tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-40996091110948447482024-02-19T00:21:49.462-08:00"A picture is worth a thousand words ..."More than the mechanical recording of events, photography has the power to convey a mood or share insights with others. It has the power to capture perfect moments of love and happiness and searing images of cruelty and poverty. It has the power to preserve in a rectangular frame the beauty of a thousand sunsets, the joys of parents seeing their child just learning how to walk on its own, and the sublime happiness of students graduating after years of hard work and sacrifice.Unknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger35125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4099609111094844748.post-343459178823450702012-01-28T06:45:00.000-08:002012-01-29T15:00:10.125-08:00Free ebook Smashing Magazine 5th anniversary offer<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.smashingmagazine.com/2011/09/08/to-five-smashing-years-and-a-free-anniversary-ebook-treat/" target="_blank"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 143px; height: 185px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvJTMvQGGvEKmOPnfGZ6Jp6iDUzttcFj18geM2rbUpg3OdTcqax_T52Tp1iwMIAS4wPoNPyzbvpF4P4E0Fz4ynTYI9yUw1C3mE5QnR7M3M3HvtdQyQQ2bLsiVXxsJ8MSy-cM_kDMlnysk/s400/Smashing+Magazine+5th+anniversary+free+ebook.jpg" alt="Smashing Magazine 5th anniversary offer" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5695904217878940386" border="0" /></a><span style="font-weight: bold;">This <a href="http://www.smashingmagazine.com/2011/09/08/to-five-smashing-years-and-a-free-anniversary-ebook-treat/" target="_blank">free ebook </a>contains the best articles that have been published on Smashing Magazine in the last five years. It is available in PDF, ePUB and Mobipocket formats. Topics include:</span><br /><ul><li>Thirty Usability Issues to Be Aware Of</li><li>Ten Principles of Effective Web Design</li><li>Clever JPEG Optimization Techniques</li><li>Typographic Design Patterns and Best Practices</li><li>Ten Useful Usability Findings and Guidelines</li><li>Setting Up Photoshop for Web and iPhone Development</li><li>The Ails of Typographic Anti-Aliasing</li><li>Mastering Photoshop: Noise, Textures and Gradients</li><li>Better User Experience With Storytelling</li><li>The Beauty of Typography, Writing Systems and Calligraphy </li><li>Web Designers, Don’t Do It Alone </li><li>Making Your Mark on the Web Is Easier Than You Think</li><li>Responsive Web Design: What It Is and How to Use It</li><li>I Want to Be a Web Designer When I Grow Up</li><li>Persuasion Triggers in Web Design</li><li>What Font Should I Use?</li><li>The Design Matrix: A Powerful Tool for Guiding Client Input</li><li> Why User Experience Cannot Be Designed</li><li>Dear Web Design Community, Where Have You Gone?</li><li>Make Your Content Make a Difference</li><li>Two Cats in a Sack: Designer-Developer Discord</li><li>Print Loves Web</li></ul>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4099609111094844748.post-23445847691302569772012-01-27T14:52:00.000-08:002012-01-29T15:00:44.788-08:00“Time is Nothing” (time lapse video of 25,000 miles across 17 countries in 290 seconds)<iframe src="http://www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/UGnrT0F-Igs?rel=0" allowfullscreen="" width="450" frameborder="0" height="275"></iframe><br /><br />Photographer <a href="http://kienlam.net/" target="_blank">Kien Lam</a> visited 17 countries in 343 days to create this time lapse video. He rode 19 planes, 58 buses, and 18 boats in his travels. He shot 6,237 pictures in all. <br /><br />Background music is “Places and Faces” by his brother William (Metaphysika Sounds). <br /><br />Visit the <a href="http://kienlam.net/travel-faq" target="_blank">Around The World FAQ</a> page.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4099609111094844748.post-69610055345989982502011-11-20T16:20:00.000-08:002011-11-20T16:31:28.948-08:00“Pictures work better than text”When Steve Jobs introduced the MacBook Air as “the world’s thinnest notebook,” one slide showed a photograph of the new computer on top of an envelope, which was even larger than the computer itself. That’s it. No words, no text boxes, no graphs, just the photo. How much more powerful can you get? The picture says it all. (The Presentation Secrets of Steve Jobs by Carmine Gallo, pages 99-100)<br /><div style="width:425px" id="__ss_2609477"> <strong style="display:block;margin:12px 0 4px"><a href="http://www.slideshare.net/cvgallo/the-presentation-secrets-of-steve-jobs-2609477" title="The Presentation Secrets of Steve Jobs" target="_blank">The Presentation Secrets of Steve Jobs</a></strong> <object id="__sse2609477" width="425" height="355"> <param name="movie" value="http://static.slidesharecdn.com/swf/ssplayer2.swf?doc=slideshare-091129171652-phpapp01&stripped_title=the-presentation-secrets-of-steve-jobs-2609477&userName=cvgallo" /> <param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"/> <param name="allowScriptAccess" value="always"/> <param name="wmode" value="transparent"/> <embed name="__sse2609477" src="http://static.slidesharecdn.com/swf/ssplayer2.swf?doc=slideshare-091129171652-phpapp01&stripped_title=the-presentation-secrets-of-steve-jobs-2609477&userName=cvgallo" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="355"></embed> </object> <div style="padding:5px 0 12px"> View more presentations from <a href="http://www.slideshare.net/cvgallo" target="_blank">Carmine Gallo</a> </div> </div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4099609111094844748.post-24962079442669991682011-10-02T15:39:00.000-07:002011-10-02T15:40:36.141-07:00Free e-book on photography<a href="http://static.animoto.com/files/vision.pdf" target="_blank"><span style="font-weight: bold;"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 5px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 184px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5HXp7DgVVrHWmXyj_20vG27EVF7XxsiL2_QYiGuUrQRkw773U7tdvyWp8_tbPDiDHt-AiyQpc97ReXR0m-qZ-s5cT0KEoR1fFMm0xhLWXgpSkw-U_sRVkWxPQidWcOexl9OHbj6cVuHk/s200/Scott+Bourne.jpg" alt="Free e-book Scott Bourne’s Essays On Inspiration,Creativity & Vision In Photography" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5632720470841057026" border="0" /></span></a><span style="font-weight: bold;"> <a href="http://static.animoto.com/files/vision.pdf" target="_blank">Scott Bourne’s Essays On Inspiration, Creativity & Vision In Photography</a></span><br /><br /><span>From Essay #4 Storytelling Part 2</span> (page 21):<br /><blockquote>You see ALL communications and ALL media - whether they be centered around radio, television, motion pictures, blogs, podcasts or photography - revolve around story. Story is everything. If you get that, you'll be a better photographer.<br /><br />If you need help getting to the point where you are a storyteller, you can use a vision exercise that I often talk about called SAS - which stands for Subject, Attention, Simplify.</blockquote>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4099609111094844748.post-71710227324947960302011-05-30T16:03:00.000-07:002011-06-01T19:32:09.428-07:00How to create word clouds<iframe width="425" height="349" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/70o6qNrDEQs" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe><br /><br />“Word cloud websites are great ways to create colorful interesting graphics that have lots of impact but are not much work to create. Though many programs are available to do this, this video gives you a brief overview of <a href="http://www.tagxedo.com/" target="_blank">Tagxedo</a>, a program that not only creates colorful Word Cloud, but makes it easy to save them and use them in other programs, something many of the other programs don’t do.” (From <a href="http://www.effectivechurchcom.com/" target="_blank">Yvon Prehn</a>) Tagxedo turns words -- famous speeches, news articles, slogans and themes, even your love letters -- into a visually stunning word cloud, words individually sized appropriately to highlight the frequencies of occurrence within the body of text.<br /><br />With <a href="http://www.tagxedo.com/" target="_blank">Tagxedo</a>, you can:<div><ul><li>make word clouds in real-time, and respin, and respin to your liking</li><li>save the word cloud as images for printing and sharing</li><li>look at all variants of the clouds in a gallery (see screenshot above), and pick the one you want for further tweaking or saving</li><li>choose from many different fonts</li><li>use local fonts (e.g. downloaded from Font Squirrel, DaFont, FontSpace, or your own hand-drawn fonts)</li><li>quickly switch between different colors and themes</li><li>constrain the cloud to selected shapes (heart, star, cloud, oval, etc)</li><li>use images as custom shapes (e.g. Reddit Alien) [premium feature]</li><li>use words as custom shapes (e.g. "USA", "Love", "Joy", "I LOVE YOU") [premium feature]</li></ul></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4099609111094844748.post-27749163310470358512011-04-26T20:23:00.000-07:002011-04-26T20:24:32.480-07:00The Power of Words: Change your words, change your world<object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube-nocookie.com/v/Hzgzim5m7oU?fs=1&hl=en_US&rel=0"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube-nocookie.com/v/Hzgzim5m7oU?fs=1&hl=en_US&rel=0" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4099609111094844748.post-28983925513518441022011-04-14T20:21:00.000-07:002011-04-14T20:28:49.196-07:00Free PDF about online journalism<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.kcnn.org/resources/journalism_20/" target="_blank"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 167px; height: 250px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvD3o-0wz7KEXy4OjqnPJZE2kLC6wnXengEWLmUrf4uNjC5OOdJelM-E3fTVumMKdNxbwQO99Zd5IrO7hlMqnFgC3CxwQF3uCZc2XQ6Q2HoAxmmPUhAfKEklhg_xPbh3JODtAjNEujIaw/s400/Journalism+2+grqphic.jpg" alt="Free PDF on digital journalism" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5581593468021054258" border="0" /></a><span style="font-weight: bold;">“</span><a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.kcnn.org/resources/journalism_20/" target="_blank">Journalism 2.0: How to Survive and Thrive, A digital literacy guide for the information age</a><span style="font-weight: bold;">”, by Mark Briggs (Assistant Managing Editor for Interactive News, The News Tribune) </span><p>PDF English version now <a href="http://www.j-lab.org/Journalism_20.pdf" target="_blank">available for download</a>; also available in <a href="http://www.kcnn.org/resources/journalism_20_pdfs/" target="_blank">Spanish or Portuguese</a>. You can also <a href="http://www.kcnn.org/resources/journalism_20_copies" target="_blank">order hard copies<b>.</b></a> </p><p>Topics include: <a href="http://www.kcnn.org/resources/journalism_20_chapter1">Chapter 1: FTP, MB, RSS, Oh My</a><a href="http://www.kcnn.org/resources/journalism_20_chapter2"><br /></a></p><p><a href="http://www.kcnn.org/resources/journalism_20_chapter2">Chapter 2: Web 2.0</a><a href="http://www.kcnn.org/resources/journalism_20_chapter3"><br /></a></p><p><a href="http://www.kcnn.org/resources/journalism_20_chapter3">Chapter 3: Tools and Toys</a></p><p><a href="http://www.kcnn.org/resources/journalism_20_chapter4"> Chapter 4: New Reporting Methods</a><a href="http://www.kcnn.org/resources/journalism_20_chapter5"><br /></a></p><p><a href="http://www.kcnn.org/resources/journalism_20_chapter5">Chapter 5: How to Blog</a><a href="http://www.kcnn.org/resources/journalism_20_chapter6"><br /></a></p><p><a href="http://www.kcnn.org/resources/journalism_20_chapter6">Chapter 6: How to Report News for the Web</a></p><p><a href="http://www.kcnn.org/resources/journalism_20_chapter7">Chapter 7: Digital Audio and Podcasting</a></p><p><a href="http://www.kcnn.org/resources/journalism_20_chapter8">Chapter 8: Shooting and Managing Digital Photos</a><a href="http://www.kcnn.org/resources/journalism_20_chapter9/"><br /></a></p><p><a href="http://www.kcnn.org/resources/journalism_20_chapter9/">Chapter 9: Shooting Video for News and Feature Stories</a><a href="http://www.kcnn.org/resources/journalism_20_chapter10/"><br /></a></p><p><a href="http://www.kcnn.org/resources/journalism_20_chapter10/">Chapter 10: Basic Video Editing</a></p><p> <a href="http://www.kcnn.org/resources/journalism_20_chapter11/">Chapter 11: Writing Scripts, Doing Voice-overs</a></p><p style="font-weight: bold;">For continuing discussion of new technology for journalists, check out Mark Briggs’ <a href="http://www.journalism20.com/" target="_blank">Journalism 2.0 site</a>.</p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4099609111094844748.post-74926345264285791262011-04-08T20:22:00.000-07:002011-04-14T20:28:09.080-07:00Free e-book on website design and usability from U.S. Department of Health and Human Services<a href="http://usability.gov/guidelines/guidelines_book.pdf" target="_blank"><img style="float: right; margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjy_dYWnOVEtEfNFCo0qBoG7L3_d4Cbr4mRq-WnlIkeFyGZIrgUMgWzYqDhw7Kfyq4iC3SzGyjn_CzPFAMykrWX-m4-vdgX2lmD9ZgMCDmKEYC4blL_FTShpQM9setLU8yBMHSAEkK6krY/s400/usability+guidelines.jpg" alt="Free e-book on website design" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5573713435845182050" border="0" /></a>Throughout your Web design or redesign project, you should take advantage of what is already known about best practices for each step of the process. The <a href="http://usability.gov/guidelines/guidelines_book.pdf" title="Usability Guidelines Book" target="_blank">Research-Based Web Design & Usability Guidelines</a> (PDF, 20.64MB) brings you these best practices compiled through an extensive process of research and review. (From usability.gov)<br /><br /><b>You can also download specific sections of the book:</b><br /><ul><li><a href="http://usability.gov/pdfs/chapter1.pdf" target="_blank">design process and evaluation</a> (PDF - 1.9MB)</li><li><a href="http://usability.gov/pdfs/chapter2.pdf" target="_blank">optimizing the user experience</a> (PDF - 9.1MB)</li><li><a href="http://usability.gov/pdfs/chapter3.pdf" target="_blank">accessibility</a> (PDF - 2.4MB)</li><li><a href="http://usability.gov/pdfs/chapter4.pdf" target="_blank">hardware and software</a> (PDF - 2.8MB)</li><li><a href="http://usability.gov/pdfs/chapter5.pdf" target="_blank">the homepage</a> (PDF - 12.1MB)</li><li><a href="http://usability.gov/pdfs/chapter6.pdf" target="_blank">page layout</a> (PDF - 21.9MB)</li><li><a href="http://usability.gov/pdfs/chapter7.pdf" target="_blank">navigation</a> (PDF - 13.1MB)</li><li><a href="http://usability.gov/pdfs/chapter8.pdf" target="_blank">scrolling and paging</a> (PDF - 4.5MB)</li><li><a href="http://usability.gov/pdfs/chapter9.pdf" target="_blank">headings, titles, and labels</a> (PDF - 7.8MB)</li><li><a href="http://usability.gov/pdfs/chapter10.pdf" target="_blank">links</a> (PDF - 17.1MB)</li><li><a href="http://usability.gov/pdfs/chapter11.pdf" target="_blank">text appearance</a> (PDF - 11.2MB)</li><li><a href="http://usability.gov/pdfs/chapter12.pdf" target="_blank">lists</a> (PDF - 6.6MB)</li><li><a href="http://usability.gov/pdfs/chapter13.pdf" target="_blank">screen-based controls (widgets)</a> (PDF - 15.1MB)</li><li><a href="http://usability.gov/pdfs/chapter14.pdf" target="_blank">graphics, images, and multimedia</a> (PDF - 16.8MB)</li><li><a href="http://usability.gov/pdfs/chapter15.pdf" target="_blank">writing Web content</a> (PDF - 11.0MB)</li><li><a href="http://usability.gov/pdfs/chapter16.pdf" target="_blank">content organization</a> (PDF - 10.1MB)</li><li><a href="http://usability.gov/pdfs/chapter17.pdf" target="_blank">search</a> (PDF - 9.1MB)</li><li><a href="http://usability.gov/pdfs/chapter18.pdf" target="_blank">usability testing</a> (PDF - 1MB)</li></ul><br /><br /><div class="embedded-howcast-video" style="font-size: 9px; text-align: center;"><object classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" id="howcastplayer" width="432" height="276"><param name="movie" value="http://www.howcast.com/flash/howcast_player.swf?file=241179&theme=gray"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowScriptAccess" value="always"><param name="flashVars" value="&fs=true"><embed src="http://www.howcast.com/flash/howcast_player.swf?file=241179&theme=gray" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always" flashvars="&fs=true" width="432" height="276"></embed></object><br /><a alt="How To Use Plain Language on a Government Website" class="embedded-playback-url" href="http://www.howcast.com/videos/241179-How-To-Use-Plain-Language-on-a-Government-Website" target="_blank">How To Use Plain Language on a Government Website</a> on Howcast</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4099609111094844748.post-64191843266060520352010-12-10T00:01:00.000-08:002010-12-10T00:01:00.409-08:00Call to Cairo: The night has a thousand eyes<object width="400" height="225"><param name="allowfullscreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><param name="movie" value="http://vimeo.com/moogaloop.swf?clip_id=1524704&server=vimeo.com&show_title=1&show_byline=1&show_portrait=0&color=&fullscreen=1"><embed src="http://vimeo.com/moogaloop.swf?clip_id=1524704&server=vimeo.com&show_title=1&show_byline=1&show_portrait=0&color=&fullscreen=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always" width="400" height="225"></embed></object><br /><a href="http://vimeo.com/">Call to Cairo</a> from <a href="http://vimeo.com/offshoot">Oliver Wilkins</a> on <a href="http://vimeo.com/">Vimeo</a>.<br /><p></p>Francis William Bourdillon (22 March 1852 – 13 January 1921) was a British poet and translator best known for his poem “The Night Has A Thousand Eyes.” While the poem speaks about the power of love, the first line <span style="font-style: italic;">“The night has a thousand eyes”</span> fits so nicely with this time lapse view of Cairo, Egypt by night. Anyway, Bourdillon’s poem goes like this:<br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">The night has a thousand eyes,</span><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">And the day but one;</span><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Yet the light of the bright world dies</span><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">With the dying of the sun.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">The mind has a thousand eyes,</span><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">And the heart but one;</span><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Yet the light of a whole life dies</span><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">When love is done.</span>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4099609111094844748.post-84755839835468744302010-10-02T12:28:00.000-07:002010-10-06T15:48:56.860-07:00Writing for the Web (tips and techniques)<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.internetevangelismday.com/index.php" target="_blank"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 3px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 130px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSWOn3_w-XqQ9p0txyOWhFIDCoWBMzYx3R5EFgi7w0U9Kw3iDoIaSM5tW-1-SxyxIaVsN2QiHXhtZ8odvSONh8lJfCQohXwgRaTKXRW18hF8ayGqgMoM7Xi1OeoMUtMOlzUjOUGRsTXQjI/s200/ieday23lowres.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5525067543854532082" border="0" /></a><span style="font-weight: bold;">Great, useful research by Internet guru Jakob Nielsen from “</span><a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.useit.com/alertbox/" target="_blank">Alertbox: Current Issues in Web Usability</a><span style="font-weight: bold;">” on </span><strong style="font-weight: bold;">how users read</strong><span style="font-weight: bold;"> on the Web and </span><strong style="font-weight: bold;">how authors should write</strong><span style="font-weight: bold;"> their Web pages. Numerous topics include:<br /><br /></span><ol><li>How users <a href="http://www.useit.com/alertbox/9710a.html" title="1,000 word Alertbox essay" target="_blank">read on the Web</a> </li><li><a href="http://www.useit.com/alertbox/percent-text-read.html" target="_blank">How little do users read?</a> - users spend 4.4 seconds for every extra 100 words on a page </li><li><a href="http://www.useit.com/alertbox/reading_pattern.html" target="_blank">F-shaped pattern for reading</a> web content, as seen in eyetracking studies </li><li><a href="http://www.useit.com/alertbox/american-british-english.html" title="Alertbox essay" target="_blank">American English vs. British English</a> </li><li><a href="http://www.useit.com/alertbox/twitter-iterations.html" title="Alertbox essay" target="_blank">Twitter Postings</a>: Iterative Design </li><li><a href="http://www.useit.com/alertbox/print-vs-online-content.html" target="_blank">Writing style for print vs. Web</a></li><li><a href="http://www.useit.com/alertbox/9606.html" title="Alertbox essay" target="_blank">Write inverted pyramids</a> in cyberspace </li><li><a href="http://www.useit.com/alertbox/newsletters.html" target="_blank">Eyetracking of people reading email newsletters</a> </li><li><a href="http://www.useit.com/alertbox/20050314.html">Low-literacy users</a> exhibit different behaviors </li><li><a href="http://www.nngroup.com/reports/pr/" title="218-page report" target="_blank">PR and press releases</a> on corporate websites (103 design guidelines based on usability studies of how journalists visit company sites) </li><li><a href="http://www.useit.com/alertbox/intro-text.html" target="_blank">Blah-blah text</a>: Keep, cut, or kill? </li><li><a href="http://www.nngroup.com/reports/newsletters/" title="544-page report" target="_blank">Email newsletters</a> (165 design guidelines: scannability even more important than for websites) </li><li><a href="http://www.useit.com/alertbox/confirmation-email.html" title="Alertbox essay" target="_blank">Writing transactional email</a> and confirmation messages</li><li><a href="http://www.useit.com/alertbox/content-strategy.html" title="Alertbox essay" target="_blank">Long vs. short articles as content strategy</a></li><li><a href="http://www.useit.com/alertbox/980906.html" title="Alertbox essay">Microcontent</a>: writing headlines, page titles, and email subject lines </li><li><a href="http://www.useit.com/alertbox/teenagers.html" title="Alertbox essay" target="_blank">Teenagers on the Web</a>: poor reading skills and low patience levels mean that text has to be ultra-concise for teens and that more information must be communicated in images </li><li><a href="http://www.useit.com/alertbox/20010722.html" title="Alertbox essay" target="_blank">Tagline blues</a>: what’s the site about? </li><li><a href="http://www.useit.com/alertbox/passive-voice.html" target="_blank">Passive voice is redeemed</a> for Web headings </li><li><a href="http://www.useit.com/alertbox/headlines-bbc.html" target="_blank">World's Best Headlines</a>: BBC News </li><li><a href="http://www.useit.com/alertbox/search-keywords.html" title="Alertbox essay" target="_blank">Use old keywords</a> when writing to be found by search users </li><li><a href="http://www.useit.com/alertbox/writing-numbers.html" target="_blank">Show numbers as numerals</a> when writing for online readers </li><li><a href="http://www.useit.com/alertbox/nanocontent.html" title="Alertbox: First 2 Words: A Signal for the Scanning Eye" target="_blank">Nanocontent: the first two words</a> of links and titles </li><li><a href="http://www.useit.com/alertbox/microcontent-brand-names.html" title="Alertbox essay" target="_blank">Company name first in microcontent?</a> Sometimes! </li><li><a href="http://www.useit.com/alertbox/kindle-writing.html" title="Alertbox essay" target="_blank">Kindle Content Design</a> (writing for Amazon.com’s e-book reader) </li><li><a href="http://www.useit.com/alertbox/ipad-kindle-reading.html" title="Alertbox essay">iPad and Kindle Reading Speeds</a> </li><li><a href="http://www.useit.com/alertbox/20030811.html" title="Alertbox essay" target="_blank">Information pollution</a> </li><li><a href="http://www.useit.com/alertbox/streams-feeds.html" title="Alertbox essay" target="_blank">Distributing Content Through Social Networks and RSS</a> (Facebook, Twitter, MySpace, LinkedIn, and RSS) </li><li><a href="http://www.useit.com/alertbox/blog-front-pages.html" title="Alertbox essay" target="_blank">Corporate Blogs: Front Page Structure</a> </li><li><a href="http://www.nngroup.com/reports/intranet/guidelines/" target="_blank">Intranet usability</a>, including guidelines for intranet content, news on intranets, HR manuals, and how to present information about projects, teams, and individuals on intranets </li><li><strong style="font-weight: normal;">Full paper</strong> documenting the original research from 1997 (long): <a href="http://www.useit.com/papers/webwriting/writing.html" title="8,000 words (42 kB) long paper" target="_blank">Concise, SCANNABLE, and Objective: How to Write for the Web</a> (unfortunately this paper was written for print and not online) </li><li>Case study: <a href="http://www.useit.com/papers/webwriting/rewriting.html" title="1,500 words report" target="_blank">Applying Writing Guidelines to Web Pages</a> <strong style="font-weight: normal;">improved usability by 159%</strong> when rewriting sample pages from a popular website </li><li>How to write <a href="http://www.useit.com/alertbox/about-us-pages.html" target="_blank">“About Us” pages</a> for a company's or organization’s website </li></ol>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4099609111094844748.post-63451566314089736902010-03-01T07:22:00.000-08:002010-11-25T17:25:27.593-08:00Free online books library for students, teachers, and the classic enthusiast<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.readprint.com/" target="_blank"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 131px; height: 209px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGBEh0zT09pSLbRl_bXMzeWTlkvtvGDILnUv74Kn6k36TlJHl6gzhicXxKxdvb5yKwXla1I5z4tjMeTRqJROueIaQhSxt0tHHY6QL_FZ8xrbzX6rplNsEIIDzPj1WJtj-9Egi8-jxTvJ9Q/s400/read+print+combined+graphics.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5415329108633237954" border="0" /></a><a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.readprint.com/" target="_blank">Read Print</a><span style="font-weight: bold;"> offers over 8,000 absolutely free online books by 3,500 authors at your fingertips. </span>Warning: The surgeon general reports that having these many free books at your disposal can be highly addictive. <p><span style="font-weight: bold;">Top Authors:</span> <a href="http://www.readprint.com/author-21/Agatha-Christie-books" target="_blank">Agatha Christie</a>, <a href="http://www.readprint.com/author-28/Charles-Dickens-books" target="_blank">Charles Dickens</a>, <a href="http://www.readprint.com/author-67/Edgar-Allan-Poe-books" target="_blank">Edgar Allan Poe</a>, <a href="http://www.readprint.com/author-66/George-Orwell-books" target="_blank">George Orwell</a>, <a href="http://www.readprint.com/author-4/Jane-Austen-books" target="_blank">Jane Austen</a>, <a href="http://www.readprint.com/author-1/Louisa-May-Alcott-books" target="_blank">Louisa May Alcott</a>, <a href="http://www.readprint.com/author-83/Mark-Twain-books" target="_blank">Mark Twain</a>, <a href="http://www.readprint.com/author-45/O-Henry-books" target="_blank">O Henry</a>, <a href="http://www.readprint.com/author-90/Oscar-Wilde-books" target="_blank">Oscar Wilde</a>, <a href="http://www.readprint.com/author-39/Robert-Frost-books" target="_blank">Robert Frost</a>, <a href="http://www.readprint.com/author-69/William-Shakespeare-books" target="_blank">William Shakespeare</a><o:p></o:p></p> <p><span style="font-weight: bold;">Top Books: </span><a href="http://www.readprint.com/work-1249/1984-George-Orwell" target="_blank">1984</a>, <a href="http://www.readprint.com/work-1250/Animal-Farm-George-Orwell" target="_blank">Animal Farm</a>, <a href="http://www.readprint.com/work-1303/Hamlet-William-Shakespeare" target="_blank">Hamlet</a>, <a href="http://www.readprint.com/work-114/Jane-Eyre-Charlotte-Bronte" target="_blank">Jane Eyre</a>, <a href="http://www.readprint.com/work-1233/Paradise-Lost-John-Milton" target="_blank">Paradise Lost</a>, <a href="http://www.readprint.com/work-71/Peter-Pan-James-M-Barrie" target="_blank">Peter Pan</a>, <a href="http://www.readprint.com/work-36/Pride-and-Prejudice-Jane-Austen">Pride and Prejudice</a>, <a href="http://www.readprint.com/work-186/The-Canterbury-Tales-Geoffrey-Chaucer" target="_blank">The Canterbury Tales</a>, <a href="http://www.readprint.com/work-679/The-Great-Gatsby-F-Scott-Fitzgerald" target="_blank">The Great Gatsby</a>, <a href="http://www.readprint.com/work-1467/The-Invisible-Man-H-G-Wells" target="_blank">The Invisible Man</a></p><span style="font-weight: bold;">Categories:</span> <a href="http://www.readprint.com/books-7/Essays" target="_blank">Essays</a>, <a href="http://www.readprint.com/books-2/Fiction" target="_blank">Fiction</a>, <a href="http://www.readprint.com/books-1/Non-Fiction" target="_blank">Non-Fiction</a>, <a href="http://www.readprint.com/books-6/Plays" target="_blank">Plays</a>, <a href="http://www.readprint.com/books-8/Poetry" target="_blank">Poetry</a>, <a href="http://www.readprint.com/books-9/Short-Stories" target="_blank">Short Stories</a><br /><o:p></o:p> <p><o:p> </o:p></p> <p><span style="font-weight: bold;">Browse by author’s last name:</span> <a href="http://www.readprint.com/online-books/a" target="_blank">A</a> <a href="http://www.readprint.com/online-books/b" target="_blank">B</a> <a href="http://www.readprint.com/online-books/c" target="_blank">C</a> <a href="http://www.readprint.com/online-books/d" target="_blank">D</a> <a href="http://www.readprint.com/online-books/e" target="_blank">E</a> <a href="http://www.readprint.com/online-books/f" target="_blank">F</a> <a href="http://www.readprint.com/online-books/g" target="_blank">G</a> <a href="http://www.readprint.com/online-books/h" target="_blank">H</a> <a href="http://www.readprint.com/online-books/i" target="_blank">I</a> <a href="http://www.readprint.com/online-books/j" target="_blank">J</a> <a href="http://www.readprint.com/online-books/k" target="_blank">K</a> <a href="http://www.readprint.com/online-books/l" target="_blank">L</a> <a href="http://www.readprint.com/online-books/m" target="_blank">M</a> <a href="http://www.readprint.com/online-books/n" target="_blank">N</a> <a href="http://www.readprint.com/online-books/o" target="_blank">O</a> <a href="http://www.readprint.com/online-books/p" target="_blank">P</a> <a href="http://www.readprint.com/online-books/q" target="_blank">Q</a> <a href="http://www.readprint.com/online-books/r" target="_blank">R</a> <a href="http://www.readprint.com/online-books/s" target="_blank">S</a> <a href="http://www.readprint.com/online-books/t" target="_blank">T</a> <a href="http://www.readprint.com/online-books/u" target="_blank">U</a> <a href="http://www.readprint.com/online-books/v" target="_blank">V</a> <a href="http://www.readprint.com/online-books/w" target="_blank">W</a> <a href="http://www.readprint.com/online-books/x" target="_blank">X</a> <a href="http://www.readprint.com/online-books/y" target="_blank">Y</a> <o:p></o:p><span style="line-height: 150%;font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" ><a style="font-family: arial;" href="http://www.readprint.com/online-books/z" target="_blank"></a></span></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4099609111094844748.post-89704931083159597342010-02-26T18:46:00.000-08:002010-02-28T19:04:02.278-08:00Liberty’s thoughts<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://ibleedred.multiply.com/" target="_blank"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 3px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 83px; height: 100px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgaN2I-XbTI56VKXJamjc1yvlRT_8TStbVuL118vkTN_D3AxDZi0oLFLIqttBrO34KfjoOXNRRhVnk-LsvaLBUf5f4hyphenhyphenMaWTJih65cjkLJaFlx5dcoE8xnL7lj-c5q76JDITf8EDONayW7/s400/liberty+2.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5443494117388358562" border="0" /></a><span style="font-weight: bold;">Liberty Rose Ayon was one of my Advanced Composition students a month ago. Besides the article posted below, you can read other entries in her <a href="http://ibleedred.multiply.com/" target="_blank">blog</a>.</span><br /><br /><a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://ibleedred.multiply.com/journal/item/3/my_poignant_reality">my poignant reality</a><span style="font-weight: bold;"> (December 24, 2007, 6:15 AM)</span><br /><br />i think the Christmas Spirit has gone somewhere but visit me<br /><br />i can't help but feel nothing<br /><br />a few months before the calendar showed December, i felt a little apprehensive for i kind of expect what this month will be for me...i am once again feeling and living the real-what-my-life-is...believe it or not, but behind this smiling eyes are tears roaming just around the corner...<br />i am really sad...<br /><br />sad that i won't be spending this Christmas Eve with my mom and dad...<br /><br />sad knowing that my big brother will be spending his Christmas Eve alone too...<br /><br />sad that i am not even brave enough to let my tears show...<br /><br />sad that i dare not even talk about and with the 'elephant in the room'<br /><br />sad that i have to end and remember this year marked with a broken friendship<br /><br />sad that separation is a reality way too painful<br /><br />sad that i am sad<br /><br />yet, i know that Christmas is not about emotions and capturing all the shiny glittering lights engulf you into feeling that wonderful Christmas Spirit...Christmas is more than that...it is remembering how God showed His love by giving Jesus to us...Jesus, Who came as a Babe to become the Man that will die on the cross for our sins...<br /><br />God must have been sad too to let His Son leave Him and come to this world...<br /><br />i have to feel this now though...ignoring this feeling would just lengthen this state...<br /><br />but like everything else in this world, this will end too...<br /><br />this will end<br />...Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4099609111094844748.post-85895459394264883862009-12-10T00:27:00.000-08:002009-12-10T00:27:00.546-08:00Remember a missionary this Christmas<object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube-nocookie.com/v/kuX7OA6nRC4&hl=en_US&fs=1&rel=0"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube-nocookie.com/v/kuX7OA6nRC4&hl=en_US&fs=1&rel=0" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Missionary Christmas</span><br /><br />Christmas was special when he was a child,<br />food and presents and carols and smiles.<br /><br />Tree decorating was great family fun,<br />and cold nights by the fire watching old reruns.<br /><br />But then one day God spoke to his heart,<br />and he gave up his culture to make a new start.<br /><br />Now taking the Gospel to far off lands,<br />his Christmas is different than what he had planned.<br /><br />The weather is sticky, with stench in the air,<br />the needs that surround him are terrible to bear.<br /><br />Instead of carols and Christmas bells,<br />he hears chanting and the casting of spells.<br /><br />The childhood dream of Christmas in the snow,<br />was left at the altar when he decided to go.<br /><br />If only the ones who he left behind,<br />would remember his face during this special time.<br /><br />And send him a note, or a word of thanks<br />or maybe even something he could put in the bank.<br /><br />Then Christmas would not be so tough this year<br />and even for the missionary it would “good cheer.”<br /><br />©Wayne Dillard 2004<br />www.prayercentral.netUnknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4099609111094844748.post-20451503502018997342009-09-03T08:39:00.000-07:002009-09-02T18:08:55.117-07:00Picture no. 19 (series): Learning to see<strong>Way back in 1989, I enrolled in a fifteen Saturday black and white photography course in an art school.</strong> For the first assignment, the instructor asked the class to use one roll of film to shoot lines, shapes, form, textures, etc. <strong>On your own, therefore, using whatever camera you have, shoot as many pictures as you can of lines, shapes, forms, etc. This exercise will teach you how to break down an image into the different elements.</strong><br /><br />Later on you can combine these elements into a photograph that appeals to your own sense of beauty. <strong>Hopefully, other people will share your joy and sense of fulfillment over the pictures you have taken. My idea of beauty, if you care to know (please, please), is embodied in the Japanese ideal of “elegant simplicity.”</strong><br /><br /><span style="font-size:130%;"><strong>The human eye and the camera see things differently</strong></span><br /><strong><br />Charles Darwin, father of evolution, once said, <em>“When I think of the complexity of the human eye, I shudder.”</em></strong> With the interplay of rods and cones which enable it, among other things, to distinguish numerous shades of colors, the human eye is so enormously complex that evolution fails dismally in explaining it. (Incidentally, two books I highly recommend to you are <em>“Fearfully and Wonderfully Made”</em> and <em>“In His Image”</em> by Philip Yancey and Dr. Paul Brand. These books are about the wonders and complexities of the human body.<br /><br /><strong>A basic principle you have to understand and always keep in mind is that the human eye and the camera see things differently. This is why, a lot of times, we get disappointed with the results of our pictures.</strong> Whenever we look at the subject we want to shoot, we always see a “focused” image, that is, a sharp image from foreground to background. <strong>This is because the eye, even without us consciously knowing or doing anything about it, adjusts itself to focus on whatever we are presently looking at, excluding other details in the scene. The camera cannot do this.</strong><br /><br />If you’re using a manual focus camera, you have to turn the focusing ring until you get the right focus, that is, the image appears sharp and clear as you look at it through the viewfinder. With autofocusing systems, you just depress the shutter release a little bit and the camera automatically adjusts itself to focus on your subject.<br /><br /><a href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/1432/1782/1600/learning%20to%20see%20gerald%20clutered%20background%2004.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; display: block; text-align: left;" alt="the eye and the camera see things differently; cluttered background; photo by Atty. Galacio" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/1432/1782/320/learning%20to%20see%20gerald%20clutered%20background%2004.jpg" border="0" /></a><strong>The difference in what the eye and what the camera see oftentimes result in a photograph that contains a lot of clutter or distracting details, which we didn’t notice while looking at the subject through the viewfinder.</strong> Take a look at the picture to the left (a choral competition) for example. When I was looking at the scene with the camera, I didn’t notice all the students at the background because they looked fuzzy or out of focus in the viewfinder. The camera however recorded everything - the performing students, and all the distracting details in the background.<br /><br /><a href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/1432/1782/1600/learning%20to%20see%20jeremy%2005.1.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; display: block; text-align: left;" alt="My cute nephew JR; shallow depth of field; out of focus background; photo by Atty. Galacio" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/1432/1782/320/learning%20to%20see%20jeremy%2005.1.jpg" border="0" /></a><strong>Notice for example the picture of my cute nephew JR. (He’s cute because he looks like me!) Please notice that while JR himself is sharp and clear, the background details are deliberately blurred and out of focus.</strong><p></p><p><strong></strong><strong>Professional photographers oftentimes derisively use the term “record shot.”</strong> Hey! “Derisive” is such a big word; I’d better check my dictionary to check if I got the spelling right! The term “record shot” is used to describe certain pictures that simply have to be taken for record purposes (to be redundant about it), or because the person paying for the photographer’s services simply wanted to have certain subjects shot. Meaning, there is nothing artistic in the subject matter or in the technique used; the photographer simply pointed his or her cameras at the subject, and took the shot.<br /><strong></strong></p><p><span style="font-size:130%;"><strong>Photographs have the power to convey a mood or share your insights with others</strong></span></p><p><strong>If you are using your camera just to do record shots, you are definitely missing out on what photography is all about as an art form. Photographs have the power to convey a mood or share your insights with others. All you really have to do is to begin seeing things, not just looking at them.</strong> Remember what the fox said to the Little Prince? <em>“What is essential is invisible to the eyes; one must look with the heart.”</em></p><p><em></em> <strong>Photographers can see beauty where other people can only see mundane, crass, everyday things. Photographers, like all truly creative artists, have learned, as Walt Whitman (the father of free verse, the poet of democracy) once wrote, <em>“to see beauty in a single blade of grass.”</em> Wow!</strong><br /><strong></strong></p><p style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-size:130%;">Ways of developing your creative eye</span></p><p><strong>The question most of you must be asking desperately by now is, <em>“How? How do I develop this visual awareness, this creative eye?”</em></strong> While some people are blessed with innate artistic talents, most of us can learn how to be creative with a camera. <strong>As Ernst Haas once said, <em>“If art is aristocratic, then photography is its democratic voice.”</em></strong> The following are some of the techniques in developing your creative eye.<br /><br /><a href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/1432/1782/1600/learning%20to%20see%20reflections%20gym%20rizal%20hall%2008.1.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; display: block; text-align: left;" alt="Rizal High School 1989; learning to see; reflections; photo by Atty. Galacio" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/1432/1782/320/learning%20to%20see%20reflections%20gym%20rizal%20hall%2008.1.jpg" border="0" /></a>Look at the picture to the left. Since you can’t turn your computer monitor upside down, stand up and then look at this picture with your head upside down. I know it’s a little bit acrobatic but hey it’s worth it! You will know what this picture is all about. <strong>The image of the trees, students and building are all repeated as reflections in the water in the foreground area. (This is probably the best picture I have ever taken in my life.)<br /></strong><br />I took this picture shown above way back in October 1989. I’ve noticed previously that every time it rained hard, the front area of the gymnasium of Rizal High School in Pasig would become flooded and there would be reflections on the water of the trees and that building on the background. I decided that this would make a good subject for a photograph. And so I brought my beloved Canon AE-1 Program everyday with me to school, and waited for the rain to come. I brought along my camera every day for one month, and it didn’t rain for one whole month! And so one day, I simply gave up and left my camera at home. Guess what happened? It rained hard that day!<br /><br />I went home after the lunch break (pizza!), got my camera and loaded it with Negrapan (a black and white film manufactured in Spain). I knew I couldn’t use color film because the water was muddy brown in color; with monochrome film, it didn’t matter. I didn’t have a zoom lens at that time and so I used my Canon FD f/1.8 normal lens. I got back to school at around four in the afternoon. I focused on the reflections, and because it was late afternoon, I was forced to use a slow shutter speed of 1/30 sec. with an f/5.6 lens opening, for the right depth of field. (Later on we’ll discuss shutter speeds, lens openings and depth of field.)<br /><br /><a href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/1432/1782/1600/learning%20to%20see%20dancer%20letter%20v%2002.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; display: block; text-align: left;" alt="Pay attention to details; photo by Atty. Galacio" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/1432/1782/320/learning%20to%20see%20dancer%20letter%20v%2002.jpg" border="0" /></a><strong>Pay attention to details! When you’re just starting to learn about photography, don’t consider anything too small, too trivial or too insignificant.</strong> The folk dancer in picture above has a V-shaped black ribbon on her costume; notice how the out of focus highlights on the background form an inverted letter V.<br /><br /><a href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/1432/1782/1600/learning%20to%20see%20kathleen%20shoe%2007.1.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; display: block; text-align: left;" alt="Pay attention to details; photo by Atty. Galacio" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/1432/1782/320/learning%20to%20see%20kathleen%20shoe%2007.1.jpg" border="0" /></a><strong>Pay attention to details! When you’re just starting to learn about photography, don’t consider anything too small, too trivial or too insignificant!</strong> If you look hard enough, you will notice that cute ribbon tied to my student's shoe buckle ... you know how vain girls are! I was able to take only one shot before my student kicked me away!<br /><br /><a href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/1432/1782/1600/learning%20to%20see%20four%20boys%20water%20pipes%20pattern%2006.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; display: block; text-align: left;" alt="Pay attention to details; serendipity; photo by Atty. Galacio" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/1432/1782/320/learning%20to%20see%20four%20boys%20water%20pipes%20pattern%2006.jpg" border="0" /></a>How many pipes are there in the picture above? Two. How many boys are standing up? Two. How many boys are sitting down? Two. How many boys are looking towards the right? Two. How many boys are looking towards the camera? Two.<br /><br /><strong>Look at paintings; watch good music videos. Look at comic books on superheroes; they have brilliant colors, subtle shadings, clean and dynamic lines.</strong> By the way, which superhero works as a photojournalist? Peter Parker, a.k.a. Spiderman!<br /><br /><strong>Read poetry, short stories and other creative fiction, and then visualize in your mind the ideas, emotions expressed in them.</strong> One time, after reading Tennyson’s poem <em>“Flower in a Crannied Wall,”</em> I took my camera and for nearly a week, shot a lot of walls. I couldn’t find a single flower in a crannied wall but I did find a lot of small plants, a lot of moss between cracks in the walls, and our neighbors had a jolly good time watching me inspecting and shooting close-ups of walls in our compound!<br /><br /><strong>Practice visualizing things.</strong> In the novel <em>“The Heart is a Lonely Hunter”</em> written by Carson McCullers, Mickey, the main character, wanted desperately to learn how to play the violin. She drew a violin on a piece of cardboard, cut it out and then listened for weeks to the classical music being played by a neighbor. Wow, talk about visualization! What happened? Did Mickey become a world-class violinist? Of course not! What do you think this is, real life? Get real! This is fiction! Mickey became a waitress at the end of the novel.<br /><br /><a href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/1432/1782/1600/learning%20to%20see%20edsa%20revolution%2003.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; display: block; text-align: left;" alt="EDSA Revolution 1986; symbolisms and relationships; photo by Atty. Galacio" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/1432/1782/320/learning%20to%20see%20edsa%20revolution%2003.jpg" border="0" /></a><strong>Look for symbolisms and relationships.</strong> I took this picture way back in 1986 during the original EDSA Revolution. What are the symbolisms here? The soldier is the defender of freedom and democracy (symbolized by the Philippine flag in the background) and the child he’s carrying is the beneficiary of that freedom and democracy.<br /><br /><a href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/1432/1782/1600/learning%20to%20see%20bags%20building%2001.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; display: block; text-align: left;" alt="Symbolisms and relationships; photo by Atty. Galacio" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/1432/1782/320/learning%20to%20see%20bags%20building%2001.jpg" border="0" /></a><strong><br /></strong></p><p><strong><br /></strong></p><p><strong><br /></strong></p><p><strong><br /></strong></p><p><strong><br /></strong></p><p><strong>Look for symbolism and relationships.</strong> I tried to say in the picture to the left that students (represented by the bags) were waiting for the building to be finished. I know, I know, it’s really corny!<br /><br /><a href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/1432/1782/1600/elements%20rubber%20doll%20milk%20cans.1.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; display: block; text-align: left;" alt="form; still life; 1992; photo by Atty. Galacio" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/1432/1782/320/elements%20rubber%20doll%20milk%20cans.1.jpg" border="0" /></a><strong><br /></strong></p><p><strong><br /></strong></p><p><strong><br /></strong></p><p><strong><br /></strong></p><p><strong><br /></strong></p><p><strong><br /></strong></p><p><strong>Practice doing still life.</strong> These milk cans were rusting away near a santol tree. I’ve seen them several times before but I felt that they needed something else to perk up the image. I looked around, saw an old rubber doll my cute nephew (who looks like me) had outgrown, and placed it inside one of the milk cans.</p><p></p><span style="font-weight: bold;">What does this discussion have to do with learning English through creative writing? Well, you will find out that different people see different things even when viewing the same photograph.</span> This makes writing through the use of pictures a very interesting class activity.<br /><br />You can also teach your students (if you are a teacher) or learn as a student how to think critically. Try this activity: <a href="http://www.chron.com/cie/adboard_lesson/teach_them_to_see_plans.doc" target="_blank">Teach Them To See - Higher Level Thinking And Tasks Through Photojournalism</a>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4099609111094844748.post-75416538584527133362009-08-10T19:45:00.000-07:002009-08-10T05:33:06.034-07:00Through the distance ...<a href="http://www.heartlight.org" target="_blank"><img style="margin: 0pt 50px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhud9LhyxKNdunDbH_zSfzDJ82eoGASpQGNDC2CnbZ1ndo3dycrzxahP58FdWCsG811pc-EozuSIgphuDAXuSbhPFkGzjIIzefaYd6vrMJHe-6DhF7YlNxa7nbFSwBaWzwmGUDwL48JLQQ/s400/edited+romans8_38.jpg" alt="I have not given up hope that it will still be you and me in marriage and ministry." id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5368237781394424066" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">“And Mizpah; for he said, The LORD watch between me and thee, when we are absent one from another.”</span> (Gen 31:49)<br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">“Is the Lord going to use in a great way? Quite probably. Is He going to prepare you as you expect? Probably not. And if you’re not careful, you will look at the trials, the tests, the sudden interruptions, the disappointments, the sadness, the lost jobs, the failed opportunities, the broken moments, and you will think, He’s through with me, He’s finished with me, when in fact, He is equipping you.”</span> (The Mystery of God’s Will, by Chuck Swindoll)Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4099609111094844748.post-64451687588464448762009-02-13T17:08:00.000-08:002009-02-13T17:46:20.956-08:00Daily writing tips for students, teachers and others<a href="http://www.dailywritingtips.com/" target="_blank"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 246px; height: 55px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiU5cKPbIC9QdS61A4zYmUDRWJ8uWi7LLiUIk-_DvC9GM1WND0AmroSZPlWxzM98kc6n50BXcyd1nRYnlnaAdIQ_DZWQCthD57_EZx3co8dZ8q0zCEBGwXa9vC9H08zrVTq0XFZpuwqqjdX/s400/daily+writing+tips+graphic.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5302456850088410898" border="0" /></a><span style="font-weight: bold;">Whether you are a student, teacher, an attorney, manager, or blogger, writing skills are essential for your success. </span>Considering the rise of the information age, they are even more important, as people are surrounded by e-mails, wikis, social networks and so on. It can be difficult to hone one’s writing skills within this fast paced environment. <span style="font-weight: bold;"><a href="http://www.dailywritingtips.com/" target="_blank">Daily Writing Tips</a> is a blog where you will find simple yet effective tips to improve your writing.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Categories </span>include <a href="http://www.dailywritingtips.com/category/book-reviews/" target="_blank">Book Reviews</a>, <a href="http://www.dailywritingtips.com/category/business-writing/" target="_blank">Business Writing</a>, <a href="http://www.dailywritingtips.com/category/competitions/" target="_blank">Competitions</a>, <a href="http://www.dailywritingtips.com/category/expressions/" target="_blank">Expressions</a>, <a href="http://www.dailywritingtips.com/category/fiction-writing/" target="_blank">Fiction Writing</a>, <a href="http://www.dailywritingtips.com/category/freelance-writing/" target="_blank">Freelance Writing</a>, <a href="http://www.dailywritingtips.com/category/general/" target="_blank">General</a>, <a href="http://www.dailywritingtips.com/category/grammar/" target="_blank">Grammar</a>, <a href="http://www.dailywritingtips.com/category/grammar-101/" target="_blank">Grammar 101</a>, <a href="http://www.dailywritingtips.com/category/misused-words/" target="_blank">Misused Words</a>, <a href="http://www.dailywritingtips.com/category/punctuation/" target="_blank">Punctuation</a>, <a href="http://www.dailywritingtips.com/category/spelling/" target="_blank">Spelling</a>, <a href="http://www.dailywritingtips.com/category/vocabulary/" target="_blank">Vocabulary</a>, <a href="http://www.dailywritingtips.com/category/word-of-the-day/" target="_blank">Word of the Day</a>, and <a href="http://www.dailywritingtips.com/category/writing-basics/" target="_blank">Writing Basics</a>.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Most popular articles are:</span> 40 Yiddish Words You Should Know; The Impotence of Proofreading; 6 Foreign Expressions You Should Know; Let the Word Do the Work; 10 Rules for Writing Numbers and Numerals; <a href="http://www.dailywritingtips.com/50-incorrect-pronunciations-that-make-you-look-dumb/" target="_blank">50 Incorrect Pronunciations That You Should Avoid</a>; 12 Greek Words You Should Know; <a href="http://www.dailywritingtips.com/34-writing-tips-that-will-make-you-a-better-writer/"target="_blank">34 Writing Tips That Will Make You a Better Writer</a>; <a href="http://www.dailywritingtips.com/gross-writing-errors-found-on-the-web/"target="_blank">Gross Writing Errors on the Web</a>; Creative Writing 101; Latin Words and Expressions; Usage That Provokes “Blackboard Moments”; and <a href="http://www.dailywritingtips.com/resume-writing-tips/"target="_blank">44 Resume Writing Tips</a>.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.dailywritingtips.com/tests/" target="_blank"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 132px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtjc-CUuVHKg5ZibhMtGEFjnQM2N8SYSke3C7OtSExFckQzn1g0b5-u_ojAbrNMEOmu_paXjIkMNIGlFa9zPPuSWGedCqmVKPGh1Mp8pK3firgH8LxCVxubllVCS7EOiIoscRsxG81UHjz/s200/dwt_tests.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5302460098695413826" border="0" /></a><span style="font-weight: bold;">You can also measure your writing skills with DWT’s monthly updated tests.</span> Current tests include <a href="http://www.dailywritingtips.com/vocabulary-test-1/" target="_blank">Vocabulary Test 1</a>, <a href="http://www.dailywritingtips.com/spelling-test-1/" target="_blank">Spelling Test 1</a>, <a href="http://www.dailywritingtips.com/grammar-test-1/" target="_blank">Grammar Test 1</a>, and <a href="http://www.dailywritingtips.com/vocabulary-test-2/" target="_blank">Vocabulary Test 2</a>.<br /><br />You can get DWT via <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/DailyWritingTips">RSS Feed</a>, or <a href="http://www.feedburner.com/fb/a/emailverifySubmit?feedId=924492&loc=en_US">by email, </a>and stay tuned for your writing tips!Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4099609111094844748.post-37506320133230027512009-01-05T06:51:00.000-08:002009-01-11T19:35:42.627-08:00Free photos for Christian publications<a href="http://www.christianphotos.net/" target="_blank"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 206px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZBNokvRzAF-mB0YnbnGeYXrejFN6h3Ss0iDaxtTTBYH2jx7Sd7YER-pFZIDAfHqmwHjZXyQwRDtaV9nGlAr7mu2-8YCOE8RL5RbYRR35XBk_OVuTJ8eXCcPBUWdp7hnarZm-_5ChDIfWb/s320/pictures.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5290245186218807570" border="0" /></a><a href="http://www.christianphotos.net/" target="_blank">ChristianPhotos.net</a> is a leap of faith. Everything is free - you can download high resolution stock photography for Christian purposes without having to pay anything - expenses are covered by donations and ads. The photos can be used freely in Christian advertisements, program booklets, bulletins, invitations, newsletters, religious education materials, flyers, posters and any other project for which photos are needed. The vision of ChristianPhotos.net is simple: it wants to help churches to publish better material for spreading the word of Gospel. You can also <a href="http://www.christianphotos.net/submit.php" target="_blank">submit your own photos</a>.<br /><br />Photo categories include <a href="http://www.christianphotos.net/category.php?category=Religious" target="_blank">Religious</a>, <a href="http://www.christianphotos.net/category.php?category=People" target="_blank">People</a>, <a href="http://www.christianphotos.net/category.php?category=Animals" target="_blank">Animals</a>, <a href="http://www.christianphotos.net/category.php?category=Scenery" target="_blank">Scenery</a>, <a href="http://www.christianphotos.net/category.php?category=Plants" target="_blank">Plants</a>, <a href="http://www.christianphotos.net/category.php?category=Macro" target="_blank">Macro</a>, <a href="http://www.christianphotos.net/category.php?category=Artistic">Artistic</a>, <a href="http://www.christianphotos.net/category.php?category=Objects" target="_blank">Objects</a>, and <a href="http://www.christianphotos.net/category.php?category=Uncategorized" target="_blank">Uncategorized</a>.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.christianphotos.net/application.php" target="_blank">Apply now for a free account.</a>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4099609111094844748.post-44831378793008453792008-12-21T18:04:00.001-08:002008-12-21T18:20:02.881-08:00Picture no. 18 (series): Clouds and nostalgia<p><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUU30rU1qTB7XWlY5sae6CgtLBzUOU3EM3_OP3_9ucH_WKNSBgT8jwAL7zCIr860gbPqdUPKt8tbLsCTyAbtOKYOVQyoSv0Kjsuw1d_YvtEkmnNLMitu-9Rp8-3TNd-BDwX_Y4OFZk24WO/s1600-h/Clouds+from+both+sides+now+white+background+picture+series.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 289px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUU30rU1qTB7XWlY5sae6CgtLBzUOU3EM3_OP3_9ucH_WKNSBgT8jwAL7zCIr860gbPqdUPKt8tbLsCTyAbtOKYOVQyoSv0Kjsuw1d_YvtEkmnNLMitu-9Rp8-3TNd-BDwX_Y4OFZk24WO/s400/Clouds+from+both+sides+now+white+background+picture+series.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5282431980883782866" /></a>These two pictures show the athletic oval and the Main Building of Rizal High School, Pasig City, Metro Manila. </p><p>In the 1990’s the Guinness Book of World Records credited the school as the largest high school in the world, with its enrollment reaching a high of 26,000 students at one point in time.</p><p>I took the sepia-toned picture in 1995 and the colored picture in 1996. If you are a beginning photographer wondering how you can get great cloud shots, you can simply fit a filter (polarizing or graduated) on the lens of your single lens reflex camera.<br /></p>Way back in 1969, I was a first year student in Rizal High School. Back then it was better known as the Rizal Provincial High School. Anyway, what I remember most about those youthful days was the Field Demonstration held annually in the oval. The most popular song in the Philippines at that time was Joni Mitchell’s song “Both Sides Now.” Some of you may be familiar with the famous lines from that song:<br /><blockquote><em>Bows and flows of angel hair and ice cream castles in the air<br />And feather canyons everywhere, I’ve looked at clouds that way.<br />But now they only block the sun, they rain and snow on everyone.<br />So many things I would have done but clouds got in my way.<br /><br />I’ve looked at clouds from both sides now,<br />From up and down, and still somehow<br />It’s cloud illusions I recall.<br />I really don’t know clouds at all.</em></blockquote><strong>I don't know about you but for me, sepia-toned or black and white pictures can evoke nostalgia better than colored pictures. Posted below are some quotations about nostalgia:</strong><br /><br />Owens Lee Pomeroy: “Nostalgia is like a grammar lesson: you find the present tense, but the past perfect!” <br /><br />Author Unknown: “People seem to get nostalgic about a lot of things they weren't so crazy about the first time around.” <br /><br />Bill Vaughn: It’s never safe to be nostalgic about something until you're absolutely certain there's no chance of its coming back. <br /><br />Florence King: “True nostalgia is an ephemeral composition of disjointed memories.” <br /><br />Lou Reed: “I don't like nostalgia unless it's mine.” <br /><br />Ted Koppel: “It becomes increasingly easy, as you get older, to drown in nostalgia.” <br /><br />Doug Larson: “Nostalgia is a file that removes the rough edges from the good old days.” <br /><br />Will Rogers: “Things ain't what they used to be and probably never was.” Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4099609111094844748.post-64747725104750850972008-12-10T03:29:00.000-08:002008-12-09T11:29:33.610-08:00Picture no. 17: Serendipity<a href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/1432/1782/1600/elements%20stuffed%20toys%20hanging%20out%20together.1.jpg"><img style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="Happy birthday!" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/1432/1782/320/elements%20stuffed%20toys%20hanging%20out%20together.1.jpg" border="0" /></a>I took this picture way back 1991 or 1992. After a lunchtime siesta, I got up, went out of my room and then I saw these stuffed toys just hanging around. I got my beloved Canon AE-1 program camera with an FD 50 mm f/1.8 lens. I centered the stuffed toys in the viewfinder and filled the frame (this is a basic technique in photography).I’m sure the girls among you will agree with me that this picture is probably the cutest picture in the history of photography!Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4099609111094844748.post-49237290297693202392008-11-26T18:28:00.000-08:002008-11-26T18:51:05.210-08:00Picture no. 16: The toys and joys of childhood<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOWLcXe7PRzK3qZlJxLBaZWnmA8umjsEwPx3e8FgD5eIyGjj2I34Cxh7DcyD5Fcu9YP9MxggUYbs1YNDYv48wa171Rr1tzocAPkJWc5E8bhj16u13JGuUYKFPKgAkM2LxbLXYbDhs97puT/s1600-h/rubber+doll+in+milk+cans.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5273159902771480130" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 80px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 279px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOWLcXe7PRzK3qZlJxLBaZWnmA8umjsEwPx3e8FgD5eIyGjj2I34Cxh7DcyD5Fcu9YP9MxggUYbs1YNDYv48wa171Rr1tzocAPkJWc5E8bhj16u13JGuUYKFPKgAkM2LxbLXYbDhs97puT/s400/rubber+doll+in+milk+cans.jpg" border="0" /></a> Eugene Field (September 2, 1850 - November 4, 1895) was an American writer best known for writing poetry for children and humorous essays. Some of you might have come across his melancholy poem “<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Little_Boy_Blue_(Poem)" target="_blank">Little Boy Blue</a>” with such lines as:<br /><br /><div><blockquote><p><em>The little toy dog is covered with dust,<br />But sturdy and staunch he stands;<br />And the little toy soldier is red with rust,<br />And his musket moulds in his hands.<br />Time was when the little toy dog was new,<br />And the soldier was passing fair;<br />And that was the time when our Little Boy Blue<br />Kissed them and put them there. </em></p><p><em>“Now, don't you go till I come,” he said,<br />“And don't you make any noise!”<br />So, toddling off to his trundle-bed,<br />He dreamt of the pretty toys;<br />And, as he was dreaming, an angel song<br />Awakened our Little Boy Blue---<br />Oh! the years are many, the years are long,<br />But the little toy friends are true!</em></p></blockquote>I took the picture above in the early 1990’s. I used Kodak T-Max black and white film (if I remember correctly) and my beloved Canon AE-1 Program camera with a Vivitar 28-210 mm zoom lens. I first saw the rusted cans of baby milk products but I felt that something was missing. I looked around the area and then I then saw an old rubber doll that my nephew (five years old at the time) had discarded. I placed the rubber doll in one of the cans and then I shot this picture. </div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4099609111094844748.post-31680129937536822942008-10-15T19:25:00.000-07:002008-10-15T19:28:38.952-07:00Free online resources on creative and journalistic writing for teachers and students<a href="http://www.writingfix.com/" target="_blank"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5257565155051534018" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-fUTjcjTYNmaZDECzIRWAluKB607CHN_OVwP8MYXe-4aM_bqTN-BNRfnYkAbiWQadWV1y0KfNkfcCJ9hI3k_8s0QCbH0LGLevpMA3D0iFEYa0WtyS8CtdzYNzaTcCrx891BO0Jb4gKes/s400/WritingFix_Logo.jpg" border="0" /></a><a href="http://writingfix.com/" target="_blank">WritingFix</a> is a global resource for Writing teachers and students with hundreds of free interactive writing prompts, lessons and quality resources for classrooms where writing is taught, not just assigned.<br /><br />Some of the interactive writing prompts are:<br /><br /><a href="http://writingfix.com/classroom_tools/dailypromptgenerator.htm" target="_blank">Daily Writing Prompts</a><br /><a href="http://writingfix.com/writingfix_for_kids.htm" target="_blank">Interactive Writing Prompts for K-6th Grade</a><br /><a href="http://writingfix.com/right_brain.htm" target="_blank">Right-Brained Writing Prompts</a> using serendipity and creativity to launch a piece of writing<br /><a href="http://writingfix.com/left_brain.htm" target="_blank">Left-Brained writing prompts</a><br /><a href="http://www.unr.edu/educ/nnwp/Mini_Lesson_of_the_Month_Club.html" target="_blank">Writing Lesson of the Month Network</a> for teachers around the worldUnknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4099609111094844748.post-20984339241162516852008-09-20T03:19:00.000-07:002008-09-20T03:22:23.791-07:00“The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe”<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRZSE9cM9oPXmwgnvaQE1Nl49QThCZdHf3PgFYWplE4lSO3RxMpPeWFUSwW3f5TVkT_j_G-AypYspR_rhpHBrRTLSkjMYatQK-qOliGipTa-lfO9-5315fOfDlPxigiZ8Pso7K57unEon2/s1600-h/narnai+story+edited.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5248046819454148626" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRZSE9cM9oPXmwgnvaQE1Nl49QThCZdHf3PgFYWplE4lSO3RxMpPeWFUSwW3f5TVkT_j_G-AypYspR_rhpHBrRTLSkjMYatQK-qOliGipTa-lfO9-5315fOfDlPxigiZ8Pso7K57unEon2/s400/narnai+story+edited.jpg" border="0" /></a> “<a href="http://www.narniastory.com/">The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe</a>” from C. S. Lewis’ Chronicles of Narnia has become a beloved classic the world over. Four children walk through a seemingly ordinary wardrobe into the magical land of Narnia. A fantastic adventure begins to unfold as Aslan the Great Lion is pitted against the evil White Witch. Battles are fought, heroes are made, and one of the children has committed a crime that demands the death penalty... What will happen? Take off on an adventure you never imagined ...<br /><br /><a href="http://www.narniastory.com/asxfiles/listen.asx">Listen</a> now to “The Narnia Story” or <a href="http://websrvr25ca.audiovideoweb.com/ca25web26049/narnia/narnia.zip">download the MP3</a>. (If you have trouble extracting a zipped file, you may need to install a free program. Just click this link to download a <a href="http://www.download.com/3000-2250_4-10228628.html">free copy of ZipReader</a>.)Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4099609111094844748.post-37149601159567197132008-09-06T02:33:00.000-07:002008-09-10T01:52:24.092-07:00Picture no. 15: Footprints in the corridor<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiz-1tk00ey7IGRL8bXi6PEV2IrK61RjOh9KJ_-hmGhb84Bk_ItDMtpPHhWuHBIE3OnZ486mNkBDkSWyEpCh-AMyLDgI2xQRdmpGDRWWYSSescAkQSaFvBZkQOM8Dwm__8cINfm6Ca3n1Ib/s1600-h/footprints+on+the+corridor.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5242823640429053362" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 90px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiz-1tk00ey7IGRL8bXi6PEV2IrK61RjOh9KJ_-hmGhb84Bk_ItDMtpPHhWuHBIE3OnZ486mNkBDkSWyEpCh-AMyLDgI2xQRdmpGDRWWYSSescAkQSaFvBZkQOM8Dwm__8cINfm6Ca3n1Ib/s400/footprints+on+the+corridor.jpg" border="0" /></a> I took this picture sometime in 1991. A group of students on their way to our school’s Speech Festival had covered their whole bodies from head to foot with some sort of powder. As they walked barefooted, they left footprints along the corridor. I hesitated shooting the footprints because I wanted to save my favorite black and white film Kodak Tri-X for the Festival. But I eventually decided to shoot two pictures (this one) and another from the opposite side. Moments later, our school janitor mopped away the footprints.<br /><br />I am sure you have heard the song “Footprints in the Sand” several decades ago. (No, I am not referring to the Leona Lewis version which I will discuss below.) It became number one in Billboard’s Gospel chart and then crossed over again as number in the pop charts. The song used a poem of the same title as its chorus. Several writers have claimed authorship of this poem, namely, Ella H. Scharring-Hausen, Mary Stevenson, Floyd Keeton, Burrell Webb, Carolyn Joyce Carty, and Margaret Fishback Powers. Whoever the real author may be, here is a version of the poem for your reading and writing pleasure:<br /><blockquote><p><em>One night I had a dream.<br /><br />I dreamed I was walking along the beach with God and across the sky flashed scenes from my life.<br /><br />For each scene I noticed two sets of footprints in the sand, one belonging to me and the other to God. </em></p><p><em>When the last scene of my life flashed before me, I looked back at the footprints in the sand.<br /><br />I noticed that at a time along the path of my life there was only one set of footprints.<br /><br />I also noticed that it happened at the very lowest and saddest times of my life.<br /><br />This really bothered me and I questioned God about it. </em></p><p><em>“God, you said once I had decided to follow you, you would walk with me all the way, but I noticed that during the most troublesome time in my life there is only one set of footprints.<br /><br />”I do not understand why in times when I needed you most, you would leave me.” </em></p><p><em>God replied, “My precious, precious child I love you and I would never, never leave you during your time of trials and suffering.<br /><br />When you see only one set of footprints it was then that I carried you.”</em></p></blockquote><strong><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carolyn_Joyce_Carty#Origins">Wikipedia </a>describes the Footprints poem and its influence in this way:</strong><br /><blockquote><p>Footprints, also known as Footprints in the Sand, is a popular allegorical text written in prose. There are three versions of the poem all with the same title but different authors. While critics have debated the literary merits of the piece, it has been enormously popular worldwide, especially among American Christians.</p><p>The text describes a dream, in which the person is walking on a beach with God (in some versions, specifically identified as Jesus). They leave two sets of footprints in the sand behind them. Looking back, the tracks are stated to represent various stages of this person's life. At some points the two trails dwindle to one, especially at the lowest and most hopeless moments of the character's life. When questioning God, believing that God must have abandoned his follower during those times, God gives the explanation: “During your times of trial and suffering, when you see only one set of footprints, it was then that I carried you”. </p><p>A song based on the poem, called "Footprints in the Sand", was written by Per Magnusson, David Kreuger, Richard Page and Simon Cowell and recorded by Leona Lewis. It appears on Lewis's debut album Spirit which debuted at number one in nine countries, including Canada, Australia, the United Kingdom, United States, Ireland, New Zealand and Germany. It also holds the record for the biggest digital album sales in a week ever for a new artist, male or female.</p></blockquote><strong><a href="http://sportrelief.com/on-air/whats-on-tv/sport-relief/leona-lewis" target="_blank"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5244300637754057778" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="Click here" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrtzU2qtMgwxdEF2eXtAA4r0ivnioV8ZGyzcIIgq6XbNKBeRypaJLhCOkI_EhgKH11AJ54jzZ6SwaNIJt2KZ41PUifo_772yFUUcW2CGH5dEbydf0FOqxMWEsOXVJHqVoJTmDRqzqiNco/s200/leona+video+sport+relief.jpg" border="0" /></a>Lewis’ “Footprints” song is <a href="http://www.sportrelief.com/on-air/whats-on-tv/sport-relief/leona-lewis">SportRelief charity's official anthem for 2008</a>. There is also a complimentary "Footprints In The Sand" <a href="http://www.ringtonematcher.com/co/ringtonematcher/02?sid=LSITros">ringtone</a>. Click the picture to view the video. The lyrics of the song are posted below:</strong><br /><br />You walked with me<br />Footprints in the sand<br />And helped me understand<br />Where I'm going<br /><br />You walked with me<br />When I was all alone<br />With so much unknown<br />Along the way<br />Then I heard you say<br /><br />(Chorus)<br />I promise you<br />I'm always there<br />When your heart is filled with sorrow<br />And despair<br />I'll carry you<br />When you need a friend<br />You'll find my footprints in the sand<br /><br />I see my life<br />Flash across the sky<br />So many times have I<br />Been so afraid<br /><br />And just when I<br />Have thought I'd lost my way<br />You gave me strength to carry on<br />That’s when I heard you say<br /><br />(Chorus)<br />I promise you<br />I'm always there<br />When your heart is filled with sorrow<br />And despair<br />I'll carry you<br />When you need a friend<br />You'll find my footprints in the sand<br /><br />When I'm weary<br />Well, I know you've been there<br />And I can feel you when you say<br /><br />I promise you (you)<br />I'm always there<br />When your heart is filled with sadness (when your heart)<br />And despair (and despair)<br />I'll carry you<br />When you need a friend (need a friend)<br />You'll find my footprints in the sand’<br /><br />(I promise you)<br />(I'm always there)<br />When your heart is full of sadness (sadness)<br />And despair (And despair)<br />I'll carry you (I'll carry you)<br />When you need a friend<br />You'll find my footprints in the sand.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4099609111094844748.post-41826939004960612212008-08-21T18:57:00.000-07:002008-08-21T19:12:16.957-07:00Picture no. 14: “Sunrise, sunset, sunrise, sunset ...”<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4IKLcyiA6U7wuKhC1E51aoz8by2akUVugmLA4d2GkK6P8gxPn327m_OIiFzpzwx341oyNvVWvFUgmsUVyQeSDnPwGYUqK65BeIKvTKaT6AE3gU3COBvzypNtieN-W7JsIoLZQF7G7W9bq/s1600-h/san+juan+sunset+natural+frames.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5237155719114986898" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 70px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="Follow the Rule of Thirds when shooting pictures of the sun." src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4IKLcyiA6U7wuKhC1E51aoz8by2akUVugmLA4d2GkK6P8gxPn327m_OIiFzpzwx341oyNvVWvFUgmsUVyQeSDnPwGYUqK65BeIKvTKaT6AE3gU3COBvzypNtieN-W7JsIoLZQF7G7W9bq/s400/san+juan+sunset+natural+frames.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br />A lot of you may be familiar with the Broadway musical “Fiddler on the Roof” from which the song “Sunrise, Sunset” came from. The chorus of the song goes like this:<br /><br /><em><blockquote>Sunrise, sunset,<br />Sunrise, sunset,<br />swiftly fly the years,<br />one season following another,<br />laden with happiness<br />and tears.</blockquote></em>Wikipedia summarizes <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fiddler_on_the_Roof" target="_blank">Fiddler’s history, distinctions and awards</a>:<br /><blockquote><em>The original Broadway production of the show, which opened in 1964, was the first musical to surpass the 3,000 performance mark, and it held the record for longest-running Broadway musical for almost 10 years until Grease surpassed its run. The production earned $1,574 for every dollar invested in it.<br /><br />The show was highly acclaimed and nominated for ten Tony Awards, winning nine, including Best Musical, score, book, direction and choreography. It spawned four Broadway revivals, a successful 1971 film adaptation, and has enjoyed enduring international popularity. It is also a very popular choice for school and community productions.</em></blockquote>I took this picture sometime in 1989. I purposely framed the setting sun between the metal frames of a water tank in the foreground and the antennas in the background. Because I focused on the sun itself, the metal frames on the foreground became out of focus. Please remember that when taking pictures of the sun, do not place it dead center. Follow what is known as the “Rule of Thirds”. Please surf to my <a href="http://www.campusconnection.blogspot.com" target="_blank">Campus Connection blog</a> to know what this rule is all about.<br /><br /><strong>When used as the inspiration for an essay, the setting sun usually evokes emotions of loneliness or serenity.</strong>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4099609111094844748.post-14063797448292604692008-07-06T14:54:00.000-07:002008-07-06T15:00:34.651-07:00Picture no. 13 (series): The joys of high school<embed type="application/x-shockwave-flash" src="http://picasaweb.google.com/s/c/bin/slideshow.swf" width="400" height="267" flashvars="host=picasaweb.google.com&RGB=0x000000&feed=http%3A%2F%2Fpicasaweb.google.com%2Fdata%2Ffeed%2Fapi%2Fuser%2Fgtgalacio%2Falbumid%2F5220016445199977249%3Fkind%3Dphoto%26alt%3Drss" pluginspage="http://www.macromedia.com/go/getflashplayer"></embed><br /><br />The pictures above show a high school class having fun during their picture taking for the school annual. Why don't you try writing captions for these pictures? Notice that one of the guys at the top row started everything when he pushed off his classmate.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0