Today Show January 1994...What is the Internet?!

via youtube.com

"Allison, can you explain what 'Internet' is?"

Funny thing is, we've probably swung around full circle to the point where the Internet is so ubiquitous, that we still can't define it.

Infographic: Top 20 Passwords Of All Time

via lebowitz.net

Increasingly, I don't know what my passwords are to more and more sites, and I don't need to know. Why? Because I use 1Password. Let it generate ridiculously strong passwords, and remember them for you. Mac/Windows/iPhone/Android; syncs with Dropbox.

ShapeShifter | Charlex

via charlex.com

Gorgeous animation from Charlex, one of my favorite post-production houses. Narrated by Gabriel Byrne.

Martini

Tanqueray Martini in the making

Continuing my boozy series of still-lifes, here are some of the essentials for making what many consider to be the classic martini. Some of the things I’ve learned over the last few days of shooting these still-lifes:

• Your glasses and bottles are never as clean as you think they are
• Reflections are a pain in the butt
• Consuming the product while shooting it introduces complications

I'm Gellin'

Yeah, I hate that ad campaign as much as you probably do, but I really am gellin’ - in that I’m starting to see the versatility and importance of using them in my flash photography.

Check out this shot of a bottle of Captain Morgan’s 100-Proof Spiced rum:

There’s one speedlite in a softbox, camera-left, and another directly behind the bottle, with a Honl Speed Gobo strapped to it. I like it. When I look at it, I can almost feel the burn of that delicious golden liquid as it warms my insides.

Now check out this shot I made, after adding a red gel (what Sensei McNally calls the theatrical gels) to the speedlite that was behind the bottle.

Dramatic, huh? It’s a small thing, but it’s really starting to open my eyes to the importance of using gels, or at least the creative possibilities that they make available to me. I’m still wrapping my head around the concept of using gels to correct mixed lighting situations (I’m still in the “I shoot RAW, so I’ll just fix it in Aperture” mindset). But I’m determined to get more comfortable - after all it’s yet another tool to have ready at the arsenal.

Bonus: Here’s another shot of the same bottle when I pulled the camera off the tripod and went handheld (which is more in my comfort zone).