Blog : May 2007

Mating Call

Chicagoland is currently experiencing a cicada season. As a result, the little buggers are everywhere and on just about everything, but mostly trees and fences. The sound they emit is outstandingly loud and I took a walk today with a mic, boom and minidisc recorder in hand to grab some samples.

I managed to find a couple of trees near my house that seemed to have a rather large concentration of bugs and took the following sample:

Click here to stream an mp3 of the cicada racket

What surprised me most when editing the audio was the pattern that appears in the waveform. While it may seem like the sound ebbs and flows when you're standing in the street with a microphone and headphones on, it's quite apparent in the waveform:

The waveform above is the exact representation of the mp3 file linked above.

It was also interesting to see the effect the runner had on the cycle of noise. Notice how the 2nd rise in sound after the runner's passing kind of tapers off. The arrow above indicates where the runner is first audible in the recording. It took him a few seconds to pass me by. Oddly enough, cars didn't seem to have an effect. The last part of the audio fades a bit because I was pulling the microphone down from the tree to get out of the way of another passing car.

And you thought you were reading my site just to see photos of scantily clad women.

Be sure to check out the Cicada Photoset I posted as well.

No Pain No Gain? Whatever.

I need to figure out a method by which I can avoid getting a headache after each time that I exercise. I've tried increasing my fluids as well as other sustenance, including sugar, thinking that perhaps my body is deprived of something essential. I'd like to find some solution that does not involve medication or sleep.

Maybe my body is just deprived of sitting on the couch.

Ticking Time Bomb

When I booted my machine this week after a few days off I ran into another potential hard drive problem. One of the drives emitted an audible clicking sound, usually a sign of drive death.

After rebooting a few times to no avail, I unplugged all of my drives and added on at a time. Wouldn't you know it...they all work fine at the moment. Now it's just a matter of time until I'm right in the middle of a project and another drive dies.

At least it motivated me to back everything up all day long yesterday. Takes a while to move that much data.

An Open Letter

Dear People Who Can't Spell:

Definitely is spelled definitely, not definately.

Tomorrow is spelled tomorrow, not tomarrow.

I'm sure there are more, but we'll start with these.

Sincerely,

bcj.

The Bugs Are Coming

Every 17 years in the Chicago area there is a swarm of cicadas. This is that year.

I've seen a dozen or so around the yard, streets and sidewalk, but if the real awakening isn't supposed to happen until June, I can only imagine this is a very small hint of what is to come.

I have my magnifying glass and camera ready. No, of course I won't be taking pictures through the magnifying glass. I'll be using the magnifying glass to fry the little suckers!

Laptop Error

Any ideas?

You Helped, I Listened

Thanks to everyone for their feedback on my Help Me Decide Photoblog post. A nice variety of opinions and reasons. I wanted to give everyone a few days to chime in before posting my preferences and ultimate selection.

The full color shot is my personal preference. I do like the blue of the rollers on the black & white shot (#3), but it's just not enough for the shot because it doesn't look balanced to me. There would need to be more blue or some kind of color in the bottom half of the photo to anchor it.

And as Keith pointed out, the all black & white shot is just not strong enough on its own. Would need to be further edited (burned, dodged, etc.) to work well...something I'll likely experiment with.

Thanks again, and feel free to chime in on any of my photos anytime! I'm always up for hearing about how people see things differently than I do.

Google Adless

I started signing up to add Google Adwords to my site today. However, I forgot how Google is about "mature" content and my site doesn't meet their terms of service. Alas.

Speaking of Google and mature content, did you know that the default Google Search preferences are set to "SafeSearch"? That's right, by default you don't get to see all applicable results for your search.

To add all the nitty gritty "mature" stuff back into your search results, just click on "Advanced Search" and modify your SafeSearch preferences. Unfortunately, this only sticks as long as your cookies are active and you're using the same browser. Otherwise, you have to step back in and make the change each time you run a new search.

Hire Me

As of the Spring of 2007 I am conducting business as a professional photographer. Please pass the word along to those you know who need some quality and artistic photos!

bcj. Photography

Drawing...It's Not Just an Entry Anymore

Remember how I started work on a drawing a couple of weeks ago? I finished it. And I also created a new section on this site where I will display this and other drawings. It is appropriately titled Drawing in the site navigation. Take a look!

Censorship in These United States

I received the following message from YouTube last week:

DEAR MEMBER:

- The YouTube Team

How is a burlesque striptease to pasties and not-even-a-g-string but underwear considered inappropriate when these videos are readily available on YouTube today?

I don't want a pickle...

...I just wanna ride my motor-sickle.

I've been talking on and off over the past couple of years about getting a motorcycle learner's permit and finally learning how to ride a motorcycle. Actually, it's not so much about riding as it is about driving. I know how to ride a bike, and I've ridden single-gear or autoshift mopeds in the past, but I've never had to clutch with my hand and shift with my feet all while managing throttle and brakes with my hands.

The class isn't until later this summer, and unfortunately it's about an hour away from home since registration at all of the local spots filled up months ago. Meanwhile, I have some shopping to do:

• Helmet: minimum 3/4 coverage, DOT approved. A helmet will be provided if you do not have one.
• Boots: tall enough to cover your ankles, with normal (1"-2") heels. High-top leather gym shoes are acceptable.
• Long pants: heavy material with straight legs.
• Gloves: must be full fingered. Leather is preferred; open backs are discouraged.
• Long-sleeved protective clothing: shirt or jacket.
• Eye protection: face shield, glasses, or goggles.
  

The only place I can think of at the moment is one of the 8,000 Harley Davidson stores I see around, but I'll have to see if I can find a more entry-level rider store in the area where I can pick up a shiney new helmet. Either that or I'll get a gently used helmet until I buy my smokin' new ride and a shiney new helmet to match.

Flight lessons are also on the list of things to do before I die, but I think those will have to wait another year or two.

10 Ways To Remain a Starving Artist

1. Don't set goals.
2. Never ever think about money.
3. Keep your artwork to yourself—don't show it, don't talk about it.
4. Don't tell anybody you're an artist.
5. Spend all of your time in your studio. Don't bother marketing—let your art stack up.
6. If people are buggin you to buy your artwork say it's not for sale—it's not priced—that will deter them.
7. Go at it alone - don't get any help.
8. Stay away from artists earning money.
9. Expect instant success.
10. Wait to be discovered.

This list was compiled by Martha Zlatar, Art Business Consultant at the Small Business Development Center of San Francisco.

I'm not too far off track according to this list.