iPhone Diaries #432: "Manhattans"

Barry Smit, Geography Professor (UofG) and Canada Research Chair in Global Environmental Change, joined Host Doug Larson at the Manhattan Club for the third part of Mash Mondays, an evening of songs, stories, discussion, and insight on the first Monday of every month (til April).

I went in on the suggestion of my Geography student-son. Lively crowd, good host, and my first pint of Innis and Gunn beer tasted really good. I volunteered to do the videotaping for the proprietor, Thomas Aldridge; hopefully the audio will be acceptable!

My first time at Manhattans won't be the last.

The Garbage I Became

This poem is copied/lifted from my favourite blog: I Wrote This For You

Now the TV's on at 3am and you're sleeping on the couch, because you

can.

Now the plate is where you left it, no one else is going to move it for

you.

Now the politics of blankets are gone.

Now the people on the radio sound so far away.

Now you've got no plans when you wake up, just keep on keeping on.

Now the morning fades to light, to twilight, to night.

Now you rinse and repeat.

Now you remove the sleeve and remove the film.

Now you remove the sleeve and pierce the film several times.

Now dinner takes exactly 2:30 minutes.

Now the earth hurtles through the universe around a giant ball of

fire.

Now none of your acquaintances know they're really your only friends.

Now none of your friends know they're just acquaintances.

Now you've got to get used to being alone, like when you're born, like

when you die.

Now you're free.

Now you can do whatever you want.

You just have to do it alone.

"Galvanized"... love this word...Occupy Vancouver and the Downtown East Side

In today's Globe and Mail, the headline reads: Vancouver set for showdown with occupiers after woman's death.

"The weekend death of a young woman at the Occupy Vancouver tent protest has galvanized determination by city officials to end the 23-day downtown encampment as quickly as possible."
"Given that we have had a very tragic death, which I think really shook people up, we need to move in an expedited way," city manager Penny Ballem told reporters Sunday, after a day of meetings with other civic managers, including police and fire representatives."


Wouldn't it be amazing, even miraculous, if Vancouver city officials would be galvanized by even just one death on the Downtown East Side?

The cynical side in me thinks the city officials were just waiting for one death at the Occupy Vancouver site as an excuse to clear the premises. I bet you the word "bingo"  flashed in more than one city official's head as soon as the news hit.

Galvanized: to stimulate or excite as if by an electric shock (it's how steel is coated in zinc for rust-proofing). Hey, wasn't Robert Dziekanski galvanized (tasered to death) on Oct 14, 2007? In Vancouver?

Wedding Fusion: Photography and Videography by one person

Due to the advent of DSLRs that are just as capable of superior Video as they are of amazing Stills, it is now possible for one person to do both Stills photography and Videography. It's not easy as the two disciplines require different modes of thinking, different parts of the brain. More (expensive) equipment is required, as well as a thorough knowledge of what a wedding day involves. 

Wedding Stills photography is a demanding profession, as evidenced by the fact that although the digital revolution has enabled more photographers to capture technically decent images, only a few are able to combine photo technique with the ability to communicate and to capture the essence of a wedding day. The addition of video capture demands even more from the fusion photographer.

I have to mention a caveat here. The fusion photographer is not meant to replace a regular videographer. It is not possible, and anybody who claims they can do so is pulling a scam.

Starting in 2012, I will be offering fusion photography, not just for weddings but also for certain events (suitability to be determined on consultation).
Here's a line from my wedding site (www.rara-avis.smugmug.com):

"AND, and as an added service that is not reflected in the wedding fee, selected portions of the day will be shot on video. This is not meant to replace a regular videographer but it has always struck me as odd that FIRST DANCES, wild RECEPTION DANCING, certain once-in-a-lifetime SPEECHES, and OTHERS, are not shot in video more often. I understand that the old paradigm was to hire a photographer, AND a videographer. The latest technology (and a lot of learning on my part) has made possible FUSION PHOTOGRAPHY (a hybrid of Stills and Video).
And here I am! For the price of a value-for-your-dollar photographer, you have at your disposal a (primarily) Stills photographer who can do video, photojournalistic style.
Please note that the video coverage will never replace a regular videographer. The video coverage will be different for different weddings due to time and venue factors." 


If interested, shoot me an email!

iPhone Diaries #431: "The pumpkin and the loot"

 

Oct 31st.