Entries for August 2007
Photo Challenge
While I was taking pictures today—at the 2007 Annual Fall Convocation + Investiture Ceremony for president Barbara R. Snyder—Lev Gonick joked that he wanted to see the pictures up on my blog by the time the event was done.
Naturally that wasn't possible, I can't upload and shoot at the same time. In fact having taken over 400 photos I only have half of them up on Flickr now and will have to finish the rest on Thursday. (At which point I'll post the link.)
But the suggestion got me thinking; what tools would I have needed to make that possible? To that end I've got up with a list of requirements, most of which could probably be created by a team from our own campus.
- Bluetooth (or similar) enabled camera that could download images while I am still shooting new ones.
- Laptop, or preferably a smaller wireless device that could run a program to access the camera, grab the images, store them in some logical manner, then trigger another program to
- Pick out a small selection of the most interesting or aesthetically pleasing images, upload them to the blog server and include them in a new entry.
Some of this is already possible. The sticking points are:
- That it all has to happen while I am still taking additional pictures. Thus I would want to be able to push a button or start a program via a few simple commands then stick the device back in my pocket to be ignored while I keep taking pictures. (I could set parameters such as number of photos to blog, size, etc. in advance.) Conversely the process could be built into the camera which would access the wireless network and upload them all to be stored on Flickr (or the Blog server or somewhere else online) then trigger the rest of the process to happen on the server.
- Developing a program that could objectively choose the most interesting photos. Given that such choices are often subjective rather than objective I think this would be the most challenging part. But if we had an interdisciplinary team including programmers engineers and faculty/students from Cognitive Science and Art they might be able to create something that could get it right most of the time. It would certainly be interesting to see which shots a program would choose in comparison to which shots were most often chosen by people.
What do you think Lev? (And of course everyone else.)
City Xpressionz 2007
How do they do that?
Looking for something to do this Saturday? If so I highly recommend:
The 6th Annual City Xpressionz Urban Art Festival
Saturday, August 25, 2007
10 am - 7 pm
Market Square Park
W. 25th and Lorain Ave*.
*Easy access from University Circle via the Red Line Rapid Transit. Exit at W.25th.
Entertainment Hosted by Q NICE.
Featuring: Forrest Getemgump, Besto, Ceven, Santina, Onit, Camouflage Finesse, TUT, Red Strype. Special Performance by Progressive Arts Alliance Students at 11:30am.
Sponsored by Cleveland Public Art and Cleveland-area Scion dealerships,
"City Xpressionz recognizes hip-hop music, dance, graffiti art, and other underground art forms as the works that shape a city's artistic voice. Transforming Ohio City's Market Square Park, City Xpressionz claims the street corner's blank canvas and creates art throughout the day. By bringing art into a neighborhood, City Xpressionz turns the community into an art gallery. City Xpressionz is free to watch."
Express Yourself
Have a knack with a spray can? Reserve a canvas for $10, bring your aerosol paint, respirator and ideas, then paint your canvas during the festival and take it home later.
Do you like to defy gravity? Enter the Bboy or Bgirl battles for $5.00 and compete at Power Moves, Footwork, and Bboy/Bgirl of the Day.
Got the rhythm and the rhyme? Enter the MC Battle for $5.00 and let us hear what you've got.
Prefer to watch?
All events are free for spectators. Bring your camera, check out the battles and watch the paintings emerge throughout the day.
Visit the Cleveland Public Art Web site for complete details.
While you're in the neighborhood, there's plenty more to do
- Visit the vendors of Open Air in Market Square for antiques, art, vintage clothing and various and sundry tchotchkes.
- Pick up some fresh bread, lobster ravioli, empanadas, Slovenian sausages, sweet corn and Pad Thai from the West Side Market.
- Try the cheese soup at Great Lakes Brewery, the smoked trout at Market Avenue Wine Bar or explore the menus at any of a number of nearby eateries.
Need to see more? Here are my photos from last year.