900 12th Ave. Seattle, WA 98122

Great place. I even know it's address by heart because I've typed it into a GPS several times these past few weeks. Once, into Shirley, and yesterday into my GPS whose name is unknown. (Sidenote: Fizan & Gen were wondering about my GPS's name and it suddenly horrified me that I had no clue. Honestly, it sounds a lot like a Shirley..)

So yesterday was awesome! It was my first time shooting in a Photo Studio and if I had the choice, I would have stayed there the whole day. (Unless I was there alone, that would be odd.) I was surprised to find that it was so easy for me to see everyone in certain poses, but once I became the subject of the camera, I drew blanks pretty often. I regret not going earlier because the longer I waited, the hotter it got, and the sweatier I became and the glossier I looked in the photographs. I also wish I had brought a few props for Tam, of whom I was photographing. Nevertheless, it was something memorable and I think everyone left with great shots. Next time (and there will be a next time) I'm definitely doing a jumping shot and a silhouette.

Today was mostly editing the photographs that were taken yesterday and turning them into possible Public Service Announcements (PSA). Find PSA quotes was so difficult! You'd think google was capable of anything. Apparently not, when it comes to the safety of the public! I found one for Alan's picture of Johanna on her phone: "plz dnt txt & drive" and even found Max one for the picture of him and his bike: "Share the road. Save a life" but nothing whatsoever for the shots I took of Tam. All I could think of was turning them into Nike ads but unforunately that doesn't do much other than brainwash the public into spending a bit of their sporadic bonuses.

We also decided to make some changes to the T-shirts. The front would be a photograph of our choice and the back would be of Gen's design. I can't wait to mine! It's a little odd to be wearing a shirt with everyone's faces on them, but it's definitely better than wearing just my own face. I think one face per body is adequate, don't you?

We got our invitations and when I handed it to my mom, I was so embaressed by her first question, that I considered changing the date on the paper when she wasn't looking.

Well now that I am done procrastinating for my SAT homework, I think that I should probably go start that now.

Will think of a more interesting title later

Today is Tuesday.

Alki Again

The Compass of Non-profit Sunday

So Saturday night I designed an ad for a non-profit I intern for, Washington State India Trade Relations Action Committee (WASITRAC). It wasn't the most beautiful design in the history of Arts, but my dad was satisfied with it. (Which is actually not saying much because he makes for a horrible judge.)



But one thing I was surprised by was how quickly I started. Normally if my dad requested me to work on something for WASITRAC I would procrastinate for atleast a week and then I would finally feel obliged to sit down down with him one on one and ask him for the design requirements. And even then, I most likely would not have started designing! No... definitely not. That would probably require another week of stretching...

As I looked eagerly into compass for an answer to my sudden change in procrastinative behaviour, the arrow only led me to one place: RecTech.
I know this may sound as cheesy as mozzarella sticks dipped in jalapeno cheddar sauce, but I think RecTech has actually improved the my lazy Photoshop-affiliated habits.

One thing that has been the most handy is the masking option in CS3. I can't describe how useful it is! The other selection tools are so hard to work with sometime that I'm so relieved that Adobe creating something so simple but efficient. Oh, and the other genius invention of theirs' definitely includes the "Select Inverse." I used both of these methods so frequently while designing the ad.

Capturing this Weekend

Because I've been carrying my Nikon every day to work, I completely lose my energy on the weekends. Weekends are when I "borrow" and my mom's Canon PowerShot SD790. Until recently, I didn't know that the PowerShot had options similar to SLRs. For example, I didn't it had its own light meter (exposure) or that you could change its ISO. However, it still doesn't compare to the Nikon which can take great pictures with minimal Photoshop adjustments. I had to photoshop every single photo that you will come across in this entry.

So first, Genki Sushi! My favorite conveyor-belt sushi place! I have yet to go to Sushiland, but from what I've heard, it's loud, the sushi is poor-quality and it's almost always crowded. Genki Sushi on the other hand, because it's fairly new, remains moderately vacant in between the standard meal times. And for such an expensive looking place, the sushi is actually affordable! Especially if you start off with one of their $3 bowls, which includes Kitsune Udon, Tempura Udon, Tonkotsu Ramen and a few others.

Here is a shot of one of my friend's plates:



And later that night, she was very enthusiastic about henna, so we drew mario characters on each other. Here is the Toad tattoo she made for me:



She stayed up later than me and designed her full hand...



The next day we went to an indoor (thank god! it was 97 degrees that day) lu'au in Lakewood. At Asia Pacific Cultural Center's annual lu'au we watched polynesian dancers perform as we ate the most delicious kahlua pig, salmon, chicken wings, green banana, rice and more. At the very end of the event, a Samoan princess, with freshly done traditional tattoos from Samoa, performed as the audience threw money (donations) at her. Though this would not be appropriate in many cultures, this is actually a Samoan tradition!

The Longhouse

Hah-ah-poos. That's what they called the hats the people wore. It was the name of the Duwamish village that was once across the street from the new Duwamish Long House on Marginal Way. Though the village is no more, the land now consists of a park and raised up boat skeleton.



But the Longhouse was amazing. The second I went inside I was enveloped in this amazing scent of cedar wood. What was the most fascinating was the story that the floor told. Mary Lou Slaughter, who designed the wooden portion of the floor, is one of the most clever of people. Where the central smoke pit would have been, is a rectangular structure, representing the duwamish or "people of the inside." And the duwamish were surrounded by the cascades, which are signified by the parallel zigzag lines fencing in the duwamish.



And here is a photograph of Fizan posing with the traditional duwamish vest, hat and drum set.



And here is Evangelina who is modeling her Duwamish attire!

A Pandora Approach

So yesterday (Monday), the day started out with our first group debriefing: Leslie and Rafael talked about what we had to get done in the last few weeks of the internship, ideas for how we can improve next year’s summer internship and ideas about internships they could have throughout the year. Though my brain was burnt out from an SAT class from that same morning, I was conscious enough to realize a few things. We really do have a lot of things left to do! A PowerPoint of our best work… Finish designing our RecTech T-shirt, finish up articles for the White Center Food Bank & Duwamish Tribe Chairwoman, Cecile Hansen… Write up a few articles for Puget Sound Off… Though half of me is overwhelmed, I constantly have to remind myself that I’m not alone on all of this.

This past weekend, I went to Golden Gardens for a bonfire event, and boy did I regret going. Not only did I leave so early I missed the bonfire, but it was such a beautiful place that it was a shame that I left my camera at home. Above the twisted, narrow road that I was struggling to pay attention to while driving, was a exceptionally surreal and amazingly green canopy that reminded me of various ambiences like that of Pandora from “Avatar.” In fact, I thought the trees were prettier than the beach itself.

However, this weekend was great in that I finally used the Photoshop that’s been yearning for my love and waiting at my computer’s desktop for months. CS3 intimidated me so much that I gave it as many visits as I do to my grandma. Anyhow, with this internship, this new CS3 confidence, and some Pandora inspiration, I took a few hours on Saturday to take a few self-portraits and then Photoshop them. And since Raf was talking about how we’re going to experiment and explore with studio lighting at the studio center this Thursday, I tried to get some inspiration by playing with light a little beforehand. Here is one of my best creations yet!

MagaZeen Pt. 2

Here's the hair magazine that Tom and I designed today.



Wow.. who would have thought that a few words and a picture could take so long to lay out! Raf tells us that "this is only a few hours.. people usually take a week to design magazine covers." While looking at the finished product gave me an overwhelmingly relieved and gratified feeling, I don't think I'll be looking into the magazine industry any time soon.

At the end, Tom mentioned that it was something he probably would see at his mom's salon. Mission accomplished, I guess.

MagaZeen!

Reserved for the image of my magazine design.

An Iceburg Named "Journalism"

This is probably one of my favorites shots of today. Contrary to the previous photographs I've taken of Alan, he actually looks his age! (Thank you, Photoshop!)

Now to the main part of the this entry, which has nothing whatsoever to do with Alan!

Up until today, I was on an Alaskan Cruise of Photography. However, on the way to Juneau, I met an iceburg named Journalism. At Boeing's Paper Airplane event at the Delridge Community Library, I found myself in the middle of a swarm of little kids (most of whom I didn't have the permission to take & publish photographs of), and was astoundedly overwhelmed. There was so much going on! We had to take pictures of the kids, interview and photograph adults, and simultaneously try to figure out the 5 W's + H (Who, What, When etc). Perhaps I wasn't mentally prepared for all the commotion.

Fortunately enough, we returned to the quiet and peaceful RecTech Room at the Community Center. It was so nice to be back home. Or so I thought. In the last 15 minutes, Gen and I were furiously trying to coalesce all of our writings into a single article to be sent to the West Seattle Blog. Though it felt much like the iceberg I hit in Juneau, it was that much more familiar. It was then and there that I again realized that being an editor may be just be my thing.The second Gen and I finished, was the second that we completed our first official mission at RecTech and I was surprised how oddly smooth it went despite all the iceburgs.

The Beginnings- summarizing the first few weeks

The first week consisted of so many introductions. Introductions to Rafael, our teacher. To our cameras. To the art of taking photos. Introductions to the park at which we took our first photographs. (Where many of us also discovered how novice of artists we were) To Photoshop. To guest speakers.

If introductions was a pet peeve of mine, I probably would have killed myself.
(Not to be taken seriously at any point.)

However I fell in love with every person I met the first day. Demeno, Johanna, Gen, Evangelina, Alan, Tam, Max, Tyree, Rafael (& later Fizan).

Okay, so I take it back. I didn't fall in love with all of them the first day. It might have taken a few days to warm up. Nevertheless, everyday I was given a new chance to learn something new about each and every one of them. If watching Inception hadn't demolished my beliefs on time/reality I would have definitely said that the first week felt something a year.

(The picture shown above was taken when all of us went to a nearby creek and practiced using our newly learned photo-taking skills. Ever since Rafael had shown us the slideshow about how there were so many departments within Photography, I was intrigued by commercial & food photography in particular.)

Photography in the Past Few Weeks

Here is a photograph a friend of mine, Alan, took of me at Alki Beach when were practicing taking portraits. Though I did not take the picture myself, I do remember militantly suggesting for Alan to take a shot as I posed as sleeping on some driftwood. Together, we created a great of example of beautiful framing.



















After a few minutes you may notice that the leaf is Africa and the trees in the back pose as South America on a world map. They fit like puzzle pieces. This was not my intention at all.

















Taken at the Seattle Art Museum, this is probably one of my favorite shots taken so far.
We have contrast, repetition, shape, rule of thirds, and most of all, Tyree's photogenia.

Seattle's Bon Odori Festival

Bon Odori is a Buddhist custom where the deceased are honored. In Seattle, it is more casually known as the Japanese Summer Festival. Every year, the public is invited to join in traditional Japanese folk dances done infront of the Seattle Buddhist Temple and indulge in various snacks and foods, including "Kori" (shaved ice) and "yaki nigiri" (grilled riceball.) But the fun does not stop there! Preformances like Taiko drumming engage the multi-cultural audience.

I interviewed a friend, Timothy Locke, who despite living in West Seattle, comes to Bon Odori every year. He says that even though a part of him does wish there was a Bon Odori in West Seattle, he also thinks that "having one in Seattle, in a central place, where everyone can get together is really nice."

Farmers Market at Seattle Center & SAM

So "who is this?" you may be asking. It is no one other than Seattle's gnome lady! (More formally known as Diane Macrae.) While Diane admits her gnome has been frequently mistaken for the Travelocity gnome, she assures me that her gnome is special; coming from [insert location].

The Seattle gnome can be found on shirts, postcards and other accessories around souvenier stores in Seattle, including her own store in Ballard.
I asked her "Why a gnome?" and she enthusiastically explained that she was truly inspired by the popular French movie, Amelie, which is about a gnome who travels the world.

Explore her creations at http://www.dianemacrae.com/

Week Numero Uno

To visit this specific post click HERE or the image below:








Sorry for the confusing relocation! ;P