So, I just sorted through all of the pictures I have saved on my computer, and found a few choice ones that I am rather proud of. My pride comes not from any photographic skill, but rather from my skill to manipulate the truth of the photo using my trusted friend
Adobe Photoshop 7.0. It is with countless hours of blood, sweat, and pointing-and-clicking that I present to you
my art...
This first photo was actually created for a movie trailer idea I had during one of many idle nights during junior year of college. The movie was called Dog Days of War and involved two soldiers (one male soldier played by Tom Hanks, and one female soldier played by my girlfriend's head on the body of Tom Hanks) who go away to war, not seeing how their son, a half-human/half English beagle, grows up. The dog is actually my dog, Max, who unfortunately passed away a few years back, but was the best dog ever (he actually starred in one of my short films that I created in my 'Advanced Video' class in high school...I'll figure out a way to put this, and many other hilarious films from college, up on the blog eventually). The body belongs to yours truly, and is actually one of my fraternity photos (notice the fraternity pin on my shirt). It's a simple creation, yet a powerful one that weaves the tale of a confused, lonely boy-dog in a world too big for his own good.
This second photo was the obvious extension of the first photo. Although it did not make it into the trailer for Dog Days of War, I felt it necessary to experience the youth of this dog-child. While the dog is still Max, the child is actually my girlfriend's nephew. Again, a simple creation, and yet a powerful one, showing us the courage young Max had even without the presence of his war-engrossed parents.
The third, and final, photo featuring Max (with no relation to the Dog Days of War photos) is actually more complex than it appears to be. The first thing you may notice is that Max has acquired a third back leg. My reasoning behind this addition? I just wondered what it would look like...now we don't have to wonder anymore. Isn't that nice? Now, what you may not notice is there are several aspects of this picture that are not real. First, many of the leaves around Max's feet were not there and had to be added in to create more color. Second, the tree in the upper left corner did not exist, and was added to fill the shot. Third, the most interesting part of this photo is that I never took a picture of Max on the front lawn of my old house (which this is a picture of), so THIS shot of Max actually comes from another photo of Max I took in the winter time on my front porch (one of my favorite photos of him), which you see here... 
Don't always believe what you see...especially if what you see is a dog with three back legs.
This next photo is a classic. The guy on the left is Mr. Cooper who, if you've read this blog before, you should know. The "guy" on the right is my friend and fraternity brother from college, Dan. This photo was taken at our fraternity formal junior year, and was originally a photo of Mr. Cooper and his date. Unfortunately, I've decided to alter reality and make Mr. Cooper's date none other than Dan. When I finally finished with this creation, I was absolutely shocked by how perfect the photo of Dan fit, and just how eerily real it all looked. Unfortunately, I had to add the large yellow dot over Mr. Cooper's head to protect his identity (I guess it's pretty clear I don't care about revealing Dan's identity), but you get the idea.
This final photo is absolutely my favorite. The above photo is actually not changed in any way, it's the real deal. It's a photo of some random bridge in Central Park in New York City; the people in the center of the photo are my family. I really loved the look of this picture and how everything is framed, but there was just too much that I didn't like (the dull color and lighting, the bird poop on the tree in the foreground, the gross concrete below the bridge, etc.). So, I got to work...
...And, here you have it! You'll notice my family is gone (nothing personal), simply because they took away from the pure nature of the photo. I made all of the colors and lighting much more brilliant, especially for the bright glow of the bridge and the rich brown color of the dirt. You'll see that the bird poop is gone, which is nice. My favorite changes involve the extension of the brown brick beneath the bridge and the creation of a flowing stream (complete with a reflection of the tree branches and bridge above!). A masterpiece of photo editing, proving two things: one, Adobe Photoshop is one of the greatest programs of the computer; two, I've clearly wasted a small portion of my life using it.
This first photo was actually created for a movie trailer idea I had during one of many idle nights during junior year of college. The movie was called Dog Days of War and involved two soldiers (one male soldier played by Tom Hanks, and one female soldier played by my girlfriend's head on the body of Tom Hanks) who go away to war, not seeing how their son, a half-human/half English beagle, grows up. The dog is actually my dog, Max, who unfortunately passed away a few years back, but was the best dog ever (he actually starred in one of my short films that I created in my 'Advanced Video' class in high school...I'll figure out a way to put this, and many other hilarious films from college, up on the blog eventually). The body belongs to yours truly, and is actually one of my fraternity photos (notice the fraternity pin on my shirt). It's a simple creation, yet a powerful one that weaves the tale of a confused, lonely boy-dog in a world too big for his own good.
This second photo was the obvious extension of the first photo. Although it did not make it into the trailer for Dog Days of War, I felt it necessary to experience the youth of this dog-child. While the dog is still Max, the child is actually my girlfriend's nephew. Again, a simple creation, and yet a powerful one, showing us the courage young Max had even without the presence of his war-engrossed parents.
The third, and final, photo featuring Max (with no relation to the Dog Days of War photos) is actually more complex than it appears to be. The first thing you may notice is that Max has acquired a third back leg. My reasoning behind this addition? I just wondered what it would look like...now we don't have to wonder anymore. Isn't that nice? Now, what you may not notice is there are several aspects of this picture that are not real. First, many of the leaves around Max's feet were not there and had to be added in to create more color. Second, the tree in the upper left corner did not exist, and was added to fill the shot. Third, the most interesting part of this photo is that I never took a picture of Max on the front lawn of my old house (which this is a picture of), so THIS shot of Max actually comes from another photo of Max I took in the winter time on my front porch (one of my favorite photos of him), which you see here... 
Don't always believe what you see...especially if what you see is a dog with three back legs.
This next photo is a classic. The guy on the left is Mr. Cooper who, if you've read this blog before, you should know. The "guy" on the right is my friend and fraternity brother from college, Dan. This photo was taken at our fraternity formal junior year, and was originally a photo of Mr. Cooper and his date. Unfortunately, I've decided to alter reality and make Mr. Cooper's date none other than Dan. When I finally finished with this creation, I was absolutely shocked by how perfect the photo of Dan fit, and just how eerily real it all looked. Unfortunately, I had to add the large yellow dot over Mr. Cooper's head to protect his identity (I guess it's pretty clear I don't care about revealing Dan's identity), but you get the idea.
This final photo is absolutely my favorite. The above photo is actually not changed in any way, it's the real deal. It's a photo of some random bridge in Central Park in New York City; the people in the center of the photo are my family. I really loved the look of this picture and how everything is framed, but there was just too much that I didn't like (the dull color and lighting, the bird poop on the tree in the foreground, the gross concrete below the bridge, etc.). So, I got to work...
...And, here you have it! You'll notice my family is gone (nothing personal), simply because they took away from the pure nature of the photo. I made all of the colors and lighting much more brilliant, especially for the bright glow of the bridge and the rich brown color of the dirt. You'll see that the bird poop is gone, which is nice. My favorite changes involve the extension of the brown brick beneath the bridge and the creation of a flowing stream (complete with a reflection of the tree branches and bridge above!). A masterpiece of photo editing, proving two things: one, Adobe Photoshop is one of the greatest programs of the computer; two, I've clearly wasted a small portion of my life using it.
1 comment:
Thanks for protecting my identity, I appreciate it. Ahhh, Dog Days of War -- brilliant. I'm just glad we were able to make such a fitting tribute to Leo Rossi -- he deserved it. And, of course, the Pauly tribute was brilliant as well. If only you could post movies on here.
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