I haven't done my lab report, and i haven't done any tutorials this week other than thermodynamics. All i've done is snap snap snap.....
Had 4 hours of break today and headed to ADM building to develop my film and photos. It was a slower process as i have to deal with 3 rolls of film.
I only had time to develop 2 contact prints and left to attend my lecture at 3.30 pm. I continued developing the photos after the lecture. I'm rather pleased with the photos i've taken this time round as well.
Spent almost the entire day today shooting pictures since i do not need to attend lab today. Shot a whopping 3 rolls of film! Yay, i can go camera/shutter free for the next 2 weeks coz we only need to shoot 1 roll every week.
Got my first parking summon after about 1 year of driving. $20 down the drain but considering the number of times i have not been caught by the traffic/parking wardens, i don't really feel the pain.
Can't wait to develop my photos tomorrow. Really like some of the sunset shots i've taken.
Our photography professor demands perfection. The church building is a little too dark, the dog picture looks quite flat, and the sky needs outlining for almost all my A4 sized photos. There is a technique to boost the outlines of the photo which is called 'burning' and it is done by shining the projected light through a hole on the edges of the photo.
Test prints were done and my 2nd attempt for the A4 print of the church photo. Aperture F11, exposure time 22 seconds. The building turns out fine and the sky needs to be outlined, the teacher says. 3rd attempt, same exposure settings but my first attempt with 'burning'. The sky looks disproportionate due to 'bad burning', says the teacher. After finding out the correct techniques to 'burn' the outlines, 4th attempt for the A4 print plus proper burning.
Finally, got what the teacher wanted after wasting 3 A4 prints and 4 test prints. A little difference makes a difference. A little difference also costs us our time and many pieces of photo paper in the rubbish bin.
Exasperated......
Yuan Sheng and i stayed back after our solidworks session in school to develop our film and photos. This time, i did not screw up the loading of film into the container. We went to the completely dark film loading room to load our film and there is much more space for us to maneuver. The turning of the spool was much easier and smooth compared to my first attempt.
We then continued the procedure of adding the developer, stop bath & fixer, then putting the spool under running water for 30 minutes, putting in the wetting agent, and finally drying the film in a heater cabinet.
The photos were to be developed next and we did the test prints before making the contact print. Choosing the photos were not too difficult for me as i already had in mind some of my well taken photos.
I must say that i'm very glad to have some great shots for my second roll of film.
I have long wanted to catch some movies during this oscar season and i chosen Half Nelson which 8 Days and Straits Times gave 4.5 and 5 stars respectively. Ryan Gosling is nominated for Best Actor category in the Academy Awards.
It is the first time i went to the Picturehouse at The Cathay and it is also my first time sitting on such an expensive chair (reported at $10,000 per chair). It certainly looks quite expensive and classy but once i sat on it, it didn't feel very comfortable. The cushion is little too rigid and the arm rests feels too hard. Got a little headache after the show as well.
Anyway, back to the movie. The story is about a white teacher, Dan, teaching history in a predominantly black community. The irony is that he is actually a drug addict and he got caught strung out in a toilet by one of his students. They develop a friendship between each other as each one of them faces their own morality tests. The student, Drey, is close to a friend who is has dealings with drugs and Dan chastises Drey for being friends with bad company.
The story is simple and straightforward, not overblown or overtly dramatic to cater to mainstream audiences wishes. The acting is strong with Ryan Gosling totally believable as a junkie, as well as a teacher who is keen on educating and changing people's lives. Shareeka Epps also holds her own as the student who is very independent, but ocassionally falling for the dark side.
The film is a little too understated for me but it is nevertheless a great character study of two flawed human beings, with good acting to boost.
***1/2
My jc gang met up at Jurong Bird Park & Reptile Farm carpark on Friday night to go to a prawning farm just beside the carpark. We met up at 9 pm and waited for a few of the latecomers.
Jim had bought some worms which were supposed to be some food which prawns eat.
