they are the Class of, the Class of '13*

Home for four months!

Monday: My presentation day for Reconfigured. Initially I pinned my photos up in the classroom, but the pins wouldn't go all the way into the corkboard, which meant that the photos curled up and threatened to fall to the ground. I had a couple of friends helping me to put them up, and after a couple of close calls we decided to move the operation to the finishing room (which used to be NSCAD's colour darkroom, BTW) because that corkboard is thick enough that the pins will go all the way in (when using pushpins or thumbtacks to hold art in place, you position each pin so that the flat part is the only part of the pin that is in contact with the work--the pin itself doesn't go through the piece and make a hole). That crit was possibly my best/most thorough crit ever.

Tuesday: I finally mailed the photos that I shot for my piece for the WftA show. And I got my Graphics final printed (colour, double-sided, legal-size). Mom arrived in Halifax and called me when I made a quick stop at NSCAD to let SUNSCAD know that I wouldn't be at that evening's GA because I needed to pack (the union's resource coordinator, Tara, agreed that the meeting was poorly timed--if students weren't already headed home, they were prepping for the journey and doing their last finals. She told me to not worry about quorum, which the union had said was important for that GA.). Because it was such a nice day out, I took off my jacket for a few blocks--until the wind picked up again. We started packing shortly after I got home.

Wednesday: More packing and loading the car.

My crit for Graphics went well: although there were some mishaps with my project, I knew about them. When I folded my brochure/portfolio, I realized that the sides didn't line up and that I was short a bit of paper due to how the document was printed, which I didn't discover until I folded it Tuesday night (as everything was lined up perfectly in the InDesign file, I wouldn't have had any issues if it was printed properly). Other than that, the crit went extremely well.

Thursday: The Big Crit day. We started at the Port Campus, complete with potluck breakfast, and spent most of the day there. We moved over to Academy mid-afternoon and finished the crits there.

Afterward, I tried to track down Mom, which wasn't easy, as I had no idea where she was parked and thought she'd be able to pick me up around the area of the front door of Academy. After several calls on my cell, which ran out of minutes and a call on a classmate's cell, we eventually found each other--and I launched into a screaming fit. Not my finest moment. **cringe**

And yes, we continued packing.

Friday: We were a bit later leaving than we'd planned (by about a couple hours). Mom drove most of the way, with me taking over for the last hour or so--while discovering Eric Clapton (what rock have I been hiding under all these years?!). And yes, we stopped at a Big Stop along the way.

Saturday: I spent the day trying to be as lazy as possible while listening to Siegfried (not as awesome as Die Walküre).

Sunday: We unpacked the car. I also loaded the camera bag that I got for Christmas for the first time. I now have a camera bag for every camera (I did previously, but when I got the D7000, I was short a bag).

The section in the middle closest to the handle is where my camera goes. This bag is a backpack-style bag.

Monday: The beginning of Assessment Week at NBCCD--and the Class of '13's last week at the college. I have to admit that the fact that after this week the only people I'll know at NBCCD will be the faculty and staff makes me a bit sad. All my friends will have graduated and gone on to either careers (and paying off student loans) or more education at a different school (two or three students from the Photo studio are NSCAD-bound this fall).

This is a video of the Photo Studio's year-end, "last time we're going to be together as NBCCD students/thank you, teachers, for putting up with us for two years" party.


Video by James Walsh (Photo Class of '13).


CONGRATULATIONS, CLASS OF '13! And to those graduating from the Photo program, remember: once an NBCCD Photog, always an NBCCD Photog!

*A paraphrased version of a line from the title track from Green Day's album 21st Century Breakdown.

March Break: we're thisclose to The End

I'm home for March Break--my last as an NBCCD student. For the last few weeks, the fact that the end of my time at the craft college isn't far away has started to become more real, and saying good-bye to the college is like saying good-bye to a good friend that I will never see again.

Monday: This week's class was almost completely devoted to critiquing the last assignment. Linda also handed out a reworked version of the course outline, and talked about what's next after March Break.

Tuesday: Photoshop was also devoted to critiques, as our independent-study projects were due. By that point, my card was looking really good, though there were still some improvements to be made, which I took care of. Drew also suggested (as an idea) that I make the card a vertical one, rather than a horizontal one. I'm seriously thinking of printing it at some point--maybe at Moo, as they produce gorgeous results (beautiful colour, their card-stock is about twice the thickness of normal card-stock, and it has a really smooth surface).

I totally failed to get Rod's assignment done, as the mic that we were to use was signed out again almost as soon as it was returned to the school on Monday. However, Rod was fully aware of the situation (the photo studio only has one of those mics), and he knew that I'd been trying to get the assignment done since Thursday. I plan to get 'er done ASAP when I get back from March Break. He'd originally planned to do assessments that afternoon, but because so few of us got that assignment done, he decided not to--which meant an unexpected free afternoon. I used it to get started on the first show review for Gallery as a Market Place. It's not due for several weeks, but I don't want to have to panic about it. I'm reviewing the college gallery's current show (which is coming down over break, so I made sure to take photos so that I could refer back to them).

Wednesday: That day, morning classes were cancelled for us diploma students, as we had PANEL ASSESSMENTS. Although the students did most of the critiquing, two of the teachers were there to facilitate and critique. Michael Côté and Karen Burk were in charge of my group. While mine was a good critique, it was one of those times where I got the feeling that I should have everything figured out by now. However, I realize that we all learn and figure things out at different points in our lives. I may know what I'm passionate about (photography, dance, music, politics), but until this past year, I didn't know what I wanted to do within the medium of photography. Now, I'm seriously considering dance photography: I'm passionate about dance, and so are a lot of other people (i.e., there's money in it). After we'd gone around the table, Karen asked us to "critique the critique." This is the second year that the college has done panel assessments for diploma students, so it's still rather new. My main issues were a. that my studio didn't get much info about the assessments--and therefore I didn't feel as prepared as I might have otherwise, even though I was as prepared as I could be given the circumstances, and b. that because everyone can benefit from a critique, I didn't like the fact that the first-year diploma students just had to show up: they weren't to actually bring anything and be critiqued like the first-years were last year.

Although most of us had presented our latest research projects, a couple hadn't, so they did their presentations this week. Drew asked us what else we wanted to research. For me, that's things like trying out the studio's new Einstein flashes, finding places in Maine and NB that do high-quality photo printing (I'm so done with Kodak kiosks) and researching Nikon and Canon cameras.

Thursday: All I had that day was a meeting with Peter in the afternoon. As he's done periodically this year, he asked me about my plans post-NBCCD. My answer this time around: apply for gallery shows, possibly teach at Sunbury Shores and eventually go into dance photography. He also asked if I'd heard back from NSCAD: nope. We then talked about my projects: a critique of the one that I just finished (he also asked if I plan to use it in real life. My answer: possibly.), and strategizing for my next project (two words: story-boards).

When I was done, I checked to see if Mom was there yet. I went out to the hall outside the studio--and there she was. As usual, I greeted her with a big hug. We then grabbed my stuff at the college (I showed her my photos for the show), grabbed my stuff at the residence, and drove home. There had been an accident on the highway that we usually take, so we had to take another route, which meant that we got home a little later than usual. I drove part-way. I don't know why, but we seem to discuss fairly heavy stuff (e.g., politics) on the way home. This time, I gave her the low-down on why I've never dated--and have no intentions of changing that. The answer: although I've had a few exceptions here and there, I've never been sexually or romantically attracted to other people, male or female. And I'm fine with that--I've got my family, friends (some of whom are extremely important to me) and cats, and that satisfies me. When I explained it to her on the way home, I thought it'd take me a long time to do so, but it didn't. I think I had it better figured out than I thought.

Friday: As usual, I wasn't fully unpacked until that day. I spent most of the afternoon in town, going to a massage appointment and then grocery-shopping afterward (with a stop at my favourite chocolatier). I'd hoped to skype with Helen that evening. She was feeling a bit under the weather, so she emailed me shortly before our usual chat time (6:30) saying that she couldn't skype that evening.

Saturday: I spent the day hanging out with Mom and Tom, and listening to opera (Aïda).

Sunday: Mom and I went skiing through the fields that afternoon, and then I spent the evening writing this post.

Hip-hip-hooray for Christamas Vacation

Welcome to the final post of the semester. Today is Day 3 of Christmas Break, though I've been on break since about 10:40 or so on Thursday.

Monday: All I had that day was an assessment for Preparing for Professional Life, otherwise I was free! And I couldn't have been happier. I liked all my classes, but having three of 'em in one day was way too much, and every faculty and staff member to whom I mentioned it--from Drew to Nancy (the registrar)--agreed that three classes was too much in one day.

My assessment went very well. Trudy said that she really noticed how far I'd come: in the beginning, she was concerned about me and my writing. But by the end, she was really happy with how much I'd improved.

After that, I had absolutely no plans, nowhere I needed to be, nothing I had to do--SO WHAT DO I DO NOW??? This always happens at the end of term: I'm so used to working with a deadline, and needing to have things done by a certain date that when that mindset is no longer needed, I become rather bored. I realize just how mentally tense I've become, and I have to unclench my brain.

I eventually went to the local public library and checked out some movies. I also did some Christmas shopping and cleaned out my drawer in the studio.

Tuesday: That day I did the last of my homework: putting my independent-study project in a portfolio. And once again I tried to fill in the time that would usually be taken up with homework.

In the afternoon, I went to the registrar's office and got my schedule for next semester--NO MORE THREE-CLASS DAYS!!!! I also signed up for the elective: I chose Imagery: Sources and Development.

I somehow managed to lose my keys (mailbox, residence, room and food-locker) that evening. I thoroughly searched my room, but had to give up. I asked the hall proctor, Aaron, about replacing them. Doing so meant a trip to the UNB campus, which I'm never thrilled about. I like UNB, it's a great university, but all my time is spent in the opposite direction, in downtown F'ton, and I only go up the hill when I need to.

Wednesday: Because Drew teaches three of the second-year classes, he lumped all three into one assessment. One of the great things about assessments is that they're a time when you can talk with your teacher one-on-one about any issues that you may be having. For me that means that next semester Drew is going to show me some more about how the slave mechanism in the Speedatrons works. NBCCD has a few cords that can be plugged into the power-pack to make slaving less finicky, which makes me very happy. As I said to him, I want to learn how to use those flashes: I don't want to be limited to just one system.

Next semester, one of my courses will be Photography Seminar: Research and Techniques, which will be two-week independent-study projects, and Drew suggested that I use the course to figure out what I want to do as a career (he asked me what I'm thinking of doing after graduation--I'm still trying to figure that out).

That evening, one of the first-year Photogs had a potluck/end-of-term party/Christmas party/housewarming party (she just moved into a new apartment a couple weeks ago). I went, and had an awesome time, talking and eating with some of her/our friends. As I wrote in a Facebook status update, I "felt not unlike an overstuffed couch by the time [I] left."

Thursday: Before my assessment I numbered all the .PSD files of the photos from my dance project.

The assessment itself was an interesting one: it was probably Peter's toughest critique of my work and his toughest discussion of my next independent study project (a two-day weekend course package for Sunbury Shores Arts and Nature Centre).

Afterward, I hung around, waiting for Mom, who was picking me up that day. In the meantime, I played around on one of the school computers and helped one of the first-year Photogs, who was having some issues with preparing photos that he wanted to print. When Mom finally arrived, I jumped out of my chair, skipped over to her, gave her a huge hug, and wished her a happy birthday. I then grabbed my stuff, and almost emptied my locker (there are still a few things in there).

We drove over to my dorm and grabbed my things there before heading home through the snowstorm that had started during my walk to school (meaning around nine that morning--eight EST). I drove part-way.

That night, I watched about half of Home Alone. I finished it Friday night.

Friday: That afternoon, I had an appointment to get my hair cut. Afterward, I did the last of my Christmas shopping in St. Stephen and Calais, including going to both the SuperStore and Sobeys in search of Swiss Knight gruyere (I found it at Sobeys). It just isn't Christmas without that cheese.

When I got back, Mom and I hauled the tree into the sunroom and put it up. We always need to secure the tree with lots of string, but this year's tree is definitely the stringiest: we had to use about double the usual amount of string.

Saturday: I spent the afternoon decorating the tree and listening to opera (Madama Butterfly, live at the Met Opera House). Getting the topper (a star) on was tricky, and made even trickier by my fear of heights. I eventually got it on. As usual, I was in charge of most of the decorating, though Mom pitched in in the evening. Mom is usually in charge of the lights, but this year it was my job.

Before the opera, I called Sunbury Shores and asked the director (Jamie Steel) what I would need to include in a course proposal, and what the Centre would need to know. I took notes and stuck them in the front pocket of my planner.

I watched National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation that evening.

Sunday: Today has been amazingly unproductive. In fact, the only thing that I've done that could qualify as "productive" is finalizing my Christmas Eve radio list (see below). Oh, and listening to CBC Radio 2's broadcast of the European Broadcasting Union's (EBU) Joy to the World Christmas music special.

Some point in the next few days, I plan to take photos of the tree, and also begin the process of documenting my collection of violin Christmas tree ornaments. I'm going to create a database with photos, descriptions and dates for each ornament. Yesterday, Mom gave me a box to put my collection in, instead of putting it in the usual boxes and bags. She also gave me an ornament that she'd commissioned for me and my collection.

My Christmas Eve plans: radio, radio and more radio! 89.7 is the local NPR station in Calais, Maine, and 101.5 is the local CBC Radio 2 station in Fredericton and Saint John, New Brunswick. All times are in Atlantic Time.

One last treat before I end this post: here's the ad for the Bangor Symphony/Robinson Ballet production of The Nutcracker. Talk about thrilling! They're performing the ballet as I write this, and I'm listening to the Royal Philharmonic's 1992 recording of the complete ballet right now. Oh, the things the BSO makes me do (I've been listening to the ballet or playing the violin part at the same time as the BSO for several years)--especially you guys over there in the violin section!

See you back here around January seventh or fourteenth!

MERRY CHRISTMAS! HAPPY HANUKKAH! BLESSED YULE!

the fun of being an artist

I meant to publish this last night, but by the time I got to the proofreading stage, it was too late and I had to get to bed.

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I'm officially a little Beethoven-crazy right now, thanks to the Bangor Symphony. I can never get enough Beethoven, but the BSO has me overdosing on his music (if that's even possible). Thanks, guys...

Monday: For the last couple weeks, we've had other teachers for Preparing for Professional Life--first Craig Schneider, and then Brigitte Clavette--as Trudy has been recovering from surgery. Having different people teach a course is interesting (in a good way), especially if you don't normally have them as teachers. You get to experience different styles, different personalities.

This week, we also had a guest speaker: Silas Robinson, who's an NBCCD grad and the founder of Lift Personal Fitness. Silas originally started out in graphics, which is a stable industry. But by the time he graduated, he'd switched to ceramics, choosing to do what he loved, despite the fact that it isn't as financially predictable as graphics. He's also really into fitness, and he worked at several gyms, before founding his own. He talked about his beginnings, getting the business started, the look of a business plan, and a lot of other things.

Drawing was a ridiculously short class this week. Adam took us to a show opening at the Playhouse gallery, and after we'd bombarded the artist with questions, we were free to enjoy the rest of the evening. Hour and a half--done. One of the Photography Class of '11 grads was photographing the event, and afterward he and I walked back in the direction of the college (he had to catch the next bus), talking the whole way--about photography, and what we'd been up to since the Spring.

I spent the rest of the evening putting the finishing touches on my independent study project.

Tuesday: I spent the day doing about a million little things. That morning we had a meeting to brainstorm ideas for the haunted studio competition, which we'd just found out about on Monday. And the competition was on Thursday (none of us were thrilled--that meant that we only had two-and-a-half days to prepare).

I spent the rest of the day working on my drawing homework (theme: the past, using texture; my idea: drawings depicting what people did in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries paired with photos of my ancestors; the texture is part of the different scenes) and editing my business plan for Preparing for Professional Life.

In the evening, I walked over to Dance Fredericton to observe a couple of classes. My next independent study project is going to be on dance photography, and I'm going to photograph some of the students at the school. This week I just watched the dancers and took notes.

Wednesday: That day I had an assessment with Drew. He's really happy with the work that I'm doing--even when it doesn't exactly turn out. The important thing is that I understand the information and ideas that are being presented in class, and that I'm learning, including learning from my mistakes. Check, check and check.

The night before, I'd somehow gotten it into my head that I had class the next day (Assessment Week usually finds a way to screw me up), so I was in the photo studio around 8:30 that morning. I filled the time before and after my assessment by doing homework: I did a mounting assignment for Output, found a model release that I can use--and that complies with Canadian law--put the finishing touches on the artist statement for my independent study project, and worked on the iWeb website that I'm doing for Output.

Thursday: HAUNTED STUDIO DAY! That day, I really was to be at the college by 9:00. And unlike last year's haunted studio, I was one of the actors. I was the one scaring people with my camera flash from what's known as "the Star Trek door" (there are two openings directly across from each other, and to go in one and out the other you have to turn the revolving wall--if that description makes any sense).

One of my classmates, Anne-Marie, did my makeup:

The first tour was the best: that was the only time that I actually scared someone. My victim was the store manager, Mitch. When I hit the 'test' button on my flash, he jumped. "Oh, geeze!" After he went around the corner, I turned around and silently giggled into the wall. The other two tours were a bit of a let-down: I didn't scare anyone.

When I finally came out after the third, and final, tour left, the studio was filled with fake smoke. I could barely see. However, once we pushed the windows open, the smoke disappeared really fast. We also did a group photo in our costumes out on the steps of the college.

That morning, I'd decided that I wanted to do my assessment in my face paint. Peter still had his face paint on from that morning--though his was considerably less complex than mine. His face paint was a basic semi-transparent white.

The assessment went well. At Peter's suggestion, I'd added the artist statement, and at my assessment Peter said that as a result the project, and what I wanted to get across, was clearer.

Afterward, I went down to the washroom on the first floor (there isn't one on the second floor), and scrubbed. I managed to get rid of most of the face paint, but it was a long slog because it was piled on, colour after colour, with a face cream base under everything.

That evening, I spent about two hours making a birthday card for Lynn. Originally I thought I'd send an ecard, but when I didn't find anything that I was really happy with, I decided to go the DIY route. So I pawed through my photos from the last year, and finally settled on two different images. I played with one (a leaf), and fiddled with dodging and burning it, using a fill layer (50% grey; change the blend mode to Overlay; paint with either black or white, using the Brush tool). I wasn't too happy with the result, so I played around with the other photo, a self-portrait, adding a speech bubble using the Pen and Circular Marquee tools, as well as typing the words "Happy Birthday!!" Not to sound too "I slaved over this for hours--so you better appreciate it" (I know you're reading this, Lynn), but getting the speech bubble and the line to look the way I wanted them to was tricky as heck, mainly because I'm a perfectionist. I could see in my head how I wanted the whole thing to look, and I had to figure out how to get what was on my computer screen to match that idea.

After that came the easy part: emailing it, with a personal message for the birthday girl.

Friday: Tom's letting me borrow one of his cameras for a couple of weeks for my project, so he came up to F'ton to give me the crash course in how it works and where everything is. As I haven't used a Nikon digital camera in about five years, and the last one I used was a point 'n' shoot (this one's a gorgeous DSLR), it's an extremely steep learning curve. In some cases, I have to forget everything I know about how to operate a digital camera, because the Nikon is either backwards to what I'm used to, or has it in a different place. It's a totally different system.

Afterward, he drove me to the college, where I showed Peter what I'd be shooting with for the next couple weeks.

I then headed up to the third floor, and the Halloween party. When I got there, they were in the middle of the costume contest. After that came the results of the jack-o'-lantern contest (several categories, including Most Creative and Scariest), and the moment I'd been waiting for for about twenty-four hours: the results of the haunted studio contest. And the winner is... The textiles studio. Bummer. Though I'm sure they put in a good effort, and that their win is well worth it.

I spent the rest of the day working on homework, including doing a location lighting assignment for my Lighting class. That shoot was very interesting, as are all shoots where I've got a large set-up in a very public place. The photo studio faces both the stairwell, and the hallway that leads to the Surface Design and Fibre Arts studios, and it's next door to Administration, so there are always people coming and going--and wondering what the heck you're up to. I've learned to accept, and even enjoy situations like that.

Because Peter is having us second-year Photogs move our stuff into a new set of metal drawers, leaving the open wooden shelves for the first-year Photogs, I also devoted some time to transferring my stuff to it's new home.

Saturday: When I checked Facebook that morning, there was a status update from Occupy Fredericton saying that they need more people at the site (which is next to City Hall). So I decided that I'd take my Drawing homework outside, and physically join the Occupy movement for a couple hours--or until it got too cold.

First stop: Occupy Fredericton. After talking with some of the other Occupiers, I headed back to the college, stashed my valuables (computer, external hard drive, corresponding cables/cords) in my locker, grabbed a board from the drawing studio, clipped my homework to said board, and took the whole thing back to OF.

I spent the next two hours drawing and listening to the conversations going on around me, particularly the one going on next to me. Looks like the world's screwed for the next generation or two--thanks, 1%. As I wrote in an email to Mom last night, "if you want to learn about how the world is really run, go to the local protest. Money sure does talk [...]." The Occupy movement might as well be Economics 101. I know I'm getting one heck of an education.

After the temperature dropped enough to force me back inside, I drew for a bit longer, and then went home.

That evening was also the 11th annual Maggie Jean Chestnut Haunted House. This year's theme was a super-creepy hospital, with a psychiatric ward, a mortician who thinks that the dead speak to him, a children's ward, and a delivery room/OR. And this time, I was even a little scared, which was a first. Congratulations, MJC--took you long enough.

Sunday: They're calling it Snowtober--that storm that covered the eastern US and Canada in snow this morning. Though here in Southside F'ton the snow melted as soon as it hit the ground.

Once I got going, I spent the afternoon finishing my drawing, polishing up my business plan for Preparing for Professional Life, and working on my website for Output. And listening to CBC Radio 2 off and on because today they had eight hours of nonstop classical music to celebrate their 75th anniversary. But for me, the highlight came right at the end: Beethoven's ninth, performed by l'Orchestre Symphonique de Montréal. One of my favourite symphonies by one of my favourite composers, performed by one of the best orchestras in the world? I'm in.

I hummed along with a few passages, but once the singing started, I sang the entire thing. The fourth movement always has an emotional affect on me, and this time was no different: I actually cried in a couple of places (don't tell Beethoven that). The words and the music are so beautiful and powerful. "Seid umschlungen, Millionen! / Diesen Kuß der ganzen Welt!" ("You millions, I embrace you! / This kiss is for all the world!")

Notice something about this week? I wasn't sick! Unlike previous first assessment weeks (FVA, first-year diploma). YIPPEEEE!

Today was the BSO's Totally Beethoven concert, so let's finish off with the fourth movement (Allegro) from the fifth symphony, which was one of the pieces on the program. For the Bangor Symphony Orchestra. Check out that awesome violin part!

the freedom of Assessment Week

Yesterday was the first time I had class this week. As a result, this past week felt like an unofficial break: no alarm (well, okay--I set it twice), no classes, I could go to school whenever I wanted as long as I was there in time for that day's assessment... But it was like when Tom and I were in Italy in January 2006: Venice was supposed to be more laid-back than Rome, the Vatican City, Sorrento, Naples, Cortona or Florence--but we ended up doing just as much, including going to two concerts in two nights (same group: the first night was Tom's choice and the second was mine. L'Estro Armonico and The Four Seasons being the highlights, respectively--both by Vivaldi.).

Monday: We already know how that day/assessment went down, so I don't need to repeat it.

Tuesday: I had two assessments that day, one right after the other: Rod's followed by Karen's. I went to the college super-early, though, because I needed to get some info from Peter. He was thinking about doing a field-trip to the Collège de Matane, which is doing several photography workshops--if enough of the students were interested. I was interested, but I needed the list of workshops in order to really make up my mind. So due to the fact that Peter needed to know whether or not the students were interested by nine AM that morning, I rolled out of bed and went to school a couple of hours before my assessment.

Peter showed me the list (en Français), but due to lack of interest from the class in general, the trip was cancelled.

My assessments went well: with Rod the only real issue was that he wants me to show the photos that didn't exactly turn out, as well as the best of the shoot (I've just been showing the best). And to shoot more: do the assignment, yes, but go beyond the assignment and have some real fun in the lighting studio.

Karen's main issue was the fact that the photos that I took for the "photograph ten strangers" assignment were portraits (they were supposed to be candid)--something a lot of the class did. She's going to have all of us re-shoot the assignment when the weather warms up. Other than that I'm doing well in both classes.

I then had class in the afternoon (Karen was one of only two of my teachers who carried on and taught this week). Because she's been so awesome with organizing almost all of our events, Ashley had been named the photography studio's first-ever Student of the Month. So I spent part of lunch hour blowing up balloons with Karen and a few other classmates--and keeping the whole thing a secret from Ashley. As part of the celebration, Jessica printed her Freedom to Read photo at a size small enough to fit on Ashley's locker, but changed the words from "Crazy About Reading" to "Crazy About Organizing."

That day I found out via YouTube that the simulcast that I saw of Turandot has finally been released on DVD. However, there's a catch: it's only available at Target--and there aren't any Target stores in Canada, and it isn't available online. I posted a comment on both the video and the Met's announcement via Facebook of the fact that the Met Opera Shop now has an FB page. However, at the same time I found out that the simulcast of Doctor Atomic has also been released on DVD--it's available on Amazon and the Met Opera Shop. So why not Turandot? Cross your fingers, everyone (even if you dislike opera as much as I love it).

Here's a clip of Nessun dorma from that performance (it's the second half of the aria--the entire piece is about three minutes). I dare you not to cry (good luck).



Wednesday: Now this was interesting: I sit down with Peter--and the next thing I know, we're talking about my writing, which is apparently very good. Okay--I know it's good. :-) But the thing is (and I told Peter this), for me, writing is just something I do for fun--and word counts freak the heck out of me (oh, shoot! I still have to write three hundred words--but I don't know what else to write!). I'm fine when I'm writing something like a blog post: I can write as much or as little as I want. But the thing is, photography is a hard biz to get into (as is just about anything else art-related)--I know that. So doing something else in addition to photography is a good idea, especially in the beginning. Besides: writing can also tie into my medium/passion (books, magazine articles).

We also talked about my work for the assignments that my class has done so far. And yes, there are things that I need to work on: I'm really shy when it comes to approaching strangers for an assignment, for example (specifically, an assignment for Professional Practice where we were to shoot a photo that could be used as a stand-alone--a photo that has a caption, but doesn't go with any story on the page)--I'd rather photograph from across the street than walk up to the person.

That afternoon I printed two versions of one of the self-portraits (the one of me posing with the portrait of Adam and looking completely deadpan): one BIG (11" x 14"), and the other small enough to fit on my locker (9" wide).

Thursday: I didn't have anything that day, but I still rolled out of bed and went to school because I wanted to go over my regular résumé (not my CV) with Karen because there were some updates that I needed to make, and although I'd done most of them, I wanted a second opinion (other than potential employers, my parents are the only ones who've seen my résumé--and they're the only ones who've helped me put it together). After that I had nothing to do until late afternoon, when I'd booked the printer. But right between Brody's (one of the second years) print session and mine, the printer's maintenance tank (where all the excess ink goes after a print job) reached it's capacity, and now the printer's completely unusable until a new tank arrives, whenever that'll be (some point next week, but we don't know when).

Friday: I wouldn't be surprised if I get a good mark on my serial planes project. Take that, FVA design classes!! HA! We also talked about the research project, which should be fun. But then there's that darn word count again: five hundred words in notes. :-P Greg showed us examples of kinetic sculptures, which is what we're working on (mine's going to be of a girl with springs for arms, legs, waist, neck, and Pippy Longstocking-style hairdo,  a foamcore head, torso, skirt, feet and hands, and covered with photos printed on the colour printers--not the photo printer--and standing on a foamcore base). This weekend I plan to work on mine: it's due in a week, and that's pretty much all I have to work on besides the usual mischief: listening to the opera (Gluck's Iphigénie en Tauride, which I'm listening to right now), possibly going to see The King's Speech, and taking the weekend as it comes.

PS: This past Friday the last two groups of FVAs to do photography started their classes. As the students started to arrive for the afternoon class, some of them were asking where they were to meet. I started to put two and two together and asked Karen if this was the last group of FVAs. She said yes, and I reminded her that I was in the last group (the afternoon group after March Break) last year and gave her a big hug (she was my teacher that time, too). I'll never forget the fun I had during those seven weeks--now that's the way to end the FVA year!

high on art

This year, March Break is in the most awkward spot possible: this week is assessment week (I had my Photoshop assessment at 1:40 this afternoon), we start the next term next week--AND THEN we're free to go crazy in Cancún or Fort Lauderdale (PASSPORT), or go home, or do whatever.

This past weekend, I wrote nonstop: I had to finish two papers for Professional Practice (five hundred words each), to be passed in by nine this morning (I submitted them via email last night), and I had to write a five-hundred-word reflection paper for History, which I copied onto my blog for that class, so you can read it here (and see some of the photos) if you want to. Let's just say that I had way too much fun with the assignment--and on a school night, no less (I was up until midnight on Wednesday night shooting the photos, and I had to get up at seven-thirty--6:30 EST--for class at nine the next morning). But in a way that's a good thing: if you love what you do, sometimes you do end up staying up until all hours because you love it so much.

To celebrate the return of the Santiago el Grande, as well as the portraits of Lord and Lady Beaverbrook, the Beaverbrook Art Gallery hosted a Surreal Masquerade on Saturday night. I didn't go to the ball itself, but as part of festivities, WhiteFeather was going to present a short movie that she'd made called Fantasmagorie. Since I love her work, I had to see it.

Due to excitement, and being used to having to be out the door no later than half an hour before my classes start, I left at around seven-thirty--but I could've left as late as seven-forty-five. However, WhiteFeather's computer died an hour before the masque--and she didn't have a backup of the file. But she was able to have the file retrieved, and the show went on--about fifteen minutes after it was to start.

I was unbelievably excited and overwhelmed when I saw WhiteFeather come through the door of the gallery. I gave her a huge hug before she ran off to set up her movie--and I headed outside to stare at the window above the entrance (I didn't care if I looked a bit weird--as an artist myself, I'm used to it). After waiting a couple of minutes, the fun began. 

Fantasmagorie was perfect for the event: like the work of Dalí, it's surreal and you have to forget about trying to make sense of what you're seeing--just enjoy the show. I actually watched it three times: the first time the movie played, and then the second time with WhiteFeather (she had to make sure it looped properly--it did). After that I started to walk home--but I only got a couple of metres onto the Beaverbrook Trail before stopping dead in my tracks, turning around, and going back to the gallery for viewing number three. Finally, I was satisfied and ready to head home. As I wrote in a comment to one of her status updates on Facebook (saying that she's been invited by the B. to do another installation for them next year), "I should've known better than to try to decide for myself when I was ready to leave: that sort of decision can only really be made by the art in question. The viewer doesn't have a say in the matter. Another extremely good example: Adam MacDonald, who's a master at keeping me in front of an individual work a lot longer than I'm used to--in fact, as I walked back to the gallery, I muttered under my breath, "you are SO pulling an Adam MacDonald, WhiteFeather.""

WhiteFeather will post the video on her website in a little while, and I'll make sure to post the link here. Fantasmagorie was so mind-blowingly awesome and beautiful that I want to share it with everyone.

My Photoshop assessment went well: the only real concerns Drew had were 1. the fact that the HDR assignment from this past week (two HDR panoramas) didn't look really strong and "HDR-ish" (my word), and he didn't know whether they were HDR--he was cool with it once I explained that yes, they are HDR, and I put them together using a combination of PhotoMatix Pro (for the processing) and Photoshop (to put the panoramas together), and 2. I'm currently missing the noise reduction part of assignment five ("Noise, Chromatic Aberration, and Printing"). He didn't know whether he'd somehow missed it, or if I hadn't submitted it.

This coming weekend (starting on Thursday) is the House Weekend, which can only mean one thing: ASSASSINS!!!!! Okay, it also means other things: Thursday night is Virgin Drinks Night, for example. But when we played last year, I was eliminated before I could attack my target. This year, I want to actually "kill" my target--and do a better job at protecting myself. Come eight tonight, be afraid--be very afraid.

My HDR panorama of the college's basement.

Open letter to FVAs during finals from an FVA grad (Class of '10)

Dear FVAs:

Congratulations! You've made it this far. No matter who you are--and even if I don't know you--I'm proud of you. I was in your place last year, and this time was really difficult for me, so I sympathize with you if your stress-level is sky-high right now. But it won't last forever. Trust me. It won't.

You know what you need to study/prepare, so I won't go into that in detail. However I will say that if you've been keeping up with the readings for 2D Design, good for you--and you've done better than I did last year (in the first semester I did the first week's reading--and then didn't read any more in Launching the Imagination until a week before the exam. Not a good idea.).

But also remember to relax. I'm sure your parents have told you this (mine sure did last year), but you do need to stop and just relax sometimes. It'll help you in the long run. And we've got an awesome support system here: academic advisors (GO ADAM MACDONALD!!!!!!!!), a counsellor, your teachers--and I urge you to make use of of said support system. I didn't until the second semester, which was when I found out that Adam is an awesome academic advisor. And I'd better stop there, otherwise I'll still be yammering about him tomorrow afternoon. **sigh**

Also: if you're considering dropping out after this semester's over, I strongly urge you to reconsider: while the first semester is difficult, the second one ROCKS!!!!!! In the second semester I felt as though I actually had time to just breathe and my life wasn't just about homework anymore. Plus, you guys get Creative Process in the second semester (I had it in the first and I'm really glad they changed it around). It will change your life--it did mine (though my marks were really low).

So I wish you guys (all eighty-five of you) the very best, especially if this is your first college/university experience. And I'll say it again: the second semester rocks.

Love,
Annapurna Moffatt
FVA Class of 2010, Photography Diploma Class of 2012

who's got the coolest studio?!

Assessment Week continued this week: because my Communication for Visual Artists class is a week behind the other classes because we're on Monday and missed a class due to Labour Day, we didn't have assessments until this week. Karen lost her list of who had assessments at which time so although mine was at 10:15, I had to wait for about half an hour until I went in. It went really well, though it was one of the unique ones: not only did we talk about my work in the class (which is very good), but we also talked about art and I showed her my mom's website (like WhiteFeather before her, Karen loved Mom's site)--and I raved about Adam's work for the umpteenth time (I'm not shutting up any time soon--especially while his work is hanging in the school gallery).

The next afternoon (3:00) I had an assessment for my lighting and Digital Imaging classes. Those went well, too. In the morning I had Film and Darkroom Techniques, which is usually on Thursday afternoons. Last week we took photos with Bronica ETRSi's, which are medium-format (takes 120 film) cameras. When I was taking photos with mine I couldn't help but notice how beautifully it focused: when I put my DSLR on manual focus I usually have to fiddle with it for longer than I want to to get the focus to where it should be--and even then I'm not sure if it's perfectly focused. With the Bronica I knew exactly when it was focused. Why can't all cameras be like that??

On Wednesday I did my presentation for Creativity in Photography. My partner, Emily, and I had chosen Jane Fulton Alt. When I was looking at her work I noticed the photos that she did in reaction to the BP oil spill, which had been covered by just about every major news site as well as environmental sites like Greenpeace (they had a contest inspired by the photos, challenging people to come up with photos protesting the spill).

After the presentation we set up the darkroom as a haunted house. Most of the studios did something (Ceramics didn't, and Textiles said they weren't, but they were lying. Graphics did the same thing they'd done for several years--ahem.). We were competing against each other for a five-hundred-dollar prize and yes, we spied on each other.

I just had one class on Thursday (I usually have two, but since my assessment with Rod was on Tuesday and I'd had my Thursday afternoon Darkroom class on Tuesday morning, I was free as of noon), though since Karen was away that day, we didn't really have a class: just pass things in to Drew and then work on whatever needed to be done (I finished and submitted my HDR assignment for my Photoshop class, since it was due the next day).

We had a Halloween pizza party on Friday at noon, complete with a self-serve candy bar, scary music (including Thriller), and a costume contest (I can't remember who won). And we found out who won the studio decorating contest: the (get ready for this) first-year Photography studio!!!!!!!!!!!!! I was beyond excited.

Last night was the haunted house at Maggie Jean Chestnut Residence. This was our tenth year so we went all-out with a carnival/circus theme. This year I wasn't the least bit scared when I went on the tour (I was last year, mostly because I didn't know what the heck I was getting myself into). I have no idea how much we raised for the F'ton Food Bank (the house charity), but someone will probably say something or post it on Facebook. Last year was our best up to that point.

Ani DiFranco's coming to the Playhouse on November tenth--and I'm going to be there (Drew also said that he and his wife have tix)! She was supposed to play there last year but the concerts were cancelled. I've been listening to her music a lot for the last few days and I really like her style.

Happy Halloween!

Both of these are from her latest CD, Red Letter Year, which was released in '08.

assessment week, first year diploma edition

Ah, assessment week. This time was nowhere near as nerve-wracking as last year: I knew the drill and didn't have to worry about panel assessments.

The whole week went really well--except for the fact that I got sick with a cold on Monday. Now why the heck does this sound familiar (and if I'm sick this time next year I'll scream so loud that my friends in Nova Scotia will be able to hear me)?? But it wasn't as bad as the one that I got this time last year (that time I was really sick and went home for the weekend), and this time I had no choice but to get up and go to class.

However, assessment week isn't over yet: a couple of classes won't have assessments until this week.

Highlights: my Creativity in Photography assessment, which was more or less a critique of my work with Peter. Simply put, I'm on the way up and I'm improving. For this assessment I needed to develop an 11" x 14" print beforehand. Up to that point I'd just been developing 8" x 10" prints. I'm really happy with how the 11" x 14" turned out.

Photoshop: Tools and Techniques: this one was a class, though Drew handed out mark sheets (I have yet to get a mark sheet from anyone else). I hadn't handed in the last assignment yet (I'd had problems with part of it and wanted to go over it with him), but my mark so far is (hold onto your seat for this one) an A. Yes, really. An A. That's my first.

Yesterday was Panel Assessment Day for the FVAs. When the info about panel assessments appeared about a week ago I couldn't resist reading it--and seeing where Adam and his group would be (he was in one of the mobile office units in front of the school). I wished most of the FVAs that I met "good luck" because as I've said before, I haven't forgotten last year and I sympathize with the FVAs. I remember how nervous I was before my first panel assessment: no matter how many times I was told that I didn't have to be nervous and that it wasn't a big deal, I was still nervous.

Now they can say that they have it over with and that it really isn't a big deal.

To any FVAs who may read this: Congratulations! You survived (more or less)! Now when you go for your next panel assessment (which I'm assuming will be in December--it was last year) you'll be able to really relax because you'll know what the heck you're getting yourself into.

PS Although I'd been told that stop bath stinks like you wouldn't believe, I didn't know how bad it was until I had to mix up a new batch yesterday when I was developing a couple rolls of 120 film. Let's just say that if your throat is feeling as crappy as mine is right now and you have to mix up a new batch, you should try to get someone else to do it if you can because when it's undiluted it not only stinks (like vinegar but a thousand times stronger) but it burns. Ouch. Not good if you have a sore throat.

panel assessment day

Today was the panel assessment. I was up at six-thirty because I didn't take a shower last night.

I had to be there by nine to set up (I was on the fourth floor), but I left about ten minutes earlier then I'd planned so I arrived at school really early. That was okay because I ended up rushing around like crazy, bringing up my pottery from the basement and trying to find a drawing that I'd handed in last Tuesday (I had a look at the back and I got a good mark on it--though I can't remember what the number was).

After setting up I was free until my assessment, which was at 11:10. I passed the time by checking my email and various websites and then got a café mocha at Read's.

The assessment itself was easier and more relaxed then I'd expected. Sure, everyone said to relax and that it wasn't the worst thing in the world, but I was still nervous--even with all the prep, I still didn't know what to expect.

Harriet Taylor (Surface Design studio head) and I talked about the work that I'd set out and about how I'm doing, my experience at the college so far, and how to make things work so that I can succeed. Like the fact that I'm getting grades that are so bad I don't know how to describe them in both Creative Process and 2D Design. I want to do well in those courses and they're a lot of fun, but as I put it this morning, although I'm learning stuff, my grades don't show it.

She told me that at the end of the day the teachers have a meeting and discuss how the students are doing and that since Adam's my academic advisor, he can advocate for me and see what he can do to make my academic life a bit easier.

Afterwards I went to the bank to get some money for the concert I'm going to with some friends on Halloween at Crumbs Café (they don't accept debit). Then I went to the SuperStore to develop the photos for one of my projects for school. I was supposed to develop them as thumbnails: all the photos on one sheet of paper, along with three of them developed as five-by-sevens, but the machines don't do that anymore so I developed them as four-by-sixes.

After that I went back to school, got my stuff, and went home. And had a late lunch/early supper (take your pick). Tomorrow it's back to the daily grind...

midterms aren't as bad as I thought

This week is assessment week and I've been feeling off-kilter since yesterday. I don't even have any real classes today: just come in to pick up my grade for history (not bad--probably has something to do with the fact that I love history of almost any kind: I just get so into it) and meet with Denise, my Creative Process teacher, at one. And that's it for today.

I caught a cold somewhere in the school and woke up with a sore throat on Friday. I managed to make it through my last ceramics class but by that evening I was so exhausted and plain ol' out of it that I went to bed just after 7:30 (which is really early for me--I usually don't go to bed until about eleven).

Mom phoned that evening (I'd emailed her to say that I was sick) and offered to have Tom come and get me the next day. He'd talked about going up that night but Mom put her foot down (driving through Moose Alley at night, plus giving me enough time to pack). The next plan was for him to drive up and get me at eight the next day. I protested that one and we settled on 9:30.

I hardly did anything on Sunday--just read Everything I Needed to Know About Being a Girl I Learned from Judy Blume (which I ended up taking with me when I went back to Fredericton), played around on my computer (Facebook, anyone? Or how about watching a performance of The Nutcracker on YouTube?), planned to watch The Secret Life of Bees on said computer, read the material for the reaction paper, and worked on the reaction paper with Tom (I was still rather out of it).

On Monday morning I woke up feeling a lot better and worked a bit on my project for Creative Process (which I just found out isn't due until next week) before heading back to F'ton.

Now I just have to make sure I don't get sick again until after the Met's simulcast on the seventh--I don't want to be sneezing and coughing my way through a major horn (or violin) passage: "what? Could you guys play that again, please?"