Scott Calhoun - "A Lake of Pure Sunshine"

"I took a deep breath, hoping to inhale a large dose of poppy confidence before heading home."

I like how Scott Calhoun writes; his trip report seems like the perfect model for my outings - casual, yet getting the point across.

He seems to be a man who shares my love for the desert (and for saving money on cheap hotels) - there's something about the desert that is comforting. It's nice to know that there are still places in this world that are vast expanses, and have not yet fallen victim to urbanization. Something very peaceful about it.

Deserts also have such interesting plant life - almost alien. I would like to go back to Arizona just for the sake of photography. I think I will.

An-My-Le

"Unfortunately, pictures do not smell."

Indeed, they do not, but if they did, artists would have an easier job. Sometimes I try to put myself somewhere that I once was, trying to remember every thought, feeling, smell... everything. It creates almost an out of body experience. No form of art can fully capture the experience of actually being somewhere, so artists have to do the best they can with what we have.

"Scale is important because it shows us how insignificant we are."

If more people realized this, they might realize how unimportant war is as well. We're all headed for the same fate, really - coexistence just seems like it would be easier for some reason.

"War is very complicated, it's not black and white... that's why the work is ambiguous. It's meant to be."

Though her final sentiments indicate her feelings against war in general, her photography doesn't really show a bias one way or the other. Mainly, her work just suggests a fascination of war in general - a curiosity, really. I think curiosity is important for an artist.

Robert Adams

When you put two pictures side by side, you are influencing how the viewer looks at them; how they react. This is what Robert Adams believes. This is very helpful advice when looking at photography from a technical standpoint, or at least from a book-making standpoint (something in which I'll have more experience in doing very soon.) It's something to keep in mind when I design my next couple books - images tell a story. Another interesting tidbit from Adams: images imply more than what they show.

His images of the so-called "valley of death" were kind of haunting, in a way. The black and white on all of his images probably had something to do with it. I believe it at least leads the viewer to think differently. In color, the images may not have had such an effect.

Janel Munoa - The Removal Act

Phenomenal music video - not only was I struck by the intense visuals and editing techniques, but the song itself actually rocked... it rocked hard.

I was really happy with seeing many different digital art concepts incorporated into one work, combining (presumably) stock footage with footage from many different locations cut together. The most interesting stand alone visual came from her dancing on the side of a canyon - often cut in between shots of some disturbing images. Probably the overall "coolest" moment was when her chalk drawings gave way to her creations literally jumping off the walls/canvas, coming to life on their own. A wonderful integration of different technologies.

I would like to able to shoot and edit something like this one day.

HAHA... I Lied

Okay... I'm reawakening this blog for the sake of Advanced Digital Arts class at CSUSM. Here you'll be able to keep up with my adventures in photography and plant life, or something like that. I'll be visiting various Native American Reservations and taking pictures of the natural wonders, as well as chronicling my book projects. The journey begins NOW.