image overload

There's lots been going on of late in a myriad of areas of my life. But rather than try to encompass lots into little space, I'll focus on one of my most recent investments - a digital SLR camera. The Canon EOS 40D is just about everything I could want in an upgrade into the DSLR market: it's fast, versatile and effective machine. And it's a beauty...


The Canon EOS 40D with Sigma 17-70mm lens

For those that think, "why do you need that? you already have a good camera and take good pictures." I say thank you, but what the reason for the upgrade is that I want more out of the pictures I take - more detail, more tonal range, more resolution - basically pictures that could exist on "the next level" Ultimately, a camera is only as good as the person behind it, but I wanted more range in my voice as a photographer, and the Canon 40D fulfilled that call (though, truth be told, were money not as much of an issue I would have rather gone the extra mile and picked up the Nikon D300, but that was substantially more expensive).

Anyway, here are some links to new sets I've set up to catalog some of these new shots I've been getting with my new camera. The entire workflow has had to change from my basic P&S/iphoto ways into a RAW/Aperture workflow that will take some getting used to. And as I am probably an hour away from leaving to go on my camping trip in Iowa where I'll be taking even more pictures, I figured I should get the jump on distributing some of these picts forthwith...

Note these picts lead to my general Flickr library, which has many other shots from these photo sessions for you to browse...


Clouds Over Brooklyn


Sherry's birthday shenanigans


The Amazing and Talented Buñ


Another trip to Coney Island


BBQ Funs


Co-workers (and former co-workers) from Vividas

Obviously, this is only the tip of the iceberg... keep coming back for my latest pictoral observations. In the meanwhile I gotta get outta here - there's some pictures waiting to be taken...

i piss in your mccarren pool

Today, i piss in mccarren pool.


McCarren Pool - "The Good Old Days"

It was bad enough to deal with the influx of foot traffic, loud drunk asses and general noise pollution, but tonight my tolerance for the hip and happening McCarren Pool sunday parties reached a new low (or is it high?). Armed with my new Canon 40D DSLR, I headed over to the free Sunday show to snap off some "fancy schmancy" picts of the hipsters and squares with my new toy. After waiting in line 10 minutes, I was told at the gate to "talk to that woman over there" who then told me "you have to walk around to the back of the pool and talk to security." She was unable or unwilling to explain exactly why I needed to see security other than "that's how they're doing this now." After a long trek around to the other side of the pool, I found the VIP guest entrance and had to wait in the disorganized line to see the disorganized girl with the VIP guest list. "I was told to come back here from the front gate." "Oh he'll need to tag your camera." she directed me to the security guard next to the table, who then finally explained "We need to hold your camera for you, if you go in there they will confiscate your camera. You need to be on the Fuller list." Flummoxed and beset, I tore the green tag off my camera. Agitated: "Sir I just TOLD you you need to turn this in before you can go into the pool." "I'm not going in." I snapped back, and walked out of the entrance, throwing the bright green tag into the trash as I passed it.

Fuck you, McCarren Pool, I said, flipping the bird to the back of the mainstage as some bad sampled hip hop beat pounded the air.

I piss in your pool.

The Rubber Room

This was the last of Ben's "song/video of the week" experiment focusing on the theme of rage. We shot Ben against a green screen in my living room using an old VHS camcorder with a manual zoom lens and plugged it to record directly into the mac mini in my entertainment center. The footage is public domain movies that Ben pulled down from archive.org. The four films used include a PSA type short about dealing with troubled children and other examinations of mentally disturbed people. The video closes with a film which was essentially an extended "relaxation" drug commercial for the day. The song, written and recorded in under a week by Ben Warren, is entitled "Rubber Room." The video represents about 5-6 hours of work and is mostly effected through analog methods (i.e., physical materials and not digital enhancements).



PS - This edit is slightly different from the original one that Ben posted within the "one week parameter." I cut down the mosquito bit from the ending and tweaked some of the background edits during the song itself. I'll be reposting the other videos that we worked on together after I've done some other minor fixes in the days to come...