NEW PHOTOS OF RACHEL
Hmm what can I say about Rachel? Well first, she somehow got even prettier since the last time I shot with her. Also, she brought a killer wardrobe–seriously, could that black dress work any better with her shape? We had a blast again, this time solely focusing on studio shots. The main reason I wanted to work with her was to work on a series I’m creating for my AP art portfolio. It involves super sized portraits and landscapes. I’ll post those as a complete series when it is finished, as I have only finished three of twelve images. After nailing the composite shots on white for that project we moved on to a few different set ups. In only a couple hours, we made some pretty awesome stuff. So without anymore blabbering, here are the new pictures.
Oh wait, that’s Blaise standing in, let’s try this again…
Makeup by Kayleigh Roy.
4X6 WALL MOSAIC
On Saturday the 21st which was err..about three and a half weeks ago, I started my 4×6 wall mosaic. It is not a mosaic in a traditional sense, neither is it a collage but as you can see above, its pretty damn cool. I followed the tutorial from the very first few pages in Photojojo’s freaking awesome craft book (buy here or here.)
Since the tutorial is already so fabulously written by Photojojo, I’m not going to reinvent the wheel by writing my own here. Just buy the book, or steal my copy. Besides, you can always follow this super unnecessary helpful stop-motion video of my process.
For the last few months I have been printing old pictures, and trying to keep up with new ones for the purpose of this wall art. I was going to save all the 4×6’s for my basement studio, but since it is still at least a couple weeks from being finished, I figured what the hell, I can always move it. Overall, I am pleased with the finished product. And most importantly it is easy to add onto the pattern as I print more and more pictures. If you want to make something similar, which I fully recommend, here are some things to keep in mind.
DO:
***Use clear packaging tape: This tape proved to be the best fit for the project because it is wide enough to cover most of the seams and strong enough to hold a whole bunch of heavy photos together as they are tossed around. (I wasn’t very gentle with the strips and blocks of photos once taped.)
***Use Scots removable adhesive strips: These are great because with a razor or sharp knife you can cut the strips into pieces. Trim to size depending on how big/heavy your pictures are.
***Level and mark your wall area: With such a big piece, its important to level before you put it up. Not only will it look a little crooked, but with the weight of all the pictures there will be too much stress on one side, making the entire thing less secure.
***Keep in mind the flip: I didn’t notice this until I had most of my pictures taped. Maybe I’m a little slow. Anyway, if you look at the video, you can see how when I flipped the pictures it reversed the order. I didn’t mind because I was working with a random order anyway. If your being exacting however, think about this before taping.
***Clean your working surface: I was constantly wiping sand off of the floor I was working on. Luckily the my photo paper had a thick gloss to it which protected the prints from most abrasions. A big table is ideal, plus then you don’t have to break your back.
DON’T:
***Drop the photos:
***Try to estimate the amount of time this will take: I thought this project would be a breeze. It ended up taking about three hours. But I was also taking pictures and making the short video at the same time. I’m also anal about straight lines and such. Bottom line, give yourself some time.
***Use different photo papers (if possible): I had all but two or three of my 4×6’s printed on a thick Kodak paper with the others on a thin Fujifilm. The Fujifilm paper was a few millimeters smaller in each direction and bent easily. Not the end of the world but it throws off the edges of the rows. If I add to the mural I’ll have to fill the gaps from underneath with extra photo paper.
JACK POPE MOBILE
I finally broke down, surrendering myself to the glitchy, super-saturated tumblr platform. Yup, another blog, one just isn’t enough. So here is JackPopeMobile.com.
I chose to power it through tumblr because with a $9.99 charge to my GoDaddy account, a free theme, and a few new colors, I’m done. It is a super simple site for a super simple purpose. Everyday (mostly) I open the tumblr app on my phone, attach photo and a brief caption. Upload. Party. Tumblr provides the ease of use necessary for me to make this a daily routine. Hope y’all enjoy and stay tuned.
FACEBOOK TIMELINE COVER
The Facebook Timeline update is probably the first UI upgrade in their history that hasn’t been met with barbaric uproar across the internets. It is pretty slick, after all. The flow of information is much cleaner and more importantly, the photos displayed on the Timeline are now much bigger. They almost rival G+, almost. One of the new features that I really like is the Cover Photo. The way it is placed, overlapped by the Profile Picture, makes for some pretty interesting options.
It is not too difficult to take some screen shots of the Cover Photo layout and figure out the dimensions and crops needed to make an integrated Cover/Profile art. But I already figure it out when I did my own, so I might as well share. Click to download a Photoshop Action folder to create yours.
The file above will download as a group of actions. There are actually two separate actions. The first creates a PSD with the dimensions that you will need. After you add your own photo, the next action will create the two separate images that you will need. If you have never used Photoshop actions, check out this tutorial on how to load and use them.
Once you have the “Facebook Timeline” folder loaded into the actions panel just follow these steps:
1. Play the “FB TIMELINE CANVAS” action.
- This action will create a canvas with the necessary dimensions for the next steps. The size of 1704 by 704 pixels is double the resolution I lifted off of a screen shot I took of a Facebook profile. I doubled the size of the canvas simply to insure enough resolution. It is still a small enough file, so the workflow and upload online shouldn’t stress your computer or your Facebook profile at all.
2. Open your the photo you want to use in another Photoshop window and drag it into your new canvas. You can also copy and paste an image or use any other method of inserting your picture.
- A note on the photo you choose: Keep in mind the wideness of the composition. It is way wider than anything I am used to working with. When I used my wake boarding photo I had to use Content Aware Scale to stretch the photo a bit so it would fit right. Also, remember where the profile picture will be located. The actions however make it simple enough for you to make multiple versions with different crops of your photos. Make a bunch and decide what works the best.
3. Once you have your photo positioned how you want it, play the “FB TIMELINE CROP” action.
- Woohoo! Check out that automation! If all goes well, you now have two separate images. A square Profile Picture and the rectangular Cover Photo. The action does not save either file, so that is up to you. If you want to save them for a later edit save them first as PSD’s. If not, just save them as full quality jpegs.
4. Upload each picture to its proper place on your Facebook Profile.
- All done! Go brag to all your friends because you have the coolest Facebook Profile!
Hope you enjoy, here’s some more inspiration: Get Creative With New Facebook Timeline Cover Ideas
ART CLASS ASSIGNMENTS
Thought I’d share some more work from art class. The previous post on the horse assignment was the only one I have used strictly photography in as the rest of them are mixed media. A whole lotta time in Photoshop.
The first assignment of the year was an observation/still life of mechanical parts of the boiler room. I drew one of the pipes, then photographed it and combined the media in post. Here’s the final imaged and an animation of how the layers came together:
The next assignment was gesture drawing. I didn’t exactly follow that, not being much of a drawer, but I did add some loose lines into this image.
The next week was the horse assignment (shown in the previous post), and after that a dynamic figure. I chose to manipulate the features of my cousins face along with the landscape from one of my photos from Arizona.
And our most recent project was architecture. Of course, I think I was supposed to draw a part of the school building, but I had the idea of a wrecking ball in my head so I went with that.
Then next projects are landscape and bicycle, which I’ll post when they’re finished.
HORSES
I have never been a huge fan of horses. My only experiences with them were subpar guided walks with them at commercial stables, and a sour game of red light, green light as summer camp with a horse who didn’t know how to stop. Or maybe I was doing it wrong. Whatever.
But ever since seeing Konrad Brattke‘s perspectively warped photo of a donkey (I think it was a donkey). Similar to this shot:
I have had an interest in shooting portraits of animals. Fast forward a few years to October 5, 2011 and I’m shooting the horses at Lee’s Riding Stable as part of my art class.
Here are some of my favorites, enjoy.
I have to admit, after spending some time with these grand animals, I really do want one. And of course, and chain mail suit, and a shield, and a large sword holstered in the saddle.
NH + AZ
I had a crazy week. Last Saturday, the 8th, I left for Plymouth, NH after work to spend the weekend with Kristina. Besides for the Plymouth State University campus being just about empty on the holiday weekend, all was good.
We spent Sunday afternoon outside at the Flume Gorge, just thirty minutes north of the school. For a walk it was kinda pricey at 14 bucks a person, and if you end up there at some point, I recommend trying to sneak around the long admission line to avoid paying. Anyway, here’s the gorge:
As you can see, the crowd here more than makes up for the lack of occupancy on PSU campus.
I left Plymouth in the late morning, spent about five hours on the road due to traffic and got to Litchfield in time for dinner on Monday. All I had to do now was get through school on Tuesday. Simple enough due to the field trip to the Horse farm during periods 1 and 2.
After school I went to work until 6 and got home with ten minutes to pack for Arizona. The next 24 hours went something like: drive to Rockaway, New Jersey. Settle in and get some sleep. Wake up. Drive to Newark Airport. Board plane to Phoenix, Arizona. Rent car. Drive to Red Robbin. Eat large burger. Check in to hotel.
My family and I had a great trip to Arizona. It was pretty brief but we packed a lot in. On Thursday we rode the Verde Canyon Railroad. The ride was amazing and the rest of the pictures were views from along its tracks.
Well I’m back in Litchfield since this morning and I get to go to school tomorrow…
Cheers
FILM PORTFOLIO
You may have noticed as its been live for a little while now, but my portfolio now includes a Film section.
These photos were all shot on a Canon AE-1, a film SLR made way back in 1980. I bought it at The Photo Shop in Torrington on a bit of a whim. Just a couple months after buying a 60d I was feeling a need to refresh my work. These feelings, no doubt stemming from the miserable winter we had, turned me onto film. After trying to navigate through a few shady ebay auctions of semi-working cameras I decided just to go buy one at the store. Anyways…
Even before I got a film camera I knew the purpose of the pictures it would make. Simple shots of friends and family. Just for fun; snapshots, moments. If this strikes a chord check out the Dasein video below. The way I shoot film is rather spontaneous. I can shoot 5 rolls in an hour of hanging out with friends, or I can go 5 weeks without making a single frame. It is a lighter, freer act than my usual photography. Of course I love my usual photography, but the simple yet long process of shooting film is a refreshing break from it. So, enough of this somewhat senseless explanation of what Ive been up to with the AE-1… here are some pictures in the portfolio and you can check the rest out in the linked text above.
SENIOR PHOTOS: SHELBY
I was driving down route 138 through Kingston, Rhode Island when Kristina and I broke in to what must have been our fifth argument over the directions.
“We’re supposed to be on that road,” she said after glancing back and forth between the road signs and our map a half dozen times.
“But you told me I just had to stay straight…” There was no way this was my fault. She had even pointed.
“Yeah, stay straight on the same road. You just turned off!” On second thought, maybe she was right.
“Are you kidding me? This road was physically straight ahead. The one we were on was turning.”
“You’re stupid. Don’t talk to me.” Lol.
We did end up making it to Shelby’s place less than an hour later. She rents a house just off of the Narraganset Shore. After a great lobster dinner, we took a nice little photo walk to the beach. And by photo walk I mean I stayed in front of Shelby with a camera pointed at her and throwing out occasional crude remarks to make her laugh. That night we covered the dunes, some odd stone ruins, and some light water splashing as the light was fading. The next morning I buckled my camera into a waterproof bag and we all went for a swim. Despite the mass of insects migrating out of their seaweed habitats and into the girls’ bikinis, I got some fun shots. Later in the day we dried off and went for a walk along cliffs that overlooked the ocean. Shelby, being her bubbly self, became an incredibly enjoyable photo subject. So much so that, without realizing the amount of work being produced, I shot over 800 pictures in two days. Here are 30 or so shots from the weekend.
G+
I got started on Google Plus today. Gotta say, I may already like it better than Facebook. It is similar to moving to Mac OS from Windows; it is way cleaner and it really works.
I believe the social platform finally opened to the public. There shouldn’t be any more need for invitations or waiting lists but just in case, here is 150 invites for you: https://plus.google.com/i/TiMUm6U5hm4:zx3gnDkLHcU. Make sure to add me if you’re already on. As much fun as it is with three people in my circles over there, I sure could use some more friends 
Here I am: https://plus.google.com/101613881857646646084/posts
The most notable thing I’ve enjoyed so far is photo sharing. Photos are way bigger. You don’t have to squint to see one that has just been posted in your feed, and upon clicking on a picture an even larger view with meta data or commentary information is instantly available. One thing I would like to be able to do is reorder the photos within an album, but maybe I just haven’t figured it out yet.
Another perk is that it works in school, at least so far. Its integration with other Google services seems to trick the filters into thinking its an iGoogle page or something. Hooray.
