cultural practitioner / thoughts & essays
Miamiartexchange.com presents chrisglass as our Sept. cover artist. In addition, bitterlawngnome is featured in the gallery along with Chris Skura of NYC.
Michael Betancourt brings his 6th installment of “IMHO – in my humble opinion,” a weekly column about the art world.
Thank you all for your continued support!
Well, after a slow start I finally tested out the digital camera. I went out to the beach in the morning. It was rather boring so I came back home and took pics of some of my usual subjects: bones. I’ve had plenty in my collection over the years. I love the stuff that keeps our moist sack of organs and muscles from being a big blob on the ground.
Just a note about the studio images: I used three different types of light sources for each of the images and that made some not keyed in properly. I use indirect light from a window, incandescent flood, and florescent tube lighting. Gawd, what an ugly mix of light sources! However, most of the images turned out okay. If I was really doing more serious work, I’d use the proper single light source (not florescent!).
I made a little web gallery for viewing. Clicking the link will open a new window. Digital Images, 24 Aug., 2003
Well, thanks to my new job, I have a new digital camera. It has been worth the wait getting it although, I wasn’t expecting to get the use of one. Anyway, it’s been a learning process trying to adjust things to manual and semi-manual. One reason so many love their digital cameras (and 35mm) is for the auto functions. I personally don’t like the auto settings for what I do with photography.
I learned photography in high school using a 4×5 in view camera. I would have to say, even by the standards of my high school days that was a very lucky school. Today, only a professional photography would have a 4×5, if they have one for student use at all. From 4×5 I went to 35mm. I didn’t like it. Too small. I went to 2¼x2¼ in (6×6 cm), otherwise known as a twin-lens reflex. I still have one.
By the time I got seriously thinking about a college art education I discovered a slightly larger negative format which I use to this day, 6×7 cm. This negative is about 3 times the size of a 35mm neg which allows for greater detail (a positive) but, the camera is much heavier (a perceived negative). Remember, I learned on a 4×5 which MUST be set on a tripod. You expose one sheet of film at a time. You work slow and methodically. I like deliberation when I work.
The digital camera a Nikon 5700 is small and light. It will take some getting used to, although I still use 35mm cameras. Anyway, tomorrow I’m hoping to get out and actually take some pictures, d/l to my computer and share, if I can get everything working properly. I’m sure my exposures will be messed up until I figure out what I’m doing. Wish me luck. This will be my camera for the canoe trip.
I’ve added a number of people to my friends list so, I thought I’d go back and check this out. I still feel a few names are abnormally low, but what can I do? {{{ hugs all around! }}}
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Finally, school starts Monday. I went in today to sign off some of my benefits paperwork. That’s a nice change in my life. I need my teeth worked on, and probably new glasses. Now I can afford it.
However, I went back to my office, yes, I have my own office, and asked the other photo prof. about a digital camera that was supposed to be available for me to use. He said there are two cameras, he has one and the other is in my office hidden in a filing cabinet. There it was, a Nikon 5700. A pro quality digital camera. I was, wow! I also saw a black book in there. I opened it up and found a laptop I can use too! In my office have access to an 11×17 scanner, transparency scanners, fax/printer/scanner, and 11×17 photo printer. Wow! I feel like I’ve fallen into an amazing environment and situation.
The dept. head supports me and my ideas. Other professors respect me and support me. I do have a reputation in the dept. from when I was completing my batchelors degree which proceeds me. My graduating art caused some stir, not because it was controversial, but because it was edgy and caused a viseral, gut-tightening, reaction. The work was titled: Challenge, Risk, Growth. It was a photographic installation but the work on my website is a watercolor I did of the piece for the catalogue.
Now that I’ve finished my masters, been published, been involved in the art community as a person with ideas, I’ve been embraced as bringing something to the university of value in a non-traditional experiential way. Does that make sense.
There’s all this talk about diversity everywhere that sometimes gets to be just more buzzwords. For my approach to art I’ve always been into interdiscplinary thinking and multimedia production. I hope this opportunity is going to ease my previous years of frustration even though it will be lots of work.
And, then there’s the geology prof. I like so much… He wasn’t in his office when I stopped by today. *wink*
Many of the people on my friend’s list love wild flowers like I do. But, they can serve a greater purpose than being beautiful. There’s an artist, Mel Chin, that has used so-called weeds to remove toxic metals from a neighborhood park that had been left for dead. I really admired that work. Here’s something related to that coming directly from science.
A Taste for Heavy Metal. Researchers call for model to help us understand plants that hoard heavy metals. Understanding how such ‘hyperaccumulators’ manage metals could help in developing crops to grow on contaminated soils, supplement dietary deficiencies, mop up industrial pollution or even harvest metals from soil.
More than six degrees separate us. An e-mail experiment has confirmed the famous ‘six degrees of separation’ of human social networks, but revealed that individuals don’t necessarily benefit from their connectedness.
I get email newsletters from Nature.com. I got one today that was really fascinating, not only for the science, but for the images. Walking on water.
School is about to commence, I’ve been busy getting everything ready for the next several weeks so I won’t be bogged down. It will be SO good to have a job again with income! I’ll be able to take care of paying off the plastic, finally. I hope to get a digital camera and finally have the funds to make my long awaited canoe trip. (I know I took a canoe trip in Minnesota but, that wasn’t THE canoe trip I’ve been planning) I’ll again be teaching photography. This should be fun and that will make for a great semester.
However my article came out in the Miami New Times today. I might not be showing art in a gallery, but I’m still trying to make my contributions.
Also, on the Friday the 15th, androkles will be showing the cover images on Miamiartexchange.com
You’re British Columbia. You’re hip and happenin’
but also a nice person who isn’t a snob. Career
is important to you but it isn’t your whole
life. People assume that your life is perfect
and that you have it all, like you were born
with a silver spoon in your mouth. But it’s not
true; you do have your own set of troubles just
like everybody else.
What Canadian Province Are You?
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