!!!

A little of this, a little of that....

Recently in the forum... A picture of you, on top of... Which digital SLR to buy? Data cards and lost images

Photography being the ultimate populist art form, we’re extra super special keen on people who come up with ways to bring photo fun to everyone.

Here’s two we’ve come across recently that we really like:

Snap-Shot-City, September 29th
Snap-Shot-City bills itself as an urban photographic treasure hunt. The idea’s simple:

1. Sign up with your friends in teams of up to 6.
2. On September 29th, head down to the meeting place in your city to get yer clues.
3. Start snapping!
4. Share your adventures at the after-party. Exhibitions and awards to follow.

Run from the U.K., they hit 35 cities last year and the adventure begins again this weekend!

A Million Little Pictures, October 10th
A Million Little Pictures is a photo exhibition run by an art coop. Everyone’s photos are welcome, everyone shoots with the same camera, and the exhibition might come to you! The deets:

1. Send in $16 by October 10th, and they’ll send you a disposable camera.
2. Snap photos on the theme (”Adventure”) and send it back by Nov 20th.
3. They develop the photos and ready them for exhibition.

The twist: They haven’t decided which city the exhibition will be in, and every camera counts as a vote for your city. Get friends to join in the fun to increase your city’s odds! (This one’s only open to people in the USA)

Snap-Shot-City

A Million Little Pictures
(Thx to reader Cara Bedick for the tip!)

p.s. Delicious breakfast photos from all of you after last week’s Breakfast Photo Project.

Link to this | Filed under Photo Projects.

For years, I was too shy to ask to take a stranger’s picture. Normally, I’m not at all shy. I’ll talk to anyone. But stick a camera in my hand and I would become horribly self-conscious. I thought it a bit presumptuous to ask to take someone’s picture. After all, I wasn’t a “real” photographer but only a hobbyist.

I did take photographs of people who were unaware. Some were interesting pictures, I thought, that captured moments or moods. They were small slices of real, unrehearsed and unself-conscious life. I think such pictures have an important place in any photographer’s repertoire, but I am not discussing those here.

Then I read up on various ways that street photographers took pictures without being noticed. These surreptitious shots did not appeal to me, though, because they seemed a bit sneaky. I wanted either pictures of people completely unaware, or pictures of people who were totally aware. I did not want to furtively snap images of people who did not want their pictures taken.
(more…)

Share This

As more and more of the world starts to skip breakfast, we figured this was a good time to focus on that most important meal of the day.

So here’s one more reason to enjoy some hearty oats or a breakfast burrito* tomorrow: Jon Huck’s Breakfast series.

Pairing portraits with porridge, his project shows people alongside their morning sustenance. We find it surprisingly addictive to flip through and draw fanciful conclusions on the connections. (Warning: It’s hard to do so without making your mouth water.)

Fun Photo Project: Take your camera with you to the breakfast table tomorrow morning and bring us back a portrait and a plate. Then post the results here.

Need more enticement? Follow that link to learn all sorts of fun breakfast factoids… like 308 ways to enjoy toast, all about breakfast in space or the amazing banana, and the history of breakfast cereal.

Jon Huck’s Breakfast Portraits

* Speaking of which, did you know Tony the Tiger goes by “El tigre Toño” in Mexico? We kid you not. Mr. Breakfast.com has the scoop.

Link to this | Filed under Photo Projects.

Recently in the forum... What's the best digital slave flash? Do you take photos to document life or create art? What am I Wednesdays #7

Picture 487 of your Jamaican vacation photos fading by as some Caribbean muzac plays in the background. Yeah, photo slideshows can be kind of a snore.

The solution? Animoto!

Think of it as a little black box filled with film & TV producers, techies, indie rockers, and robots.

You put your photos and a song in one end, shake it up, and a photo music video pops out the other end… with pro-level post-production, animated cuts synced to your music’s beat, and oh-so-much style.

And it only takes a few clicks. (Really!) The robots do all the work.

The 30 second videos are free and they’re perfect for mailing to friends or posting to your blog, MySpace, Facebook, etc. Longer videos cost a few bucks. Special for Photojojo subscribers: Sign up for free by Sunday using this link and the swell lads at Animoto will put a credit in your account for one free full-length video. (It’s okay to tell your friends.)

Animoto

p.s. Here’s a fun Animoto video we made from photos taken at a photobooth we recently set up.

(Continued...)

Link to this | Filed under Websites.

The annual Everyman Photo Contest is unique for a several of reasons but mainly because of the philosophy of its founder (which is not unlike the philosophy of this site): “The Everyman believes that anyone who has ever taken pictures in their life, has taken good pictures.”

The contest is open to amateurs only, is free to enter, you can win cash, and the deadline is just 17 days from right now (deadline October 1, 2007).

Share This

If you haven’t seen these photos from a recent Shuttle mission you should definitely check them out. Spectacular. But, me being who I am, I couldn’t help but notice the sensor dust defects in the fifth photo. You can tell it’s dust on the sensor because it shows up again in the same places on the seventh photo which is also shot at a high f-stop (where sensor spots are more likely to appear) (and you can tell it’s a high f-stop because everything in the frame is in sharp focus.).

I should probably get out more.

I can’t wait until it’s feasible for private citizens to go on Earth orbit “safaris.” I’ll definitely make sure my sensor is clean before hand.

Share This

Extra photos for bloggers: 1, 2, 3 Recently in the forum... Your best photo... Food photography Anyone get a Canon 40D?

Our friend Judy runs a one-woman shop making the most beautiful handmade journals we’ve ever seen.

Naturally, when we saw the photographs she used for her covers, we ran straight to her apartment, video camera in hand.

So today we’ve got two special treats for you:

1) A how-to video of Judy showing you how you can make your own perfect-bound journal using two 4×6 photos for the cover, some paper, glue, and a few other tools.

2) Two special edition journals made with pages of sugarcane fiber and reclaimed paper by Judy herself. Created for writers, illustrators, artist and designers, her notebooks have unique features like an inner pocket for looseleaf notes and a spine that opens flat for writing or drawing across the pages. Exclusive designs on the Photojojo Store for a limited time. Buy now

p.s. Help us out, Digg this tutorial!

(Continued...)

Link to this | Filed under DIY, Photojojo Original, Gifts.

Some more Dahlias.... I'm turning into a Dahlia Phanatic...  and some seals and sand pipers...

The Sand Pipers are like corks floating on the water. They just bob right over big waves just like a cork would. So I call them my little feathered corks.