Photographer: Daniel Powers

 

From the dynamic Skies in Motion to the serenity of Mystic Waters, Dan Powers knows how to captivate a viewer with his well-timed photography. The five images are shown here are my favourites so far, the most captivating is the curving skyscraper (above) from Skies in Motion.  To me, this image says majestic, sweeping, a part of things larger than itself.

Originally from a medicine background that saw him through service with the US Marines, Dan is a self-taught photographer whose work has won several awards. His speciality is photographing time and he says about this topic,

“Most photographs are two-dimensional pictures of a three-dimensional space.  But when a photograph is taken with exposures as long as fifteen minutes, time becomes a part of the image.  Suddenly, the three-dimensional space is moving through time, leaving a trail of its former presence on the photographic canvas.”  

“Previously, photography was heralded for its capacity to render a moment in time…The Perfect Moment.  My photography reveals not only what is there, but what was.  Only film photography, or its modern digital equivalent, can capture this so precisely.”

In this age of digital photography and inkjet printers, Dan Powers also retains his skills as a darkroom professional and he “spends hours reviewing and editing every shadow and highlight, every nuance of color, and in choosing the right medium for the image.  There is nothing in one of my prints that was not intended to be there.” His attention to detail and quality are paramount, and he guarantees his prints for a lifetime. Now that’s a guarantee!

Dan currently lives in Newburyport with his family, where he continues to work with his camera and slow shutter. Most of his photos were taken in and around Massachusetts where, noting from his blog, he takes a keen interest in the local photographic community and gallery events. The music selected for his own photo website matches his imagery very well.

The image below is from Mystic Waters, and reminds me so much of The Voyage of the Dawn Treader from The Chronicles of Narnia. I love because it’s as the shore on the other side might disappear and the water carry on into forever.

 

 

These three pictures below do not go without comment! I find the contrasting soft whites and solid blacks of the clock tower image very striking. The centre photograph (part of the Language of Morning collection) could be sold to Mac as a desktop background, and the creeping mist by the lighthouse makes me think of breakers and the salty smell of the sea. Fabulous images Dan, I look forward to seeing more of your work!

 

 

All of Dan’s prints are available for purchase from his website, www.danielpowersphoto.com

All images used with the kind permission of Daniel Powers.

 

Pick your nose again!

Perhaps to make up for my lack of blogging yesterday (sorry – I had an assignment due) and because this is too good to miss, check out these new Pick Your Nose Cups!

Want some for your kid’s next party? Available here.

A little light reading

This bookshelf is almost worth the ridiculous price (if you buy it online from Europe and have it shipped) for the kudos it’ll get you when people exclaim “Hey! How did you do that?!”.

One by a sofa makes for a cool talking point, but why stop there? Be one of the supercool and get several – I recommend either 3 or 5, odd numbers look the best – to create an aethetically pleasing artistically awesome floating library. There is another kind called “the Selfshelf” which has ‘Ceci n’est pas un livre’ as the title, ‘this is not a book’ in French, but it doesn’t look quite as cool in groups (why would you have 3-5 copies of the same book?)

Almost, but not quite worth the price from Europe*, however I found the Invisible Bookshelf in US dollars here.

*unless they decide to have a massive 90% off everything sale

Never in a month of Sundays…

You may have noticed that I don’t blog on Sunday. This is because I figure I spend too much time on my computer as it is and I’m trying to give my eyes a break at least one day a week. Seeing as I am at my laziest on Sundays *cough* this is the best day to chill out and not blog so much. Sorry if anyone’s been disappointed cause I didn’t blog – now you know.

You should enjoy a break from the computer too :)

Jenn

Pixel by Pixel

I love this thing! I didn’t have a TV for four years while I was studying in the UK, but I was tempted to get one just to use one of these!

“The Groove Tube transforms your TV or computer screen into the coolest of light sculptures. The translucent white plastic screen averages the television’s pixels, and the opaque grid dividers create a unique, ever-changing, distinct color in each square.

As the TV (or computer screen) image changes, so do the colors on the Groove Tube. It’s great as a feature for parties, as it sets the perfect mood. To further enhance the vibe, mute your TV and play your favorite music in conjunction with the Groove Tube. Although it is just an illusion, your screen will seem to pulse, colorize, and change in harmony with the beats.”

Designed by Matt Griesey in 2004, the Groove Tube is unfortunately no longer on sale anywhere.. trust me, I’ve looked. I have hope I’ll find one again someday!

HELP!

 

Housing Every Last Person – or HELP for short – is a prototype disaster-relief house by architect Carib Daniel Martin and builder Rob Bragan. Compelled to help those who had been made homelss by hurricane Katrina in 2005, HELP “was designed to be quickly erected and transported where needed.”

“The prototype will house three people (or six, if it is a double unit.) With a footprint of only 8 by 12 feet, it not only contains sleeping, kitchen, and bathroom areas, but incorporates a front porch into its architecture, providing a welcoming entrance and encouraging atmosphere for occupants and neighbors alike. In fact, the model that was built in Martin’s driveway was constructed in a weekend with only the help of a few handy neighbors – at a cost of $8000. “

“The dwelling is also adaptable to varying home sites, so that it can be used without locally provided utilities, if they are unavailable. Utilizing a gravity-fed water system, composting toilet, and solar power, the unit can be completely self-sufficient. ” 

I have to admit, if I’d had everything swept away in a storm I’d want to live somewhere as comfortable and solid as a HELP shelter, but I’m sorry, how much did they say it was again? $8000 US dollars? Who has that kind of money after a hurricane? Great concept, if only they could make it cheaper and less “designer”. I’m sure a set of 6 kitchen knives and a chromed toaster are unnecessary in an emergency shelter. There are better things to equip it with.

You can take a tour of the outside and inside of the cabin. Unfortunately, the project seems to have stopped in 2006 and their website doesn’t seem to be functioning properly which is a shame, but it’s worth having a brief look anyway: http://www.helpishere.us

 

 

On Nose Picking

If you’re at a party that’s getting a bit stale, then picking your nose might liven it up a bit! “Each of these photo- realistic paper cups comes emblazoned with a new nose. When you tip your head to take a drink – voila – you get an instant nose job, and a chuckle from the crowd.” As long as you’re holding with the nose in the right place, that is.

I know these have been blogged a lot before, but they are worth mentioning for their sheer entertainment value. I keep hoping I’ll turn up at a large function or event and they’ll be using these for all the guests – who nose?

24 12-oz. cups per pack, “evenly divided between male and female proboscises”, available here

Photographer: Steven Draper

Steven Draper produces high quality personal, fine art and commercial photographs across a broad range of subjects. Originally from England, he and his family moved to Ontario, Canada in 2006, where most of his photographs are taken.

 

Writing about his photography he says, “[my] personal work often explores the emotions and relationships of everyday objects, views or moments, producing images that capture the extraordinary within the ordinary… the implications and suggestions of what is not seen is often more expressive of what is”

My favourite example of this “unseen expression” is captured in this portrait image of a couple, taken as they chatted after their main photo shoot in the studio. I would love to have a photo like this of me and my hubby one day. I have to get married first though; that’s a whole other set of pictures!

 

Being a pilot, Steven also takes a lot of pictures of aircraft, in particular commercial jets (which pleases my dad no end). ”My lifetime involvement, experience and understanding of the relationship between man, machine and environment, I hope, enables my photography to capture some of the character, excitement and emotion of the aviation world.” Yes you most certainly do, Stephen!

A few more of my favourites are shown below: the Abandoned Railway Bridge, Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea, and Plane Power. I particularly like his decision to print certain pictures in black and white as this really adds to the historic feel of the image.

To see more of Steven Draper’s superb photography, visit www.stevendraperphotography.com

 

All images used with the kind permission of Steven Draper.

 

Designer: Kenichi Okada

Kenichi Okada (above) is a born interactive designer. His ideas for products and concepts that truly come to life is both mind boggling and extremely fun to play with. Originally from Japan, Ken1 (1 is pronounced ‘ichi’ in Japanese) moved to the UK in 2003 to study a degree in product design, having already qualified as an architect back home.

I had the pleasure of studying my BA with Kenichi at the LCC, where Kenichi’s gift for interactive design really took off. Since then, he has gone into the Royal College of Art to do their MA Design Interaction, from which he graduates this year (with honours, I expect!). He is a genius of the best sort, in that “eccentric scientist” kind of way.

He has done many projects that are interesting, fun and very much based in linear-to-lateral thinking. Particular favourites of mine are delay chair (watch the video – I’m in it!), pixel factory, and more recently the emotoscope. Congrats Kenichi, for everything you’ve done so far! I will keep people posted on your latest projects as they come up.

To view more of his work, visit www.kenichiokada.com

 

Barrelling along

 

I came across an article on inhabitat about a new device that truly has social and community design at it’s heart.

The Hippo Roller is an ingenious yet simple rolling barrel device that facilitates a more efficient and safer transport of daily water supply needs. The roller holds 3-4 days worth of water for a family of 7, about 5 times the amount of water that can be moved using traditional methods. It’s an amazing product and an amazing story of good design enabling communities.

With these new water containers, many people in remote communities will be able to spend more time with their families, have more time to grow crops, produce goods, teach children, and go to school. So far, feedback has been positive and they are constantly working to improve their designs in order to make life better for a Lot of people!

The Hippo Roller was created by Project H Design who specialise in “product design initiatives for Humanity, Habitats, Health and Happiness”. They are well worth keeping an eye on, and I’ll keep you posted as new ideas come up.