Peace Toddle

Noah and I took a lovely trip around Battersea Park whilst Nadine was teaching in Chelsea this weekend.

I wanted to show Noah the Peace Pagoda, so took him for a toddle around with Buddha (who he seemed to be familiar with...).

Burry Man

About 20 years ago, whilst I was studying theatre and ancient performance traditions, I found a postcard that really caught my eye and imagination. It shows a rather odd trio: two men in formal dress at a bar, holding up a third man between them, dressed head-to-foot in a green costume, made of some kind of organic matter.
The title on the back of the card said "Burry Man, South Queensferry".

I have carried this card with me as a treasured possession since.

I happened to mention this to my brother-in-law, Steven, a while ago, and he said "Yeah. The Burry Man. He's my mate".
My jaw must have hit the floor.
Turns out, Steven had been one of the Burry Man's two official helpers for the last few years.
Could he arrange for me to meet this Burry Man?
"Aye."

So this August, thanks to Steven and John Nicol (the Burrry Man himself), I traveled up to South Queensferry to witness the procession and take a few photos.
For John, the Burry Man is clearly a great responsibility, but also a burden. 11,000 burrs make the costume into which John would be sewn for over 10 hours, as he walked (unable to lower his arms) miles around the town. After 13 years of taking the role, this would be John's final year.

In the end I took several hundred shots, which I have finally edited down to 35 which I think give a flavor of the day.

Let me know what you think.

View on Flickr

Down Syndrome

Something many parent's have to think about when tests are being offered during pregnancy.
Should you have a test?
What to do if the result is positive?
Lots of emotional turmoil even thinking about it.

We had a test, unsure what we would do if the result was positive.
How could you know until you are there?
In life, I like to say that we are exactly how we are, to avoid value judgments when I feel them creeping up on me.

Noah was born without Down syndrome. We didn't have to think further.
However, it is still worth thinking about, and I just read a very good article that talks of a new test which makes screening easier and earlier, raising a variety of issues.

I thought this quote from a mother, whose daughter Penny has Down syndrome, really brings those issues down to a basic question:

"Can she live a full life without without ever solving a quadratic equation? Without reading Dostoyevsky? I'm pretty sure she can. Can I live a full life without learning to cherish and welcome those in this world who are different from me? I'm pretty sure I can't."

Read more: http://healthland.time.com/2011/11/29/are-kids-with-down-syndrome-on-the-road-to-extinction/#ixzz1fIJa85Ot

Slimbridge Wetland Trust

We recently went to Slimbridge Wetland Trust in Gloucestershire to show Noah some ducks.
He loves ducks!

We saw plenty of ducks, geese, lots of flamingos, and even otters.

I took a few photos which I would like to share...

Foggy walk in Richmond Park

With the fog encasing London over the weekend, we went down to Richmond Park to try and find some stags rutting in the gloom.

No deer (except through the car window), but we loved wandering through the white-out landscape, and I found some beautiful water drops suspended on cobwebs and in the grass.

A perfect day.

A photographer's ethos

Chris Packham, of Nature Watch etc., is also a photographer, and he has an Ethos which whilst I don't totally agree with, I do admire.
I like that he clearly thinks and cares passionately about what he is doing.
This is inspiring.
His absolutism, "can reach levels which promote real depression" is not for me.
I will take an easier path, but I think he is a useful guiding light.

http://www.chrispackhamphotos.com/concepts/Ideas.htm

Doodling - it's not doing nothing.

Another interesting TED talk.
We had a digital strategy meeting yesterday, and it went on all morning and into the afternoon.
Although most interesting and engaging, there were naturally moments when my attention waned. However, on the advice of this talk, I tried doodling.
You know, of course, because I am suggesting you watch / listen to this, that it worked, that my attention was better than I know it would otherwise have been.
So, go on, pull out a pencil and cheap pad, and let the pencil wonder as you listen to this....

What do babies think?

Very interesting TED Talk.
"Babies are the Research and Development team of the human species."

Luvie Awards for BBC World Cup Tracker

The BBC Team Tracker, which I built at Saint@RKCR/YR for the 2010 World Cup, has just been recognized again, this time at the Luvie Awards.

It featured in three categories, winning a Silver in their Sports section, and getting shortlisted in the Flash and Best Practices sections.

Although only shortlists, I am most happy with the Best Practices and Flash results.
Working on the V&A project, I was connected with a good few Golds for work last year, but these Luvie's really reflect upon the work that I did.
Well done and thanks guys!

Best Practices - shortlisted
"Best practices sites serve as an industry benchmark for the most current, innovative, and advanced practices in web development. Sites demonstrating unparalleled excellence across The Academy's six criteria: content, structure & navigation, visual design, interactivity, functionality, and overall experience."

Flash - shortlisted
"Sites that showcase an exciting and interesting use of Flash"

Remember, some things are best forgotten

(or, remembering SB)

I’m catching up with Guardian Tech Weekly’s and just listened to this one which includes an item about “the significance of a Columbia University study about the cognitive effects of Google”, or to paraphrase: the importance of the Internet forgetting things.

This is something I used to consider a lot, in my digital artist phase, and the podcast recalled for me, with surprisingly vehement annoyance, an art project I tried but failed to get off the ground some time around 2000, where I designed a virtual space (it was hoping to be an artwork, so I couldn't just call it a website could I!?), that forgot stuff.
My idea was that I would fill a database with my memories (sounds, images, external links), display them in a virtual space (...on a website), then invite users to rearrange and overwrite them, forming new ideas and associations that would reflect the collective memory of the users.
I hoped it would be fun, playful, and maybe contribute to some reflection about the nature of memory and how new technologies might cause that to change.

The idea was very well received by the funding body I was hoping would help out on the financial side until the friend on the panel who had asked me to submit an idea, but who clearly missed the point, rejected it on the following grounds: 'Why would anyone be interested in your memories?'.

Firstly, thanks for the implied insult that my life to that point was so incredibly dull in your estimation;
and secondly, that was the whole bloody point.
Even the owner of a memory can lose interest in it after a while, and it would be good for it, after it’s moment in the sunshine, to fade slowly into the background, until it was finally, gently, forgotten.

Ironically this whole episode is one of those memories I would like to leave behind but which clearly seems to be stuck festering in a dark, bitter, corner of my mind.

A further irony is that I can’t find any of the emails that went between us at this time, so perhaps the Internet is finally running my project and forgetting my memories...

Barefoot Summer

Until this week, I had been exclusively wearing my VFFs since the snow melted.

As my everyday shoe I have walked to work (and around the office) in them, cycled, walked some trails, and even sprinted across a road or run down a high street when I've been late for something.
So, I feel I have done pretty much everything in them except the running I had hoped to start last year.

This barefoot year started with sharp pains all around the sides and base of both heels. As my foot strength built I found improvement on both sides, particularly on the left. This improvement continued on the left but my right foot still caused me trouble.
Being stubborn, I persevered, concentrating on using my toes, and observing my foot fall to look for problems.
I noticed the more I used my toes the softer I could walk.
In addition I also realised that I had an outside roll on the right foot.
Being careful not to over compensate, I worked to correct the roll and found the side heel pain receding. However, the bottom of my right heel was persistently sore, as if bruised, but showing no bruising.

So this week I am wearing conventional shoes as a rest and the pain is subsiding.
I am hopeful that once the bruised feeling goes I will finally be able to take the next steps towards the running ambition I initially planned over a year ago.

Graffiti or Art?

I recently uploaded some images of SHOK-1s work, fully credited, to Flickr,
including his latest stuff which I was pleased to capture.

I was suprised to get a message from him the following day asking me to take down those latest photos. He said he wasn't ready for the work to be seen, and that anyway he would like to show it first. This seemed reasonable, so I took the photos down and let him know.
All very nice and polite.

Afterwards, however, I started to think...
This is work painted on a wall in clear site of a public road. I hadn't sneaked into his private gallery and stolen images of a secret work.
So, what right of control does a graffiti artist have over the public taking and sharing photos of their work?
Speaking to graffiti artists on the Parkland Walk, it seems their attitude is that they paint for themselves and are perfectly accepting that the work is captured or over-painted by others.
This seems right to me.
It would feel different if it was a private space, but it isn't.

I will not be putting the images back on Flickr as that would feel petty, but I may not bother putting any more SHOK-1 stuff up at all.
Wouldn't want to offend him again...

So artist rights, or public images. What do you think about graffiti?

HDR Test

I was intrigued when I first heard about High Dynamic Range (HDR) photography, in part by the rich images, but also by the controversy it raises.
HDR images are composites from multiple exposures that draw out high- and low- lights in a single image. This produces a result that is nearer to what the human eye can perceive (as opposed to film or a camera sensor), but the result can look a little odd because we are not used to seeing this range in a photo.

So, I had to test this with my new camera...
...but Photoshop, my editing tool of choice, didn't support my Panasonic camera's RAW format! Dull.
However,  I knew a solution would present itself so I took some exposure bracketed images to use when I could.
A recent update to Adobe's Camera RAW software has answered my need, and I have finally managed to make my first HDR image:

HDR result 

Here you can see the three exposures that were merged:

Over exposed - bring out foreground / dark detail

Standard exposure

Under exposed - bring out highlights / sky detail

I am really pleased with the result.
This view from our holiday cottage in the Scottish Highlands was beautiful, but the light contrasts were so great that a single standard exposure just didn't do it justice.
I think this HDR image does a much better job.
What is your opinion?

You can find a good technical wiki article here, and some beautiful HDR images here.

The Internet of Things

I have just started looking at programming physical interfaces, using a technology called Arduino.

Armed with my starter kit (suitable for ages 10 years and up), I have made LED lights blink (and even dim!), motors whir, and a small servo turn back and forth, controlled in my final experiment by a bendy bit a plastic (a flex sensor).
It's great fun, but now I want to make a variety of physical scenes, hook them up to the internet, and allow the world to control them by websites, tweets, Flickr uploads... and on and on my fantasies go.

All this is yet to come but is part of an attempt on my part to get a better understanding (and play with), the Internet of Things.
Simply, this is a term coming into currency that describes how physical objects in our lives are becoming increasingly connected. An example is that (if you have the right equipment), you can program your TV via your phone, whilst you are out. But this is going to be a world of smart devices where communication will go in both directions - your fridge will know when you are low on milk and text you whilst your out, reminding you to get more.

There was an interesting BBC Radio4 talk by Russell Davies on the 21^st September where he discusses his thoughts about this.
He also wrote a blog entry about what he had intended to say.
In his talk Davies quotes Clay Shirky, and it resonates deeply, so I leave you with it here:

"creating something personal, even of moderate quality, has a different kind of appeal than consuming something made by others, even of high quality"

Fungus the photo-man

I have been annoying Nadine for a few years now by spoiling walks in the country by turning them into opportunities to regularly stop and admire / photograph any fungus that happens to be minding its own business within the sphere of my eye's beady gaze.
To make it all worthwhile (at least from my perspective), I am going to pop a selection of these photos up onto Flickr, where other fungus obsessed snappers can find them and thence bore their partners / lovers / friends.

I made a start today, uploading a few fungus from our front yard, Hampstead Heath, and from the woods near Shin Falls in the Scottish highlands.

Don't forget to keep checking for updates!

Fruit Picking

On the August bank holiday we went fruit picking in Enfield, of all places.
There is a PYO there called Parkside Farm, which won the PYO Farm of the Year 2011.
We had a wonderful day in the countryside, and picked some amazing produce.
The cupboards are now groaning with jars of Strawberry and Raspberry jam which Nadine has whipped up.

Walk To Work

I have really been enjoying the light on my walk to work this week - beautiful shadows in the air.

This is a nasty patch of grass where too many dog owners don't bother with those little bags. It felt transformed, but I still wouldn't walk across it.

Bit different from my usual finds:

Somewhere silent tears fall at the loss of this scruffy fellow.

 

Matryoshka bins.
I thought this most odd, but thinking about it, how else do you throw a bin away?

(Slowly) building a flickr set here.

Making Kids Games

I made a suite of kids games for Lloyds TSB whilst I was still at Saint.
For one reason or another they stalled them going live. However I have just found out they are now up!
You can play them here: Lloyds TSB - Billy and Stan London 2012.

Shok-1

There is a bit of disused ground just by where I am working in Borough.
Shok-1 is a local street artist who uses this and some of the surrounding wall, doors, kiosks, and shop shutters as his gallery space.
I have been enjoying seeing new work appearing, sometimes watching a piece grow and change over a few days, a couple of times catching him in the act.
The work is big, but he puts in some lovely small details.



Check Shok-1's own flickr here.

Spoon Carving

Back in the summer, we went for a weekend camping, and I tried my hand at spoon carving.
I thought the main techniques would be similar to those I learned on the bowyer course. This was true, but just showed me how much I had forgotten! However, whilst making the bow was largely big strokes and the very fine finessing to finish, this was all about close shaping strokes with lots of control from the start, so I was shown and got to practice some new cutting strokes.
Tools used were straight knife for the primary shaping, and a crook knife for the bowl. (It is also possible to burn out the bowl with an ember, but that's not what I wanted to learn...)
The course was very informal and we chatted rather too much, so I didn't quite finish my spoon, although I did get it to a usable rough state. It just needed some fine shaping and smoothing to finish. I had intended to do this after I got home, but have decided to keep my first spoon as-is. I will polish up my next one.

Photos show the newly split Birch, through drawing and roughing out the spoon shape, to nearly complete project.



I shouldn't have tried the paddle shaped handle as this added significantly to the complexity of carving the handle, and I should probably have tried to make a smaller spoon overall. This would have meant less complex cutting so I might have finished, but I guess you find out more than the direct skills learning these crafts...

1bit audio / video

I was just sharing Tristan Perich with a friend and found mention of some other 1bit artists, Ryoji Ikeda and Alva Noto.

I have only had a quick look at Ryoji Ikeda's work, but it looks amazing - creating sound and visual from data / noise.

Spent a little longer with Alva Noto.
Check his videos - headphones on and prepare to be assailed.
Love his ringtones, and funkbugfx down at the bottom of the page is great!

A snippet of performance:


let me know your favorites...

Land Rover - 3D Driving

Just put another project live - a media serving site for Land Rover's latest concept, the DC100.

There are two vehicles: the standard DC100 (Tool), and the Sport (Cool) versions.

I programmed the 3D space and car driving engine using Away3D. Additional interface elements created in vanilla Flash (as3).

Lots of work optimizing the main driving engine to get fastest / smoothest performance whilst allowing for a (relatively) high poly-count so Land Rover's vehicles could look their best!

Media site:  media.dc100.co.uk
Agency:       FPCreative
Model optimisation: Sweet CGI

New Amon Tobin album

Amon Tobin release his latest album ISAM a short while ago, and some remixes are now coming through...

Check this version of Surge. It's gorgeous:


...and the more Amonesque 16Bit remix:


And, of course, the original if you haven't heard it yet:

Facebook competition T&Cs

Currently working on a Facebook campaign for F1 sponsors Santander, who are sponsoring F1 :: Lewis & Jenson Santander .

The campaign includes some games (that's me), a video wall (me too), loads of information, and there are going to be some competitions (with great prizes!).

The Facebook guidelines for competitions are not entirely straightforward.
I found this very useful information at the bluedoor here.

Heritage barefoot shoes

The sun is out and so today is for shorts and VFFs.
The usual attention was stirred up by my toe pockets (neatly avoiding any leg comments), when a classic car fan told me that the founder of Bugatti cars had a pair of shoes "with toes as if they were gloves"  100 years ago or so!

Check Natural Stride Sports article, where I pinched the image from :)

Welsh Toilet Graffiti

spotted an article in the paper this morning about a toilet block on the Welsh island Skokholm that was being pulled down. perhaps not the most attention grabbing headline, but the workers found these artworks inside:
http://on.fb.me/kGChSP

as the block has been demolished, there is an appeal for any high quality photos that people might have and are willing to share and help preserve a record of this mini-wonder.
join in here: http://bit.ly/jLmIxv

Agency of the Year!

Saint, where i have worked for the last 3+ years have won Agency of the Year in the Revolution Awards 2011.
Feeling proud to have been part of it!

Mother's Day 2011

Nadine's first Mother's Day.

 We had flowers, a card and present,

special breakfast (chocolate fingers), champagne,

a walk the park,

and a big Sunday Roast.
A lovely day.
With lots of love.

Thank you for being a great mum.

Lilies

Working at learning how to use my new Macro lens.
Some wonderful lilies for Nadine proved a great subject.
Play full-screen and let me know your thoughts...

Digital Symphony

Thanks to Mark Sng for turning me on to Tristan Perich and his 1-Bit Symphony.

Perich has composed a symphony, and I have a copy of it.
Number 2769.
It is in a cd case, but it isn't a recording.
Rather, this is a rather beautiful (in a tech-geek way) physical object, comprising wires, switches, a battery and a chip, that plays the music live for you when you turn it on.

One of the consequences of this which I rather like is that unlike a normal cd, you cannot make a digital rip. If you were to want a copy of the sound, you would need to record it in real-time, in an analogue fashion if you like, even if you use digital equipment.

Of course to make a copy of the sound would be to miss the point. This is a unique hand soldered artifact, and joy is to be had handling it, appreciating the near liquid quality of solder, reading the code supplied in the packaging, plugging into the headphone jack, and letting the sound unfold.

The sound is hard.
1-Bit doesn't have much space for tonal depth. It won't be to everyone's (many people's...) taste, and I might not listen to it that often, but the object-ness of the whole work will ensure it doesn't get tucked in storage as a physical back-up to mp3s, like so much of my music now.

Listen to a clip, then order your own copy from here.

Cultural weekend

Noah met his Uncle Steven this weekend, and they got on famously.

We did some good walking, looking at flowers and frogs in the park, followed by cruising some urban art in the back streets of Holloway.

The whole extended weekend was rounded off nicely with a 'mummy and me' visit to the cinema to take in Woody Allen's latest film.

Perfect.

learning how to see

Since my new camera arrived I have been learning how to use it. This has involved some Lynda training which has increased my knowledge of the technical aspects of lenses, apertures, exposures, etc.
More important, and fun, has been a daily practice - going out with the camera, taking shots, and trying to understand what works, what doesn't, and why.
I'm not going to trouble anyone outside my immediate family with my stumbling steps, but I feel the need to share my excitement with a few images, captured with a couple of the accessories I have invested in...

Telephoto lens...
I am interested in trying to capture details, both close and at a distance.
Last night was a full moon.
Here is the shot:

I love seeing the craters and channels, captured at full 300mm (600mm 35mm equivalent), and drawn out with a little post-processing using Lightroom software.
I have tried to photograph the moon for years.
I think I got a little closer with this image.

Infrared filter...
I was also interested to try infrared photography. This needs a IR filter and a long exposure.
Here are a couple of images of some yellow tulips in our front room.
The first is a straight IR image, and the second is the same image with the red and blue colour channels swapped for a false colour effect.

The long exposure gave a very grainy image. Lightroom used again to smooth things out.
The first image could just be some pink flowers, but the second has an ethereal quality I am really happy with.
Looking forward to trying this out further.

Camera Museum notes

I had intended to write some notes for my slideshow of cameras, but it slipped my schedule.

However, i have a reason to revisit the museum, so here are the notes...

Up front is my first good camera, an Olympus XA3 clamshell advertised, if memory serves, with David Bailey. I loved the compact design and flick open action.

Next is another Olympus, and my first digital camera, the C-400 Camedia. This came free with the first PC i bought (a Tiny). I was thrilled. This little beauty also had the slide open action and took 12 high resolution images (36 low res). With a picture save time of just over 3 seconds, i made a short series of 12 frame animations using the fully glory of the 640x480 frame!

A brief flirtation with Canon next. 

The IXUS came out and i fell in love with the style. This gorgeous tiny silver brick looked wonderful, and when i could afford one, it felt great too. But not for long. I went for the APS version and almost instantly regretted it. The C-400, despite it's low highest resolution, had shown me the opportunities digital offered and i didn't like being back with developing costs. So, about six months later i bought this one. A Digital IXUS V, with 2.1 mega pixels. It took great pictures and even now i love the solid feel.

But just around the corner of time, maybe my first true brand love affair was lurking...

I was doing some online / inbox gaming with a group of friends, and a photography game was sent around. Being a little competitive, i had to beat my friend's scores, and got quite good. On reaching some (not that high) level i was rewarded with a 10% discount voucher for the new Lumix cameras by Panasonic. Intrigued, i checked out their microsite. 

Armed with 10% discount i also checked this wonderful DMC-FX01 out at their online store then watched the doormat for the postie to deliver it.

A 3.6 zoom and 5 mega pixels, this camera boasts the world famous Leica lens. (It doesn't. If Leica made the lens, it would cost as much as a Leica, but Panasonic use the Leica standard, and the camera wears a little "L" badge as proof.)  Even more comfortable in the hand than the IXUS, a clear intuitive interface, and takes really good photos.

So happy with my new camera.

But i wanted more. I wanted ZOOOOOM. So i thought i would order Panasonic's compact zoom. Except i didn't. A new batch of cameras came out, and i bought the wrong one. Confused by all the model numbers i bought a DMC LX3 my mistake...

...10 mega pixels, yes, but no zooooom. Only a 2.2x

However, after picking myself off the floor, and whilst checking my order to see why they had sent the wrong camera, i discovered i had gem. A better sensor, a 28mm native wide angle lens, and i could accessorize with filters and a super wide angle add-on lens.

This is a brilliant camera. There is no photo because it isn't in the museum. Yet.

The museum ends with a zoom camera.

Another Panasonic Lumix, the FS30 (i tried to change and bought a FujiFilm, but this was traded in within a week). A simple slip in your pocket, take anywhere, point-and-shoot, 14 mega pixel, 8x zooooming joy. I carry it everywhere. It was cheap enough to not worry if i kill it in a bag after six months, or condensation gets in when photographing Noah's swimming lessons. This is a fun camera which takes fair photos and video, but also reminds me of the real quality you can get from a better camera. i feel slightly dirty if i use it for more that snaps, so the LX3 comes off the shelf now more and more.

I have loved my LX3, and taken some great photos, but those Panasonic folk know their marketing. This is a bridge camera. More control and better quality than a compact, but not so much / so good as a DSLR.

And there is the rub. I want more again. And they offer it with open arms.

The micro four thirds entry level DSLR, Lumix G2.

A proper camera body with interchangeable lenses, and all the rest of it.

It's smaller and cuter than a standard DSLR.

And it comes in red.

Mine arrived this morning.

LX3 joins the museum....

Noah builds a new Ark

Noah has put his pocket money where his heart is and made a contribution to help fund the building of Greenpeace's new Rainbow Warrior today.

He spent quite a while scanning the inventory looking for Gopher Wood, but realising building technology has moved on somewhat, he chipped in for some bolts, a pump rotor, electrical cable, and some joints to hold it all together.

This is an excellent project for Greenpeace, and a chance to be a part (however small), of something important.
Check the brilliant website, and then make a donation if the mood takes you. Your name will then be in the boat together with Noah's.

Noah's Ark certificate

Water Baby

Noah has joined Water Babies and had his first swimming lesson today.

Noah took everything in his stride, even going fully underwater! There were no tears (or leaks), he just enjoyed and lapped the water, chewing his thumb as we swam around the pool.

A good sized group (7 babies), we first learned how to hold our little ones, then carefully splashed their faces, leading up to full immersion. Lots of bouncing and kisses before we started teaching the babies what to do if they fall into water - the serious side of the swim is to make these youngsters safer around water as well as to give them joy and exercise.
The exercise was great - Noah had a huge sleep afterwards. We have been having trouble with day-time naps, so this was an unexpected bonus.

Partners could sit at the pool side to watch the fun (grand-parents can probably do this if they want too...), and of course take a few photos...

Lots of dads in the pool and it was a great thing to share time with Noah having a daddy-time activity. Speaking in the changing room afterwards, it was clear a number of dads were taking this chance - both to bond, but also to give mums a chance for a bit of a break (although all the mums were poolside, and ready for feeding after the swim!).

Here are a few of the snaps Nadine took:

Already looking forward to next week!