Wednesday, August 13, 2008

Camel Wins Free Timbuk2 Bag

So, I'm not big on "stuff", per se, but there is this company out of San Francisco that makes really tough, reliable messenger bags that are great for hauling gear around (comfy, waterproof, etc.) They're a little expensive for the student budget (probably on account of being high-quality, built in the US, and cleverly marketed). My grandma got me one for Chanukah over a year ago and it's been all over the world (once during my travels during and post-study abroad, once with Maddy when she went on Int'l Honors Program). Anyway, I digress-- this is a photo blog after all, not a gear blog. When I heard they (Timbuk2, the bag company) had a travel photo contest "tell us the best place your bag has been" to win a free bag ($200 value!) I got really psyched and looked back at photos I had of some adventures.

I took several photos and tried photoshopping my bag into it as a good creative exercise (the contest encouraged this). I'm pretty good with Photoshop when it comes to anything I'd need it for in a journalistic assignment, but when it comes to things like adding and removing objects from photos or doing other unethical or borderline-ethical alterations, I have little to no experience. Suffice it to say, none of the ones I photoshopped my bag into turned out to be anything special, but I did have a photo of my bag on a camel during a desert excursion Emily and I took in Morocco last summer which turned out to be exactly what they were looking for--



I had some better photos of the camel (I'll probably put them here later, just for fun) and of the trip, but this one showed the bag the best. Read their blog entry about my bag, it's really great. Plus I just noticed this button on their front page linking to the contest: they made a graphic of a camel in the 3 colors of my bag. Awesome. Such clever folks in the Bay Area...

Friday, August 8, 2008

Coheed and Cambria review

They published my review of the concert. Kind of cool. Stay tuned for photos & commentary. Also, I'm in Sarasota for the weekend, so expect some neat stuff from here soon as well.

Hope you're well! I know no one comments, but I've convinced myself I've got a readership of sorts...

Wednesday, August 6, 2008

Coheed & Cambria

For now I'm just going to post a link to my album of Coheed and Cambria photos from last night. I figure I ought to review the T-U's blogging policy with the community entertainment editor before I post my favorite picks and commentary.

I'll edit this post within a day or two. But until then, check out the album!

Monday, August 4, 2008

Carry & Conceal video on Jacksonville.com

I actually finished editing this video on a concealed weapons permit class at a gun show about a week ago. It was supposed to run alongside a story on the second amendment ruling that kept getting pushed back. I thought the reporter was going to do a voiceover about halfway through to link some of the parts together, and, looking at it now, not all of the visuals make total sense. I think it's still a decent piece-- there are a couple of things I would change if I had endless amounts of time but I think I did a pretty good job with what I had to work with.

This was the most challenging video edit I've had all summer for a number of reasons. Luckily each of those reasons taught me something useful or valuable, either about editing or shooting. Also, the head videographer at the T-U looked it over before publishing it and gave me this really great and genuine-feeling compliment, saying how impressed she was at how I'd put it together to make a logical storyline. She knew it was tough. That felt good.



It's basically self-explanatory but I did want to make two notes-- If you can't read the writing on the sign with the picture of Barack Obama in the first clip, it says "He's coming... buy one now while you still can!" Also, please note the pun in the very last clip (after the credits).