Day 38 – Health Is Like Carpet

 365  No Responses »
Nov 202009
 

D038 - Health Is LIke Carpet Taken with iPhone Camera. Edited with Kooleido and PhotoStudio.

One’s health is like carpet…it’s taken for granted unless it bad…or shocks you. The carpet at my work does both.

I had a splitting headache yesterday that lasted all day. I’m used to headaches (who can really ever get used to headaches) but this one was a dozy, so today’s photo is a statement about health…and carpet.

Day 38 Outtakes The carpet in the building where I work is the ugliest carpet known to mankind. Click photo to the right for a larger view, but be prepared for hideous. :) On top of being really ugly, it’s also harmful and dangerous. If you live in a humid climate you might not understand fully the concept of static shock. This carpet also happens to be the worst culprit of static shock I have ever known. simply by walking a few steps, I can build up a good sized charge that visibly arcs onto any metal in sight. (A shock that humans can feel is at least 3000 volts. a strong shock can be as much as 30,000 volts.)

Day 38 Outtakes So what does this have to do with health? Well, who really thinks that much about carpet on a daily basis? I do, only because I’m around this stuff every day. Same goes for health, when we feel fine, we are thinking of everything else. When we don’t feel well, we can think of nothing else.

This photo was made using a program called Kooleido. It’s a kaleidoscope program for my iPhone that can use any photo that I can take with my camera. I used the photo of the carpet above to create the cool pattern, and then spiced it up in PhotoStudio. It’s such a fun program, I could spend hours just watching the swirling patterns go by. To the left is the original capture from Kooleido before any effects were processed.

See the outtakes for several other variations.

Manual: Opps…stay tuned.

Images: Dropular a media bookmarking site. Saw a tweet by @npbradshaw about it. Cool find! Not saying all the images are the greatest, but it’s a great place to find outstanding works of art and photography. Warning: not all content is safe for all ages. The site has a content filter, but there are gray areas.

 Posted by at 2:11 pm  Tagged with: ,

Day 37 – You Could Wake Up Dead

 365  No Responses »
Nov 192009
 

D037 - You Could Wake Up Dead Taken with iPhone Camera. Edited with CinemaFX and Photogene.

My head is splitting open. Or at least that is the way that it feels. What great and profound wisdom can I impart in metaphorical form using this photo? Nope…got nothing. Sometimes an apple and orange is just an apple and orange.

for some reason this poem by Scott Cairns sprang to mind.

Imperative

By Scott Cairns

The thing to remember is how
Tentative all of this really is.
You could wake up dead.

Or the woman you love
Could decide you’re ugly.
Maybe she’ll finally give up
Trying to ignore the way
You floss your teeth as you
Watch television. All I’m saying
Is that there are no sure things here.

I mean, you’ll probably wake up alive,
And she’ll probably keep putting off
Any actual decision about your looks.
Could be she’ll be glad your teeth
are so clean. The morning could
be full of all the love and kindness
you need. Just don’t go thinking
you deserve any of it.

—

I hope Scott Cairns will forgive me for publishing his poem here. I heard him at a poetry reading back when this poem first came out in the ’90s, and was very moved by it.

Manual: p.121 Multiple Exposure

Images: Boston Globe’s Big Picture On the Shoreline.

 Posted by at 1:27 pm  Tagged with: , , , ,

Day 36 – Either This Man Is Dead Or My Watch Has Stopped

 365  No Responses »
Nov 182009
 

D036 - Either This Man Is Dead Or My Watch Has Stopped Taken with iPhone Camera. Edited with Best Camera.

Yesterday I struggled on what to name the piece. Today I am struggling as well, but for the opposite reason. I have to many ideas. I’ve changed it about 5 time. Alternates include: When Time Stood Still, A Time for Everything, Turn Turn Turn, Come To My Place Around 12:30, The Times They Are A Changin’…I could go on.

Last night I had the idea for this piece. It’s nice when ideas come in advance. Last night I attended an event at Pictureline where Scott Bourne spoke. His main theme was pre-visualization or previz as he calls it. A lot of previz went into this photo, but it didn’t turn out how I pre-visualized it. I need a lot more practice. Here is the good news about previz…we probably are already doing it. Do you daydream about photos? Then you are previzing.

So what inspired this piece…it’s funny. This photo by Marianna. I didn’t know what Watchmen was even thought I’m a huge comic book fan from way back. Yesterday, I finished reading the graphic novel Watchmen by Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons. Okay…it a comic book, but the word graphic novel sounds better! I wanted to do a piece to honor or reflect it, so I decided to dig out all my old watches. I almost named this piece, “Who’s Watching the Watch? Men?”, but decided against it…a little too lame.

I don’t actually wear watches any more, but for some reason, I have saved many of my old watches.

Manual: Okay, the talk last night by Scott Bourne has caused me to repent, and continue with the manual.  p.43 Framing Pictures in the Monitor. I will also try to do some Kelby training…if I do, I’ll talk about it here.

Images: One image today…that enough…Cranes In The Fire Mist by Scott Bourne. Read about how previz and patients pays off.

 Posted by at 2:44 pm

Day 35 – Green Is The Colour

 365  4 Responses »
Nov 172009
 

D035 - Green the the Colour Taken with iPhone Camera. Edited with Best Camera.

Having trouble with words today. I guess sometimes the photo just needs to speak for itself. The photo reminds me of a beautiful song by Iron and Wine called Resurrection Fern.

Learning: I have the good fortune of being able to hear Scott Bourne talk tonight at Pictureline. Should be a great event.

Images: Scott Bourne‘s Avian photography

 Posted by at 2:49 pm

Day 34 – Sink To The Bottom

 365  No Responses »
Nov 162009
 

D034 - Sink To The Bottom Taken with iPhone Camera. Edited with PhotoStudio.

I’m feeling abstract today.

Learning: I’m tired of looking through the manual. I’m going to take a break from it and try to learn something else each day. I have a subscription to Kelby Training. I’m going to try to use it each day and learn something new.

Images: Mark Raymond Mason

 Posted by at 3:28 pm

Day 33 – He’s So Vain (He Probably Thinks This Photo’s About Him)

 365  No Responses »
Nov 152009
 

D033 - He's So Vain Taken with Genius. Edited with Tiffen Photo Fx and Photogene.

Another self portrait today. This is the 3rd in 33 days, so that’s about 10% of my photos are self portraits so far. Am I vain or what? The first was a bed-head photos, so it was more or less as a joke. The second was cool, but was a little to dark and depressing. This one is a at least light and vibrant. But I’m not exactly smiling. I still look a little to serious.

But the truth is that I don’t really mind photos of myself, unlike a lot of people. Yes, many photos of myself look really bad. I went through a stage where every time a camera was pointed at me I would make the biggest, cheesiest smile I could manage. Those are the worst. But photos of others mean a lot to me, so my photos will someday mean something to someone. I figure that the least I can do to behave myself when the camera is pointing and me. And it’s not a bad idea to facilitate a portrait now and then.

Manaul: Flipped through it, looking for something I needed to know. Arrrg. I’m getting tired of the book….what to do?

Images: Jasmine Star

 Posted by at 1:33 pm

Day 32 – Half Birthdays and Horses

 365  No Responses »
Nov 142009
 

D032 - Half Birthdays and Horses Taken with iPhone Camera. Edited with CinemaFX.

It’s a lazy day today. It’s snowing, the first real snow of the session has just begun. And the day is full of cleaning house and playing games. I love the weekend!

First Snow - Goodbye Mr. Blue Sky Today’s picture was inspired by an old memory of mine. When I was a kid and November would roll around, the first of my families birthdays would begin with my brother Larry. We then had 3 birthdays in December, 1 in February and 2 in April ending all 8 with my birthday in May. We would then have a long spell of no family birthdays for 6 months.

I was the youngest (and almost certainly spoiled) and when November came around one year, I was convinced that my family had forgotten my birthday back in May. I’m pretty stubborn and would not let it rest. I’m afraid, in desperation my mother finally gave me a gift, a plastic horse. So for years after that we always considered Nov 14 my half birthday, though I never got another present. :D

I can still remember how getting that plastic horse made me feel better. The gift wasn’t important as it was being acknowledged and remembered. That is what counted.

Manual: p.7 The Control Panel

Images: Googled photos of snow. I’m going to get some great photos of snow this year.

 Posted by at 12:32 pm

Day 31 – Secret Messages

 365  No Responses »
Nov 132009
 

D031 - Secret Messages Taken with iPhone Camera. Edited with CinemaFX and PhotoStudio

Somewhere embedded in this jumble of letters are secret messages.

Before you read on, look at the photo and see if you can tell what secret messages I am trying to send. I’ll wait…

Did you do it? No…you just kept reading? Shame on you! stop and go look at the picture. I’ll wait…

I hope you really did it this time. I’ll know if you are cheating!

Okay, what did you come up with? Do you have your answer firmly in mind?

Ummm…I don’t know how to tell you this, but of all those possibilities you came up with, the only one I intentionally embedded is the messages “SOS.” Did you find that one and stop there or did you go on? Maybe you didn’t think of that one even.

Other possibilities are: SAY, SAX (I intentionally made sure that there wasn’t an E there…I want to keep this clean), SOAP (a reference to Tasra’s last post), ME, I, ROSA (The Italian word for pink, I think), LIE, SAP, OX or XO which ever way you want to read it. ROFL (I didn’t plan that one I promise).

My  point is that everything we do has multiple meaning and multiple interpretations. That is part of the beauty of communication, and the problem with it. Unfortunately, nobody will ever completely understand us, our motives or our intentions. But if we don’t try, they definitely won’t understand.

The outakes.

Manual: p.3 Getting to Know the Camera

Images: Twede Photography…an amazing commercial photographer who also happens to be a friend of mine.

 Posted by at 1:38 pm

Day 30 – The Earth is Flat

 365  No Responses »
Nov 122009
 

D030 - The Earth is Flat Taken with Genius. Edited with Tiffen Photo Fx.

I took this photo on my drive to work this morning. The power lines vanishing into the distance always strike me for their sheer size and what they represent: industry, technology, innovation, communication and our ability to create something where there once was nothing.

This photo reminded me of one of my favorite songs by Thomas Dolby, The Flat Earth. Yes, it’s another metaphor, but what does it mean? Dane Sanders, in his book Fast Track Photographer refers to a flattened world as one where “your vision, your roadmap, your inventive ideas are just as valid as anyone.” We live in a world where you can be anything you can imagine.

The Earth can be any shape you want it
Any shape at all
Dark and cold or bright and warm
Long or thin or small
But it’s home and all I ever had
and maybe why for me the Earth is flat

Lyrics from The Flat Earth by Thomas Dolby

Don’t forget the outtakes.

Manual: p.1 Introduction

Images: Dane Sanders

 Posted by at 1:34 pm  Tagged with: ,

Day 29 – Be a Pepper

 365  No Responses »
Nov 112009
 

D029 - Be a Pepper Taken with iPhone Camera. Edited with CinemaFX and Photogene.

Lighthearted post today. I’ve chosen to do a photo of my favorite beverage, Dr Pepper. I’m not sure why I like Dr. Pepper so much. But that first sip of the day makes me smile. It a simple pleasure in life that I enjoy.

What is your favorite beverage and why?

Manual: p.vii Viewing and Retouching Photographs

Images: The Big Picture, Boston Globe

 Posted by at 2:16 pm  Tagged with:
 Older Entries  Newer Entries
© 2012 jamesberghout.com Suffusion theme by Sayontan Sinha