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Post by The Herald on Feb 2, 2007 14:41:28 GMT
Today I am interviewing the wonderful Grace/C130, let's cut straight to the good stuff.Name: Grace Callaghan Age: 17 Gallery: None as of yet Favourite photography websites: OpacityIndustrial Photography on DeviantartWhat prompted you to start shooting? I was inspired by photography that I saw at www.deviantart.com when I was just starting out on digital art. We had a crappy old digital camera back then that wasn't suited to taking anything more than snapshots, so I gave up for a while. Then a year ago we got a slightly better camera, and it allowed me to take more interesting photos, and I began having a lot of ideas for photographs. Then I started college after summer and an integral part of our research work is comprised of photography. For a while I used a film SLR that I had never learned how to use; I found it simple enough to use the lenses to frame shots and achieve interesting depth of field, but my confidence was low because I had never learned about exposure, apertures, ISO, or any of that technical stuff. Then I put my case to my dad, and enlisted his help in paying for a brand new digital camera - a combination between SLR and digital - that hugely widened my horizons, and gave me the ability to teach myself about the technical side of photography that I was otherwise unable to figure out before. With the better hardware on my side, I found millions of new ideas for artistic photography. Why do you take photos? There are two reasons. Primarily, I take photos to augment my college art projects. These range from taking simple shots of still life’s I've set up, to going out on location to get environmental photos. The other reason I take photos is to feed my own artistic desires. When I have a strong image in my mind, I can now make steps towards creating it in real life and photographing it, whereas before I got my hands on a good camera, I had no way to bring my ideas onto canvas. These days I carry my camera around with me quite a lot, ready for any opportunist shot to arise, although I admit that my weekday adventures are rarely worth recording. What kit do you use? My main camera is a Panasonic Lumix DMC FZ50, and my backup is a Minolta 505si Super film SLR. The Minolta has very good basic-level lenses, although the FZ50 has one of the best lenses around made for compact/bridge cameras. For long exposure shots I've got a tripod that's older than I am, donated to me from my dad. Do you have a dream photography kit? My dream photography kit is so expensive I haven't even had the courage to memorise the details of it, lest I die from envy and frustration at my current income and inability to save. Do you plan any of your photographs far in advance, anything in the works now? I do tend to plan them out, yes, although if I'm going out on location I'll just work out composition and features when I have the subject in front of me. Since most of my photography is college work, it's got a lot of research and development behind it, so I quite often need to come up with a detailed plan of what I'm going to photograph before actually setting it up and hitting the shutter. Currently I've got two projects on the go for college. One is medical themed - I'm planning on doing a disability awareness campaign by using medical equipment and disability aids in unusual locations (such as a wheelchair on a subway platform, or an oxygen mask on a statue in the street) to draw attention to the difficulties these people face, that the rest of us tend to overlook or take for granted. It's a fine art project, so there will be drawings and paintings as well as photos. The other project is specifically a photography project that my lecturers recommended I work on when they saw some of my earlier research photos. This one's theme I haven't finalised yet, but I'm aiming to go for industrial areas and post-apocalyptic style scenes (like deserted motorways ...and empty hallways) Who is your inspiration? A huge amount of inspiration comes from that site Opacity because of the photographer's skill in composing his shots, as well as the actual locations he shoots at. Both of these make a winning combination, and although I first found that site a couple of years ago, I still love browsing through the galleries. My other inspiration tends not to come from a single photographer but from pictures I see when browsing photography magazines and books, and when I'm casually surfing art sites on the internet. I enjoy being exposed to a wide variety of styles - night scenes and panoramas, landscapes and cityscapes, macros and machinery... When I see a particularly striking image it'll stick in my mind, and quite often the composition I noticed, or the angle I found to be particularly effective, will later show up subtly in my own work, even if it happened only at a subconscious level. I improve my own work by examining and learning from the work of others, breaking their images down into components to find out how they did it. So I don't go for one photographer or another; I like them all! Could you show us some of your favourite photographers and their works? Within photography my favourite genres are those involving urban environments, and those involving people. For style, I always get attracted to images that give a sense of drama, whether it's through scale of buildings and machinery, or in the activities and appearance of the people being featured. Close and partially abstract shots quite often tell a better story to me than wide angles that give the whole picture. So I suppose my favourite style is one that shows what the photographer wanted to be seen, but also leaves some elements to the imagination of the viewer. I couldn't name any styles specifically because I find it's too dynamic to label. Are there any websites that you visit or know of to help beginner photographers? The only website I came across that was much use to me was SXC because they have a section containing useful tutorials and information for photographers of all levels of experience. Do you have any final comments? Yeah. If you're thinking of getting into photography, you'll need to do a lot of learning by yourself, unless you want to go on a college course. If it's convenient, you should see if you can borrow a digital SLR or bridge camera from someone (relative, friend, teacher, anyone willing to lend you one) and get the hang of the basics using that. If you feel like you're going to get a lot out of learning to shoot photos, then you could consider buying a camera of your own. But I wouldn't suggest jumping in right at the deep end or you may end up with an expensive piece of equipment you can't use. Personally I believe that teaching yourself is the best way to learn, so be patient, give it time, and you'll get a rewarding experience out of it all. I’d like to thank Grace very much for such an excellent interview
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Post by The Herald on Feb 2, 2007 14:41:51 GMT
When it comes to art of photography, many don’t consider just how they place the items within their images to be all that important. In reality though, this is what separates the hobbyist from the truly ambitious artist. The composition of a photo is vital to its aesthetic value, and there are certain guidelines an artist will follow to try to appease the senses of the viewer. The first rule of thumb is one you need to carve into your already wrinkled brain. It is that the eye naturally reads from the top left, to the bottom right. This means that you need to compose your image to lead the eye either with this, or in a manner that compromises with it. So you wouldn’t want to place the focus of your image on the left, and have nothing on the right. It’d destroy the composition. Instead, you’d want to use lines, whether they’re invisible or easily seen, to lead the eye. Invisible lines, in case you’re wondering, are simply ones you subconsciously perceive but aren’t actually there. This can be created by a human figure looking at an object, or the direction in which a train is traveling. The line isn’t actually there, but to our subconscious mind it is. Another general rule of thumb is to never center the object on which you are focusing. This is considered a big no-no in among the art community, but that doesn’t mean you can’t do it. In fact, there were plenty of artists who did, such as Monet. He might not have been a photographer, but he does show us how to work with a centered focal object. The only reason it works though is because there is something else in the artwork to lead the eye. So yes, in certain instances the centering of your image’s focal point is okay, but it’s rare. The final major thing to consider with composition is lighting. It seems like two different ideas, but really it’s not. Should one think about it, they’d also realize the eye moves with the light. It’s another of those invisible lines. If one part of your image is incredibly dark, and the rest is light, then your eye is drawn to that solitary dark patch. The flow of light is something that can make or break your composition, and should be considered carefully. In essence though, remembering the first rule of thumb that the eye reads from top left to bottom right should serve you well, and improve any piece of art you’re working on. Also, bear in mind that this is actually true for any form of art, not just photography. So all you artists out there should be on your toes when it comes to composition.
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Post by The Herald on Feb 2, 2007 14:42:18 GMT
I once had a dream - to use PHP to do desktop applications, with a GUI. My God, dmsuperman, has recently showed me the light. Before I go on, imagine this (non-geeks can continue on with the article): You can use your favourite programming language, PHP, to code desktop applications, with a platform-independent GUI, or native Windows API binding. And if it's not enough, add converting that script into executable files into the mix. Are you excited? I am. Introducing... Deschizo's one-stop solution for Deschizoism. Followers of Deschizoism, listen up! I am your God, and you are my sla.... What? Huh? Oops. Introducing... PHP+GTK, WinBlender and PriadoBlender! PHP coders rejoice! You can now use PHP to code desktop applications, with a GUI. PHP has always been limited in its uses for desktop applications, as it is confined to DOS command-line applications. No longer. You can now use the GTK or WinBlender library to extend the supremacy of PHP to desktop applications. But what's the use if your source code can be read and edited by everyone else? That's when PriadoBlender comes into the stage. You can now convert your PHP scripts into executable files. What does that mean? It means countless desktop applications, all running on PHP. Instant Messaging applications, web servers, games, anything. I think it's time to announce the PHP revolution.
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Post by The Herald on Feb 2, 2007 14:42:33 GMT
Many of you would have heard that Elixant, one of the most reputed hosts around, is closing down, as its administrators needed to focus on their studies. Being one of those who always uses Elixant, I realized I needed to look for a new host; one of similar service, and affordable prices. So, ladies and gentlemen, I present to you, A Small Orange. A Small Orange (ASO for short) provides several hosting solutions, from Shared Web Hosting ($25 per year!), for people with a budget, to Managed Dedicated Servers for power users. Looking at the prices for the Shared Web Hosting, I must say, they do offer hosting with affordable prices. 400MB Space, 10GB Bandwidth for $5 per month? Add that to unlimited e-mail accounts, mySQL databases, subdomains, parked and addon domains. Service wise, I have not had actual contact with ASO. That said, they offer a lot of support channels; Support Help Disk, Email Technical Support and a Support Forum. They also boast a Wiki, which do contain some useful information about the different features they provide. That is, if you don’t already know them. They boast a rather good testimonial, too. Taking a quick look at the “Customer Testimonials” board in their Support Forum, I’ve found a common problem with all new customers – they would encounter FTP timeouts, and random downtimes, during the first few days of their hosting plans. It sounded to me that the technical administrators at ASO need to do a better job at configuring their server, to optimise server performance. Other than that, though, most of the testimonials are exalting. Overall, I believe this host would be a good alternative to Elixant. Plus, they even have a brilliant name; who doesn’t like oranges?
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Post by The Herald on Feb 2, 2007 14:42:55 GMT
Yes, the hyped Windows Vista is finally here. After about six years of development and many pushed deadlines, Windows Vista, formerly Longhorn, is set to release on January 30th, 2007 for worldwide retail availability. But what has six years of development brought us? Frankly, I’m disappointed with Windows Vista. To do it justice, the Aero theme is fantastic. I’m running Windows Vista Ultimate right now, thus running the Windows Aero theme. I love it, actually. The UI looks much better now. Click for an image of the new Windows Aero theme.But beneath the theme, what else has changed? It seems like the six years of development was all placed on the theme, and the UI (User Interface). Nothing else. Performance wise, I don’t see much of a difference. Windows XP Professional boots up as fast as Windows Vista, on my PC. Considering my Windows XP Professional has more start-up programs, I’ll leave it up for you for your judgement. Security wise, I believe Microsoft is heading in the right direction. Included in Windows Vista is a cute little bodyguard called User Account Control (UAC for short). The UAC basically monitors the user activities, and attempts to seek validation for programs which are “suspicious”. I should say, thus far, it does its job pretty well. It also seeks validation, when you make administration changes. Things like unblocking networking features in programs would trigger UAC. That is, if you run it in the default mode. Also included in the Windows Vista security suite is Windows Live Defender. Basically, it is a firewall. I have not had much contact with the Windows Live Defender yet, as I run a router. Windows Vista also boasts several other features, including Internet Explorer 7 (What, no Windows Internet Explorer Live?), Windows Media Center, Windows Search, Windows Sidebar and Windows Calendar. Windows Media Center, as some of you would know, is basically like what its name suggests, a media center. You can view all the pictures you have in slideshow inside the “watched” folders, watch DVDs, etc. But the point is, is it necessary? I never once found the need for it. Windows Search is something new to Windows Vista. Basically, a much improved version of the previous Windows Search, which might I add, was terrible. Windows Vista allows you to add tags to each of your files. This allows you to easily search for the file using Windows Search. I found this feature really handy; you no longer need to organise your Start menu – because the Windows Search bar is found right at the bottom of your Start menu, all you need to do is type the program’s name, and Windows Search would find it for you. A lazy person's utopia? Perhaps. Internet Explorer 7 isn’t really something new to Vista, but now, IE7 runs like all other programs; isolated. This, I believe, removes many threats that plagued the previous versions of Windows. A good move by Microsoft – many have demanded IE to run isolated from the OS, over the years. It seemed like Microsoft finally heard their pleas. The Windows Sidebar. I should say, the Windows Sidebar (and Gadgets) feels like a complete rip-off from Mac OSX’s widgets. My opinions of the sidebar, however, are mixed. I quite like it, it does provide some convenience. But, I find that it often consumes too much memory, and I would close it anyway. And the Windows Calendar. Frankly, I have no idea why Windows did not have a calendar in previous versions. That said, this Calendar allows you to “share” appointments, with other users, via publishing to an online web host. I haven’t found much use for it yet, but I'm sure most of the users who often have appointments would. While the new features and improvements definitely enhanced my PC experience, I find that they were still rather lacking. I expected something more, something more revolutionary, judging from the fact that Microsoft spent six years on this. Still, Vista would be something to boost your ego, and to make your friends drool. I know my friends did. Other links: Windows Vista Official Homepage.Wiki link on Windows Vista.
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Post by The Herald on Feb 2, 2007 14:43:10 GMT
This month in the Linux Corner we're going to branch away from the general tech focus, and get to Bug #1 of Linux: use. There's an old joke that there were three airlines. A Windows airline, a Mac airline, and a Linux airline. The Windows airline flew door to door, cost $200 a ticket, and spontaneously blew into millions of pieces once a week, killing everyone onboard. Mac airline cost $150 a ticket, looked absolutely beautiful, and went to every town. It blew up once a year. Linux airlines flies city to city, was absolutely free, and flew for absolutely free. However, everyone had to bring their own chair, and to bolt it in themselves. Nobody flew Linux airlines, because they heard the package, and said "Back up a second. We have to do WHAT with the chairs?" That's the problem with Linux. We're producing better engines, cooler interiors, better pilots, and better anti-terrorism tactics, but we still make the users bolt themselves down. I propose that before we work on the super-ingenious-extra-space-and-memory-saving-project-of-the-year, we first make Linux accessible to people who have a load of troubles trying to find their C:\ drive.
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