MoviePeg | Stilsucht
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21
Apr 2010
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09
Apr 2010
30
Mar 2010
Under-appreciating the power of narrative: Scarface, as performed by gradeschoolers
I am so disturbed by this. Apparently some parents believe if you replace F-Bombs with "Fudge" and "Bitch" with "B", Scarface is otherwise appropriate for small kids to memorize and perform. "Bad words" are nothing compared to "bad narratives".
20
Mar 2010
20
Mar 2010
"Each day Humble supplies enough Energy to melt 7M tons of glacier!" (1962)
Advert from 1962....
(Via Adam Reineck)
15
Mar 2010
A futures market for betting on movies
You know when you see that preview and you're pretty sure the movie is going to suck big-time? Why not put a little money where your hunch is?
11
Mar 2010
25
Jan 2010
IDEO, seen through a Leica M3
Santa was very kind this year, bringing me my grandfather's Leica M3 (OK -- not so much Santa as my dear mum). I've only had the chance to shoot a single roll of film so far, snapped quickly while wandering around the Palo Alto IDEO office, but already I'm in love.
Shooting film after digital cameras is a real experience. I feel the pain (cost) of every shot, which means I think a lot more before pushing the little shutter button.
The M3 has no built-in meter, but my grandfather had purchased the optional MC meter, which attaches to the top of the camera body. Measuring the light and adjusting aperture and shutter settings before looking through the viewfinder takes some real getting used to. The camera is certainly a step backwards in this regard. In the shot above I metered poorly, leaving me less dynamic range to work with.
People seem more willing to pose for a photo when they're staring back at an old camera. The charm works both ways.
There's something magical, too, to having to wait to see what the camera actually captured. In the moment it's an entirely different interaction with the device: with no little screen to look down at I stay more present in whatever I'm shooting. And of course there's the anticipation for what the camera actually captured -- a sort of delayed gratitude that makes every roll a little bit like Christmas.
Jerome, above, is a big Leica fan and let me play with a number of lenses before I bought one of my own -- a 50mm Dual Range lens from the 1950's with a nifty little hardware system for moving from regular to macro focus. This picture of him above is the first shot I took with this lens, and all the rest below are with the same lens as well... I think I'll keep it :)
People say Leica cameras create a rich sense of 3D from a 2D image. Certainly the subject in focus does seem to "pop", but in this case that may just be Angelique.
Just another day at IDEO... we're all about flexible workspace.
Interaction designers huddle to discuss notable products seen at CES.
I think there's a joke about 3 monkeys here somewhere...
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If you had asked me a year ago if I would ever actively use a film camera again I would have laughed at you. Certainly digital technology has made photography easier than I ever could have imagined. But there are certain intangible beauties that come from limited exposures, old hand-built hardware, and having to wait to see results. The M3 may not be the best choice for portraits of my finicky and fast-moving toddler, and the point-n-shoot on my iPhone will always be more handy, but for those times where I want to enjoy photography for its own sake, I think I've got a new favorite camera...
20
Jan 2010
The practice of the present moment is especially valuable for future-builders
"Working on big, difficult projects and changing the future world for the better can be one of the most enjoyable and fulfilling things we do. The mindset such work puts us in, however, isn’t always the right mindset for other areas of our lives. Specifically, practicing ways to live 'in the moment' seems especially important for those who, like me, work primarily in the future. My work’s total future focus is what makes it unique, so I’m very suceptible to its lures and traps. Fortunately, I also benefit tremendously from prayer, meditation, observation, drawing, and other mindfulness practices that counterbalance my work’s future focus and let me engage more with other aspects of life and the present moment."
20
Jan 2010
