An Apple a Day

...empties the wallet pretty quickly.

After pondering upgrading my "ancient" (mid-'08 Aluminum) MacBook to the newer Operating System from Leopard through Snow Leopard, Lion, Mountain Lion, Mountain Goat to the super-new Andean Llama OS, I've decided to keep my MacTop in its original unbroken form. I guess I'm not an Apple Fanboy like some of my friends (you know who they are) who always pick up the latest Apple gadget like iPad/Pod/Pud/Ped, etc. As for me, I only have an iPhone and a MacBook for comms and an iMac for productivity. Yeah, I keep two WinDoze machines around for games and to keep my not-a-Fanboy cred alive.

I guess I'll drive that indestructible little MacBook until it fails or the Mayan Apocalypse/Christian Rapture brings us to Sweet Oblivion, whichever comes first. I hope it's the MA/CR, because if I want to buy the MacBook Pro I've been coveting, I'm gonna have to get a real job.

It's Really Blowing

Those folks back East who still have power for the duration of Hurricane Sandy can thank their lucky stars their power lines weren't hit by falling trees. They're also lucky that an oil- or coal-fired power plant somewhere continues to run during the storm. 

Wonder how those wind turbines and solar cells fare in gale-force winds and covered with sheets of rain?

Think about that next time someone says they want to replace those smokestacks with solar and wind farms.  Or maybe you like sitting in the dark with a flashlight.

Tucson Terrorfest Two-Fer

Had a Tucson Terrorfest Two-fer this weekend! On "Checkmate," I recorded the dialogue and supplied the kick-ass chess set. "Check" it out! 

Checkmate.

I helped Produce the other, and also shot it as Director of Photography.

Sweet Dreams.

Check 'em out!  I'm rather proud of the work we did on both movies!

Just a Quick Photoshop

For Wyatt's Caption/Photoshop Contest.


WINNER!

Nine Buddhas' Crosswinds

"Crosswinds," a drama short (5 mins) directed by Chris Raboin (the Big Buddha himself) won trophies for Best Cinematography and Best Acting Ensemble at the Almost Famous Film Festival 24-Hour Challenge last night.

They don't give out trophies for Best Audio, because no one outside of Hollywood ever notices audio unless it's bad.  As an audio guy, I'm okay with that, because Chris invited me back to work on his next short next week.

I shared the movie with my FaceBook friends last night, and many of them didn't "get" the movie.  There's a lot of subtext involved, so it might not be your cup of tea either.  WARNING!  DIALOGUE NOT SAFE FOR WORK! CONTAINS VIOLENT SCENES!

Rags and a Ragtop

I'm mighty thankful for friends who're willing to make a dozen U-turns on a sparsely traveled road or go all ninja on produce in their front yards.

We had our second Digital Photography critique last night and I've discovered the secret to avoiding the long silence until someone in class finally pops up with an awkward "I like the colors in that one." I just kept talking and outside of a few comments from the perfessor, was met with amused silence (I even had a joke to start my presentation).

I wonder how much of that silence was Camera Envy... here I am in a beginning photography class where half of my classmates are using the school's basic Canons -- and the Pentax from which I upgraded would be considered an upgrade for the instructor. Several of my classmates had great frozen motion action shots taken with a single snap of the shutter; I know some of their cameras have burst modes, but maybe they were waiting for the instructor to teach that? I made myself learn how to shoot Continuous Mode when I found out the requirements of the assignment (the feature was in no way a factor in my buying the 7D, which I knew to be a great HD movie camera).

Since the next assignment is going to feature the Quality of Lighting, maybe I'll use the Pentax instead.