Stephanie

Alex

MIT

IRA

Southie's St. Patrick's Day Parade

Boston Brahmin

Be

Blow

Smoke

Basket

Got Eggs?

Eastern Easter

The Hunted

Easterific

Get Your Laugh On

Thanks to Psycho Kitty for linking to another worthwhile web excursion!

Want to be entertained, maybe laugh a little? Try the Angry Alien Productions for kicks:

The Exorcist--The Shining --Titanic --Alien--Jaws
It's a Wonderful Life-- Freddy vs. Jason--Scream
Texas Chainsaw Massacre

Photography Project 1: Over and Out

Last night I turned in my first huge photography assignment--100 photos of people. I'm pretty happy with my results and really really happy to be done and here’s why:

1. When first introduced, this project was a portrait assignment, then morphed into the Family of Man tribute, and ended as a 100 Faces project--all that said I was pretty sick and tired of all the changes and wanted it to be done and over with.


Faux Flowers, Vrai Flower

2. I am a little tired of looking at the same 100 photos, all my photos, day in day out, except for the ones of people I know and like, like my pal, model, photographer friend above. :)

3. I need a break from the 'digital darkroom', which happened to be my office with the blinds draw and lights off.

4. As a result of spending hours in the 'digital darkroom', I have claw hands from over mouse maneuvering--they ache and so do my eyes.

5. I’m ready to stop working in my sleep. Every night for the past couple of weeks I've dreamt of working on my project, when I’d realize this, I’d wake myself up to stop, but I’d ultimately fall back into that dreamy darkroom.

I plan to upload my photos to shutterfly--when I do, I'll post the link. For the mean time, here are a few photos from this project. These were all taken this past weekend in Southie, Boston's Irish neighborhood, during the St. Patrick's Day Parade. I had to convert these photos to jpegs and assign them a different color profile to get them to look decent for the monitor, which is a shame because they look much better in print format, but you get the idea.

IRA Boy

Cymbalism

Kilty

Faces a Blur

His Hog

Darth in Southie

Storm Trooper

Glamour

Doh!

Southie's Sweetest

Girl

Country Cat

Sandeep Country Von Tigerle

Here's our new cat, who, as I write this, is being surgically rendered a Eunuch. Read all about him and his country ways on Alex's blog.

Inspiring Images

If a trip to Australia is in your future, consider bringing your kids and hiring this Australian portrait photographer to work his/her magic. You must check out this gallery--the photos are amazing and use only natural light (FYI, that's really hard). Hey come to think of it, if you can't make it Down Under, consider hiring me because I'll be of this caliber come June 2006, when I will be a credentialed, professional photographer. ;)

JP Manhunt

If you live in JP, commute on the Orange line, and happen to be in a car with the jerk blaring a really bad action movie on his portable DVD player, do yourself a favor, put on your headphones or plug your ears. Do not ask him to turn it down, because although you are contributing to the rent, you are in his living room. If you find this guy, hog tie him and call me.

Soggy Chainsaws

Charles (Chuck) Todd, Joshua Tree, 2001

Waking up to rain and the sound of a chainsaw this morning brought on a longing to be home in Seattle with my family. Growing up, we always had an acre or two in pretty densely wooded areas—that said there was a lot of work to be done outside. Chopping trees, chipping trees, pruning trees, hauling stuff, burning stuff, all of these jobs were my dad’s jobs. Chuck is unique in that although living in one of rainiest parts of the world, the rain never stopped him from spending the day outside doing his manly chores and, I’ve never seen him wear any raingear. So hearing the whine and grind of the chainsaw on this rainy day made me think of him.

Jimmy Jam Returns

Jimmy Jam Joined Jus!

I'm happy to report Jimmy Jam (see earlier post here) has returned to Jamaica Plain. You can see there's nothing Jamaicaish about this Plain we call our home, but the important thing is Jimmy is BACK!

Bathroom Monkey

Monkey Maid

As the end of every weekend approaches, so does cleaning anxiety brought on by the pile of dirty laundry, the film in the tub, and the dust bunnies that can no longer swish down the hall in my wake because of their increased heft. This would all be solved if I could just hire someone to do the cleaning for me; problem is, I don't really want some random person in my house, which is why the bathroom monkey seems like a worthwhile option.

With bathroom monkey you get a clean bathroom and a fun new animal to play with. The problem is I'm now not sure monkeys are that nice, given the latest attack in the headlines. Plus, I really don't need another animal, as I now have a third cat, which my dear husband was kind enough to let me take in. To return his favor, he gets to choose the gatos name (good deal huh?). Find out the top choices here.

Decapitation Ditty

Do you want a new song to whistle, or drive your friends and family crazy? Of course you do. Again, Logan's Dave provided this.

Spibiblicomic

It's my husband who is the graphic novel reader and puts my bible knowledge to shame, but if the bible were like this, then we'd be on the same page. I found this by way of Logan's Dave.

Say 2 Hail Marys, or Better Yet....

Did you poop on your grandma’s bed? Did you kill your sister’s pet rabbit? Well, neither did I, but chances are someone did. I did however do some pretty bad things and I know you did too. If you want to feel better about those things, you now have a venue for creating a hierarchy of badness.
"How?" you ask.
"Easy," I say, "just go to this amazing, simply amazing blog, called PostSecret.blogspot.com ."

This blog is the most refreshing thing I have seen in a long, long time--it has even temporarily lifted the jaded cloud overhead. I've caught a glimpse into a window of naked honesty and human vulnerability, which I don't come across too often. Most of the time I want to forget I’m a part of the humanness of this world, simply because the lack of humanity and humility makes me want to glide away with Jimmy Jam. But this, this site, however weird it might seem, makes me want to like them, us, me, and give all those sad and bad people a good old pat on the back and say “Hey, I’m bad too, it’s okay.”

Maybe some of you will be super human and honest and send in your biggest baddest deed, I know I will. Big ups to Samit, Yuss Yuss! Duffintely! for leading me astray--truth be found and truth be told!

Jimmy Jam, We Miss You

Jimmy Jam
This is Jimmy Jam, the flying squirrel who used to grace us with his presence every night. Unfortunately Jimmy has gone missing, probably because of the cold and snow. I hope he's hibernating and not decomposing.

You probably think he's a mouse, not so. He might be small but he's a mighty fine flyer. It's the flaps of excess skin under his arms that allow him to fly, glide really since he doesn't do any flapping.
*note: this is not a good photo, I know that. Lack of light=slow shutter speed. Slow shutter without tripod=blurry badness.

Family of Man Tribute

I'm currently thinking about how I will go about my first big photo project, a body of 100 photographs of people going about life. Each of my classmates will also turn in 100 photos and out of our 100 photos, 10 will be exhibited. The photos are to be of the Edward Steichen, Family of Man Ilk, as it's the 50th anniversary of the exhibit that rocked the NYC MOMA. If you've never seen the exhibition book, you really should. My mother had this book and as a kid I went through it all the time--it surely contributed to my desire to be a photographer.

Leica has hosted a 4 year "Family of Man 2" project that has photos worth checking out. If you have some free time and want to see some really beautiful images, go here.

News Flash: Collective Punishment Doesn't Work

Finally, someone is doing something right in the Middle East!

February 17, 2005

Israeli Defense Minister Orders End to Home Demolitions

JERUSALEM (AP) -- Israeli Defense Minister Shaul Mofaz ordered an end Thursday to the policy of demolishing the houses of Palestinians involved in attacks against Israelis, the military said.
Mofaz decided to ``stop exercising the legal right to demolish terrorists' houses as a means of deterrence'' after a recommendation from army chief of staff Lt. Gen. Moshe Yaalon, the statement said.
An internal army review of the policy called it ineffective, concluding that it enflamed anger and failed to deter attacks. The practice has been widely condemned by human rights groups as collective punishment.
The Israeli military has used the tactic of destroying houses of suicide bombers and other Palestinian attackers during the current and previous conflicts with the Palestinians.

Move Over Fonzie and Evil Knievil, Cool Guy has Arrived

Check out this site, it's hilarious. http://xmcoolguy.blogspot.com/

Love Kitty Ditty

Romantics at heart, this one is for you. Oh, and this one too. Turn up those speakers!

We Come From the Land of Ice and Snow!

Who comes from this frozen land? Well find out for yourself.

Sidetracked by Satan & Commuting with God

Big Bad Devil

Okay, I might be closing any kind of pearly gate that might exist byway of this post, but given my religious skepitude and lack of faith in things I can't see, I can't help it.

If you notice, on the far, top right of this screen is a icon that says "next blog"--try using it you'll get some pretty boring but occasionally very entertaining results. Today I came upon a blog that kept my eyes glued to the screen.

Disclaimer: I'm new to this blogging medium, revealing my innermost thoughts and mundane details of my day, so I am going to claim ignorance to any unwritten rules that should prevent me from commenting on someone else’s blog.

The blog I have to share with you goes like this:

While praying the blogger is interrupted and says: "I hate how satan can get me sidetracked for just a moment, and, before I know it……. "

Okay that's bizarre! Does this woman actually think the devil 1) exists and 2) is just waiting to lead her astray? (I just answered my question, obviously yes) I know the devil can be a metaphor for temptation but the way it's put it sounds as if he's riding around on her shoulder.

She goes on to reveal that:

". . .I think God wants us to look our best, after all we are His children; but I don’t think He’s incredibly impressed with our latest fashion trends and the newest color we choose to dye our hair, especially when it takes precedence over how we look inside. "

Wow, god wants us to look our best? If he's not incredibly impressed by our fashion, is he maybe marginally impressed?

More acknowledgment that god is a 21st century kind of guy:

"Does God speak to you when you're driving? I'm sure He probably does, just like He does with me. Well, this morning on my way to work it was foggy and drizzly, and people lose all sense of how to drive when a little water falls from the sky. Gives me a new respect for Noah; after all, he'd never seen rain before and he maneuvered a huge boat for more than a month! ... I think God puts the "rain" and "fog" on our roads of life to get our attention... not so that we'll breeze right on through, possibly hurting ourselves or someone else. I think He wants us to learn something, maybe how to be a better "driver" here in this life, maybe to be a better example, or maybe to avoid an "accident" in life or to keep one from being so harsh. Maybe He just puts the rain and fog in our lives to keep us on a certain road longer so we can spend a little more time with Him, perhaps we wouldn't spend that time with Him if we got to our destination sooner. Next time you're "held up" in traffic or just the traffic of life, take the time to enjoy the moment... it may be that God has something He really wants you to see, or maybe He just wants to spend some time with you."

Question: Since Jesus is essentially commuting with her, can she use the carpool lane?

In Honor of St. Valentine

My sister Rhonda sent this to me. I like its simple, but also complex sentiment.

"Some day, after we have mastered the winds,
the waves, the tides, and gravity
we shall harness the energies of love.
Then, for a second time in the history of the world
man will have discovered fire."
-- Teilhard de Chardin

India Will Infect You, in a good way

Bombay Bike

I long to return to India. My trip to India was the hugest foreign highlight of my life. I still talk about it like I just returned; I in fact returned 4 years ago. I envy my travel mate Nicole Titus, who has managed to make it back there twice since our trip--she was actually married there last summer, to an American equally entranced by the subcontinent. I keep trying to get Alex to agree to take me there. When we were married I made him promise to take me to the Taj Mahal on our first anniversary. We didn't make it--We were doing a different sort of packing when our first anniversary arrived, we were packing our life for Boston. Alex is perplexed by my desire to return to Hindustan, and rightfully so. Our three weeks of email correspondence while I was there was filled with lots of disgusting stories which included lots of human and cow poop, dead babies floating in the Ganges, public cremations, mile long stretches of slums, and ......, you get the idea. As time passes, and I suggest another anniversary at the Taj Mahal, I realize that unless I make a serious case for returning to India, with my groom at my side, I will likely never return and will continue to plan our imaginary anniversary trip to the Taj Mahal until death do us part. I now have hope that someday soon I will return because I've found the words to make my case solid. Read the brilliant 5 day travel diary, by Slate contributor Seth Stevenson, to understand why India has infected me. One of my favorite bits, because I too have incorporated the India head waggle into my body language repertoire: "I love the Indian head waggle. It's a fantastic bit of body language, and I'm trying to add it to my repertoire. The head waggle says, in a uniquely unenthusiastic way, "OK, that's fine." In terms of Western gestures, its meaning is somewhere between the nod (though less affirmative) and the shrug (though not quite as neutral). To perform the head waggle, keep your shoulders perfectly still, hold your face completely expressionless, and tilt your head side-to-side, metronome style. Make it smooth—like you're a bobble-head doll. It's not easy. Believe me, I've been practicing. "

I long to return to India. My trip to India was the hugest foreign highlight of my life. I still talk about it like I just returned; I in fact returned 4 years ago. I envy my travel mate Nicole Titus, who has managed to make it back there twice since our trip--she was actually married there last summer, to an American equally entranced by the subcontinent.

I keep trying to get Alex to agree to take me there. When we were married I made him promise to take me to the Taj Mahal on our first anniversary. We didn't make it--We were doing a different sort of packing when our first anniversary arrived, we were packing our life for Boston. Alex is perplexed by my desire to return to Hindustan, and rightfully so. Our three weeks of email correspondence while I was there was filled with lots of disgusting stories which included lots of human and cow poop, dead babies floating in the Ganges, public cremations, mile long stretches of slums, and ......, you get the idea.

As time passes, and I suggest another anniversary at the Taj Mahal, I realize that unless I make a serious case for returning to India, with my groom at my side, I will likely never return and will continue to plan our imaginary anniversary trip to the Taj Mahal until death do us part. I now have hope that someday soon I will return because I've found the words to make my case solid. Read the brilliant 5 day travel diary, by Slate contributor Seth Stevenson, to understand why India has infected me.

One of my favorite bits, because I too have incorporated the India head waggle into my body language repertoire:
"I love the Indian head waggle. It's a fantastic bit of body language, and I'm trying to add it to my repertoire. The head waggle says, in a uniquely unenthusiastic way, "OK, that's fine." In terms of Western gestures, its meaning is somewhere between the nod (though less affirmative) and the shrug (though not quite as neutral). To perform the head waggle, keep your shoulders perfectly still, hold your face completely expressionless, and tilt your head side-to-side, metronome style. Make it smooth—like you're a bobble-head doll. It's not easy. Believe me, I've been practicing. "

Boston needs to take Bombay's approach, although one could agrue this approach hasn't made much of an impact.

The Temperature of MIT

Updated!

My most recent assignment is to use a variety of color temperatures (AKA white balance) when capturing subjects. In a film camera you would achieve this result by using a filter over your lense, which changes the tonal value of the image. In either digital or film photography, adjusting the color temperature can give you some pretty interesting results.

The color wheel (not the one you learned in high school, which I've come to understand is very simplistic and inaccurate) is the bible to counteracting and enhancing colors and tonal casts. For example: green counteracts magenta (Trivia: Magenta doesn't exist in the spectrum--you'll never see it in a rainbow); cyan absorbs red; and, yellow cancels out blue. This color wheel, which I have to admit I am utterly fascinated by, is very different in that red doesn't cancel out green, blue doesn't cancel out orange, nor does yellow cancel out violet, which is what the color wheel we were taught in beginning art class indicates. I've never really been a theory person, but I love color theory! Todd Manville, (he's my brother-in-law) Master Printer, Sage of the Press, I bet you could teach me a thing or two about CMYK (cyan, magenta, yellow, and black)--maybe if your father-in-law, or wife (yes that's a link) read this they'll let you know that I want some of your know how, oh grasshopper of the printing world.

Side note: Some of you blondes use color canceling on a daily basis, in the shower. Yellow and orange are cancelled out by violet and blue, which is why you use a blue violet shampoo after a foil that leaves you brassy.

The below photos illustrate how adjusting color temperature can change the mood of a subject. I chose to photograph out my office window for a couple of reasons: 1. It's convienient 2.The building I look onto is a very neutral beige and there for a good canvas.

If you want to laugh, take a closer look at the person in the rolodex. :)

Sushi, The Grooming Gato

What do you get when you have a photo assignment due in 48 hours and few daylight hours to work with, once you subtract sleep, commuting, and working? You gather your cats and/or husband together for yet another modeling session. Here's what Sushi did when I said "Shake your head like you're in a shampoo commercial."

Sushi and Mooshi both have snowy white fur so they were good subjects for this exercise. You'll notice that above, Sushi's fur has a slight lavender/pinkish (magenta) tone, this filter creates a sepia tone you see in the above photo. You could use this tool if you wanted to counteract the greenish cast of a florescently lit room.

The photo below, of Mooshi, is taken with a very warm toned filtering effect. If you wanted to warm up the light of a subject standing in bright, noon-time sun, when the light is usually very cool or on a cloudy day when the sky if very gray, this would be a good way to do it. In Mooshi's case, he's surrounded by furniture and walls of a very warm tones, which adds to the 'red light district' effect.

Mooshi, of the Red Light District

Mooshi with red filter

Ghettorific

Ghettorific

Prince Harry and Cancer Patient

The New Yorker Discovers Prince Harry's Diary

This is too funny. Find it online, here.

PRINCE HARRY: THE ROYAL EXCERPTS by Paul Rudnick
Issue of 2005-02-07Posted 2005-01-31

Since all of that fuss regarding my wearing a swastika armband at a recent costume affair, I’ve decided to keep this sensitivity journal, charting my increasing awareness of the feelings of others, especially those of different races, religions, and smells. Why, just last week I attended a synagogue service, where I wore a little crocheted tea cozy on my head and, during the prayers, I tried to sound like I was continually clearing my throat. I’ve also been watching reruns of “Seinfeld,” a television program that features a Jewish comedian, who seems quite amusing, particularly as he cavorts with other Jews. And, to atone for my much publicized and disgraceful ignorance, on Monday I approached a Jewish schoolmate and announced, “So you’re a Jew. I’m so sorry.”

On Tuesday I explored people of color. Just by peering out of my palace window, I glimpsed so many wonderfully varying tonalities, rather like paint chips. And I pondered: Wouldn’t it be marvellous, and an ideal illustration of brotherhood, if we could just line up everyone in the world by gradation, with the English people right at the front? Immigration is simply a matter of every nation assembling a complete box of human crayons, and never forgetting even those shades which no one ever uses, not if it’s a picture of a bright sunny day.

I’m becoming even bolder in my quest for communion, so on Wednesday I sought out male homosexuals, not limited to those in my immediate family. I’ve heard that homosexuals often enjoy cultural pursuits, so I lingered in the men’s loo at one of our popular West End musicals, hoping for an informative chat. Everyone there was remarkably friendly, even offering home phone numbers and constant references to my grandmum. Feeling refreshingly comfortable, I told one snappily dressed fellow, “I don’t care what anyone says, I don’t find you morally repellent. Perhaps if I got to know you better.” Later I was quiveringly excited to come upon a lesbian, but when I questioned her Camilla replied, “That’s still not funny, Harry.”

I want my sensitivity to attain a sweepingly international scope, so I’ve been travelling in disguise these past few days, hoping to befriend Americans. To prove our kinship, I wore a great mound of padding and spoke very loudly. I immediately experienced a true bond with Yanks everywhere; I felt that we shared so much more than merely the gleeful bombardment of Muslim lands. I practiced yodelling “Hi!,” “Howdy!,” and “Does that come in extra large?,” all phrases useful at both shops and bistros. I eventually mingled with a band of Texans outside Big Ben, who were asking their guide, “So which Prince is the moron?” As we chortled together, all I could think was: Poor Andrew.

I’m still working on the Chinese, or is it the Japanese? Whenever I approach them with my jovial martial-arts kicks, they all roll their eyes, or as much as they can.

I most especially wish to truly understand and appreciate women, and not simply as back-alley mistresses. I’ve made a concerted effort to treat females not as sexual prey but as utter equals. In keeping with this idea, I’ve begun regaling various young ladies with the very same questions I ask of my male chums, such as “Do you think those are real?,” “Does that one seem drunk yet?,” and “Would it be cricket for me to shag Fergie, now that she’s thin?” I’ve learned that equality simply feels so much better and that’s why, at my next costume bash, I’m going to appear as a proud Jamaican wet nurse.

Photo Block, Please Help!

Neat and Tidy!

I need your help, badly. I've been suffering a bout of photography block since we moved to Boston. I never thought this would happen. I thought if anything moving to a new place would give me so much new material I wouldn't be able to contain myself. I'm contained, really, really contained. It may seem absurd for someone who just started photography school to already hit an inspiration low--it is no doubt absurd. I have plenty of assignments that could produce very interesting photos if I could find something I wanted to photo, but I just can’t seem to do that. I’ve made lists of all the things that might be interesting photographic opportunities. So far, I’ve scored a big zero on all of them. I even started carrying my camera with me a lot more with the hope that I’ll run into something that begs my camera’s eye. Nope. Nada. Nein. Non. ARGHHHHH!!!!!! Yesterday, Alex and I took 2 long walks—it was a balmy 45 degree. The sun was shining, the dirty snow was beginning to fade, but still I could not find anything. I then decided I would try a new perspective: Start photographing the things that are not very aesthetically pleasing. Those of you who’ve read my previous posts know garbage is one of those things. I suddenly felt a burst of energy—garbage is everywhere, never inside the trash bins, but instead all over the street and sidewalk—what an opportunity. Then, as few hours passed and I decided this was a really bad idea. Not only would it be unhealthy for me to focus on the very thing I’m borderline obsessive about, but it was also unlikely that garbage is a compelling enough subject to produce photos that any one would want to look at. So, if you have any ideas of themes, or topics, or inspirations to help me crawl out of this photo grave, please send them to ctmallet@gmail.com

Refuse Refuge

Urbanica

Bubbleator

Okay, It's not all that bad. This was taken at my workplace, the illustrius institute. If you look, really really hard, you can find some things that just must be photographed. This is a macro shot of the bubbles in a bubble machine, with a window reflection in the glass.

Amateurs to Emulate: Great Travel Photos

My favorite, is the Trixy Meow, the gato leaping above. Pick your favorite.

Panning with a moving subject to create a blurred background while the subject is frozen

Shallow Depth of Field

Some of the Best Photos of 2004

http://msnbc.msn.com/id/6687413/