Tag: quote

Food + Friends + Nature :: The Friends

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Friends are one of those things that a lot of us take for granted.  It’s when we finally see those we haven’t seen in a long time that we realize how important they are to us.

Friends

In the last 10 years, I’ve moved around a lot, met a lot of people and made some great friends but I don’t get to see many of them very often.  In fact, there are some that I don’t see for years at a time.

Last month was a nice change for me because even though I was very busy with work I was able to see friends I hadn’t seen in several years, ran into friends I hadn’t been in contact with in a long time, made new friends and met the next generation of friends because lets face it, I’m at that age where my friends are having babies.  All of which I’m feeling very grateful for.  Why so nostalgic at the moment? I’m not really sure.

While looking back over the last few weeks and contemplating how nice it’s been to see so many people that mean something to me, I found this article: The 5 Types of Friends Everyone Should Have. Now this may not be the be-all-to-end-all list of friend types that we should all have, but I thought that it made a good point.  We really should all have:

  1. The friend who is always down for whatever.
  2. The friend slightly cooler than you.
  3. The friend you admire.
  4. The friend that doesn’t know any of your other friends.
  5. The friend whom you’ve known forever.

I probably have more of no. 4 than I would like- but I like that I have so much diversity and that they live all over the glove.  I also have several no. 5 which is always a comfort.

I know that I’ve moved away from my usual video analysis, but just for this week, I want to take the time to acknowledge all those people that I like to spend my time with and can only hope that I get to see them more over the summer months and beyond. Because really, what is life without the people we share it with?

Against the Grain :: Seven Days in 1968

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Animal

I’m just going to dive right into the artistic aspects of this video.  I love it!  There aren’t many times when you find yourself entertained by old black and white stills- usually they seem flat and boring.  Not in this film!  The 3-dimentional effects and the layover of other images, such as the timeline, really make a difference.  The graphics really help too and are another aspect that I really like.

It’s a bit longer than most videos that I post but I don’t feel like its any longer than most.  It’s not an easy topic to address, especially when some could argue that we haven’t come all that far since 1968, but it was done beautifully.

Finding an “Original”

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As a type of artist, I would always like to think that I’m original in everything that I do.  In reality, a lot of my work begins to looks the same.  I prefer to think of it as personal style.

Just as others do in any field, I like to look elsewhere for inspiration to keep my work from looking too homogeneous.  I believe that original works are created by combining various elements that we find elsewhere:

October Banner

Same goes with creating ourselves as people.

Admittedly, there are the rare individuals who come up with something so original that they generate a frenzy of followers- all attempting to mimic this novel approach to something. I’m thinking of someone like Leonardo DaVinci who inspired a completely new approach to painting.  However, we have come a long way from Leonardo’s “The Last Supper” and “Mona Lisa” and found other ways to inspire the masses (smart phones, electric cars, fast food, etc.).

So for October, I’m dedicating this month to the original things that people do.  Perhaps these ideas or approaches won’t take off like a Renaissance painter’s, but there are some pretty inspirational creations out there all the same.

Adding text

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This quote comes from a film that people either love or hate… and most people seem hate it. I find this quote inspiring, and I try to remember it when I’m working on my projects.

“But for me it is about finding out something about a place and something about yourself.  And when you get off the beaten track, that’s where you find what there is to find.”     – Richard in “The Beach” (2000)

When you edit your own video projects, you have to be able to design your own graphics.  Text can be a great way to get information across and I definitely use it, but I like the text to enhance the image on the screen.  I have to consider the typeface, the placement within the image and what kind of special effects I may need to enhance the look of the text.

I’ve been playing around with different effects:

My attempt at stamped metal...

My attempt at stamped metal…

I probably won’t have the need for this effect in the foreseeable future.  I suppose it depends on what I decide to tackle next.

quote 1.2

A more typical design for video

Ok, so you’ve probably seen this kind of thing before- hopefully with some more depth of field to draw the eye in.  When I put these together, I made these for print.  For video, it would probably have some sort of animation involved.  That’s for another time.

I wouldn’t call these works of art, and I would probably spend more time on these if they were made for the silver screen.  Plus, they would move and play with the light – if I’m lucky.  But for now, I’m figuring out what else I can do- you never know when these skills could come in handy.

Giving Thanks

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It’s that time of year again – when Americans sit down to eat copious amounts of turkey, dressing and pie, and then collapse on the couch to watch football.  It’s also the time when we remember what we are most grateful for as we gear up for the madness of holiday parties and spending half our quarterly income (or more) on gifts for our friends and family.

As the madness ensues, I try to keep in mind what this time of year is really about and the wise words of Mrs. Macauley from William Saroyan’s, The Human Comedy:

“You must remember,” she said, “always to give of everything you have.  You must give foolishly even.  You must be extravagant.  You must give to all who come into your life.  Then nothing and no one shall have the power to cheat you anything, for if you give to a thief, he cannot steal from you, and he himself is then no longer a thief.  And the more you give, the more you will have to give.”

Happy Thanksgiving!