West was truly fascinating, and I have contemplated for several years now making portraits with a 5 x 4 camera just like his!
Researching online this morning and I stumbled across this site, Picture Australia, may well be useful in a variety of ways. Might even add it to my sidebar?
"Looking for images of Australiana? PictureAustralia® is the place to start! Search for people, places and events in the collections of libraries, museums, galleries, archives, universities and other cultural agencies, in Australia and abroad - all at the same time. View the originals on the member agency web sites and order quality prints at your leisure."
Funny how you stumble across information on the web, whilst browsing the ICP site, I cam across this info for some early video art,from a group calling themselves Ant Farm.
"...Projects by these media collectives ranged from documentaries and agitprop to novel street theater and performance art. Guerrilla video never fully achieved its utopian goals of returning broadcast power to the people or fostering the free flow of information and images, but the same iconoclastic spirit of skeptical political expression thrives today in new media, independent video, cable television, weblogs, and net art."...
Maybe I can use this in my classes next year, who knows?
