Tilt-shift Bokeh

I thought I would find out a little more about this bokeh photography, I just love the effects. I started doing a little research over Christmas and found that there photoshop actually has filters designed for this purpose. Of course the effect is a lot more than just applying a 'tilt-shift' filter and my research indicated that there are actual Tilt-Shift lenses so I went looking.

I quite like the offhanded way that digitalrev.com deliver reviews so I started there and found out a little more about the lens and I do like the way perspective can be corrected in camera. The research did however highlight a flaw or two with Sony, my preferred camera supplier. Sony are leaders in digital technology and that includes camera's however they lag behind in lens development and their customer service skills leave a lot to be desired, sadly.

Anyway this blog is not a review or a comparison but rather an expression of my interest into 'Bokeh'. I watched a number of tutorials and I have got to say that Gavin Hoey is one of the best tutors that I have come across for quick short, to the point tutorials and tips.

I thoroughly enjoyed myself playing with some of the photo's from my world trip and I have used a couple of great shots of Edinburgh, Scotland from the walls of Edinburgh Castle for this miniaturisation or model effect called 'bokeh'.

(As with all the photographs on my fan page the resolution has been reduced and a watermark added if the photograph is for sale in my page shop)

2013 Resolutions

My first blog of the year, pretty slack hey! I have just posted the following to my Sanford Blog and thought it worthy of posting here;

As usual I have made my new year resolutions for 2013. I listen to some of my friends say that they won't even attempt to set resolutions as they invariably fail. I used to be the same but I have found that there are a number of things that I can do to actually succeed in fulfilling these resolutions.

The first thing to remember when setting yourself up to achieve new goals is to keep them realistic. Unreal expectations are doomed to failure and you will be setting yourself up for a depressive and counter productive outcome. This will impact negatively on your self esteem and future growth.

Second is to break down the goal into smaller, more manageable portions. A set of relatively easy goals will almost guarantee success and this will lift your spirits, self esteem and grow confidence.

Thirdly, set a timetable for your primary goals by all means but more importantly set timelines for your smaller portions and stick to them. Don't be wishy washy with theses timelines like 3rd week of x month, be very specific - for example 1:30 pm June 12 is the launch date and time for my new product.... etc.

The holiday break was of course fantastic especially since my Bonnie Ronnie's Foster Sister Penelope and her daughter Desirie came out from the UK to spend time with Penelope's niece and her family. We found Penny online only a few months ago and the holiday had already been planed so it was extremely fortuitous and the timing was perfect. It turns out that Penny's niece and family are only 10 minutes from where we live. We had not seen Penny since 1979 and lost touch when she moved to South Africa. We didn't even know of the daughter Des and niece Yvonne.... small world hey!

Penny and Des spent a few days with us and we took them up to Melany and Montville just inland from the Sunshine Coast. I had been hanging out to visit these towns since the beginning of the holidays as they are well known Artist Retreats. There are a multitude of boutique shops to cater to every taste and the artwork is simply fantastic. Unfortunately most of the galleries don't allow photographs so I can't show you any of the work  but for me it is, inspiration heaven!

I've included a few snap shots of the town's and some boutique's and gallery's here.

 

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Gun Control Reform

I have very strong views in favour of gun control,  so some people have labeled me a bleeding heart liberal. Those people have not walked in my shoes but believe that they know what makes me tick so I'm here to put forward my argument and set the record straight.

Firstly my argument. A gun of any description has been designed and developed with one objective in mind, 'to kill efficiently from a distance'. It has no ulterior use... even though it may have been beautifully and lovingly crafted by a talented engineer, it's purpose is to end life, stop life, remove life, take life.... it is an instrument of death and it is the preferred tool of the killer as it lends to stealth, distance and anonymity.

Every single criminal and or killer was a law abiding citizen up to the point that they broke the law and became a criminal and very often.... nay, too often that very first crime is the taking of a life therefore the argument that every law abiding citizen has the right to own a gun and has the right to use that gun to defend his home (an inanimate object), is moot.

Secondly to set the record straight. I know the power and safety one feels with a firearm that one knows intimately enough to dissasemble, clean and reassemble blindfolded. The firearm becomes an extension of oneself. I also know how it feels to be shot, to have ones life hanging in the balance because some madman wants to do nothing but end your life so badly that his whole being is focused on doing just that. 

I also know the feeling and the consequence of being for a brief moment that madman bent on the killing of another person, the rush of adrenalin and subsidence, the hollow feeling in the pit of one's stomach when gazing upon the lifeless face of the victim after a successful kill, with hands shaking so badly that they can barely hold the cigarette so desperately needed for it's calming.

I also know what it is to console a parent when their small child's life has been ended by a bullet fired from a gun assembled by the small child's slightly older cousin. One child dead the other lost to mental health issues and two families totally torn apart fifteen lives changed irrevocably forever - It would take a very callous soul to say, 'It's not the gun or the bullet that kills but the person!'

I have worked in Security (armed forces included for over 40 years) and over the last 30 have only drawn my firearm once, when an unseen worker started a jackhammer on top of the vault in a bank whilst I was investigating an alarm activation in the bank. 

I conducted an Australia wide survey for a large international security company in 2000 to find out statistically what was the effectiveness of firearms in the security industry (there was a move to disarm security guards as part of the gun law reform) I can hear the cries now that statistics can be manipulated to say whatever one wants but really that is the cry of the less educated and ill informed. 98% of reported incidents involving firearms within the security industry were of a negative nature and detrimental to the reputation of the industry. Ranging from the killing of innocent bystanders by security officers defending cash and bullion during an armed robbery to a disgruntled security officer fatally wounding a superior. 

I owned my own security company for over 12 years and refused to allow my staff to carry firearms unless required by our insurer which meant that I provided a safe working environment and we never had a single negative incident involving a firearm. I never once took my firearm home and would not allow my children to play with toy guns because to this day I have yet to see something good come from the use of a gun.

The bottom line is; controlling access to guns will reduce the number of fatalities caused by those same guns, this is not an emotive statement but pure mathematics.

Till next time God Bless.

Blog Update's

Now that the school holidays have begun here in Australia, although I still have one assignment due for this semester, the time has come to start preparing phase two of our new direction. I've started getting into the social media quite a bit of late as I experiment with marketing avenues. Using Google Analytics and so forth to measure interest in various posts, web design etc.

I can only imagine how much this is annoying some of my friends who will see my posts pop up in multiple locations simultaneously as I test the various social media links. I must say though that I am having a ball playing with this stuff, a nice distraction to all the software study.

I have spent a few hours updating my "Blogger" page and whilst this will no doubt have a negative impact on the search engines initially it will actually be an improvement for the future. I still have to spend more time tidying up those web pages and I will do so over the next month or so.

Time to move on to the advertising phase of our new enterprise. We have decided on a name "Lombard Design" and have developed our logo, keeping both name and logo simple.

We (Bonnie Ronnie and I) have decided on a theme and visual representation for our tag line which is "Captured moments in time" depicted below.

Now we need to get ourselves into print, yellow pages online I believe will be the most cost effective start. Once we start building a client base we will have the added advantage of advertising via our work which of course will be predominantly commercial.

The other thing I have to do is get a web page for this entity up and running by the end of the first week in January. I might have to keep it simple and ditch my idea of learning Joomla and Rockettheam for that site. Just a bit too much to cram into the little grey matter left between these old ears methinks:)

Till next time - God Bless.

Suicide

Yes the heading of this blog is a bit full on but I think it needs to be since the media is a little too full on with the word 'prank'. One can't help but notice that there is a lot of anger and animosity directed at the two radio announcers, who in their attempt at a little frivolity may have unwittingly played a part in events which led to a UK health worker taking her own life.

I've heard a number of people including some close friends suggest that these two radio announcers have blood on their hands, I would say what nonsense ....but rather I will say think for a moment, if this is true then we would all have blood on our hands wouldn't we? Society laugh at pranks and jokes and if ever you have laughed at one, does this not mean that you too have blood on your hands? What has happened is tragic but was brought about by a mental health issue.

A lot of people suffer mental health issues (suicidal tendencies and self harm fall under this category, neatly pigeon holed for society) and are able to keep those closest to them in the dark so to speak. This one event, the "Royal Prank" is hardly likely to be the only event in the life of this troubled health worker and is certainly not the cause of this tragedy. No doubt a cumulation of events over a period of time have played a significant part and this 'Royal Prank' may have been one of those events.

I believe that these two radio announcers are victims in this tragedy, not to the same extent as the family of the health worker but these events will now play a part in their mental health. What a vicious circle!

We speak out against bullying at school because of the negative impact on mental health and subsequent suicide rate but is this not bullying in the adult world and will it not also contribute to mental issues which may result in further suicides?

Think about it!

Till next time - God Bless.

Motivation

I'm not sure why I've even opened this blog page as I have no idea what I'm going to write about but thought I should write something.

I think that I just need a bit of a break from these courses - I've completed ten short certified courses with Lynda.com, am currently on my ninth assignment with Grenadi, second with Treehouse and have watched a number of photography tutorials (and practiced most) over the last three months but have not touched my Murdoch course as I await a reply to my deferral request. In the meantime I'm becoming quite comfortable with the Mac and switching between it and Windows 7 on my laptop.

On the negative side I have fallen off my training schedule and regime again. For some reason I just can't seem to get myself into a proper schedule and routine. I feel so disorganised and disjointed perhaps I need a bit of military dicipline to get myself back on track and this feeling is that much stronger at the moment because of some inspiration from a clip I watched this morning.  Whilst catching up with my friends and family on Facebook today I came across this clip and almost flicked by but I didn't and you have to see this - Words cannot express how amazing this video is. For anyone doubti - amazing is an understatement.

I've just watched it again while testing the link I added and am still in awe. I am now motivated to set myself a new goal and I am going to make sure that it is at least a worthy goal. I think that my motivation issue is because I have achieved the original goals that I set myself, I can walk all day even with a pack on the back (providing I rest frequently) and I can jog a hundred metres although my right leg certainly gives me curry. So starting today I'll develop a strict training regime for my legs, while I can't unblock the main arteries, I can certainly force more blood flow through the smaller veins and capillaries increasing their capacity.

Oh yeah - pumped now! 

Till next time God Bless.

Awakening

I was thinking about the huge changes that have taken place in my life over the last couple of years when I came upon the following post on Facebook by Alan Garrity, which describes to a tee the transformation that has taken place in my life. As Alan says, "I hope it helps someone through their bad times."

There comes a time in your life when you finally get it... when in the midst of all your fears and insanity you stop dead in your tracks and somewhere the voice inside your head cries out "ENOUGH!
Enough of the wishing, fighting and crying, or, the struggling just to hold on.
This is your awakening.

You realize that it is time to stop hoping and waiting for something or someone to change, or for happiness safety and security to come galloping over the next horizon. You come to terms with the fact that there aren't always fairytale endings (or beginnings for that matter) or any guarantees of "happily ever after.”

So you begin making your way through the "reality of today" rather than holding out for the "promise of tomorrow."

You accept the fact that you are not perfect, and that not everyone will love appreciate or approve of who or what you are ... and that's OK ... they are entitled to their own views and opinions.

You stop trying to compete with the image inside your head or agonizing over how you compare. And, you take a long look at yourself in the mirror and you make a promise to give yourself the same unconditional love and support you give so freely to others. Then a sense of confidence is born of self-approval.

And, you stop maneuvering through life merely as a "consumer” hungry for your next fix, or looks of approval and admiration from family, friends or even strangers who pass by.
And you begin to love and to care for yourself. You stop engaging in self-destructive behaviors, including participating in dysfunctional relationships.
You begin eating a balanced diet, drinking more water and exercising. And because you've learned that fatigue drains the spirit and creates doubt and fear, you give yourself permission to rest.

Then you learn about love and relationships - how to love, how much to give in love, when to stop giving, and when to walk away.
You learn that people don't always say what they mean, or mean what they say, intentionally or unintentionally, and that not everyone will always come through...
You learn how to say "I was wrong" and to forgive people for their own human frailties. You learn to build bridges instead of walls and about the healing power of love as it is expressed through a kind word, a warm smile or a friendly gesture.
And, at the same time, you eliminate any relationships that are hurtful or fail to uplift and edify you. You stop working so hard at smoothing things over and setting your own needs aside. You learn that feelings of entitlement are perfectly OK and that it is your right to want or expect certain things.
You learn that you don't know all the answers, and it's not your job to save
the world, and that sometimes you just need to.... Let Go.

Moreover, you learn to look at people as they really are and not as you would want them to be, and you are careful not to project your neediness or insecurities onto a relationship.
You learn that just as people grow and change, so it is with love and relationships, and that that not everyone can always love the way you would want them to. So you stop appraising your worth by the measure of love you are given.
You stop trying to control people, situations and outcomes. You learn that "alone" does not mean "lonely" and you begin to discover the joy of spending
time "with yourself" and "on yourself."

You learn that life isn't always fair and you don't always get what you think you deserve, and you stop personalizing every loss or disappointment.

And you stop looking for guarantees, because you've learned that the only thing you can really count on is the unexpected... and that whatever happens, you'll learn to deal with it...
Most of all… Be kind and gentle to yourself.

Till next time, God Bless!