sharing – Page 5 – Journeys of a Hybrid

August 25, 2010August 24, 2010

10 Things I’ve Learned Circling the Globe

I came across an interesting blog yesterday “20 Things I’ve Learned From Traveling Around the World for Three Years”, by Gary Arndt. It was pretty much on target with my observations from my very short journey of a little more than 3 months. But it got me thinking about what I have learned on these travels.

Erin and Gail, Peru — Erin and Gail and children of village along Amazon River, Peru

To travel is to experience and learn and also an opportunity to show other people from other cultures what an American (U.S. citizen) really is, beyond the news, the music and Hollywood movies.

1. People are good – Like Gary, I’d have to agree that for the most part most human beings are good. Sure there are schemers, con artists and thieves in just about every culture, but for the most part – people are good.
2. Government policies don’t always reflect who the people are – U.S. citizens are not all warmongers and not every Afghani is a terrorist.
3. The media exaggerates – Because we all get our news these days in abbreviated and sensationalized TV content – it’s distorted. I almost changed my plans to go to Thailand because of the coverage of the political unrest, which in actuality was contained to only certain sections of Bangkok.
4. There aren’t just “ugly Americans” there are “ugly tourists” – people around the world seem to equate badly behaving tourists as “ugly Americans”. I have found bad behavior is not solely exclusive to “Americans” or U.S. citizens – I have witnessed really bad manners from all types of tour groups – French, German, British, Japanese, Argentinean – you name it. I think it is more of a reflection of a “group” dynamic than a cultural one.
5. U.S. citizens are misunderstood – I find this is more common in countries that are more “westernized” than countries where you would think more of a discord would be present. For example – I found the people in Egypt friendly, curious and informed, unlike other “westernized” countries where the attitude was more of one of disdain. In other words, the more “westernized” a country was there seemed to be more of a preconceived yet narrow minded and naïve attitude about what an “American” was.
6. Cultural naiveté – Guess what folks – when you join those tour groups and they take you to the “untouched villages” along the Amazon River or to the hill tribe villages in the mountains of northern Thailand – they’re probably bringing you to government sanctioned tribal villages where the people have made it a business of “dressing up” for you. Some locals that I met referred to these places as “human zoos”. It’s kind of like expecting to see everyone in the U.S. wearing cowboy attire – I mean outside of Texas and Montana that doesn’t really exist anymore.
7. The Internet has changed the travel experience – you can pretty much get connected anywhere – anytime. My blackberry worked in some of the most remote places in the world. I could almost always get a cell signal – the irony was that I didn’t always have electricity to charge my battery. If you want to really get away – leave your laptop, iphones and blackberrys behind.
8. Go with the flow – don’t focus on what you miss from home whether that is a Starbucks coffee or a hamburger – discover the richness of the country you are in – the food – the music. As we become more and more connected with each other across the globe – we are beginning to lose our cultural differences.
9. I am a diplomat for my country – sure there are things that I don’t like about my country, the United States. But when I travel, I feel that this is my opportunity to interact with the people where I am visiting and to give them perhaps a more true picture of what an American is – beyond what the news and Hollywood portrays us as. That is if people give me a chance – if they haven’t closed their mind.
10. I am grateful that I can travel – and I think that everyone should travel – outside his or her country and culture. Don’t just visit the tourist sites but try to get out of the cities and interact with the people. The best thing about this journey is that our purpose was not to see the sights but to connect with the people. That made it meaningful and memorable.

August 4, 2010August 4, 2010

HDSLR in the Field – Recap of The First 70 Days of 99 Day Project Around the World (Tales of an Insomniac)

I woke up at 4 AM this morning after only a few hours of sleep – my body going through some major jet lag after over 22 hours of flying from Sydney, Australia to New York City via Los Angeles. Yesterday, my full day back, was spent taking care of essentials – like getting my gear to Canon for a full check up and cleaning,

and a visit to the Apple Genius Bar because my new laptop seems to have a living organism living behind the monitor which shrinks and grows depending on the climate I’m in, and of course taking care of my own personal needs.

As I lay awake in the pre-dawn hours, my mind was spinning with thoughts on what I had to get done before heading to South America on Saturday for the second leg of our documentary Opening Our Eyes. I have only 4 days to recuperate, rest up and gear up for the next leg. The bad part is, I’ve only got 4 days – the good part is, I have those 4 days, and can approach the second leg of this journey with the advantage of having a fresh experience in the field to draw from and make some changes in terms of gear I’m taking on the next leg. More importantly, because my turn around is short, I’m able to stay focused and remain in the mindset of the project.

So as I go over the gear that I brought on my first leg with lessons learned in my head and prepare for the next stint, I’ll share my thoughts with you:

• A good tripod is critical – if you don’t have a decent tripod for video, you can’t get fluid movement, so don’t even try. A locked down shot is better than a jerky shot in motion. I needed to travel light with all the flights that I faced, so I went for a carbon tripod with a fluid head that would fit in a suitcase to eliminate the need for another check on bag. So, for this next leg, I’m seriously thinking of taking my larger tripod because I don’t have as many flights where excess baggage charges could mount up.

• You can never have enough batteries when shooting with a DSLR workflow and by that I mean everything from the camera batteries (and buy lots of them if you can find them for the Canon 5D and 7D) to the expendables for the DT454 JuicedLink audio preamp, which takes 9 volts to the Samson H4N Zoom which takes AA’s. By the way, speaking of batteries, don’t make the mistake I made once by not powering the H4N Zoom off before changing the batteries. The manual mentions that by doing so, files can get corrupted. A couple of my audio files did get corrupted – the information was there, but it couldn’t be read.

• I’m leaving my over priced Nikon to Canon lens converter, along with my old Nikon glass at home – I never used them – never felt the need for what I was shooting.

• Can’t wait to edit my timelapse material that I shot using the Canon 7D camera and the Canon timer remote controller TC-80N3.

• I want to get more attachments for my GoPro Hero Cam because there are so many ways to use this camera – it’s amazing and I’m having a ball thinking of all the possibilities in how I can use it. The Hero cam will always be part of my gear kit.

• Always check what audio cords you’ll be needing. I embarrassed to say that I carried around my wireless kit but couldn’t use it with the Zoom because I needed a mini to male XLR cord and didn’t have it.

• Take 10-20% more memory storage than you think you will need when you’re shooting video. Video is a memory glut. I had been warned by some people that the Lacie Rugged hard drives that I were taking with me, didn’t have a very good track record – but as I write this, my content backups from my Lacie Rugged drives ( over 2000 gigabytes (doubled) ) are transferring to my desktop OWC terabyte drives and seem to be fine so the Lacies did their job. However, they are bulky and I’m going to be getting a couple of 500 gig drives that are more compact. Any suggestions for compact firewire external drives?

• Wish I bought the follow focus with my Zacuto rig. It’s expensive but would have been a real added bonus for visually highlighting one of the beauties of these cameras – the depth of field range that they have.

• Also wish I had a portable dolly like the Indislider but just couldn’t fit it in this trip. As it was, there were some items that I didn’t need to take and will be leaving behind this next leg.

• Wish I brought more mini tools – screwdrivers, allan wrenches etc.

• My Blackberry Tour Verizon phone blew me away. Even when I was in the northern hill tribe villages of Thailand, staying in a bamboo hut without electricity and plumbing – I was able to get my email on my phone! I’m impressed Verizon – I really am. Finding electricity to charge my phone was another matter.

• I could not have survived the 30 flights circling around the world i if I didn’t have my iPod. Thanks Apple.

Feel free to comment and share your thoughts of what has or hasn’t worked for you in the field and you can save me from making potential mistakes as I take on my next leg of this Journey August 7th. We are first headed to the Amazon area of Peru and then down to Buenos Aires, Argentina – again two diverse areas in terms of culture and climate.

July 30, 2010July 30, 2010

The Power of Possibility

In my laziness and urge to get outside and make the most of my last two days in Sydney, Australia, I am cross posting a post that was on my Opening Our Eyes blog – so forgive me if you follow me there.

Yesterday, I uploaded this photo on my Facebook status

Sydney-6039 copy — Sir Richard Branson, Damien, Captain Paul Moulds at Oasis in Sydney, Australia

. It got noticed as “celebrity” always does and one person remarked “hanging with the superstars”. I commented back saying that they were all “superstars”. Certainly, Captain Paul Moulds for the work that we devotes himself to with Oasis and reaching out to homeless youth in Australia and Sir Richard Branson for his generous support and making it possible.

But perhaps the biggest “superstar” is Damien, the young man in the middle who turned his life around from being on the streets with barely any hopes and dreams at all to having a job, a place to live and a bright future.

I was attending an event yesterday at Oasis where Branson was cutting the ribbon on the opening of a fitness center that his company Virgin had funded. But prior to the opening of the center, Branson and others listened to the stories of the “champions”, young people like Damien who against all odds, had redirected their lives to a better future. The stories were difficult to hear – stories about being abused – physically, sexually and emotionally. Stories about wanting to die and the attempts that they made on their lives because they felt unwanted and that they had no purpose.

I can’t even begin to really understand the horrors that these kids have faced in their young lives. I can’t even imagine how difficult it was for them to tell their stories, and yet they did so with grace, dignity and compassion for one another. They were there for each other and to show their gratitude to people like Paul Moulds and Richard Branson who make places like Oasis possible. One young man said – “without Oasis, I’d be dead”.

I will never forget that morning and it went far and beyond the thrill of meeting Sir Richard Branson and eating an egg sandwich that he had cooked on the grill. The most important thing I walked away from was being around a group of people with a like-minded purpose. A purpose of doing whatever they can to make a difference – a positive difference in the world. I could see, hear and feel the impact that Moulds and Branson had made in these young people’s lives. It was tangible and real – not just words on the pages of a foundation’s annual report.

As we wind up our time in Australia and head home for a few days break before heading down to South America, I am energized by something that Paul had mentioned during his interview. He was talking about an amazing documentary that was made about Oasis and the issues facing homeless youth in Australia. The documentary was two years in the making and gave an up close look into life on the street for these young people. Paul told me that after the documentary aired on Australian TV, the response and support that followed was astounding. It had made a real impact and prompted people into action – to help with donations or wanting to volunteer.

So I’m energized going forward that our little film will also create awareness and prompt others into action and what they can do to make a positive difference in the world. It’s a simple yet powerful thought and full of possibility – the power that’s within all of us to create change and make the world a better place for those that are less fortunate. The power of possibility – think about it.

July 5, 2010July 3, 2010

The Making of a Documentary

Technically, I began working on my latest documentary, “Opening Our Eyes” about 7 months ago when the idea came to me. I had just seen Robert Frank’s show “The Americans” at the Met in New York City with a friend of mine and I commented to him that I was really yearning to get back to my beginnings and take a visual road trip.

Even though I had spent a lifetime traveling and shooting assignments for editorial and corporate clients, I never lost sight of my passion to explore with my camera.

Moscow_IMG_2695 — Gail at Red Square, Moscow

In the beginning, my explorations were through the lens of my still camera but when I started shooting motion about ten years ago, my tool of choice became a video camera and with that came self assigned documentaries.

It had been two years since my last passion project “Freedom Riders” and I was itching to start another. My daughter had just graduated from college, I was an emptynester and pretty much free to do as I pleased. I had accumulated over 300,000 airline miles, thousands of hotel award points and another 300,000 plus American Express points. I didn’t know what I was saving them for but it seemed like a good time to use them. So, I made a decision to take a trip around the world. I felt like I still had the energy and stamina to take on such a journey but something was missing – I needed a purpose.

The Idea
I have always been interested in the “common man” as opposed to the celebrity and the simple story that resonates in a viral way. I’m intrigued by people who go up against all odds, to right a wrong or fight for a cause and never give up. I usually side with the underdogs and am inspired by the Cinderella stories. And so after that day at the Met, an idea was born and that was to shine a spotlight on 6 people on 6 different continents who were making a positive difference in the world because it was their calling to do so.

Of course coming up with an idea is the easy part and many times those great ideas seem to drift away with time as one gets caught up in daily work and life. But this idea wasn’t going away – I knew it was the right time for me to bring these stories to life. My goal was to create individual videos about each of these people that would combine together as a feature documentary. My hope was that the film would not only create awareness of my subjects’ efforts, but also motivate others to create change.

The Pre-Production and Facilitation
Next came the hard part – making it a reality and the first step was figuring out how I would fund it. After working on 2 other self-assigned passion projects, I knew one thing and that is that it’s really hard to sell an idea. When I was in the planning stages of The Delta Bluesmen, I spent a lot of time applying for grant money and seeking funds from a variety of sources to no avail. I finally got frustrated and decided to self fund the project even though it meant taking it a bit slower and doing more of the work myself. My critics thought I was crazy to tackle a short film by myself and self fund it but I stuck to it and created a piece I’m proud of and which has brought many rewards to my life. So with that experience behind me, I took another leap of faith on my latest project and started the planning process. But perhaps most importantly, I focused on the fact that the positive aspects of working on a self-funded project is that it would be the way I wanted it to be – not compromised for the wrong reasons.

My first order of business was to send out a query to everyone I knew as well as use social media to find my subjects. My first subject was a given – a local young woman my daughter went to high school with, Maggie Doyne,

KopilaValley-6697 copy — Maggie and some of her children

who opted not to trek off to college after high school. Instead she wound up in Nepal and built a home for orphaned children. She’s 23 years old now, has 30 children in her home and is in the process of building a school. Then my daughter Erin, expressed interest in working on this project with me. She knew she’s need to leave quit her job, sublet her apartment and say goodbye to her boyfriend for 3 months – but she wanted to be part of it. And so we became a duo and with that the project really took off with her support and help.

Since the project was self-funded, I had to be extremely creative with the budget – or lack thereof. So after nailing down our subjects across the globe, we started to plan the logistics –airline tickets, hotel rooms, visas, vaccinations and of course equipment needs. From January to May, I spent countless hours booking reward tickets with 14 airlines for 29 flights – a round the world itinerary with extra local hops thrown in. I’ve arranged for 99 nights of accommodations, staying with friends, friend of friends, using reward points, paying for budget hotels and bartering for other rooms. I had to bite the bullet and pay large sums for our vaccinations and visas and budget for our meals. Most importantly, I needed to purchase new gear because my intent was to shoot this project with the HDSLR cameras. I knew I wanted to shoot stills and video and also knew that I had to travel lean and mean so this seemed like the best solution. You can read more about the gear here.

The Execution
We are about one third through the shoot and have worked on 3 continents. The scheduling has turned out to be brilliant – we work hard and exhaust ourselves for chunks of time – anywhere from a week to ten days and then have a few days to recoup, catch up on sleep, write in our blogs, or just sightsee and take some still snapshots along the way. We’ve had a couple mother/daughter disagreements but for the most part we are having the time of our life and seeing the world. At this point we sometimes forget which currency we are using or what the exchange rate is or what our room number is but in the process of creating a film, we have built a lifetime of memories.

We have also created an audience who tune into our project blog religiously and follow our journey as we go along. But something remarkable is happening and that is evident in the comments we are getting. We are opening people’s eyes though our travels and our writings. We have connected our audience with our subjects and their endeavors and are building a global community. It has been truly inspirational meeting and working with our subjects and there are days that my heart is full to bursting and confirms my belief in this project.

Post-Production
When we return in September, my first priority will be to edit the videos that I promised in barter arrangements. And hopefully at the end of the month, I will begin the edit. It will most likely take me a month just to log and transcode the footage and sync the audio in the situations where it was captured independently. I’m confident in my editing abilities but I would love to work with a pro. So if there is a pro out there reading this who would love to get involved in a fabulous documentary – I’d love to hear from you.

Distribution
Not really thinking about this part right now other than to use social media and perhaps itunes and Amazon to distribute it. But I have faith in this project and something tells me that this will take on a life of its own. It’s a feel good story and we’ve already gotten a lot of support and interest.

At any rate it’s the trip of a lifetime and I’m taking it with my daughter so I’ve already been blessed.

June 22, 2010June 22, 2010

Staying Connected

I’m sitting on the rooftop of my small hotel in Istanbul on a glorious morning. In front of me is the Blue Mosque,

behind me Hagia Sophia

and to the left the Bosphorus Strait. I’m feeling blessed that I can experience these sights in my lifetime and even more fortunate that I can see them with my daughter Erin.

We are about 1/3 through our journey of circling the globe creating a documentary on people who are making a positive change in the world – Opening Our Eyes. Just like at home, I relish the quiet peace of the early mornings when I take time to reflect on what’s ahead in my day or write down the random thoughts that pulse through my mind. The mornings are my time and even in the hustle and bustle of moving from one destination to the next, I try to take this time for myself.

As I look across other rooftop gardens and watch as people start their day, I’m thinking about my first travels and how so different it was back in the early 1970’s to stay in touch with people back home. There was no Internet, nor cell phones and making a call required investing some time in a telephone exchange office until they placed your overseas call and directed you to a booth. Because it was so costly, you crossed your fingers that someone would be home or that you wouldn’t get a busy signal – no answering machines back then. And if you were so fortunate to connect , you made every word and minute count and talked rapidly. Every once in awhile I would get a letter from home that was either sent to the local American Express office or to General Post. It still amazes me that I got anything in the mail back then and somewhere in my boxes of memorabilia are those precious letters waiting to be discovered some rainy day.

Nowadays it seems that one is always connected. Even when I’ve been in somewhat remote spots without Wifi or wired connection, my global phone has worked and I’ve gotten emails. It’s great to be able to stay connected and with that comes a sense of security. But it’s also easy to be too connected and miss some of the nuances of the culture you are in. Like everything there is a fine balance.

Many people asked me how I was going to be able to keep in touch with clients when I was gone and wasn’t I worried that being away for a 3-month period would be detrimental to my business. I’m very fortunate that I have a partner and husband Tom who is holding down the fort while I’m gone – paying the bills, servicing our clients, marketing and everything else that goes into keeping a business alive in a struggling economy. I’m also taking full advantage of the time we live in and the ease of staying connected through emails and blogs. Not only am I able to stay in touch with clients, I am keeping them abreast of my project and building a larger audience and presence in the process.

It’s an amazing time we live in and having grown up when I did, I take none of this for granted. I’m going to sign off for now and take myself offline to connect with the place I’m in – the people, the culture, the landmarks – the sights, the smells and the sounds. Thanks for listening and more importantly for all your thoughts, comments, Facebook posts and emails and keeping me connected

May 24, 2010

Heading Off Around the World

Gail Mooney and daughter Erin Kelly, Giza, Egypt — Gail and Erin in Egypt in 2006

It’s very early in the morning, my favorite time of day – no distractions and a whole new day ahead of me. But today’s a bit different, it’s the day before I leave on a 3-month journey around the world to take on probably the biggest personal project of my life and I have a million details running through my heads.

Just the other day I wrote about the “what if mentality” and how we sometimes fall victim of sabotaging ourselves by talking ourselves out of doing things. And today I have a whole host of “what if’s” running through my head. What if we can’t get into Bangkok or get out? There’s a State Department warning advising Americans not to travel to Thailand and we’ll be traveling with a doctor going into the northern hills – not an easy place to get in and out of in peaceful times. What if one of us gets sick? What if something gets stolen? What if one of our 27 flights get canceled or delayed? What if I don’t get the material I’m after for the documentary?

Certainly, lots of trepidations but I’m a pretty savvy traveler and I’m about as prepared as anyone can be. I try to remind myself of that and focus on the incredible journey ahead of us. I’ll be sharing this experience with my 23-year-old daughter and that in itself will be something we’ll never forget and create a special bond between us for the rest of our lives. We’ll not only be circling the globe together, we’ll be working together to create a documentary on people who are making a positive change in the world. Those connections will be life changing, and in fact one of our hopes is that our film will inspire others to do the same.

So one more day of details and then we’re off – first stop Entebbe, Uganda by way of Johannesburg, South Africa. Our last stop is Buenos Aires, Argentina via the jungles of Peru. Lots in between – lots of laughs, tears, lands and miles. I will be writing as often as I can and uploading when “connected”. And if I disappear at times – you’ll know why. You can follow our journey at Opening Our Eyes.

April 25, 2010April 25, 2010

One Year and 130 Posts Later

A week or so ago, I overlooked a minor milestone. One year ago, I started Journeys of a Hybrid. I have written 131 one posts to date. That’s almost 3 a week. I told myself when I started this blog that I would embrace the idea of writing and sharing and would make it a regular habit.

Quite honestly it’s been very therapeutic for me – a way of organizing my thoughts if you will. While I’m also surprised as to which posts are widely received and which seem to barely get noticed, I’ve always written about what happens to be on my mind, rather than second guessing what I think people want to read.

I thought today – I would list my particular favorites:

Finding Your Passion

Breaking the Spirit

Convergence-Defining Yourself by Your Vision – Not Your Tool

You’re Only 25 and You’re Already Making Compromises

Standing on a 10 Foot Frozen Wave

Thanks to all of you who continue to read my random thoughts and collections of information.

April 9, 2010

Should I Be Thinking of Video – Or Not?

I give a seminar to still photographers for ASMP entitled “Should I Be Thinking of Video?” It’s a broad overview of the different facets of video production along with how I have positioned myself in this medium and where I think some of the opportunities are. I’m quick to point out what it’s not – it’s not going to tell you everything you need to know to make video part of your business and it’s not about how to use your DSLR. And if anyone promises that they can teach you that in two hours – they’re lying. But most importantly, I can’t possibly answer the question “should I be shooting video” for each individual in the room. And that’s because there is no ONE answer to that question – that’s up to the individuals to decide for themselves.

I think perhaps I should point out some reasons why one shouldn’t be thinking of video:

• Fear – Because you are consumed with fear of your future. It’s understandable to be afraid when the world as you know it, is changing. But if you are so focused on the thought that you have to do something because technology has changed your business to the extent that it just isn’t there anymore, instead of focusing on how you can use technology to grow your business – then you’ll paralyze your mind to new possibilities.
• The Camera – If you are getting into video because your still camera is capable of shooting video and you’re not concentrating on thinking and seeing in motion, then you’ll end up with isolated video clips that have no relation to one another and you’ll have a rude awakening in the editing room when you realize you have no clue on how you’re going to put together a cohesive story.
• Because everyone else is – With all this talk of video of late, everyone feels they need to jump on board. The truth is video may not be the answer for some photographers. And it may not be the best medium for the markets you work in.

You should be thinking of video if:
• You think that motion and sound is the best way to visually communicate your clients’ story or message.
• You recognize the power of collaboration in this medium
• You understand that there’s a learning curve and there’s no magic bullet.

I cannot tell you if video is the answer for you – that’s up to you to make that decision for yourself. I can only tell you what’s involved and guide you through the process.

When my daughter was growing up, I was always careful not to make all her decisions for her. It was a hard thing to do because many times she wanted me to and I wanted to but I didn’t. I knew if I made all her decisions for her that I wouldn’t be doing her any favors in the long run – because sooner or later she’d be out on her own without me there telling her what she should or shouldn’t do. I think it was one of the hardest things I had to do as a parent.

It’s been challenge this year scheduling time for my production business, along with traveling around giving these seminars. As much as I enjoy sharing information with others through these seminars, I know that I need to be doing what I love most and that is being a visual communicator. So, I’m taking to the road on May 25th – around the world actually, working on a personal project Opening Our Eyes. I need to get back to some real quality time of creating. And the best part – my daughter decided that she wants to join me and be part of this – and she made this decision all on her own.

April 5, 2010April 5, 2010

The “Dancing Inca” and Video

When I was a young woman, newly married, my mother decided to have a psychic come to her house one evening and hold individual sessions with all of her family members. My mother was searching for something at the time, which I didn’t know then but I do know now – but that’s a story for another time.

There were two things that I remember from that “psychic reading”. One was that he told me that in a past life I had been an Inca and that I had fallen off a cliff and had broken my hip. The second thing he told me was that I was going to be shooting video.

As for the Inca past life comment – I recently had to consult a chiropractor after a night of dancing at a fundraiser had left my right hip inflamed, sending shooting pains down my sciatic nerve. When the chiropractor asked me what I did to cause this, I told him about the dancing, but not the Inca part – that was probably best left unsaid.

As far as the video prediction, he had a crystal ball into my future, but at the time I thought – video? Are you kidding? I equated video with soap operas and really bad late night commercials. I was a young still photographer just getting a name in the magazine world and starting to make some money in the corporate sector. I couldn’t have been less interested in video at that time.

Fast forward to now. I’ve been shooting video with traditional video tools for over ten years. I give seminars to still photographers who may be thinking of getting into video and I have just made a big investment in both money and mental power and have embraced the HD DSLR tools for an upcoming project I am working on Opening Our Eyes.

I’m not the only still photographer thinking of video these days – it seems like everybody is. As print platforms give way to electronic ones like the iPad that debuted this past weekend, the way we communicate is rapidly changing and along with that there is a huge demand for video. On the April 12th cover of Time Magazine is a portrait of Steve Jobs and inside a review of the iPad entitled “Do We Need the iPad?” The writer Lev Grossman wraps up the article nicely:

“If I have a beef with the iPad, it’s that while it’s a lovely device for consuming content, it doesn’t do much to facilitate its creation. The computer is the greatest all-purpose creativity tool since the pen. It put a music studio, a movie studio, a darkroom and a publishing house on everybody’s desk. The iPad shifts the emphasis from creating content to merely absorbing and manipulating it. It mutes you, turns you back into a passive consumer of other people’s masterpieces. In that sense, it’s a step backward. Not much of a fairy-tale ending. Except for the people who are selling content. Read more: http://www.time.com/time/business/article/0,8599,1976932-2,00.html#ixzz0k3oIUDqY

In Time’s editor’s column “Ushering In a New Era”, Managing Editor Richard Stengel talks about making the magazine available on electronic devices like the iPad and Time will soon be delivering it’s entire contents to paying customers as a self contained application that can be downloaded to the iPad. Sports Illustrated is ready to go electronic as well.

If this doesn’t send a signal to still photographers the need to diversify and embrace video – what will? With print moving to electronic delivery – the demand for video will increase. I sit on the National Board of ASMP and we recognize this changing paradigm. In fact that is exactly how I came to be involved with the Board of ASMP. I was asked to run for the Board because of my video experience. It’s been a year since I’ve been on the board and in that time I have set up a motion/video committee with the intention of gathering and sharing information about video production. So far, through the efforts of the committee an online resource for video was developed and has been uploaded to the ASMP website.

I continue to learn as technology drives us forward and I continue to network and collaborate with people. One person that I’ve learned a lot from is Richard Harrington of Rhed Pixel. Richard is one of those guys that never seem to sleep. He runs a successful business, teaches, writes and shares a lot of information on various forums like Creative Cow and on his own blog. I’ve also worked with Richard’s team of motion graphics animators on an industrial that I produced last year. I continue to learn from Richard who has just written a book called “From Still to Motion” that I can’t wait to get my hands on. It’s all about working with the hybrid DSLR cameras.

Looks like that psychic was right – at least about the video. Not sure about the past life Inca thing but it makes you wonder doesn’t it? Was it destiny? Or was it just that I was a restless soul at the time wanting to learn more about how I could tell a story and with what tools. Not really sure – I’m just glad that I followed those instincts.

April 1, 2010

Serendipity

I have been completely buried with details, the last few weeks – everything from applying for visas, to booking flights within particular destinations to securing lodging for 98 nights – and doing it all on a shoestring budget. It’s been challenging, frustrating and necessary in order to get Opening Our Eyes off the ground.

I recently stumbled upon some interesting connections and communities while doing research for our travel needs. My daughter Erin had sent me a couple of links to insightful articles on Matador Network. I started exploring this network and website and was really impressed not only with the information that I found here but also by the “community” that had been built. Yesterday I had a great phone conversation with Matador’s CEO, Ross Borden and we discussed some very interesting ideas about how we could collaborate and share – so stay tuned and if you love travel and life – become a member of the Matador Network.

When I started my backpacking adventures over 35 years ago, I didn’t have an online community like the Matador Network – didn’t even have the Internet as we know it, or cell phones, Fedex or any other quick way to facilitate communication – I was pretty much cut off and out there – alone. Yet, I did have a “community” – meeting and talking with other travelers along the way – sharing tips and info, along with cautionary advice. There was definitely a community and it was in real time, face to face but unpredictable.

I started thinking about then and now when it comes to traveling and there is one thing that resonates with me as much today as it did then and that is making sure that I allow serendipity to happen when I travel. Serendipity – the things that happen that aren’t planned – the things that can only happen when you open yourself up to the unknown – when you are willing to take a chance – see what’s out there – follow your instincts and see where they take you.

So my daughter and I have built in “time” for our trip – time to linger and really absorb where we are – to get outside of ourselves and our own little “unit” and become part of where we are. My experience and wisdom from traveling all these years have taught me to plan ahead – but my instincts tell me to leave a little up to chance – and more importantly to be open to possibilities and opportunities. It’s the things that you never would have thought to plan – that are sometimes the most rewarding of all. But you have to open your eyes, take notice and cross into the unknown. That’s hard to do when you are traveling with other people because it’s easy to stay within the comfort of your own “tribe”. That’s one reason why I’ve traveled solo most of my life. But this time around my daughter and I will venture into the unknown, with a lot of trust, gut instincts, thrills and trepidations and see where it takes us – but also knowing that we have each other’s back. And that’s the best of both worlds.