The newest record
iaian7 » blog John Einselen, 15.03.07Alas, it seems I’ve actually passed up my previous late-night-at-work record. This is the danger of starting projects after 8:00pm!
Right now I’m doing my best to help with some audio design and music concepting at work; my past experience in historic wind instruments seems to be of benefit here. Sadly, my small collection of instruments just isn’t enough, and while I have several more in shipment, I wanted to try my hand at making some. Plans for end blown flutes (they seem easy enough) are readily found online, and need but the simplest of materials. PVC pipe. The night before last I stopped by Lowe’s to pick up PVC, along with assorted tools to make the process a little smoother. Who knew Lowe’s was open till 10 at night? I’m ecstatic, to say the least.
I worked way too late the first night, but thought it’d go easier once I’d already tried one (the mouth piece is a pain). Well, not so much. Since I had already covered my bathroom in ground up PVC (the danger of using a dremel, I suppose) and not wanting to make it worse, I moved the project to the workshop at work.
By 2 in the morning I still hadn’t had much luck. Most attempts ended up being too short (since I’m still working out proper mouthpiece construction) but eventually I got two passable models. The first was the Quena (Andean end blown flute) started the night before. I worked out the holes and tuning and got it… close. It’s somewhere between G# and A natural, but at least the notes have semi-proper relations. My second flute was based on the Shakuhatchi. Four holes (I skipped the undersided thumb hole since the fingering was already wide enough to be uncomfortable for long periods) in an ostensibly traditional scale, though frequencies were standardized to european notes.
I still can’t get sounds consistently, especially on the Quena (though I’ve gotten a little better on the Shakuhatchi!).
If time ever permits, I’ll try to post a more thorough accounting of the process, maybe my own little how-to.
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DST
iaian7 » blog John Einselen, 13.03.07Wherein I divulge server woes and my loathing for daylight saving time.
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300
iaian7 » blog John Einselen, 11.03.07I grew up with a fascination in ancient cultures and mythology… chief amongst the storytellers, leastways in my mind, stand the Greeks. And few historical battles hold such prestige and effulgence as those of the Persian War.
Frank Miller, when writing the graphic novel 300, set out not to retell the historical facts, but create a newly-told legend. Honesty might still be found in this modern myth as the historical storytelling tradition is honored and carried on. Xerxes (known as Aḥashverosh in the book of Ezra) becomes a monstrous giant, the characters exaggerated and dramatic, and holding true to Greek drama, we find our end in glorious tragedy.
Not surprisingly after the success of the beautiful-though-highly-disturbed Sin City the novel 300 was also translated to movie form. Having not read the book, I can’t comment on differences, nor can I discuss the effectiveness of moving from illustration to motion picture. What is obvious, however, is the clear and vibrant use of Frank Miller’s imagery. This isn’t the first film shot almost entirely on greenscreen; Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow might be closer to claiming that place, but the process leading to fully digital backlots has been far longer and more gradual than a few pivotal films. With 300, however, it’s clear that the possibilities have been leveraged like few others have dared. The style is brilliant. Bold, high contrast, and with simply sumptuous lighting.
The style isn’t limited to a mere projection or repetition of the static compositions found in the novel, but motion is played with in similarly dramatic fashion. Speed, much like the loose and grandiose retelling of events, is in constant flux. Slowing down to cement an angle, pose, or action… speeding up to lash out, smiting and fighting all the way. Singing a melody that grabs and holds, tosses around at times, and is nothing short of poetic.
I had truly wondered about Zach Snyder directing this film, as interviews failed to inspire trust in storytelling ability or cinematic eloquence, but I think it’s safe to say he did well. Quite well. The admittedly rather simple story is told with great balance; setting up characters and cultures, cutting from the front of war to the battles of corruption inside the Grecian city-states. Lines are clearly drawn as the story, somehow, remains very classical in feel.
Don’t be fooled, though, for all its beauty, it’s a terribly dark tale. While very stylized, it’s ultra violent, and there’s no shortage of nudity (especially in the first half). This is no friendly movie, and while the stoic barbarism of Sparta is well known, it may not be so nice seeing it on the big screen. Much like other Frank Miller stories, themes of honor, justice, and morality are woven through a film that doesn’t shy much from the disturbed.
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Hail?
iaian7 » blog John Einselen, 25.02.07
This is not something I see often in my weather widget. I brought up the panel tonight as I was winding things down at work and just had to laugh. There’s something funny about little circles bouncing around.
By the time I’d made it outside, it was just raining. The ground, however, was littered with slushy snowballs like gallons of shallots dumped half an inch thick. Since I haven’t had the soundness of mind to pack up my clogs for a less inclement season, I couldn’t cavort too much. Granted, I was also umbrellaless, which tends to prevent frolicking in freezing rain.
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My horrible day
iaian7 » blog John Einselen, 22.02.07Granted, I’ve had far worse, but this day just won’t end. Constant failures and no solutions! Why do Photoshop and Painter have to be so buggered? My earlier sky and landscape woes have been eclipsed by the monumental stupidity known as Photoshop and Painter.
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CG Trees
iaian7 » blog John Einselen, 22.02.07
Since my personal studio has Tree Designer, I’ve been working from home recently. Great fun, as I get to play music and movies in the background whilst I work. Unfortunately, I also end up working all night; the record this week has been going from lunch (after already working all morning at the office) to 2 in the morning. Straight, or close enough. Thankfully I’ve gotten more sleep recently, and my 120 tree variations are finally rendered.
There are 10 models each of three types, roughly shaped after pines, cedars, and a cross between temperate and semi-tropical deciduous trees. 4 different coniferous branches and 2 different deciduous applied to simple geometry (plus a cutter mask). Plus each tree was rendered from a couple different angles, getting the maximum amount of variations with the least amount of modeling time. With the updated lighting rig from last night, I think they’ll fit the bill for upcoming matte paintings.
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CNC scanning
iaian7 » blog John Einselen, 17.02.07It’s been an interesting week! I’ve gained limited knowledge on CNC operation, and at least one of my landscapes has been scanned as a final 3D model. The sculpey clay used is fairly translucent, so it’s tough to get an accurate reading with the laser. It’s decent enough for a rough scan (which we did previously), but the resolution was pretty low. The best is an opaque medium gray surface with low shine (matte primer spray paint is excellent). Unfortunately, the uncured sculpey hinders drying of spray paint, so we ended up scanning it shiny. It still worked great, since we could get accuracy of about 87% instead of 27%! Nothing more fun than watching a massive machine scanning in 3D with a laser… well, maybe there is, but I haven’t topped it yet this week.
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Sculpturist?
iaian7 » blog John Einselen, 15.02.07
People keep asking if I’m a sculptor now… as if mucking about in plasticene did anything to grant one skill. Sadly, it doesn’t really. Thankfully, I’ve had a little experience with Sculpey clay before, but sadly, I’m still rubbish. Right now I’m working on landscapes for two locations to be used in some visual effects shots (plus some scale models later on). We’d tried modeling everything in the computer, digital elevation maps, and procedural terrains in multiple programs. Nothing was coming together very well, so it seemed that doing it physically was going to be easier. Miniature, of course, since we don’t have 12 square miles to play around with here. It’s hasn’t been the most realistic project so far, but carving in water erosion lines seems to be helping. Oh, and the splinter of wood in the middle of the second image is, approximately, a scale 500 feet.
Eventually we’ll be scanning these on the CNC machine, so there’s more to come!
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Ice and KY
iaian7 » blog John Einselen, 13.02.07After a good month of very cold weather (enough to send me playing across the pond at work), we’ve finally gone beyond the usual snow and slick patches. While most winter storms (you know, 1/4” of flurries) will cause uncontrollable chaos in this “southern” state, today it’s been raining. And freezing. Right now the trees are breaking and the roads are even more deadly than usual.
Thankfully, Jesus was watching out for me on the way home, and the car never completely lost control. Though at one point it couldn’t stop, and yes, I was going like 10mph. Needless to say, I’ll be staying home tomorrow and working from my couch! Or desk. Or heck, the bedroom if I really want too. Right now I’m working on some landscapes in clay, to be scanned by the CNC machine, and edited further in 3D on the computer. Great fun to be working with my fingers, and so much more tactile, I’m able to see what’s going on with the shapes much better. Hopefully I can get some pictures taken sometime soon.
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Twitter and the Social
iaian7 » blog John Einselen, 13.02.07Regardless the damning evidence against the intellectual level of most social based websites, there are at times places that rise into heavy and widespread use. MySpace is the shining example of both; it contains within its sordid servers the pointless dreck of civilization, and has also obtained near-ubiquitous status. YouTube for video, Digg for news, Renkoo or Planyp.us for event planning. As things progressed, the social trend got tied up with the often shoddy Web 2.0 movement (though there are a few beneficial aspects, such as the emphasis on cleaner designs… something I cheer wholeheartedly).
Clearly, in welcoming people “to the social,” Microsoft has attempted to leverage these trends, as society has increasingly based interpersonal relationships in the digital space. It’s a great idea, but sadly may never reach that critical mass; where one Zune owner will bump into another. The free nature of online communities has made it far easier to build momentum into a global force.
Anyway, back on topic. I do on occasion make use of the current slew of social websites, and once in awhile a particularly stupid, but fun, variation is hit upon. Twitter is just that! Stupid, fun, and easy. It’s a more advanced form, one might say, of the instant messenger away message. Tell people exactly what you’re doing at the moment! The concept seemed heavy handed at first, but integrated with mobile text messaging and instant messenger, you don’t even have to visit the site to keep friends posted on your goings on. Not to mention you can have your friend’s short messages sent to wherever you are.I haven’t added a permanent Twitter box to my site, but for now you can enjoy (or even better, ignore) the new “social” links on the right.
mediaboxAdvanced
You are far more sophisticated in your elocution of a movie review. I, too, loved the movie for the artistic retelling of a historically, and militarily infamous strategic campaign. I could wax eloquent on the significance of this particular battle in furthering western civilization by laying the foundation for future Greek conquests, etc. But ultimately, it was just a HOT movie with visually stunning battle scenes. Yes, it made me want to trade in my bo and nunchuks for a spear and sword and go Spartan! Harooo!