New Zealand is Magical

Posted on March 7, 2014 by Brian D. Butler

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Last Spring California photographer/filmmaker Shawn Reeder spent three months gallivanting around New Zealand in a camper van. He took more than 150,000 still images and used them to produce this awesome timelapse video of his magical adventure.

Posted in Film, Photography, Tourism | Tagged , | 1 Comment

Unplug With A Book

Posted on March 6, 2014 by Brian D. Butler

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The Oslo, Norway-based design and brand agency Anti & Grandpeople has created a fun, pithy print ad campaign for the Norlis bookstore company. They designed a series of clever ads combining book covers to be read as phrases urging us to unplug from our digital devices and read a book.

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From Dawn to Dusk

Posted on March 5, 2014 by Brian D. Butler

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Singapore-based photographer Fong Qi Wei has created a series of short animated gifs, which compress a full day — from dawn to dusk — into a single, looped gif. Shot from the same position at various time of the day, overlooking cityscapes, skyscrapers and ocean panoramas, Qi Wei captures both bustling cities — lights in apartments  flickering on and off — and peaceful ocean vistas. Pulsating in infinite circles that fold into each other, or folding in place and dramatically shifting in color, the images weave together the varied compositions, giving rise to an entirely new landscape through the digital gif format.

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Posted in Animation, Architecture, Art, Asia, Photography, Tech | Tagged , , | 6 Comments

Rants About Books

Posted on March 4, 2014 by Brian D. Butler

Hank Green, co-creator of the popular Vlogbrothers Youtube Channel , has posted an amusing little video called “Ranting About Books”. He has some valid points, but what’s up with his beef about deckled edges? What do you think?

Posted in Books, Writing | Tagged , | 1 Comment

Just Another Mandala Monday

Posted on March 3, 2014 by Brian D. Butler

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The 12th century City of Temples complex of Angkor Wat in northwest Cambodia constitutes the largest extant ancient religious complex in the world. Today the Angkor Archeological Park is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, a tourist magnet drawing nearly a million annual visitors, and an active Thervada Buddhist Temple.

Cambodia-based, Hungarian photographer Antal Gabelics has created a mindblowing video (see below) exploring the current state of Angkor and the dynamic between the spiritual complex and the tourist destination. Here’s what he had to say about the project:

  • I wanted to explore the interrelation of traditional past and developing present at Angkor, and questions what they mean for the future of this historical and sacred site.Originally reserved for religious activities, these structures are now some of the greatest tourist attractions in the world. These timelapse-loop videos meld the experience of tourism at Angkor into surreal, kaleidoscopic images and sequences inspired by Theravada Buddhist mandalas,in which the frenetic activity of backpack-toting tourists passes like the shadows of ever moving clouds over the weathered, ancient stones.

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Posted in Animation, Art, Asia, Film, Museums, Photography, Tech, Tourism | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Go to the Gallery

Posted on March 2, 2014 by Brian D. Butler

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Miriam Elia is a London-based visual artist, writer, radio personality and comedian. Her latest project, “We Go To The Gallery” (see below) is a sardonic look at the art world . If you’re intrigued by the sample, you can see more of the hilarious book on her website and even purchase a copy to give to that art-loving child in your life.

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What Species of Book Lover Are You ?

Posted on March 1, 2014 by Brian D. Butler

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Curse You Reed-Kellogg

Posted on February 28, 2014 by Brian D. Butler

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If you were educated during a certain era in the United States, you are all too familiar with the classic Reed-Kellogg diagrammatical system. The folks at Pop Chart Lab in New York , whose goal is “to render all of human experience in chart form”, have turned 25 famous opening lines from iconic works of fiction into a clever, color-coded piece of wall art. If you’re so inclined, you can purchase your own version right here.

For those of you lucky enough to have avoided the Reed-Kellogg System in school, it dates from 1877, when it was created by two sadists named Alonzo Reed and Brainerd Kellogg.

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Waiting For Godot

Posted on February 27, 2014 by Brian D. Butler

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Welcome Onboard

Posted on February 26, 2014 by Brian D. Butler

Every flier has endured those tedious, unimaginative flight safety videos while awaiting take-off. Most of us barely acknowledge the drill. Virgin Atlantic has taken heed and created a new animated, pre-flight safety film that manages to be entertaining and informative too.

Posted in Animation, Film, Tourism | Tagged , , | 1 Comment