January 2004

On the way to the forums.

Selected photos from the Fred Miranda Forums. Which incidently happens to be one of the best online photography communities I’ve ever seen. There is much talent within.

• Spider net.
• Another Maine lighthouse.
• Mother and child.
• Bonus non-Fred Miranda link: A wonderful collection of Nightshots of Cambridge University.

iCompositions is a community for users of Apple’s new GarageBand software to share their music. Here are a few I like:

• No Regrets is a beautiful song with great vocals. It’s even more impressive with you realize that it was put together with software that comes as part of a $50 bundle, and the vocals were recorded with an iMac’s built-in microphone. Music recording really is coming to the peoples.
• 3am Jam sports some great jazzy guitar work.
• And Carl Server Down brings me amused nostalgia as it bemoans a failed LAN party. If you don’t know what that means you probably won’t appreciate it as much as I did.

Xian 12:49 PM - p-link - talk (5)

Volkswagenball.

This one goes out to Tim and all you other crazy VW lovers back in MI. It is quite simply, a Volkswagenball. There are even some spinning quicktime movies of it.

Xian 01:21 AM - p-link - talk (0)

Moving pictures.

• Go see Big Fish. Tim Burton’s best work ever. It instantly put itself on my all time favorites list. Really, go see it.
• I need to see The Triplets of Belleville before it leaves chicago.
• Came_l(eg)o_t. Yes, I know it’s a very forced pun. Sorry. It’s late.
• Pixar has a teaser trailer for their new short Boundin’ up for viewing.
• Apple has updated their legendary 1984 introduction of the Macintosh Superbowl ad to celebrate twenty years of the Macintosh. Now with 100% more iPod action.

And a bonus music link. Ludovic Llorca makes great french jazz/house music. Eptonic has MP3s

Xian 02:57 AM - p-link - talk (2)

Get a 4gb Microdrive for $200 below retail, and it comes with a free mp3 player!

Facts:

• 4gb Microdrives retail for $500.
• The Creative Nomad MuVo2 mp3 player retails for $300.
• Inside the Nomad MuVo2 is a 4gb Microdrive.

Andy Mack put two and two together (or more properly, took two and two apart) and now has a very cheap 4gb Microdrive for his camera.

Rumor is that Apple is using the same 4gb Microdrive in their new $250 iPod mini.

If you want to save even more money keep an eye on ebay for these msuic players with broken screens/buttons.

Xian 04:17 PM - p-link - talk (0)

It used to take years.

On a beach on Gasparilla island I took a picture of well-barnacled crab trap that washed ashore and burried itself in the sand. Now I wouldn’t say there is anything wrong with this picture. It has a good composition, an interesting subject, no glaring technical flaws. It’s just boring. It doesn’t do the subject justice.

There is something to be said for photographic integrity. But when pressed I will always chose final image over photograph. A camera is just one of many tools. Here’s the final version of the image. It tells a much better story.

While I was working on this I ran across Juse Luis who says in his about page that that he shoots digitally but often finds finds digital images straight from the camera to be “too perfect” and processes them to emulate film.

Also note that it is appropriate to insert the word Gasparilla in conversation at any point where you would or could gasp. I’ve been doing it with satisfactory results for about two weeks now.

Xian 02:42 AM - p-link - talk (7)

Beginning to kick life's ass.

Since last time. I’ve sported a fever well over 100 degrees, twice. I went to Florida for Christmas. Where the days looked like this and the nights looked like this. It was torture. I swear. I read two 300 page novels on the same day. I collected a small pile of sharks teeth. I played a whole lot of Mario Kart Double Dash. I came back from Florida. I had 8 inches of snow deposited on my car while I was at church. I played even more Mario Kart. And most out of character for me, I spent very little time on the computer. I had it with me, but all I really did with it was download pictures to it. I didn’t try to get any work done. I didn’t check my RSS feeds. I didn’t even check my email every day. And it was very nice.

I need to spend more time away from the computer so that when I am at the computer I’ll be productive. I also want to continue to simplify my life. I get distracted by things all the time. They aren’t bad things, but they aren’t helpful either. Earlier today I started to read what I’m sure is a wonderful peice on ontology I stopped reading it. Extracurricular activities are fine. I just need to make sure they are focused and intentional.

I also need to read more books. At least one a week.

Oh, and I need to arm my self with some notebooks and some nice pencils and draw every day until I get good at it again. Then I need to keep doing it.

Ya’ hear that 2004? I’m talking to you.

Xian 05:14 AM - p-link - talk (3)