Releasing the words.

I wasn't in class due to the AP Literature test. I just wanted to write down some of my thoughts.

First of all, I am surprised at how much the media classes have influenced other subjects in my life. I have learned how to analyze media, and in turn it has taught me how to analyze literature. Also, in government when we look at political adds and cartoons I am able to find the deeper meaning faster than my classmates.

Secondly, I have been raking in the money. Okay..not really...but I have been making a few extra bucks with my amateur senior picture taking. I don't charge a lot, I pretty much only charge for my time because I know my skill level is still needing improvement. It has been a good experience to take pictures and get out in the field and then come back and get critiques from different people about what they like and don't like.

Thirdly,

I will travel.

I have been talking to my aunt and uncle who both work at the airport, and my uncle wants me to get a job with him. It doesn't pay well, so I would have to get a second job...but it does give me flight benefits, so long as I fly standby I can get to practically anywhere I want. I have the travel bug. I need to get out and see and experience things for myself, and there is no better time than now before I am involved in school and relationships. I also think that travelling will help build my portfolio and understanding, and I might have an advantage based off of travel experiences that I have had in my future career choice.


This is all.

TED

Dear Meester B...

I was in Richfield on Tuesday working. I took pictures and made a booklet for a construction business...

Thursday's Videos: 

Video Number 1: Computer generated holographic. 

This technology was amazing because it all happened in front of our eyes. This technology can change the way we apply special affects into videos. All of the images were clear and created well, which made it all the more entertaining to watch. He likens these images to magic, which is "deception that we enjoy",  and the audience must first suspend their disbelief in order to become open to the story. 

This guy talked a lot about story, and I realized that without a story, nothing succeeds. You need to have something to first grasp your audience, you must pull them in. Without the audiences total interest and emotional attachment, none of those images would have been entertaining. 

He said you must first imagine the role of the magician as a story teller, and that every trick is a story. Magicians deliberately exploit the way their audience thinks, which is how special effects in movies work. Special effects make the audience believe something is happening that is not, they are an illusion.

 Magic tricks are like jokes, they lead us to an unexpected destination, and I feel like every successful story does just that. Stories are made to be shared, and they only continue to be shared when they entertain the audience.The audience must feel compelled to tell the story, to share the experience. In this modern world, stories are shared through email, facebook, blogs, twitter. Audience gathers around those mediums to hear the gripping stories. The better the story, the more it will be shared. 

This brings me back to this technology. The graphics can help to create that story, as a new way of expressing ourselves. My biggest thought was how you could use a TON of juxtaposition with this. You could make the audience think that something was happening, and then place something not logical next to you. 

Copyright:

This TED reminds me of "Everything is a Remake". The thing that intrigued me the most is how he presented his information. He used humor to get his point across, as well as hyperbole. He showed the exaggerated facts in a way that they seemed ridiculous how he presented them. This is a way of presentation that I hadn't before thought about. You can present the facts that the copyright mathematicians have determined to be true in a way that makes nobody believe them by simply adding some graphics and comparing those facts to things that people will conclude are jokes, which makes these facts come across as a joke.

We all think "yeah, copy right is bad, don't do it" but then we go out and do it anyways...

but how bad is copying?

These statistics, as the speaker portrayed, are a little over exaggerated. How can 1 song, a dollar on itunes, equate to be $150,000 of lost money for the industry?

The question is not how we can stop it, the question is how far human ethics will go to reach to protect artist's rights. 

It is morally wrong to steal other people's creations, but this has been going on since the beginning of time.

 I believe that evolution in all forms occurs when we take something and alter it, we make it evolve. The incline in technological advancements has improved at an increasing rate over these past few years because we now have the technology to improve technology. 

As Carly just said "If I made something, I would be pissed if someone stole it...but if you made something cool, I would steal it". 

I think everyone at sometime in their life has copied something that someone else has done. 

I don't want to take anything that would offend anyone else or cause them to lose money...but most musical artists that have talent are wayyy better off than I am financially, so it is hard to feel too sorry. 

Copyright gets me talking in circles, so I am going to stop now to prevent the cycle from continuing on. 

Helicopter Robots:

This technology is really cool, but for some reason they creep my out a little bit. I was thinking of what me, the average person, could use robots for. I had an image of the robot delivering my homework to school, with a note attached that says "Please excuse Lauren from school today, she didn't feel like getting out of bed, so she sent me..."

Then the helicopter would go to all my classes, with the camera attached to the front. It would film my teachers talking, and at 2:15 it would maneuver out of this building back to my bed, where I would then watch my teachers in fast forward mode, pausing only for the 2 minutes of actual teaching they do. :)

(if you can't tell, I am a little fed up with coming to school...senioritis.)

These helicopters could be used to get footage for movies up high, when they usually have to use a REAL plane or helicopter to film. I don't know how much these cost...but it might be worth it to rent one of these to carry your camera instead of paying for you to accompany the camera on a real plane/helicopter. 

The planes flying in formation really intrigued me, it would be cool to make a movie about these little robots invading the world...it doesn't sound like a million other movies that have already been made...right? 

You're Jealous?

Hello. I GOT A NEW CAMERA! No big deal. I AM EXTREMELY EXCITED!!!! It's cool. I LOVE MY PARENTS! Most of the time. 

Here are a few photos of the first day of cameradom. 

#1. Ulysses is semi-seductive at times. Don't worry, those glasses don't have X-Ray Vision. 

 #2: The school vending machines wanted to fight today. I was forced to enlist Asa in my efforts to free my paid for cookie from its grasp. As you can see, we lived happily ever after. Minus the Sprite Zero. 

#3: They love me. Cheeseballs.  

#4: Try to find what is wrong with this picture. No, it isn't Blake. No, it isn't the chalkboard zoo. No, it isn't even the afro. It's the screwdriver that lodged itself into Mr. B's foot. Well, his shoe. 

MOVIE

Holy cow. I just made a two minute video in the last two hours. I have a few things I want to fix, but since I need to take the video to dance today it is alright for the time being. annnnnnnd great. Now it isn't working on my computer. BLAH.

Audio

Today I worked on my dance video. Working with audio was an interesting experience. It made me realize how important audio is in portraying emotion!

Wednesday

I have been working a lot in Fireworks lately. 

I really enjoy creating banners and graphics, and there is plenty of room for improvement. 

I created a background using a bright color scheme and only squares for my personal blog, but I don't really like it because it is busy and distracts from the text. I am going to change it today in my web design class. 

Yipeeeeeeeee

Recently I have been very interested in writing. I think that this interest spawned from Loghan's script reading, because I realized that I have more to contribute than I thought.

Writing has been, and probably always will be, my strong point in life. I write constantly, whether it be in a journal or on my blog, for official school business, or just a note to a friend.

I decided that I want to try and write a story that is not personal. I think I will do a short film for the high school film festival.

Today I have been scripting the Orchesis Dance Company end of year video that will play at our concert.
 I usually don't script the films I make, and I am already noticing the difference.

As I script, I am able to make changes before hand so that I know exactly what footage I need.
I will tell the story that I want to tell, and not leave it to chance that the story gets told.

I am super super super excited that I have a new spark of life in my work! YAY!