Hosier Lane revisited

Having missed out on the class excursion to Hosier Lane, I decided to make my own solo journey there. On this occasion, the lane was bustling with artists and tourists - it was quite an opportunity to gather a collection of colourful images for a photo-essay.

I found it quite a challenge to edit the essay in Premiere Pro. Too much “Ken Burns Effects *” can be distracting, in the same way as a succession of still images has connotations of a boring old-fashioned slide show. In this case, I opted for moderation, resisted quick cuts and fancy transitions. But where are all those sound effects when you need them? – High-heeled shoes on cobblestones proved a challenge. Ended up, in the end, making a loop in Soundbooth from some old footage I found. Making this simple short essay took more time than anticipated!

It could be an interesting challenge to give everybody the same collection of images and see how different the editing would be! Anyhow, this is my take on Hosier Lane.

* "Ken Burns Effect"

City Buildings

I have put together another web page of images – maybe some of them can be used for the drawing assignment we start after the Easter holiday?

To see the images, just click on the picture above, or click here!

Triffids

To put a simple idea into reality in After Effects is easier said than done! To concoct a short animation that lasts less than 2 minutes has taken me an inordinate number of hours. This short piece is about 2850 frames - the mere thought of making a 10-minute stop motion animation would to me be like redefining eternity.

Although learning the basics of the software was manageable, the execution proved painfully slow. Hopefully, given time, I‘ll learn more of the keyboard shortcuts and After Effects tricks so I can speed up the process. However, having had a glimpse into what can be achieved with the software, I’m eager to learn more.

Hockney

The project looked fairly easy when I first saw it – however, not quite so easy when I first started putting the images together. First attempt using my photos from Frankston looked rather clumsy and ill conceived, so there was just one remedy – off to the City for another round of images.

The composition above is more to my liking. Still not quite sure how it will finally look in print, however, as we appear to be having some monitor/printer profile issues.

Hunting and Gathering

I enjoy hopping on a train to the city for the sole purpose of gathering images. Although I usually have some kind of plan and purpose for the outing, I often get waylaid and end up with a stack of photographs unrelated to the project at hand. And so it was with my last trip to get images for the David Hockney Project – I just cannot resist glass facades, windows and reflections.

I have put together a few images on a web page - click on the picture or just click here to have a look. Enjoy!

Rain!

First winter rain--

even the monkey

seems to want a raincoat.

                          Matsuo Basha

It fascinates me to observe how people change when it rains. Facial expressions, posture and gait   transform to match or reflect the severity of the down-pour. Crossing the street becomes hurried and often complicated by a sea of umbrellas. The landscape changes!

I spent a couple of hours in Melbourne CBD during a recent storm - took shelter where I could and captured a few images. Heavy rain, poor light and people in a hurry - all became a colourful blur:

Catch Up!

Missing the past couple of weeks of classes has made it quite a challenge to catch up on the various projects. Still trying to come up with workable ideas for the “Fire” project. To make a video that can also form part of an installation - - - well, so far, simple, interesting and achievable solutions have eluded me! 

However, After Effects looks like it is going to be quite a bit of fun. As with all new software programs, learning the basics has its usual pit falls. I still think mastering the fundamentals is achievable, despite the annoyance that Adobe is inconsistent with their keyboard short cuts and menu layout throughout the CS4/CS5 suite. Not to be daunted and to gain some practise, I put together this 15 second AE sequence as a challenge – enjoy! 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AFeH8yQU9NE