In consulting, I am frequently asked to take a concept and break it down into a version of the 2 X 2 matrix. The purpose of the 2 X 2 matrix is to take complex information and break it down into easy to understand, easily digestable concepts. I felt like I was doing a similiar activity while working […]

There was a lot to get done this week, but I enjoyed my experiences in many of the assignments. I particularly likes Flickrs five card story game, I thought it was cool to create your own story using a bit of imagination. Here is mine. I also got experience with the free online photo editing […]

For my photo blitz I chose my living room since I have a lot objects, colors, and light. I thought it was a fun exercise and it really makes you realize what level photographer you are since it forces you to use your camera in creative ways with limited time. I am in no way […]

For one of our visual assignments this week, I chose Return to the Scene of the Crime from the Assignment Bank.  The assignment required us to “Take a photo from the past that you took in a particular location. Return … Continue reading →

I did the photoblitz safari assignment during a lunch break, while on business travel to a naval hospital in California. The hospital is named after Robert Eugene Bush, who distinguished himself as an 18 year old sailor during the Battle … Continue reading →

For this assignment, I wanted to use some pictures I already had. I started going through the many vacation pictures we have. I was looking for photos that offered some “space”over which to layer other images. I took a photo from our trip to England of the Roman Baths in Bath, England and combined it […]

<img The picturesque intersection under the horizon on the East coast in what appears to be a cold winter day. …

Continue reading →

Because I like to live dangerously, I chose the very first assignment at the top of the list: Splash the Color.  I don’t know if there was an “inspiration” for this per se–my thinking was more more “how am I going to get this done?”  I remembered the name Pixlr from the opening video for […]

For this weeks item to “storify” I have chosen ice skates. The significance of these skates, however, is the fact that I am the third owner. They originally belonged to a family friend, then were handed down to my cousin, and finally I retired them just a couple months ago. But where do I see […]

Pick at least two tips from these resources and try them out with your camera, just seeing how they change the way you take photos. Write a blog post that not only includes at least three of your own photos, explain how you applied the tips you learned. I must admit I always wondered about […]

The thoughts behind this assignment makes a lot of sense; How would you see, reside, and interact in a world that is proportionately out of scale from your perspective? I like how they used the movie, “Honey I Shrunk the kids” as an example. Whether you are abnormally large or small for an environment, a […]

I ventured outdoors again to the wilds of my backyard–in daylight this time–for this assignment.  I also re-used my trusty living room rug as I had done initially in my scavenger hunt post.  These shots incorporate the use of contrast, close-up, and interesting angles to alter my perspective.  For the first two concepts, I was […]

One of the assignments I chose to complete was the one called “Chimeratic Composition.” I chose this because I thought it would be fun to see what I can come up with, but also because I wanted to try a new photo editing software. The assignment itself is so open-ended that it really allows you […]

Creating a five card flickr story was a fun experience, I like how you are forced into creating the different story elements with just a few options. But even with just 5 pictures I still felt pretty flexible with using my imagination. Also, looking back, I realize how vital the first picture choice is, since […]

Throughout the week I was waiting for moments where I could apply some of the tips we learned this week. Some of the photo “rules of thumb” that were interesting to me was first of course the “rule of thirds” which I thought was easy to follow and makes a lot of sense. The other […]

…to work on a class assignment while at one of my favorite places in the world? Here’s me jumping for joy when I visited Joshua Tree National Park this week, for the first time in over a decade. I consider … Continue reading →

After a few draws, I decided to stick with this draw–the hovercraft sign was the spark that made it a bit easier to start something.  Clearly I would not have thought of a story involving a hovercraft on my own!  I think I went farther than captions, but I did not necessarily “do my research” […]

I chose my house because it was at night and I was already in my loungewear so I wasn’t really up to venturing anywhere except my backyard (and even then that’s a little iffy at night!) The time went much faster than I thought it would- hence my trying to squeeze 20 minutes into 15 […]

(Posted well after the fact but better late than never…I hope)   In week 2, I continued to poke and prod my blog with content and layout.  I half thought of posting an “Under Construction” sign on the landing page, but thought that might be tacky.  I listened to some comments and made an attempt […]

Five Card Story: Tricked! a Five Card Flickr story created by chronicwnderlst flickr photo by Serenae flickr photo by cogdogblog flickr photo by Serenae flickr photo by cogdogblog flickr photo by dwtno The aloe vera helped with the sunburn, but … Continue reading →

This week, I wrote about magical balloons, gutsy teenagers, and the lives of monks in three posts: First, I listened and mapped a Radiolab piece that explored chance in our lives–are random events just that, or something more?  The show used sound and music to convey action and tension.   The effect was to bring the […]

This past weekend I was at a retreat at a Monastery- 48 hours of silence and sitting in the abbey 7 times a day for prayers.   This little retreat took place at a Trappist Monastery about 45 minutes from Atlanta (where I live).  I joined a much more spiritually enlightened friend there last year […]

I love cars-driving them, watching documentaries about them, reading about them, etc.  So of course, it was natural for me to seek out a car ad to dissect.  If I am going to watch something several times, I should enjoy it right? I analyzed Audi’s 2013 commercial “Prom”: I’ve noted elements of “story code” (described […]

This week listened to a Radio Lab post. I was able to identify several audio methods and techniques such as sound effects, music, narrative, ambient sounds, and even recordings on the recording.  I also explored a little girl’s adventure in … Continue reading →

While at a party recently, someone was explaining how they had tried a new recipe on Pinterest and how they were so happy with the result. Someone else chimed in that they did not really understand how to use Pinterest … Continue reading →

Our professor, Alan Levine, wasn’t kidding when he warned that the GMU Digital Audio/Video Design weekly assignments needed a lot of attention throughout the week. For a low-tech, late adopter, the litany of instructions, assignments and links was overwhelming and caused a slight moment of panic. The panic has now decreased to a low humming in the back […]

For the review of a commercial as a short film story, I chose the heart warming commercial about a girl who just wants everyone to be healthy. When looking at the shape of the story from the perspective of the … Continue reading →

This week I was introduced to a variety of audio editing and producing methods, the first of which being sound layering. It was great to see how, as in the Joanne Rosser story, audio layers can effectively pull a story … Continue reading →

I would love to be able to understand what I need to be doing in this class. My weekly schedule …

Continue reading →

This week was definitely a little easier. Not necessarily in terms of content or the assignments, but certainly in terms of managing the workload. I can imagine this will get even easier as the course goes on, and I think this can even help in my job. Having a method to structure my time and […]