digital imagery with the panasonic lumix dmc-fz50

i finally got a nice digital camera, a panasonic lumix—and even better, i finally started shooting with it. i really like the flexibilty of not having to pace myself and shooting whatever catches my eye without the worry of cost or limitations of a roll of film (which consists of 36 exposures that costs about $45 to process/prints made and scanned to become digital files) then deleting it if i ended up not liking it. plus, night photography without a flash is no longer snowy or a cloudy black as it is with film. the advances in camera technology all but eliminate taking sloppy photographs that are blurry or unfocused. my only nitpick is that the images are too perfect. the focus is tight throughout (like one’s eyesight if 20/20) and the colors are uniformly even. so, if every photo taken looks like it’s by a professional, how does a photographer find a way to express his/her personality through a digital camera? based on no experience with a digital camera, i ended up softening the focus by either shaking the camera by my hands being unsteady when pressing the shutter button, or selecting focus and then zooming in or out to change the composition, which fouled up the sharp focus of my original point of focus. i am sure with more practice and expertise, i will be able to shoot photos with finesse that express my personal style.

‘grindhouse’

sorry this is such a long entry but if you’re gonna sit through over 3 hours of ‘grindhouse,’ reading this takes no longer than blow drying your hair… if you’re still doing that sorta thing.

‘grindhouse’ is not a bad movie. but why does quentin tarantino think he can act? he’s like the pick-up artist (who always strikes out) at the neighborhood bar with nothing going for him but a big ego to disguise his small dick, no style, lousy pick-up lines and terrible looks. furthermore, he doesn’t know when to hang it up for good, playing cameo roles. (hitchcock had the wisdom of not overstaying his welcome by making brief silent cameos in his films, and he is probably a lot more amusing to watch than tarantino.) plus, tarantino’s not a very believable looking character actor and can barely say his lines without stuttering or letting spit fly out of his mouth onto the other actors he plays opposite. tarantino is just taking away a role and a paycheck from a starving bit-part actor, needing a big brake to launch a career. who else would cast tarantino in a cameo besides robert rodriguez?

and speaking of rodriguez, will he ever use his high level of skillful mimicking and direct something besides dumb fun, or at least add something new to dumb fun besides a flawless but heartless execution of craftsmanship? in her future roles, it should be a requirement that rose mcgowan only utter one word lines. she definitely has camera presence but she can’t deliever a line (anymore than she can help herself from wearing red lipstick or having a pale complexion) without betraying what a weak actress she is. it also got pretty annoying when all the simulated analog glitches kept cropping up throughout, which distracted from watching the movie… being playful or emulating the authenticity of a beat up movie print has its limits, guys. i think the trailers and theater messages throughout the movie, plus the posters in the theater lobby, get that point across just fine. besides, the car duel in the final half of ‘death proof’ looked absolutely stunning in daylight photography, especially since it was not marred by any glitches and was shot live rather than created with cgi.

however, i did enjoy tarantino’s injury-to-the-eye moment during ‘planet terror’ and would have loved it even more if he got impaled in the throat or better yet, in the mouth instead. so, we wouldn’t have to listen to him anymore on the dvd extras of ‘chungking express’ or ‘hero’ bragging about how he discovered those films or name dropping all the films he loves. high five to whoever came up with that scenario for the fate of tarantino’s rapist—that person must have known i would truly appreciate it! and why does tarantino think he is black when he writes dialogue? would the cool black kids in high school let him be part of their inner circle? could he even fit in posing and just get by name dropping all the 1970s stax r&b slow jams (that no one remembers anymore or are too young to remember nowadays anyway) and jive talking? can he even dribble? or even make a free throw? or will he kick ass or get his ass kicked in a fist fight? or can he not live without eating chicken? or does he use activator for jerry curls? or breakdance or rap? (actually, scratch that… i don’t care to hear tarantino rap or see him breakdance either.) btw, as a teenager would you have been intimidated by tarantino if he got in your face yelling with his pussy voice to take your lunch money? not me.

all the women in ‘death proof’ sounded like tarantino trying to be sassy. but rosario dawson, zoe bell and tracie thoms really inhabited their characters and took ownership with their top notch performances of lovely hard-ass (but bitchy) ladies with very similar taste and attitudes as tarantino’s toward pop culture and life. transcending their grindhouse antecendents and elevating them above tarantino stock characterizations—i ate their shit up everytime they were on screen because of how likeable they are. (when tarantino’s camera circles and snakes around them at the diner, it’s as though we are the quiet friend sitting at their table, just listening.) ditto, forold schoolers kurt russell (right on, snake plissken!), michael biehm, jeff ‘lawnmower man’ fahey (who i never liked until this role) and danny trejo as ‘the wrong mexican to fuck with’ being a joy to watch.

tanrantino’s strongest suite happens to also be his biggest weakness and that is the screen/sound time he gives to his dialogue. it’s a nice touch because it’s the quickest way for us to get to know the characters, but it also shows tarantino’s preference for an inert plot. so, it seems like he is padding his running time with long scenes of conversation, consisting of characters rationalizing their attitudes about life and esoteric pop culture references (which one cannot fully appreciate if not familiar with them) because he has nothing for the characters to do. however, ‘jackie brown’ is an excellent example of tarantino reining in his tendencies and fusing his colorful dialogue with an active plot, beautifully working in tandem like a theater’s movie projector and sound system do to screen a movie for us. (probably because elmore leonard’s novel gave him a plot to play off of, which is why ‘jackie brown’ is a top notch film.)

my new screen crush is marley shelton… this the first thing i ever saw her in. i am glad i saw ‘grindhouse’ to discover her; she was worth every cent of what i never paid on my free pass. she’s one fuckin’ hot mama-sita… my hands broke out in a cold sweat and started quivering everytime she was onscreen, plus my leg started wiggling on its own too, once she was running around in high heels and that skimpy sleeveless spaghetti strapped top.

all in all, i did enjoy and liked ‘grindhouse’ but you know i wasn’t going to give tarantino and rodriguez a freebie hall pass without ripping them first. besides my sarcasm is more amusing than my idolatry i have been told.

is a motion picture just another billboard?

jean luc godard’s ‘two or three things i know about her… ’ will piss people off, and that’s a big reason why i like it. if you’re expecting a film with an easy-to-follow narrative, this isn’t for you. but if graphic art & design plus signage interest you, as it does me, this is a wonderful film to experience, especially since projected film is a moving giant-sized billboard. i am not certain if ferracci’s poster art (included above) originally accompanied the film’s 1967 release. but it really captures the look, spirit and mood of the film—a time capsule of the mid-1960s pop culture and consumerism. plus it is a well-executed piece of graphic art, which conveys the film’s form and content by showing it through text and image but not literally spelling it out by saying so. godard presents many revelvant themes, topics and concerns of his day that are apropos for us now because we still have not fully reconciled these issues. a couple of godard’s concerns are the u.s. invasion and occupation of vietnam, the parallel modernization of paris’ city structures & the newfound ideals of young parisien women, the rampant rise of signage for new commercial advertising and business & consumer products (which are an affliction of post-modernity), women’s artificial need to satiate her desire for friviolous goods such as fashion, which forces women to prostitute themselves to earn money obtaining it, and language not being an accurate form of communication between men and women. in addition, the film is profound in its way to showcase the beauty of graphic design & typography surrounding our daily lives but also indict it for being crass in its presence everywhere.

raoul coutard’s excellent widescreen cinematography along with his deftly composed macrocinematography of line art and typography and of all things, the swirling bubbles in a cup of coffee suggest the cosmic grandness of the mundane. in addition, the colors punctuate the visuals and the sound design amplifies godard’s ideas as seen through the characters’ action and the ambient background noise. i always felt i needed more life experience to comphrehend godard, and after seeing this film, i might have just enough to appreciate him now. a film is what it is and should be read that way, not what we want it to be by projecting upon it our desires of it being primarily a narrative vehicle. cinema can also be thought of as a spectacle of imagery and its creators’ worldview rather than just cause and effect plotline. so, the sooner you let go of your expectation for a conventional story, the sooner you will enter godard’s film not feeling alienated and appreciate the beauty of the film’s imagery and attitudes.

fyi

all right… this is probably the most wrong-headed blog entry i have written to date. but i hope readers at least get a laugh out of this entry of me enlightening ignorant single straight guys working the social scene: don’t hit on a lipstick lesbian. and know how to recognize one so you can avoid the disappointment of hurt feelings and not hear the ‘wa wa waaaa’ music track cue up in the movie of your dating life. a lipstick lesbian has the supreme confidence of knowing she is a full-on lesbian and not interested in anything else in her love life, and she loves to play charades with dumb dumb single straight guys. we gotta stick together and cover each others’ back. don’t hestitate to come forward and tell us of any experiences with a lipstick lesbian’s shenanigans, okay fellas? we’ll have a complete profile of her yet to post an all points bulletin, alerting all of our brethren!

here in san francisco where all is not what it seems on the surface, lipstick lesbians always prefer to appear shamelessly as ‘dirty girls’ who are ubër affectionate towards straight guys, which leads a lonely, desperate straight guy (and not a very perceptive and experienced one at that) to believe he has a chance. especially if he has made out with her because that really fucks with his best judgement. sure, they look super hot and are femme-d out in their trendy outfits with their boobs hanging out and all. but that is the paradoxical allure we straight guys must never succumb to again. resist the urge, unless you like experiencing humilation over and over again or like betting on odds that offer 0.00% success rate with an a.p.r. of 100% sheer humiliation for as long as your memory lasts. then go ahead and keep hitting on them, you blockhead dummy.

straight girls are usually poker-faced because they are trying to figure out how much they like a guy, so the first meeting is always awkward. but pay attention fellas, all hope is not lost because straight girls will always throw you a bone like asking for your number or contact info or some excuse to meet up again once they have warmed up to you before calling it a night on a very innocent first date. straight girls also like drawing out the courtship/seduction; expect to be in it for the long haul, guys. so, my practice is just to steer clear of women who are way too friendly and frisky and have the most charming laugh/smile or smell really good… i don’t even bother to make the effort on the remote chance that they are straight. fellas, it might not be the most attractive and tantalizing option to be sweet on the jittery, aloof mousy types with lousy social skills but at least there’s some kinda chance for real connection there.

it’s like a lipstick lesbian’s private little joke to bait a straight guy into thinking he has a chance, pretty wicked and cruel in my opinion, when she has already determined the outcome. like all-world cornerback deion sanders in his prime, baiting a quarterback to throw to his side of the field… you know that’s an automatic pick and 6 points the other way if you go there. i wouldn’t even be deluded into thinking that the receiver is open, especially if no. 21 disguises his coverage by playing way off him. it looks so inviting to try and complete a pass and make the big play, so you can be the mvp, but it’s ‘primetime’ who’s going to be player of the game. man, who wants to see that… deion/the lipstick lesbian flapping their arms or vogue-ing or doing some high-stepping fruity dance as they cross the goal line for the score… that’s what i’m talkin’ about fellas, getting it rubbed into your faces and being shown up. picture that ‘neon deion’ analogy fellas, and you will never again want to be lit up by a lipstick lesbian’s charade! i don’t want to see you get victimized anymore, and i got your back guys… honestly, i really do.

flickr pictobrowser

new widget that draws from my flickr photosets. this is a test using my portrait & design projects and MAC (modern appealing clothing) case study photosets. let me know what you think.

that winning feeling

americans love to celebrate a winner and love to remind losers that they are losers until they win. it is too bad we do not focus on celebrating the experience of competition rather than just victory. within the the last month, some well-publicized futility streaks have come to an end. marty scorsese finally won his first best director oscar in five nominations and also best film. peyton manning and tony dungy hoisted the super bowl trophy that has eluded their entire careers until last month. even al gore and italian score composer ennio morricone got to taste receiving oscar. it is nice to see some folks persevere through all the frustration of consistently losing out the big prize to someone else earlier in their careers, and finally, through persistent effort and determination get to experience that winning feeling. cheers guys.

does anybody take john witherspoon’s acting seriously?

john witherspoon is hilarious. he will crack you up just by his posture and bug-eyed gaping mouth schtick. without even saying a word. it’s too bad that he doesn’t appear in many a-list pictures, like he did in ‘bulworth.’ and even in that one, he was just playing a bit part stereotypical inner city religious black dude. he would have been perfect in a billy wilder film from the 1950s or early 1960s with his over-expressive physical acting style that wilder favored. anyways, he should be cast in a big studio picture. and furthermore, i think he can do serious straight stuff too but is typecast in broad slapstick comedy roles because that’s where his paychecks are at. can you imagine john witherspoon in ‘pulp fiction’ or any role samuel l. jackson was cast in for that matter? shame on you spike lee. when are you going to cast the great john witherspoon?

how about if john witherspoon was in the star wars movies instead of samuel l. jackson? you scoff at me, and say lucas would never cast witherspoon because he is too urban black man and over-the-top… well, what the hell was lucas smoking when he signed off on jar jar and lando? imagine john witherspoon sitting on the jedi counsel and debating with yoda in full ‘friday’ movie mode with his sassy remarks. or making up his own light saber moves (maybe he had to skip out on george lucas’ manditory light saber training to earn some extra dough doing stand-up because lucas lowballed him by only paying him union scale wages and not offer him any franchise licensing royalities) in a duel against darth vader and the emperor? the topper would be if witherspoon won the light saber battle, he would be gloating, “bang, bang, bang, bang” with a hearty laugh while bobbing his head side-to-side. or how about witherspoon farting during the jedi counsel session and throwing suspicion on yoda instead of himself by accusing yoda of having old man farts from eating too many intergalactic yams? i can just picture john grilling spare ribs for a jedi picnic cookout. you know there has to be a bathroom scene with witherspoon. like maybe an intermission during the jedi counsel session… witherspoon is on the toilet with a can of air freshner, and then the next jedi complains of the stink witherspoon leaves behind. i would pay to see that because it would be some funny shit and more entertaining than those movies turned out to be. we need more laughter in our lives. all right… i’m stopping now before this gets outta hand. enough said.

hard copy versus digital copy

sorry… i am, indeed, desperate to get more people to check out my blog by posting 2007 ‘sports illustrated’ swimsuit (minus the swimsuit here actually) model marisa miller, who has nothing to do with this entry other than wearing an ipod. i apologize… i am really not here to bring “sexy” back, but just think of ms. miller’s photo as me wishing you readers a post-happy valentine’s! anyways, i am currently in the middle of cleaning out my room and realized i have accumulated a ton of books, magazines, comics, dvds, cds, prints, posters, pictures and tearsheets. so, i am wondering were the future formats of media are headed and the accepted practice of archiving them for people who like to collect things. should media just exist in the digital realm to save physical space? i am thinking of converting a lot of my cds to mp3 files to import into my computer and possibly scan some tearsheets and turn into digital files. cds take up a ton of space, and it sure is convenient to have your entire music library on itunes in your mac (sorry pc users) or in an ipod. tearsheets and photos as digital files in your computer eliminates physical clutter or a cumbersome filing/archive system in your home. i think it is a matter of time before mpeg files are made available, so you could store movies on your computer and not own a dvd hard copy anymore.

but i still choose not to read a book/magazine/comic or view a print/poster on a computer yet. there is something about beholding a publication and turning a page at your own leisure, or enjoying the smell of ink, or feeling the texture of the paper, or stepping back and viewing a print on your wall. i guess i love the size of a graphic in its actual physical form and dimensions rather than scrolling left to right or up and down or minimizing its dimensions to see the entire image on my monitor. i do like the way things are now, which is to say you have a choice of a digital copy for music and photos but still have a hard copy of a book or print. i must say if you only had the choice of hard copies, it would eventually crowd you out of your living space. at some point, everything will probably be stored and run off your computer, which leads to the more profound question i am pondering… choosing between a cyberspace realty, especially since we are becoming more reliant on computer technology for social interaction, or a physical realty that involves collecting tangible memorbillia.

david lynch’s ‘inland empire’

just saw david lynch’s ‘inland empire’ yesterday and must say it is more than just a movie. for those unfamiliar with lynch’s work, ‘inland empire’ will seem convoluted, but it does operate under rules making sense in terms of logic set up by lynch. although, i was not won over by the mini-DV look that lynch chose to shoot with, it is effective in conveying imagery, which is very evocative of a dream or fear of what lies in the dark or conjuring up the imagery of a scary story told to you at sleep-over when you were a kid. plus, the edward hopper homage in the theater is expressed fairly well by digital video. lynch offers many riddles about hollywood, and the imagery of ‘inland empire’ is an allegory for those riddles. i just think lynch should recut and offer another version that is shorter and leaner to resonate stronger. i thought some shots were too prolonged and the different plots kept expanding, which took it further away from closure, plus it got redundant after a while when laura dern is wandering around dark hallways or staircases (to illustrate lynch’s haunted house metaphor) and then entering a different story. anyways, i still don’t think i am completely dialed in (but that’s a typical reaction, seeing a lynch film the intial viewing), but i was definitely fascinated by it and would revisit it at my next most convenient opportunity.

alcoholism and gavin newsome

san francisco mayor gavin newsome’s recent announcement to seek rehab for his drinking problem has been received with public skepticism. i know the timing of the announcement is not the best since a few days before he publicly apologized for having an affair with his former campaign manager’s wife. this could be construed as newsome looking for a little public sympathy and an explanation for a lapse in his moral judgement. but if newsome is serious about coping with his alcoholism, he should be commended for recognizing his tendency and doing something to control it. for those of us who drink on a regular basis, who can say they can go without a drink once in the presence of a bar or restaurant? can a lot of people make the claim that they can go three days straight without a drink and then not binge when they finally go out for drinks? there is a place for alcohol in our lives, i just think we should be aware of it and not allow it to get out of hand in our daily lives. hopefully, for a lot of us, we won’t need to seek outside help to cope with it but have the will power in ourselves to control alcoholic compulsions and then not have to make appologies for an error in our moral judgement and, in turn, seek rehab.

cherner side chair (1958)

if i could spare the dough, i would have gotten one of these reissued norman cherner side chairs already. i love the organic shape and curves plus the use of the walnut colored plywood. just sitting in it must take you back to 1958… the heyday of mid-century modern design. the model with the arm rest is cool too. anyways, i’m just going to let the following images doing the talking for me.

denzel

been meaning to catch denzel’s new movie ‘deja vu’ in the theater, but it looks like i am going to see it on dvd instead. anyways, i noticed an alarming parallel in denzel’s current acting style and his gut—both are really large! so, curious to see how denzel’s acting and his gut turn out in his new movie. i mean as denzel’s gut has gotten larger in each successive film, the more over the top his acting has gotten, especially after he won the supporting oscar for ‘training day.’ i was really into denzel when he did ‘mo’ better blues’ and ‘mississippi masala’ and ‘crimson tide’ and ‘devil in a blue dress.’ all of those performances had his easy going charm. plus he has the coolest gait while walking around in a wife beater tee. (who would not want to have denzel’s stride?) but a little after that denzel stopped working out and his gut started to bulge (i first noticed it on ‘virtuosity’ that he started getting lazy and wore a loose dark sweater to hide his gut). and it seemed like he always had a yelling scene in all his films too just to drive the point home how large he had gotten. hopefully, denzel doesn’t turn into another al pacino, who relies mainly on rage to turn-in a performance. i mean in ‘inside man’ spike lee was a little more subtle (that you almost miss the yelling scene) by having denzel yell at a really thick glass door to clive owen. although you couldn’t hear him yelling, you could see the emotional fury of his over-the-top acting. for ‘inside man,’ it is too bad though that denzel didn’t get nominated for that role because he did a good job compared to some of the best actor nominees selected this week. maybe denzel’s gut undermined his nomination? most of the nominees are pretty skinny dudes except for that other fatty, forrest whitaker. (i guess only one fatty actor can get nominated a year.) denzel has addressed this oversight by not working himself back into shape but casting opposite himself in ‘deja vu’ the very bloated face of val kilmer (get a load of that close-up in the photo below). this totally draws our attention away from denzel’s gut. the proof is in the pudding for denzel as these photos atest.

julia roberts acknowledging that denzel’s oscar win and gut go hand-in-hand.
denzel’s gut stressing out the button on his tuxedo jacket and hogging halle berry’s space that she has to suck it up.
denzel’s new tactic while out in public—wear a really long and loose trench coat, taking no chances for his beer gut to be noticed. instead blame it on a really bad fashion stylist for clothes that don’t fit.
scale reference of denzel in relation to his ‘deja vu’ co-star.
val kilmer looking the largest of the large.
did val kilmer gain weight for his role in ‘deja vu’ to draw attention away from denzel’s gut?
more denzel trench coat subterfuge. “stare at my index finger and not my gut.”

the onitsuka tiger

my fave sneaker at the moment is an off-white asics onitsuka tiger with a cyan stripe. i love the flat sole and the narrow rounded toe. it’s a great sneaker to wear with tappered jeans or slim trousers that break slightly at its hem while it meets the sneaker’s top. also, a great compliment to a dark blazer, which completes the look. i used to disdain retro looking sneakers in the past because they seemed too kitschy, but my opinion of them has changed. anyways, i just fell in love with a modified version of the onitsuka tiger with three velcro straps that comes with an orange stripe:

see here

wkw’s ‘my blueberry nights’

here are some scouting location jpgs with director wong kar-wai, cinematographer darius khondji & editor/production designer william chang from wkw’s new film ‘my blueberry nights’ (his first american location shot feature). hopefully, wim wender’s ‘paris, texas’ and playwright tennessee williams’ literary southern gothic settings have an influence on the look of ‘my blueberry nights’ rather than a wkw american visual compliation of his previous films ‘happy together,’ ‘chungking express’ and ‘fallen angels’ combined. also, from the recent dennis lim n.y. times article (click blog entry title to read write up) and production reports from various media sources, it seems wkw is up to his old method of improvising during shooting. while crime novelist larry block’s script appears only to be a front, so wkw could attain financing but ultimately shoot in his typical manner of discovering the narrative during production. in addition, imdb lists ‘my blueberry nights’ with a june 2007 new york/los angeles release date and will probably screen at this year’s cannes film festival. looking forward to seeing how this one turns out for wkw & cast (norah jones, jude law, natalie portman, rachel weisez and david strathairn) & crew (william chang & darius khondji) and which of these locations jpgs appear in the final cut besides palacinka in nyc. (click individual images to enlarge & see more details.)

special thanks to s


director wong kar-wai at location unknown


cinematographer darius khondji at location unknown


editor/production designer william chang at palacinka in nyc


interior of palacinka










cinematographer darius khondji in ely, nevada



wong kar-wai discovered ely while driving along highway 50, known as “the loneliest road in america”