the ginkgo blog

Citroen GT or an Audi R8 V10? If you asked me yesterday I'd have said huh?!

That was yesterday...

I love cars. A lot! I used to race them and occasionally still do for charity. For a while now, I have really admired and appreciated the Audi R8. And if sufficient amounts of cash were coming in to the bank account to a point where my wife wouldn't rip off my dangly bits if I bought one... Then I'd buy one without a seconds thought.

One of my neighbours bought one just over a week ago. A purring V10 sculpted stunner, which I sadly have to listen to roaring up the road daily. Sometimes more, sat there in pure, unashamed jealousy.

Today I saw something pretty amazing that has put this into question. 

This!!! 

Personally I would have it in black or gun metal grey, but that's just me. If it came to it and it was given to me, it could be shocking pink for all I'd care. But all I can say about this extraordinarily designed car is.... Holy crap! 

I want one and I want one now. I know for a fact I have two perfectly functioning kidneys and that I only really need one. That has to be a deposit on it at least?!

What is more amazing is that this car started out its life as a purpose built dream machine to be included in Gran Turismo 5. And now, Citroen have released the beast from the silicone universe in to mine.

Sure this thing is still concept. But it is a concept that is driving around the streets of London with an engine that sounds like its fuel was refined from the bowels of Valhalla.

There is not a hope in hell of me owning this pocket extender - and there are two key reasons for that... One, it will be so stupidly expensive that even if I sold my house in lived in the nearby woods with the rabbits, I still would not be able to afford this thing. And far more crucially... Two, it isn't a real production car. But...  if I can't own it - I really want to photograph it. All of it and in as much detail as I can.

So, if you know someone who knows someone who knows someone that can help me to get this thing to the airfield studios - You will become my new best friend (the current one can quite frankly just bugger off) and I might even let you borrow my 'blad. Which I don't even let the current one do.

HOME 2009 - A movie by Yann Arthus-Bertrand - And it is simple stunningly beautiful to watch...

Yann Arthus-Bertrand, is without a shadow of a doubt one of the truly great masters in photography. And this film is a treat to watch, if for no other reason than it is visually stunning!

Admittedly, one of the key ingredients that has made his so famous and I am sure quite wealthy was the fact that he focused initially on capturing images that almost no-one ever sees (including pilots). That being the earth from directly above and straight down.

Now that isn't a negative comment - In fact, it is the exact opposite. In my humble opinion, one of the markers that truly differentiates a master from the good is that they portray something original and from a totally unique point of view.

For those that know his work, examples and links to it below, this film is pretty much a high definition, motion version of his stills. With, the addition of an emotive voice over regarding the state of our planet, what we are doing to it and what we need to be looking at doing now to stop the slide into oblivion.

Politics and beliefs aside - It is a truly great watch - even if you durn the volume down, or better still, if you are offended by climate change and green issues so much, choose a language to one you simply do not understand, as the music goes very well with the film.

Personally, I watched it for what it was. Absorbed the beauty of the filming and took/left from the ideology what I wanted.

For anyone who has a passion for imagery of any kind, this is a must see!

Books and movies by Yann Artus Bertrand:

Hockney turns to mobile artwork using the iPhone... Plus three free Hockney iPhone wallpaper originals for you to download.

As a photographer and artist, I love the iPhone, a lot! it is just such an amazing device for true creativity without all the usual constraints placed on you by the technologies that we almost all seem so intent in employing in our day to day professional lives.

In this sense, it makes the device incredibly ironic. Being one of the most advanced mobile pieces of technology on earth. But it is of course this incredible complexity of merged technologies that makes it so simple and so fun to use.

Creativity in your pocket 24/7...

More after the jump...

Steve Jobs returns to work - From the archives... Steve Jobs Stanford Commencement Speech 2005 - Well worth a watch!

CHASE JARVIS CURRENT: The consequences of creativity... Well worth a watch....

Chase was recently invited to speak to the Art Director's Club of Denver and the ASMP about creativity, and subsequently delivered that keynote two weeks ago. This video is a recording of that talk. Hope it strikes a chord with you as it did with me.

Chase Jarvis CURRENT: The Consequences of Creativity from Chase Jarvis on Vimeo.

Creative photography blockage or inspiration under pressure just waiting for the right time to come out?

I write this in response to a blog post of someone who has started to become more and more part of Ginkgo and if I am honest, has helped to start to shape the direction in which it is traveling. He is genuinely talented and in my opinion will go a long way - eventually...

His post: "are culture injections free on the NHS" hits on something we all feel/fear at points along our creative path. I'm not going to go in to them - Read his post - I certainly couldn't have written it better myself.

I guess the simple answer to his hypothesis is no. They are not free. But primarily for two simple reasons. One, sadly nothing in life is actually free and two, they don't exist.

The far more complicated answer is...

There is a word - inspiration - that we all use very freely. Derived from theology as the divine breath of 'your' very own, personal angel. 

It is a source of apparently unknown origin and something that seemly appears from out of the blue. Invariably after a period of creative doubt and drought.

More after the jump...

Scott Kelby's Worldwide Photo Walk 2009 - Fancy joining me for the Winchester session?

So, what's the plan? Simply put, we get together, walk along a route we have selected full of amazing stuff for you to snap away at, chat, have a laugh and generally enjoy ourselves along with like minded others.

Then, we'll finish at a place of refreshment, chat, share images and anything else we fancy. 

We'll then build our collection and share them with the rest of the worlds collections. 

There will be more details forthcoming over the next week, so keep your eyes peeled here, or of course, sign up and follow us. In the mean time, if you're interested, there are 50 places up for grabs and you can get on the list via our part of the global site...

http://worldwidephotowalk.com/winchester-en-uk/

What are you waiting for? Click away and come and join us!

Galactic Centre of the Milky Way rises over Texas - Canon 5D with 15mm Fisheye...

A very stunning little sequence and damn well captured by William Castleman. 

Galactic Center of Milky Way Rises over Texas Star Party from William Castleman on Vimeo.

Equipment used was a modified Canon 5D with a 15mm fisheye lens @ f2.8. Camera tripod mounted (sure you guessed that bit already) facing South East. 20 second exposures each minute giving a final frame rate of 15 frames per second.

Click any of the links to get taken over to his Vimeo page for a full fat HD version.

Olympus E-P1 'Digital Pen' has been officially announced - And I think I want one!

I have seen discussions about this little puppy kicking around for a while and from what I was reading, certainly became very interested in both the concept and the actual product.

Announced in the US, Olympus has officially announced the what appears to be a very long awaited release of the E-P1 - "The Pen", sporting its large sensor in a compact form factor.

The inclusion of a larger sensor in a compact to quite honest is a no-brainer. Thankfully the masses have cottoned on to the fact that more pixels you try stick in a constant size, the worse your pictures will likely be. Noise, artifacts and countless other nasties start to pop up once you exceed the sweet spot on the size/pixel curve.

Sadly though, it has taken way too long in my book for this to become a reality - Has pixel mania passed? Of course not, but thankfully we seeing a transition in line with reality rather than fantasy.

Want to see and read more? Click away and continue reading after the jump...

   

Photography blogs... The ulimate rank? If not, why not...

The ultimate ranking of photography blogs or not? If not, what's your top 10 - and why?

Photography  Blogs: The ultimate rank

#	Blog Title						RSS	Site Score
1st	Digital Photography School	246,784	8,640	11,427	349,909	6		100
2nd	Strobist	55,849	n/a	35,446	303,661	6		99.1
3rd	DIYPhotography.net -DIY Photography and Studio Lighting	20,027	54,031	48,007	77,078	5		98.77
4th	The Luminous Landscape - Whats New	n/a	22,843	22,115	203,912	7		97.73
5th	Digital Camera Reviews & Photography Tips	3,608	28,501	35,326	100,614	3		96.95
6th	PopPhoto: Tests & Reviews	n/a	17,700	29,025	510,164	4		96.7
7th	Digital Camera Reviews, Ratings, Tips and Comparisons	827	n/a	n/a	37,977	4		96.46
8th	Chase Jarvis Blog	12,427	n/a	n/a	41,145	6		96.31
9th	1001 Noisy Cameras	2,176	93,658	77,920	54,532	5		96.11
10th	A Photo Editor	n/a	103,266	102,266	54,079	6		95.97
11th	Adobe Photoshop Lightroom Killer Tips	n/a	150,837	92,411	60,618	6		95.77
12th	Photography Served Featured Projects	n/a	95,035	109,214	14,458	5		95.7
13th	pro photo life	6,969	257,504	242,415	5,194	4		95.46
14th	Photojojo	n/a	n/a	n/a	22,604	5		95.18
16th	Shoot The Blog	n/a	n/a	n/a	29,321	5		94.88
17th	Photoshop User TV	n/a	250,670	190,703	55,968	6		94.86
18th	TWIPPHOTO.COM	n/a	168,417	245,893	153,545	3		94.7
19th	Pioneer Woman Photography - Ree Drummond	n/a	n/a	n/a	20,451	3		94.69
20th	Joe McNallys Blog	n/a	n/a	n/a	79,570	6		94.63
21st	JMG-Galleries - Jim M. Goldstein Photography	2,594	n/a	n/a	14,490	5		94.56
22nd	Rob Galbraith DPI	n/a	77,640	56,699	154,365	5		94.48
23rd	Photopreneur - Make Money Selling Your Photos	n/a	n/a	111,114	82,553	5		94.39
24th	The Online Photographer	n/a	n/a	n/a	19,129	4		94.31
25th	Beyond Megapixels	4,925	229,455	315,776	18,851	4		94.23
26th	Photography Blog DigitalPixels.net	n/a	126,652	90,365	14,661	4		94.16
27th	Shutter Sisters	n/a	n/a	n/a	18,757	5		94.02
28th	PhotoWalkPro	3,099	n/a	n/a	12,376	4		93.98
29th	LIGHTING ESSENTIALS : For Photographers	n/a	333,198	178,896	16,116	4		93.95
30th	Flickr Blog	n/a	n/a	n/a	23,025,658	8		93.85
31st	Yaniks Photo School	2,101	469,269	186,220	8,917	4		93.82
32nd	Digital Camera Tracker	n/a	69,081	74,179	8,452	3		93.47
33rd	unphotographable	n/a	196,801	514,080	28,191	5		93.14
34th	7 Photography Questions	n/a	282,169	419,307	1,122	5		93.14
35th	Imaging Insider	n/a	144,990	138,621	63,187	5		93.12
36th	PDN Photo of the Day	n/a	62,424	105,666	16,622	4		93.09
37th	Photography For Real Estate	n/a	371,727	105,119	6,938	4		92.93
38th	The Online Photographer	n/a	n/a	651,103	31,376	5		92.75
39th	LetsGoDigital English Edition	n/a	n/a	n/a	39,330	3		92.71
40th	PDNPulse	n/a	86,802	134,031	74,903	6		92.7
41st	Digital Camera Recommendations	n/a	83,739	83,394	5,211	4		92.5
42nd	John Keatley Blog	n/a	n/a	n/a	1,288	4		92.43
43rd	Northlight Images Photography	n/a	n/a	88,418	14,884	4		92.35
44th	Digital Photography Now	n/a	320,469	242,760	86,992	3		92.03
45th	1416??	n/a	n/a	225,420	37,305	5		91.88
46th	whats the jackanory	n/a	529,531	711,222	34,987	5		91.87
47th	Liz Kuball Photography | Blog	n/a	n/a	n/a	26,211	5		91.87
48th	chookooloonks blog	n/a	n/a	n/a	11,777	4		91.74
49th	PixSylated ?? Insights on Digital Photography, Color Managment, Off-Camera Flash...	n/a	514,386	434,132	7,719	4		91.7
50th	Lightroom Blog	n/a	541,681	377,824	17,904	6		91.68

Listing compiled and published by Invesp Consulting - See additional information here