Macro Monday - Example A - 11/23/09

Macro Monday - Example A - 11/23/09, originally uploaded by Luke T..

Dru was kind enough to show me that Toronto has its very own green house tucked away just a few blocks away from the busy streets in Allan Park.
It was a great little thing to find just hidden in the middle of the city.
I'll most certainly be frequenting it this winter to escape all the gross cold and snow.

If you haven't noticed yet, I may be a huge huge fan(sucker?) for/of going with very heavy left or right weighted compositions.
This is a fine example.
Doesn't it look like a little planet protected by the petals?
Or an explosions of color deep in a well lit galaxy?
Ha.
Two of my favorite things(lately).
Macro flowers and corner heavy framing.
Oh boy :p

Telephoto Tuesday - To Nice Not To - 11/10/09

Telephoto Tuesday - To Nice Not To - 11/10/09, originally uploaded by Luke T..

So I completely forgot to mention/thank BlogTO author Ben Spurr for using not one but TWO of my photos on his BlogTO article Daily Radar.
You can read both his articles as well as see the photos used here and here.
Funny thing is both people in the photos used have been noticed by either themselves or a friend and have let me know.
I thought it was kinda funny.
Maybe I have to worry more about snapping random street shots from now on?
Mayyyyybe.

Rainy Day TO pt.2

Touch Ups +, originally uploaded by Luke T..

... and this would be the natural.

Rainy Day TO

Touch Ups +, originally uploaded by Luke T..

So at about 7am this morning I'm pulled out of my bed by what sounds like some one taking a comically large piece of sheet metal and bending it back and forth to make those fake movie lightning sounds.
Only thing is they aren't fake.
The sounds are the extreme wind coming from the blackness outside trying to knock both huge sets of windows out of my apartment. We leave our window open a crack at night because its not to cold yet outside but that little crack was enough that with the wind sounded like someone was trying to tear the window right out.
Worse still was once I slammed that shut and ran to my office because the windows were wide open and I didn't want to walk in and find all my camera gear had been recently introduced to the rain.
Lucky for me nothing was wet and once the windows were closed I was able to sleep sound again.

I work five days a week, which is nothing to brag about, but I enjoy my two days off and normally like to use them for whatever I actually want to do.
So when for the last two months it has been nice weather and sunny with the EXCEPTION of every Friday & Saturday(my weekend) when it decides to start gusting winds and become the rainiest days you've ever seen, well, it gets pretty old fast.
Made plans to go try shoot some street portraits?
Yah I'm sorry, that won't work now because there is a monsoon outside.
Oh hey, street art instillation being done at night?
Oh, wait no, pouring again.
Rain really 'puts a damper' on things.
Heh.
Buuuuut.
But I'm taking this time to edit.
Which I think is a huge place for me to improve so I'll take it fully.
The editing time that is.
One year ago, photo editing for me consisted of playing with levels and saturation.
Now I still use all those things, but on a much greater application.
Some days I make things that look crazy, some days I try edit natural so if you're looking at it you can't TELL it has been edited.
I think if it looks good and you don't know I've touched it, I've done the best job I can.
Anyways, this is an attempt at one of the edits I guess I would consider 'making look crazy'.

Pin Up - 08/17/09 V.2

Pin Up - 08/17/09 V.2, originally uploaded by Luke in Progress.

Just a quick update to one of the faces that I did for a friend of Erica's a while back.
She wanted it in a format she could print and I thought the rabbit frame would be a neat idea.
Also, whats more rad than a rabbit wearing 3d glasses?
Oh, a long list of things you say?
Well that is acceptable I suppose but a rabbit wearing shades is still pretty rad.

ps: Kid Chameleon for the Sega Genesis is also super rad. SUPER Rad. Just to, you know, really drive that one home.

Pin Up - 09/07/09

Pin Up - 09/07/09, originally uploaded by Luke in Progress.

A request done for Trink.
Once more with the inky background just to keep it from looking to plain.
Probably the last time I'll use that.
Hopefully she digs it.
Realistically this will not be the last time I use the ink background.
Heh.

Pin Up - 08/23/09

Pin Up - 08/23/09, originally uploaded by Luke in Progress.

2nd request for a 'zombify me' drawing from my friend Andrea.
This one took WAY longer than any of the other ones(possibly even any two other ones combined).
I think it was the hair.
I couldn't figure out a good way to get the look I wanted for the hair and, as you can see, I ended up using dot shading to get pretty much the look I wanted.
No shading, but the black dots gives the illusion.
I think I like how it works.
Certainly something I need to play around with a little more.
Also, per her request, its a little darker than I would normally make it.
No real problem with that, but I may do a 2nd(coughthirdcough) colorway of some lighter more playful colors.
Then just some random inks to give it a not-so-static background.
Zip baff pow!

If YOU would like to have a picture of YOURS zombified, post me a comment or send me an email(cowboyrobot at gmail dot com) with a picture or two and let me know.

Luke

Pin Up - 08/17/09

Pin Up - 08/17/09, originally uploaded by Luke in Progress.

1st "Zombify Me" request done for one of Erica's friends.
Pretty fast and simple one.
Might add some shadows to the shirt eventually but otherwise pretty happy with the color and face.
Whamo.
Done.

Now Accepting

Pin Up - 5th, originally uploaded by Luke in Progress.

So a ton of things have happened lately, and I'm going to try and be quick about it.
Big things first.
I have officially moved to Toronto and have now spent a grand total of NINE whole days here.
Exciting I know.
I have moved in with my fantastic girlfriend Erica.
At time of writing this we have not yet killed each other. Bonus!
Also today I saw a squirrel!
Now he didn't creep in and steal any photo ops from me, but he was big and black and pretty neat looking.
Anyways, we've moved, bought shit, put it together, lived on it, got it all stinky and are now pretty much fully 'settled in'.
All that said, I have my tablet back!
Its here and in one piece... as are all the other key components(read: Computer, Me).
So what I'm doing is now accepting requests to become an Undead Pin-Up, like the one seen above.
I think its the most fun stuff I've done in a while so why not run with it.
If you want to have your face done up just rifle me off an email(cowboyrobot at gmail dot com) with 2 or 3 photos, or leave me a comment with links to some photos, and we will go from there.
Looking forward to it.
Silly faces, people smelling teddy-grams, wearing hats, prosthetic eyes, keyboard cats.... its all fair game.

DIY

foresteerfront, originally uploaded by squink!.

This is a custom dunny painted by Squink(I believe).
I had a big spike in my Dunny(and all vinyl at that) love about four years ago. It was the highpoint of designer toys for me. About three years prior my interest had been growing but three years ago was certainly the spike.
After that I had to sit back, put the visa down, log of Rotofugi and start thinking "Why the fuck am I being like a disney fan for all this new shit people keep releasing"?
So after having the "stop buying so many toys" talk with myself I downsized and went cold turkey for a while.
I still love a dunny now and then, and tokidoki makes some toys I just think are fantastic, but my vinyl addiction has certainly calmed down a ton.
Now I keep myself reserved. Pick up a blindbox maybe here and there, you know something for the office or as a small thank-you gift for a friend maybe, but that is about it.
I've noticed that instead of being so crazy about the dunnys that now I'm more crazy about designers, some of which have toys or dunnys.
I'd much rather follow a few people I really like, and if they do a figure or something I also like then support them and buy that.
I, however, could no longer justify being one of those people that has so many 'toys' at home that they start getting put up at work and at the families house(you know who you are) just because you don't have enough room for the latest zipper pull let alone another eight inch fig.
I've also decided that I'd rather have a print.
I mean, prints go in frames.
Frames go on walls.
And after all, I have tons of wall space, right?
Sure I can load shelving up(which I plan to) and just stack stuff and display things in front of one another, but I think the wall is where its really at.
A few floating shelves maybe.
A print here, a photo there.
Cool frames, cool frames framing fabric.
Really it all looks pretty good to me at this point.
I can't recall where I was originally going with this little run.
I wonder if there is a clean digital print of this little guys pattern?
Isn't his stomach fantastic?
I love the tufts of fur and the leaves.
Oh speaking of, this is the first blog post in a while.
I move to Toronto one week today.
Well more correctly yesterday.
This time next week I'll LIVE in Toronto.
Erica and myself actually.
We have a place.
We're pretty stoked.
Its an exciting thing once I forget about all the stress of packing and moving cross province with all our(mostly my) crap.
Thank you to the good people at greyhound ahead of time, ha.
But yes we are moving.
I want to get a pro flickr account and really start putting up a lot more.
I also have my good friend Scott right about to start working on some webspace for me, so a legit site will be up and functional soon.
That I'm also pretty stoked on.
Then its a waterfall.
After site comes Moo cards(why not right?).
Some free mini cards with the pro flickr too, oh right I forgot about those.
Multiple Moo cards it would seem!
And yeah, I've packed my tablet.
I'm going to start doing the DeadPinUpGirls series more and more.
I'm also going to take requests if you want a photo to be undeaded.
You can hit me with a comment on here or email.
I'll set up an email.
Comment in the meantime.
But yes I will be doing undead pin up versions of people.
We will see how it goes.
I'm thinking a-ok.
But the tablet(and most of the computer stuff) is currently packed.
Getting ready for the move.
Again, excited.
But until I get the net hooked up, we will most likely be without.
There is free wifi pretty much at every place you walk in to in TO, but laptop is the issue there, so the net will have to be installed and we will have to wait.
No worries.
I've waited how long?
A few more days, or a week or so, will be nothing.
If you're Troy you're probably going to agree with me fully but isn't Children Of Bodom's cover of Ghost Riders In The Sky fantastic!?
I know right.
Far to good.
I just really like that song though.
In all its forms.
Yes yes, even The Shadows.
Google it.
THAT should be a card.
Just get "www.google.com" printed on a business card... with the little google search bar graphic printed on it.
I think that would be a really good retail joke.
I have so many people daily that ask the most silly questions at the camera shop I'm currently at(for one more day, sad).
I love answering all the questions because, well really, I love talking cameras but I could see how some of them can frustrate other employees.
Especially when you get the same question four or five times a shift every shift, or an hour on those busy days.
But really, they don't know, and they have no idea you've answered that exact question a kajillion times so you help them out and make there day.
Easy as that.
But the cards, right.
So someone comes in and asks you a question.
Next day, comes back, same question.
Or maybe it isn't even a repeat offender.
Maybe its one person who is very snappy.
Or not even snappy.
Not even acting 'entitled'.
Maybe you just pick a random person.
Anyways.
They walk up and shoot a question your way you feel is pretty standard knowledge and that they really should know.
Bust open your fancy dancy card holder and BAM, slide one their way.
They flip it over and what do they see?
"www.google.com".
Ha.
I mean sure sure, they need to know what google is first to actually make the joke/burn funny, but come on.
That could be gold.
I'd love to do that with a few of the pro's that come in the shop.
The ones that would take it well.
Des for sure.
He would be a really good sport about it, probably get a laugh out of it after everything too.
I think that might be the target for those cards.
People you know would laugh.
But really, if you have some random blank business cards waiting to be printed, I think that a run of 8 or so could make for some funny conflicts.
Scott is back for a bit also.
Applying for his old ACC job.
No thats not right.
Applying for a new ACC job.
To replace the big sweaty teacher.... I think.
I'm sure it will go well.
Then he can bury himself back in Brandon.
I joke about how terrible this place is(it is) but I really do like it.
Finally.
I think it took close to 22 years for me to actually become OK with Brandon.
I used to hate the place.
Legit hate.
Then I just smartened up.
Then I just really disliked it.
I think it was about December I became ok with the idea of living here.
It really isn't a bad place.
There is just dick to do.
I mean, if you're young.
Well thats not true.
You can make stuff to do.
There just isn't a lot OUT to do.
I mean, when you look at major centers, even like Winnipeg, the area Brandon takes up cut out of Winnipeg there is so much more.
Brandon is just cheap.
Cheap and weird.
And kinda far to judging.
Its like an old mans club.
Nothing new can really open unless its a discount or box store.
Nothing new gets supported because everyone doesn't want to try a new awesome breakfast place when fucking Montana's serves burgers at 9am and drinks of all sizes are only a dollar at McDonalds.
Gross really.
But yeah, that is where we live.
For only another six days mind you.
Then Toronto.
Jacked.
Oh hey, 5.
Time to see the girlfriend.
She owes me money.
For all the reasons you would joke about.
Kidding.
Oh hey, also if you like stuff(thats right generic statement) then you really need to follow Skottie Young on twitter.
http://twitter.com/skottieyoung
I don't know how to feel about twitter, but so far I love getting instant tutorial updates and art sneak peaks from artists I really love following.
And Skottie drops tons of sketches and WIPS and all that good tasty stuff all the time.
Think of it as a tiny RSS feed.
Which I like.
Which is not how I use it.
Which I don't like.
But as a blog-link, I think it works great.
I wonder what its life cycle will be.
I really did think it would be dead by now.
3 months for twitter, right?
When will it crash?
Where will we go after facebook?
I get it I get it you want to monetize that shit, but really?
What is the next thing that will reach critical mass on the internet within the next hour of launch?
Will we be at that point where once its alive, we will all know?
Something goes live online and moments later because one person knows, then you know and because you know I then also know?
I want instant internet.
I want brain cloud computing.
I want all the knowledge that is out there at the second it becomes available.
I want to live forever.
Ok so maybe that is all a little much.
A little much for our lifetime at least.
But I mean we've done some great things in our life.
Not even us as individuals, but us as a global whole.
I guess we've also done some terrible things.
We aren't without flaw.
As long as we don't let it happen twice.
A girl at work asked me why I always read the bad parts of the news.
I guess its so I know.
I don't want to live thinking that stuff doesn't happen.
I don't however surround myself with it.
I like the good and the bad.
I like just being aware.
But yeah, its something.
That is actually how I got on this Yukon kick.
There is a place in the Yukon called Dawson City.
It was an old goldmine town from what I've read.
Then the gold ran out.
Then they became an almost ghost town.
So what do ghost towns do to not be ghost towns?
Well if you're Dawson City, you turn to tourism.
Bring in fishers, campers, hikers and the like.
You paint all your buildings(and beautifully at that) to look like old prospect buildings, and you let them come to you.
That is what I want to do.
I want to drink at the Sour Toe club.
But what I really want to do is hike.
There is a river that dried up.
The river had big boats.
The boats just got left.
I want to go hike, and camp, and explore these boat carcasses.
I want to see these giant frames just abandoned on the side of the river because no one cared about them any more.
And I want to hike it.
I think it would be amazing.
Camera in hand of course.
Put that soon-to-be-mine pro flickr account to work.
Ha.
I may or may not have ordered a Yukon travel and tours pamphlet to meet me at my new home in Toronto for when I get there.
Ha.
I.. erm... its MAIL, right?
With my NAME on it!
So I can, erm, change my cell phone and everything and have proof of where I live.
Yah.
Yah that is the reason.
Heh.
Ok really though, I need to get to the bank and deposit some of this moving money already.
Which will soon be given to GreyHound in return for, well, moving all my stuff.
Fun.