If you’ve been on beakatude a couple times in the past few days, you might have noticed some crazy layout and color changes. Well, I’m experimenting with a few new themes and customizing it quite a bit. Again, I’m struggling with making it Firefox, IE, Safari-friendly. I hope it’s looking ok for all of you. Let me know what you think in the comments section.Â
I went to see the Animation Exhibit at the California Science Museum today with my brother. It was put together by Cartoon Network and featured cartoon characters new and old. It was an exhibit teaching kids about the different parts of animation and how it all works together to make cartoons. So, we got to make stop-action movies and a cool rotating animation of ourselves like they did in “The Matrix” trilogy. It was like being a kid again. The rest of the museum is also worth checking out. Admission is free but they suggest a donation of $5 for adults. I just grabbed however many ones (probably 3 or 4) I had in my wallet and stuffed it the donation box as I walked in. It was totally worth it.
Brother and I got up early today to be volunteer photographers at Orange County’s Huntington’s Disease Walk for the Cure on the UCI campus. I’d say this was a small event where the volunteers outnumbered the participants. They had a few booths including one where you could pay a dollar for a wet puppy kiss. It was funny to watch the reactions on people’s faces as they were slobbered on by a young lab…suckers. Oh well, it’s all in the name of charity, right? After the race, there was entertainment. It included Hawaiian dancers and then Flamenco dancers. We also had Commander Chuck Street from KIIS-FM arrive in a helicopter and he participated as one of the MCs for the event. Overall, it was a cheesy event for a good cause and I got to practice my photog skills. Good deed for the day, check!
I went to my photography class tonight and it was quite a learning experience. I shared some of my photos and my instructor critiqued them and gave me some pointers. I love constructive feedback. It’s hard when I’m just taking photos and no one will tell me objectively what works and what doesn’t work. It’s also nice to hear feedback from someone who knows what makes a good photo. I also learned more about exposure and composition, which made me realize that some of my favorite photos can be much better. He also taught me how to use a gray card…sweet. I got one with one of my photography books but never knew how to use it properly.
The assignments have been really fun and helpful yet challenging. It’s harder when things are forced upon me. I’m finding myself to be sort of a selfish photographer…my best shots seem to be of people that are interesting and/or important to me. That’s why I’m wondering about how I’ll do on Saturday with the charity walk. I’ve volunteered to take photos of people I don’t know doing something not very interesting for a cause that I don’t know much about. I’m looking forward to the challenge.
If you’re interested in practicing some skills, here are the assignments given out so far…give it a try:
I was in our weekly staff meeting today when a teacher came in and said, “Uh, guys, I think there’s a house on fire.” We all stuck our heads out the door and whaddayaknow, the house across the street was up in flames! People rushed to their cars to move it onto the playground but mine was safe in the back parking lot. It was just amazing how it was blazin’ and no one had called the Fire Department. One of the teachers called 911 just in case and the operator said, “No ma’am, we weren’t aware of this fire. We’ll be right there.” It was really sad to see a home up in flames. That has to be one of my worst fears. Luckily the owners weren’t home but some of the neighbors were home. I bet some didn’t even realize that the house next door was on fire. Well, the emergency crew came and put the fire out and my meeting continued. That was the exciting part of my day.
In other news, Mammoth got 4 inches of snow in the past two days. Wow, I hope it keeps up. I wish it would start raining here too. My plants need watering. The season opens on November 9th, baby!! It’s time to go to SkiDazzle for some new skis! Just kidding, Jes.
Oh yeah, thanks for lunch today, Mommy!
Jimmy and Eleen made us breakfast on Sunday morning. Eleen made scrambled eggs with bacon, onions, and tomatoes…home-grown tomatoes. Well, in case you didn’t know, my friend Jimmy is a farmer. He has a garden in his backyard and he grows some pretty good tomatoes. I went outside to watch him in action. He selected only the very best of the crop and he hand-picked each one so delicately (see left). I was inspired. Eleen said they’re called Sweet 100s. I’m gonna have to go out to my local nursery to get my very own plant. Oh yeah, breakfast was yummy. Thanks for the breakfast!! I posted a couple more photos on my photoblog.
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