Professional amateurs.
Question 3
Digital media has greatly impacted various ‘professionals’ in their line of creative work, as certain programs and software allows the amateur to achieve similar high standards. ‘Professionals’ claim their title by demonstrating a very high level of skill in their creative field, achieved through rigorous study and years of trial and error. Every area of creative work requires a specific focus and level of understanding.
With the emergence of digital media came a new opportunity to condense years of work into simple programs designed for the everyday amateur. Programs such as pain shop allows the user to become a digital artist creating complex artwork, advertorials, airbrushed photography, cartoons etc. Paint shop is becoming more and more popular with computer users especially for creating professional photographs. So where does this leave professional photographers? With such a craze for amateur photography, how do we recognise the difference? Such photography and digital artwork were seen as rare and sparked a sense of wonder. Unfortunately, we are becoming desensitised once we learn how to create similar works ourselves. This makes it very difficult for aspiring photographers to prove themselves in a world where everyone knows their secrets. Professional photographers charge hundreds of dollars for black and white portraits, airbrushed and tweaked to create flawless images. However with programs such as paint shop, we can evidently do all of the tweaking at home. A similar impact has been felt by film makers. With programs such as imovie, amateurs can create short films easily and quickly. The software includes a simple editing process, frames are moved around by dragging the mouse , music tracks are added through itunes, text can be added and the movie is easily exported onto websites such as youtube. The entire process takes no longer than an hour and the quality is of a fairly high standard. Such programs allow users to creatively express themselves easily and without any major costs. The software was designed for personal use, but has no restrictions for commercial operation. Although it lacks some elements and is fairly simple, users can almost get away with a professional video. The process of editing a film is dedicated to entire degrees and careers, so what happens when programs such as imovie become more advanced? Potentially telling the user what shot to use next, suggestions for each frame or an automatic editing process. Where does this leave professionals? And what does this mean for amateurs?
“Today, with the growth of user-generated content sites like Twitter, YouTube, or DeviantArt, amateur culture is suddenly amplified, to the point where it's changing the fundamental dynamics of media production and consumption. With their unique genres and aesthetics, these amateur digital media creations represent cultures of innovation keyed to today's collaborative and social media landscape.” (Uhr, H 2009)
The social media landscape mentioned by Uhr is seen to benefit from contributions by amateurs, constantly redefining the dynamics of technology and digital culture. Our consumption of digital media has evolved to include amateur information and creations as valued content.
Such programs are designed and created by professionals for the amateur. The creators utilise their ability and understanding of the creative work and manufacture an easy to use version, and in a tech-savy age the programs are mastered promptly. We have already seen the effects of evolving technology on other aspects of living. Socially we prefer to engage online on social networking sites, something once feared and apprehended by society now dominates every household worldwide. We seem to adjust to these changes as we try and keep up with new technologies confronting our daily life. The reality of amateurs and professionals working side by side is fast approaching. However amatuers generally utilise these programs for fun, to share with friends and to amuse themselves. The idea of making a profit out of their work without establishing formal training or education seems unrealistic. Film makers will hire formally trained editors, the public will hire professional photographers and artwork will be highly scrutinised before it is sold by an amateur using paint shop. It appears for now the professional is somewhat safe. The merits of a degree, or formal training is still viewed as vital within our community and education is still the driving force behind employment.
“Opportunity and desire alone do not professional historians or journalists or pundits make. There's this process known as "learning your craft" and "paying your dues" that all professionals must endure. Sorry, but trolling the web and blogging from your darkened study doesn't qualify as on-the-job training.” Long, T 2007)
Long takes the approach that certain amateur sites are established to encourage creativity and personal touches within that particular site sharing with fellow amateurs, a sort of digital play pen. He believes this is the only fair outlet for amateurs who are yet to accomplish any recognized abilities. It is fair to be apprehensive about amateurs being able to publish anything on the internet leaving it to the discretion of the reader to believe the content, however without amateur sites encouraging online activity, cyberspace may very well be an empty space.
Amateurs are regarded as amateurs for a reason, they are not recognised as professionals in their field. It is important that programs exist for amateurs to harness their creativity and build vital skills for the world of technology. Without programs breaking up technical talk society won’t be capable of keeping up with the vast technical developments and we will see a loss of interest and support.
It is vital for our media landscape to maintain a balance between professional and amateur content. Amateurs have never been so supported with their ideas and creations, there are more outlets for creativity then ever before. Amateurs have the opportunity to learn from professionals, and really refine their skills with supportive software and programs. However, these programs do not give amateurs the years of experience acquired by the pros and so their education continues. It is important that amateurs continue to explore the realms of digital media, to redefine its content and to adapt to the evolving digital world.
Uhr, H 2009, Amateur Innovation: Creative Production in the Emerging Digital Media Landscape. www.telekomtrendforum.de/trendforum/en/program/show/47, viewed: 19/10/09
Long, T 2007, Internet Smackdown: The Amateur vs. the Professional, www.wired.com/culture/lifestyle/commentary/theluddite/2007/06/luddite_0621, viewed: 19/10/09
Paint Shop Pro: a complete photo-editing software solution, www.corel.com/servlet/Satellite/us/en/Product/1184951547051#versionTabview=tab1&tabview=tab0 viewed: 19/10/09
Ilife09, Movies that aren’t a production, http://www.apple.com/ilife/imovie/, viewed on 19/10/09
Thursday, October 22, 2009
Wednesday, September 16, 2009
Political participation via the internet.. Why not right? Everything else is available on the net. Providing political information on the internet is one way to educate/inform and engage younger people in their democratic duties....(I'm not even registered to vote shhhh)
I signed an e-petition of sorts...
I have now done my bit for the people of Britain and their t.v license tax..I don't really understand what they are on about but I'm happy to help!!
Now to the important news...
The President of America, Barack Obama travelled to Pittsburgh, PA for the annual AFL-CIO convention. Obama expressed the importance middle class America in his address to the convention. "For over half a century, the success of America has been built on the success of our middle class. It was the creation of the middle class that lifted this nation up in the wake of a Great Depression. It was the expansion of the middle class that opened the doors of opportunity to millions more. It was a strong middle class that powered American industries and propelled America's economy and made the 20th century the American century...." http://my.barackobama.com/page/community/post/bradleyportnoy/gGM7NJ
closer to home:
How I understand it...
Representative democracy allows for one person (a member of a party) to represent the best interests of the people...a sort of team captain philosophy.."I'll take care of this guys" we elect the team captain according to how he or she plays ball and they make decisions on our behalf..it makes sense right? But what happens when the team captain has certain hidden agendas and is influenced by a third party? The ancient greeks endorsed a particpatory or direct democracy..every issue would be put to a team vote where majority rules. Raise your hands.
The modern 'public sphere' now includes a much wider social network via the internet creating a greater opportunity for our democratic nation to step up and express concerns (or just rip politicians to shreds) In Australia politicians are not untouchable...we love to devour their political, personal and religious beliefs almost to let them know that they are under a sever public eye and they are not above us in any way. The effects of having hundreds of blogs and forums online endorse this harsh/opinionated behaviour by the public. The politicians are scrutinised as it is our right to do so. The internet provides ample opportunities for us to have a dig.
The government's plans to censor the internet or create a 'clean feed' just reflects the great impact cyberspace has on the government institution. It appears they are not too keen on letting us see, hear and believe certain things that surface when surfing the web and to an extent the clean feed has certain merits. Websites showing potential terrorists how to make bombs or preaching anti-western behaviour poses a threat to national security, however is it really the government's right in a democratic nation to restrict free information in our public sphere? Many believe that the key to all of this is balance. Restricted/blocking harmful websites including pro-terriosm or child porn sites, and leaving material with no high level risk to be freely accessed. However aside from the mentioned high risk sites, who is to decide what our society should and should not be exposed to? Are we creeping back to the christian limitations of the past? Back to a society dictating to its citizens how life should be lead? Its worth a ponder anyway.
On another completely different note here is something I painted and scanned then tweaked on my mac
I signed an e-petition of sorts...
I have now done my bit for the people of Britain and their t.v license tax..I don't really understand what they are on about but I'm happy to help!!
Now to the important news...
The President of America, Barack Obama travelled to Pittsburgh, PA for the annual AFL-CIO convention. Obama expressed the importance middle class America in his address to the convention. "For over half a century, the success of America has been built on the success of our middle class. It was the creation of the middle class that lifted this nation up in the wake of a Great Depression. It was the expansion of the middle class that opened the doors of opportunity to millions more. It was a strong middle class that powered American industries and propelled America's economy and made the 20th century the American century...." http://my.barackobama.com/page/community/post/bradleyportnoy/gGM7NJ
closer to home:
How I understand it...
Representative democracy allows for one person (a member of a party) to represent the best interests of the people...a sort of team captain philosophy.."I'll take care of this guys" we elect the team captain according to how he or she plays ball and they make decisions on our behalf..it makes sense right? But what happens when the team captain has certain hidden agendas and is influenced by a third party? The ancient greeks endorsed a particpatory or direct democracy..every issue would be put to a team vote where majority rules. Raise your hands.
The modern 'public sphere' now includes a much wider social network via the internet creating a greater opportunity for our democratic nation to step up and express concerns (or just rip politicians to shreds) In Australia politicians are not untouchable...we love to devour their political, personal and religious beliefs almost to let them know that they are under a sever public eye and they are not above us in any way. The effects of having hundreds of blogs and forums online endorse this harsh/opinionated behaviour by the public. The politicians are scrutinised as it is our right to do so. The internet provides ample opportunities for us to have a dig.
The government's plans to censor the internet or create a 'clean feed' just reflects the great impact cyberspace has on the government institution. It appears they are not too keen on letting us see, hear and believe certain things that surface when surfing the web and to an extent the clean feed has certain merits. Websites showing potential terrorists how to make bombs or preaching anti-western behaviour poses a threat to national security, however is it really the government's right in a democratic nation to restrict free information in our public sphere? Many believe that the key to all of this is balance. Restricted/blocking harmful websites including pro-terriosm or child porn sites, and leaving material with no high level risk to be freely accessed. However aside from the mentioned high risk sites, who is to decide what our society should and should not be exposed to? Are we creeping back to the christian limitations of the past? Back to a society dictating to its citizens how life should be lead? Its worth a ponder anyway.
On another completely different note here is something I painted and scanned then tweaked on my mac
Week 7- ireportrubbish
"Gone are the days of moderation. The world celebrates as alcohol is finally stripped of its negative connotations and given the hero status it so rightly deserves. The report board of Alcoholics outline a series of investigations on the relationship between alcohol and the consumer. One section of the report explains how beneficial alcohol is to the consumer's social life. Those who choose not to consume are losers and will now will officially be on a lower wage as they have no life to speak of and will only require a minimal allowance for basic food and admission to the checkers and chess club. The board also found that alcohol makes us more attractive, in an age where beauty is of the upmost importance, alcohol is there to soften the lighting...of the world. Beer goggles are now standard issue for the world's citizens. According to section three of the report, livers are not necessary for the daily function of our bodies, stating that infact the 'liver' is actually a myth established by the government to keep us away from the bottle. It appears the myth has finally been busted. Cheers to that."
Wednesday, September 2, 2009
Finding happiness!
This is me apparently..
Travel to the right to see where I intend to travel in February (tickets all booked and paid for) God knows why I'm being this ambitious but my sense of adventure has slapped me right in the face.
View My South America Trip (2010) in a larger map
'Campsite' Is a short film about a group of friends camping in the wilderness. The friends start with usual banter and end in a bit of a heated discussion about the merits of war. The shotgun in the boot of the car is referred to and shown to us. One of the guys finds a soft toy in the bush and throws it on the fire. Shortly after rocks are thrown by unknown persons in the bush. The men go out in search of the rock throwers only to return to their destroyed campsite with a warning etched into a tree. This is where the story ends. I want that 10 minutes of my life back. Thanks.
"Meeting girls" is a story about two guys forming a band to simply meet girls. They start by employing a manager, a washed up, pot smoking, alcoholic who begins the boys on their tragic journey to stardom. The boys soon branch out to a three man band...inviting a keyboard enthusiast to join the fun. The lyrics are hilariously sexual and blatant-the boys are out to get laid. 'The Chick Magnetic' play their first gig at a tragic bar called the snitchzeland and fail miserably...but alas the lead singer eric finds love thanks to his granny fan base. It was alright..would never ever watch it again.
This is a cute little animation about a housewife competing against the domino effect of cereal boxes on a supermarket shelf. She is successful. Clean up on aisle 5. Meh watch it..dont watch it..wont change your life.
This however will change your life...watch me draw a snowman..I take awhile to begin but when I do..its breath taking
Travel to the right to see where I intend to travel in February (tickets all booked and paid for) God knows why I'm being this ambitious but my sense of adventure has slapped me right in the face.
View My South America Trip (2010) in a larger map
'Campsite' Is a short film about a group of friends camping in the wilderness. The friends start with usual banter and end in a bit of a heated discussion about the merits of war. The shotgun in the boot of the car is referred to and shown to us. One of the guys finds a soft toy in the bush and throws it on the fire. Shortly after rocks are thrown by unknown persons in the bush. The men go out in search of the rock throwers only to return to their destroyed campsite with a warning etched into a tree. This is where the story ends. I want that 10 minutes of my life back. Thanks.
"Meeting girls" is a story about two guys forming a band to simply meet girls. They start by employing a manager, a washed up, pot smoking, alcoholic who begins the boys on their tragic journey to stardom. The boys soon branch out to a three man band...inviting a keyboard enthusiast to join the fun. The lyrics are hilariously sexual and blatant-the boys are out to get laid. 'The Chick Magnetic' play their first gig at a tragic bar called the snitchzeland and fail miserably...but alas the lead singer eric finds love thanks to his granny fan base. It was alright..would never ever watch it again.
This is a cute little animation about a housewife competing against the domino effect of cereal boxes on a supermarket shelf. She is successful. Clean up on aisle 5. Meh watch it..dont watch it..wont change your life.
This however will change your life...watch me draw a snowman..I take awhile to begin but when I do..its breath taking
Wednesday, August 19, 2009
Scavenger Hunt
1)According to www.hypertextbook.com/facts/2001/OlgaVapnyar.shtml (20/08/09)
The tallest living tree stands at 112 meters (367 feet, 6 in.), or five stories higher than the Statue of Liberty. It is a Mendocino Tree, a coast redwood (Sequoia sempervirens) found at Montgomery State Reserve near Ukiah, California, USA. It is estimated to be over 1000 years old. The tree was last measured in September 1998, and was also found to have a diameter of 3.14 M. (10 ft. 4 in.). It was declared the tallest tree in 1996.
2)Madonna has facebook!! http://www.facebook.com/madonna
3)The oldest living wild elephant was 86 years old as opposed to the longest living elephant in captivity said to be 69 years
http://www.wonderquest.com/LifeSpan-MaxMin.htm (20/08/09)
4)Glycomics studies the glycan (sugar) structures of any cell type or organism....or something. b)"Seagull managers fly in, make a lot of noise, dump on everyone, then fly out."- When they are there, they typically give criticism and direction in equal quantities, often without any real understanding of what the job entails. Then before you can object or ask what they really want, they have an 'important meeting' to go to. http://changingminds.org/disciplines/leadership/articles/seagull_management.htm (20/08/09) God I hate seagull managers!!!
5)Eastern Promises (2007)is David Cronenbergs last feature film www.moviesunlimited.com/musite/findresults_director.asp?search=David+Cronenberg (20/08/09)
Videodrome is a 1983 Canadian psychological thriller film written and directed by David Cronenberg and starring James Woods and singer Debbie Harry from Blondie. http://www.freebase.com/view/en/david_cronenberg/-/film/writer/film (20/08/09)
6) in 1995 the original movie 'Hackers' was released. http://movies.yahoo.com/movie/1800242917/info (20/08/09)
7)hollywood is encouraged to begin phone numbers in films with '555'
to prevent real phone numbers from being displayed and called by fans.
8)The cheapest way to travel from Gold Coast to cairns would be by foot or bike but if that doesn't sound too appealing jetstar will fly you there for $289 http://book.jetstar.com/Select.aspx but its sold out so you had better start walking.
9)Bread-make it with you
10)The Brisbane band Black Assasins is privileged to have Stephen Stockwell on keyboards
1)According to www.hypertextbook.com/facts/2001/OlgaVapnyar.shtml (20/08/09)
The tallest living tree stands at 112 meters (367 feet, 6 in.), or five stories higher than the Statue of Liberty. It is a Mendocino Tree, a coast redwood (Sequoia sempervirens) found at Montgomery State Reserve near Ukiah, California, USA. It is estimated to be over 1000 years old. The tree was last measured in September 1998, and was also found to have a diameter of 3.14 M. (10 ft. 4 in.). It was declared the tallest tree in 1996.
2)Madonna has facebook!! http://www.facebook.com/madonna
3)The oldest living wild elephant was 86 years old as opposed to the longest living elephant in captivity said to be 69 years
http://www.wonderquest.com/LifeSpan-MaxMin.htm (20/08/09)
4)Glycomics studies the glycan (sugar) structures of any cell type or organism....or something. b)"Seagull managers fly in, make a lot of noise, dump on everyone, then fly out."- When they are there, they typically give criticism and direction in equal quantities, often without any real understanding of what the job entails. Then before you can object or ask what they really want, they have an 'important meeting' to go to. http://changingminds.org/disciplines/leadership/articles/seagull_management.htm (20/08/09) God I hate seagull managers!!!
5)Eastern Promises (2007)is David Cronenbergs last feature film www.moviesunlimited.com/musite/findresults_director.asp?search=David+Cronenberg (20/08/09)
Videodrome is a 1983 Canadian psychological thriller film written and directed by David Cronenberg and starring James Woods and singer Debbie Harry from Blondie. http://www.freebase.com/view/en/david_cronenberg/-/film/writer/film (20/08/09)
6) in 1995 the original movie 'Hackers' was released. http://movies.yahoo.com/movie/1800242917/info (20/08/09)
7)hollywood is encouraged to begin phone numbers in films with '555'
to prevent real phone numbers from being displayed and called by fans.
8)The cheapest way to travel from Gold Coast to cairns would be by foot or bike but if that doesn't sound too appealing jetstar will fly you there for $289 http://book.jetstar.com/Select.aspx but its sold out so you had better start walking.
9)Bread-make it with you
10)The Brisbane band Black Assasins is privileged to have Stephen Stockwell on keyboards
Thursday, August 13, 2009
Comprehending Convergence. Week 2
This was super duper easy for me to understand and it's colourful!
Convergence:
- the occurrence of two or more things coming together -
- the approach of an infinite series to a finite limit
- overlap: a representation of common ground between theories or phenomena; "there was no overlap between their proposals"
- the act of converging (coming closer)
wordnetweb.princeton.edu/perl/webwn
or sometimes they are just bizarre...
Vespa
with a computer...that's safe.
http://www.product-reviews.net/
Microsoft Surface
A coffee table/computer/LCD screen
www.newlaunches.com/.../microsoft_surface_1.jpg
Altered egokast man
with a computer...that's safe.
http://www.product-reviews.net/
Microsoft Surface
A coffee table/computer/LCD screen
www.newlaunches.com/.../
Altered egokast man
More convergent technology...
Fun with Imovie.
'Oh it's a video!'
Wednesday, August 12, 2009
Screen talk. Week three
Language of the Screen? Well like I do with absolutely everything else I'm confronted with..I ran a few ideas past google. 133,000,000 results...well that's fun. First link??
" don't know how to change language of login screen..." forums.java.net/jive/thread.jspa?messageID=357596
" don't know how to change language of login screen..." forums.java.net/jive/thread.jspa?messageID=357596
Ahhh not quite what I'm after..but then the first link is always like that..a bit eager...a bit egotistical...usually without the means to support it.
This continues for awhile...not quite getting me anywhere..
I found this guy...John Seely he was fun..had some ideas about screen language...seemed pretty clued in...
"I thought hypertext was a joke. I hated video games; I thought they were a complete waste of time." — John Seely Brown
Clued in and maybe slightly dull...
The inclusion of ECU...WS and MS narrowed down the search....
well it narrowed it down to every student doing new com...seriously we are all up in googles space with our blogs...stumbling around the same concepts. Thankyou to the pioneers of the class who actually had to search a bit harder to find the answer. I was pretty late on the band wagon so I went straight to google images to find my examples (opting for the last page in every search to avoid stealing someone else's example.)
I found this guy...John Seely he was fun..had some ideas about screen language...seemed pretty clued in..."I thought hypertext was a joke. I hated video games; I thought they were a complete waste of time." — John Seely Brown
Clued in and maybe slightly dull...
The inclusion of ECU...WS and MS narrowed down the search....
well it narrowed it down to every student doing new com...seriously we are all up in googles space with our blogs...stumbling around the same concepts. Thankyou to the pioneers of the class who actually had to search a bit harder to find the answer. I was pretty late on the band wagon so I went straight to google images to find my examples (opting for the last page in every search to avoid stealing someone else's example.)
Extreme Close Up (ECU)
tightly frames a person or an object
tightly frames a person or an object
www.inkdryerdesign.com/.../Wide Shot (WS)
The frame to show a landscape, scene, or context.
The frame to show a landscape, scene, or context.
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3286/2323259575_2cd55f9009.jpg?v=0Mid Shot (MS)
a mid shot of a person would show their body from the waist up.
www.vogue.co.uk
And the rest......
Very Long Shot:
(VLS )
An image with substantial distance between the camera and the subject.
Very Wide Shot:
(VWS)
Portraying a larger landscape on a wider scale
Medium Long Shot:
(MLS)
Showing a person head to toe
Medium Close Up Shot:
(MCU)
Clearly showing the face without getting too close
Close Up:
(CU)
The subject takes up the entire frame
Big Close Up:
(BCU)
Focusing on facial expressions
The Little Mermaid.
In the first few minutes of the movie (I get sucked in when the mermaids start singing about King Tritan) the first scene is set up using a series of screen shots.
A Long Shot is used to establish the ocean scene (What), depicting the waves and seagulls before a mid shot captures the ship where the first scene takes place. There is then a character close up of Derek who is a main character in the story(who). As a minor character makes reference to King Tritan, Derek's facial expression of amusement and joy is capture via a Big Close Up (What). As the story of King Tritan is explained the shot changes to a Close Up of derek looking bewildered and confused (How) before panning out to another wide shot of the ship and fading sunlight (when), eventually fading down to the depths of the ocean for the next scene.
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