Saturday, November 04, 2000

Get in the holiday spirit. Join the Weblogger Gift Exchange.
4:45 PM ::link::

Cloudy gray day waiting for a cold front to sweep through, hardly the ideal time to be out and about, so, of course, being a complete fool, out I go.

Glad I did, too. The soft light changed the riot of colors from the changing leaves into a muted multicolored belt between the earth and the sky.

I tried some more experiments with a new pinhole lens, this time remembering to bring along the cable release, the sheet with suggested exposures and all the other baggage. Still had a scare or two, since the mirror seems to hang up on its way down. I had checked its function, or so I thought, by opening the shutter on "B" with the back of the camera open. It went up just fine and the shutter opened and closed properly, so I figured all was good to go.

The hang up on the way down was a surprise when I looked through the viewfinder to try to compose my second shot. It took me a few minutes to realize what had happened but popping the body cap/pinhole off let the mirror return to its original position.

Even with the mirror down, it was a chore to compose the shots. A little tiny hole (estimated f-stop of about 200) doesn't let in much light. If I had brought a jacket with me, I would have thrown it over my head just to screen out external light, like a view camera. Cupping my hands around the viewfinder allowed me to come close enough for these experiments.

The results should be interesting, especially with the trees being blown around during the 5, 10 and 15 second exposures.
4:39 PM ::link::

Friday, November 03, 2000

VR Interactive announced the introduction of their new product which allows for a 360 degree interactive image from most digital cameras. Requiring no image stitching, the hardware is expected to cost less than $70.
12:34 PM ::link::

Show off your photography and help support charities through the National Open Photography Exhibition. 25 per cent of all sales will be donated to various charities in this event sponsored by the Giving Gallery.
12:14 PM ::link::

Tours of Forest Hill, in Ann Arbor, Michigan will be held the next few Sundays. Combine some history and a brisk autumn stroll through a cemetery founded in 1857.
11:56 AM ::link::

The Day of the Dead celebrations in Mexico the past few days seem like more fun than our American celebration of Halloween. It's an opportunity for whole families to join in the festivities, rather than a few hours of costumed candy grabbing by the kids. The frightening and fearful feelings which we associate with death are replaced by a sense of the continuity of the human existance and an inclusion of the departed in the festival.
11:31 AM ::link::

Thursday, November 02, 2000

Why do do many folks seem a bit, well maybe more than just a bit, obsessed with their web page stats? Checking and rechecking number of visitors, hits, referrers, etc. It might be because we all hang ourselves out on the line for the world to view and since so few seem to ever email, ICQ, AIM, or whatever, these dry statistics are about all we will ever see as feedback from our visitors.

Communication is a cooperative and collaborative process. That is the big drawback of the web. The information always seems to flow in one direction with no clues as to how it is being received other than soulless lines in a log file. It is always a help, even when working with a site with no other immediate purpose than to share a strange little hobby, to have some more immediate and direct indication of its effects than can be contained in a slowly incrementing counter. I've gotten some emails that have made me stop and think about what this site is for and how it can be used. I've gotten some that make me smile and a few that have made me cry.

Don't get me wrong here, please. I am am not begging for mail. ;-) I'm just suggesting that the next time you are at a web site that you really like, or see a page that really touches your heart, your mind or your soul, take a moment to drop a line to the creator of that site. Share your thoughts. They'll be welcomed.
9:26 PM ::link::

Wednesday, November 01, 2000

Black and white slides? The dr5 process sounds very interesting, with a claim of increased tonal range.
2:54 PM ::link::

The use of the web as a memorial to the departed is a relatively new phenomenon. I don't see it as a replacement for the traditional headstone but as an adjunct to the mourning process.
10:30 AM ::link::

I'm so glad to see that there are some folks who want to express the important things in their life by unusual adornments for their headstones. It's these bits of added personality that make a cemetery such an interesting place to walk through. A graveyard should be a celebration of life, as well as a resting place for the dead.
10:11 AM ::link::

Tuesday, October 31, 2000

Several nice infrared photos of old cemeteries in Scotland, by Catriona Trafford Fraser.
7:56 PM ::link::

Might have to look into getting a digital camera after seeing these combination UV and IR photos. This photgrapher pushes the technology as far as it will go, and then some.
6:23 PM ::link::

Do some scientists have too much time on their hands? Or do they just like watching condoms burst?
6:04 PM ::link::

I've played a bit with infrared photography, now I am curious about the other end of the spectrum. Ultraviolet might yield some interesting results but I haven't been able to find an example yet to help decide whether to try it or not. Guess I'll have to jump in and make my own examples.
10:23 AM ::link::

Though it is a common perception in the United States that the Day of the Dead is a "Mexican Halloween" or a variation of the Catholic All Souls Day, there are some thoughts that it may also derive from Aztec and Mayan traditions.
10:07 AM ::link::

Quick and easy project for the kids which can do double duty as a Halloween decoration.
9:29 AM ::link::

If you are tired of the crass commercialization of Halloween, you might be revived by a look at the Mexican celebration of Day of the Dead, a day reserved for remembrance and appreciation of the lives of the departed.

More background on Dia de Los Muertos.
9:11 AM ::link::

Why do some people like to photograph old tombstones? This New York photographer does it as an affirmation of life and as a tribute to a departed friend.
8:46 AM ::link::

Monday, October 30, 2000

Unfortunately, not all Halloween season activities involving cemeteries exhibit an appropriate level of respect for the departed or for the historical significance of the location. The Lawrence County Jaycee's of Lawrence County, Alabama have been holding a carnival event at the Oakville Indian Mound Park.

The Oakville Mound is the burial site of many Native Americans who perished during the Trail of Tears.

The Jaycee's have decided to call their event the "Trail of Fears" and have festooned this sacred location with assorted Halloween paraphenalia. The event will probably be a great success for them, as no one has ever gone broke underestimating the lack of taste of the American public.
1:37 PM ::link::

Interest in cemeteries during Halloween is not confined to the United States. Kyiv, Ukraine is the site of Askoldova Mohyla, Baikove, and Lukyanivske cemeteries, which may be toured to view the many historic and artistic tombs.
1:23 PM ::link::

The Halloween season always seems to be a favored time for cemetery tours. Bozeman, Montana was no exception this past Saturday with a tour of the Sunset Hills Cemetery conducted by Derek Strahn, an officer of Bozeman Historic Preservation, and Kim Allen Scott of Montana State University. The tour included many colorful tales from Bozeman's frontier past.
1:01 PM ::link::

Lake Township, Ohio is turning an unused above ground mausoleum into a time capsule.
12:51 PM ::link::

Just stumbled across the Infrared Forum, looks like a great place to find and share information on muddling through the many difficulties with trying to use this interesting film.
10:24 AM ::link::

Sunday, October 29, 2000

More pinhole camera stuff... more about the optical physics than you may ever want to know but written in such a wonderfully engaging style that you'll never notice how much you are learning until it's too late.

My own meager first attempt at this was just enough to make me want to try again.
8:23 PM ::link::

Scanning Autumn Colors presents a slightly different way to capture all the colors of the season. Scanning the leaves directly rather than photographing them and then scanning the print or the slide can be a lot of fun. Don't stop with just leaves... let your imagination run free. Just a hint, from my past attempts and errors, forget about scanning a really 3-D object. When scanning, flat is your friend if you want even illumination and a clear representation of the object.
7:20 PM ::link::

Things to do in Denver when you're dead... besides being the title of a Warren Zevon song, you can also read the Denver Post article mentioning ColdMarble in their list of spooky sites. I never thought of this site as being spooky but appreciate the inclusion in the article. :)
2:50 PM ::link::

Had a wonderful time at John and Joanne's Halloween party last night. It's always a pleasure to see old friends, especially when they are creative and imaginative as the great bunch that crafted such delightful costumes. Kudos to Rick and Kim for their rendition of the painting, "American Gothic", and to Mary for her delightful Swiss Army knife, complete with multiple blades.
2:23 PM ::link::

My excuse for meager entries... been busy scanning, uploading and updating the photos from last week's trip to Green Mount cemetery. There are an additional 27 photos, in both black and white and color, with even more to come.
9:20 AM ::link::

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