My Day, Yesterday

October 30th, 2008




My Day, Yesterday

Originally uploaded by criana

This was a lot of fun to do. I started with 15m 15s total, it was hard to get down to 90s. I thought my hair dryer broke but it was just the outlets in the bathroom. I had a doctor’s visit mid-morning and then my Mom came by later in the evening to get help with her PowerBook.

If you want to try doing one yourself, shoot video throughout a day in your life, then put it together and upload it the next day. Don’t add any music or sound effects, just use what the camera recorded. Then upload it to the My Day Yesterday pool on Flickr.

I was going through my photos trying to find one for Flashback Tuesday on Flickr. I don’t think I had shared this one before. I was 14 here and eaten alive by mosquitos, this was the end of 2 weeks on Outward Bound via their Hurricane Island School in Maine.

My middle school years were not the best, and my parents at the recommendation of a counselor they had sent me to see, signed me up and sent me off that summer to Outward Bound. I figured I could hack it. I’d be stuck in a co-ed group of 10 other teenagers, all the same age. We were from all over the country and had never met before.

Reflecting now on the experience, it changed my life, how I saw myself, respected myself and what was really important in life. Through the experience I met one of my best friends, Debbie. She was from Massachusetts and after the trip, we’d call, our parents would meet up mid-state and she’d get to come hang out with me. She even came to school with me for 2 days.

We’ve kept in close touch making sure to get together a few times a year and as luck may have it her and her husband moved to Connecticut. When we all get together it makes for good stories sharing our memories of those unforgettable two weeks in the woods of Maine.

Flashback Tuesday: Outward Bound

Ampersand Pumpkin

October 28th, 2008



Ampersand Pumpkin, originally uploaded by criana.

When ever we get around to carving a real pumpkin again, I’m so doing this.

The colors have come and gone

October 28th, 2008

I typically host a fall foliage tour every year, I’ve been doing this since 2002. I love the fall season and I enjoy showing people around the New England area. This year got quite hectic and then couple it with bad fall allergies, I ended up resting and sneezing during October. Last years tour we had great color and several covered bridges of Vermont. I’m always amazed too by the generosity of establishments. We’re usually a group of 16 people minimally showing up looking for a meal and to hopefully sit together.

Here’s a few snap shots from that trip.

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Muji Chronotebook

October 27th, 2008



MUJI chronotebook 1, originally uploaded by ? China ? guccio.

Simple, elegant and to the point. Each page of the has an illustration of an analog clock in the middle of the page. On the left facing page it’s AM and on the right facing page it’s PM. Each day you can shade or draw lines off of the time slot.

The blank page leaves you open to draw an image, make notes as large as you need and constrained to ruled lines.

I love it.

Great write up here and more photos here

My Four Corners

October 27th, 2008



My Four Corners, originally uploaded by criana.

See more Ron Howard videos at Funny or Die

Creating Soft Light

October 13th, 2008

If you can see this, then you might need a Flash Player upgrade or you need to install Flash Player if it's missing. Get Flash Player from Adobe.

Found this via MostlyLisa’s site.

I’ve been toying with the idea of buying a strobe and umbrella, along with a diffuser. Last weekend I saw a photographer and assistant up at Topsmead using I think a reflector working with kids.

I found this video to be really helpful in explaining how to use a diffuser and reflector to get the best results.

Yahooo-ooooooo

October 13th, 2008

Yahoo button

Funny story around this button. At my work we had a bell at the front desk, about a week after it was placed there it “walked”, and considering how small the company is, it walked out the door. My bet is on the disgruntled FedEx guy.

The bell was replaced with a Yahoo button. So whenever someone comes into the building, they press it and someone comes up front. I laugh each time because it’s the person going “Yaaaaaahooooo ooooooh” that resonates through the building. I wanted one!

I went on eBay and found only one up for bid. I clicked “watch this item”. I wasn’t sure if I really wanted to spend money on it. Last Saturday I was sitting on the couch with Craig, I had my iPhone in hand while were watching TV. I got an email notifying me that the auction was about to end. I decided to try out the eBay app for the iPhone. It said 54 seconds remaining, I looked over at Craig and said, “Can I buy a Yahoo button on eBay”. He said, “sure if you want it that bad”. I refreshed the page, it said 24 seconds remaining, I figured at this point no way was I going to get this. I put in my bid, hit submit, and won the auction!

Now to most this not a big deal. For me though, it is. I sell mostly on eBay, when I do buy I go for Buy It Now auctions. Now I’m the happy owner of a button that says “Yaaaaaahoooooo ooooh” and my cats look around like the walls are talking.

Back in the Darkroom

October 13th, 2008

This weekend I was back in the darkroom. I’m still amazed at how much I love printing black and white photos. I’ve started experimenting the 4 blade enlarging easel to create square prints and borders. More and more ideas keep popping into my mind of prints I want to try.

Today's Dark Room Session