Valley Life

The Valley is known for it's vast variety of bird species, including this unknown bird and it's young that chose to settle at BETA's pond. 

Students walk home while being charmed by a valley sunset.

Flowers seem to bloom with ease in our plant-perfect summer-autumn climate.

Students at Mission High School await their bus to BETA High School.

A Valley Sunset pleases the Edinburg population with a show of golds and reds.

Senior Keovar Simmons stands, waiting for me to catch up as we walk through Palms Crossing, the plaza outside McAllen Convention Center. 

People really like morning tacos here. They take their breakfast very seriously. :)

Highest in the state for DWI, the valley maintains it's reputation as the region that drinks and drives the most. This picture looks blurry, the way that drunkenness is portrayed in movies. I think it illustrates this characteristic of the place we live in. (Cynical, I know. Haha)

UTPA's library holds hundreds of thousands  of books, and actually has moving book shelves to help save space.

A child, just having thrown a tantrum, gives in and holds her hand out for her mother's help. 

iPhone Questions

1. Are you or people you know less likely to buy any of the products listed as a result of the development of smart phones?


2. In general, do you think it is an advantage or a disadvantage to have so many of your technological functions in a single device?
Disadvantage: Maybe, if one depends completely on that one single device, for obvious reasons. If that one device breaks, all functions and conveniences are simultaneously gone.

3. How have smart phones improved our lives?
Smart phones have combined many modern day conveniences and delivered them in a small handheld package.



4. What do you think has been the most important invention of your lifetime? How do your answers compare with the most important inventions of your parents’, grandparents or great-grandparents’ lifetimes?
In terms of technology, I think Wi-Fi/mobile internet has proved to be pretty helpful. People now have the freedom to access information from wherever they are. For my parents and grandparents, I would say a series of medical advancements from the 40's and on. 



5. “There are plenty of studies which insist that smart phones will begin to replace the PC as the common vehicle for accessing the Internet.” Do you agree? If so, does this mean PCs are on their way out? Would you ever stop using them?
I agree only with the condition that a person is understood to spend more time outside their house than inside. Usage of smart phones to access the internet has become ubiquitous because of the convenient service that it offers regardless of activity and location. PCs will still be necessary for other computer applications.

6. Do you have any need for TVs, radios, and other devices, rather than just using your computer for everything? Would you ever want to use your phone as a TV or radio? What are the barriers to either of these things happening? 
TVs aren't being replaced  by smartphones yet. The thing with watching your shows on a device like a smartphone is that you have to know what you want before you watch it. The freedom of a t.v is that you don't have to, and aren't wasting precious time waiting for a new video to load as you're surfing channels.

Soldier Photo

1. What feeling does this photograph create in you, the viewer?
A bit of humor initially, but mainly of sorrow.

2. What story do you think this photograph tells the viewer? Does it capture something that would be hard to convey in words?
A soldier is not his uniform, but his actions.

3.  Who or what is the subject of this photograph?
The subject is mainly the soldier in warm colors, as he contrasts with the rest of his green environment.

4. Is the lighting natural or artificial? What time of day is it?
It is natural; It is most likely early morning.

5. What colors stand out?  
The red and pink of the soldier's clothing. 


6. What part or parts are out of focus, if any?
The background/What the soldiers are shooting towards.

7. What is the distance between the subject and the camera/viewer? What is the effect of this?
It's fairly close, no more than a few yards away. It gives the feeling of actually being present.

8. How is the picture composed? Is the subject centered? Is the "rule of thirds" followed?
Yes and no. While the photo features more than one person and takes up a lot of the picture's space(not rule of thirds), the main subject is placed on the left side, thus featuring the 'rule of thirds' to be followed.

9. How personal/impersonal is this photo? What elements make it this way?
Relatively personal, because it shows insight into the life of soldier in a rare and unique way. 

10. What strikes you most about the photo? Why do you think that is?
The soldier on the left side, displaying his "I Love New York" boxers. Soldiers aren't typically illustrated this way, even know it is conceivable that it isn't unheard of at all to fight in your pajamas.

11. What is the background for this image?
The background features a mountainous terrain.

12. Why do you think this photograph was taken?
People rarely see this kind of image in the media. 

13. Does this qualify as photojournalism? As commercial, casual or art photography, or some other category? Why?
It most definitely counts as photojournalism. It exposes a truth that many are blind to. This photo would fall under the category of news at best. 

14. Is the photo timely? Does it have a timeless quality? Both? Might it become iconic? Why or why not?
This photo is definitely memorable. It's rare and it's thought-provoking; and it resurfaces the notion that the soliders in Afghanistan aren't made up or fighting for an anonymous cause...they are real people- "the kid next door"- fighting for a cause and fighting well.

15. What else do you notice about the photograph?
The photograph seems to have been taken from a higher elevation than the actual subjects, though it is not immediately recognizable.

Vertical Shots

Alexxa Leon, senior, bursts into a shocked laughter as her best friend, also senior, Celina Garcia continues to tell her a hilarious anecdotes.

STPA Spartans, some shivering in their P.E shorts, return from a morning jog making sure to carry back the P.E Department's cones back with them.

Joe Martinez demonstrates his ability to be too cool for school, while still managing to finish his Digital Animation assignments far earlier than the majority of his class.

Education students collaborated to list the things they are thankful for. 

Cristina Pulido and Joe Martinez sit and listen to a funny story as they wait for the rest of their class to finish their assignments.

Walking down the CATE hallway, one could easily peek into Ms. Pratt's class to find a collection of hardworking juniors and seniors. 

Regina Trevino, senior, fills the TAFE Gryffindor banner with burgundy and red during the week of BETA's first ever Quidditch Tournament. 

Seniors walk in and out of the counseling center on a daily basis; Alexxa Leon joins the ranks of them as she quickly reads over a worksheet before placing her slapdash signature on the appropriate line. 

Good Use of Photographic Techniques

Holi Festival in India, The Big Picture

I have to go take part in this someday. 

From Boston.com's Big Picture, to fill you in on the concept of this festival...

"Last Monday (March 1st), people in India and other countries with large Hindu populations celebrated Holi, the Festival of Colors. A welcoming of Spring, Holi is celebrated as the triumph of good over evil. Hindu devotees and others enthusiastically drop their inhibitions, and chase each other in temples and through the streets, playfully splashing colorful paint, powder and water on each other. People also attend bonfires to commemorate the story of Prahlada, a Hindu figure and devout follower of Lord Vishnu who prevailed over his father and the demoness Holika with the power of his devotion."

h01_22443543.jpg // AP Photo/Rafiq Maqbool 

I adore this photo of a spunky Hindu girl smiling at the camera with her face smeared in different hues of scarlet and gold. Nice use of selective focus.

BIrds Eye
People crowd the dance floor of the state opera during the traditional Opera Ball, in Vienna, Austria, on Thursday, Feb. 11, 2010. (AP Photo/Ronald Zak) #

Rule of Thirds

In this photo taken in Rome, Tuesday, Feb. 2, 2010, a dancer of the Momix Dance Theatre Company performs a scene from "Bothanica" during Rome's premiere. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino) #

Curves.

Worm's Eye Boston Ballet dancer Heather Waymack in Jirí Kylián's Falling Angels (Boston Ballet by Sabi Varga © vargaimages) #

Framing

Repetition

Selective Focus, Rule of Thirds, Repetition

Rule of Thirds, Leading Lines

What do these have in common? :D

 

:)

Doesn't really matter. The last is my favorite, though.

Embarrassing myself is being myself.

This post has been in my drafts since September. I decided to post it, still. :)


Today I embarassed myself at UTPA again.
I fell into a vast collection of unseen swamp water.
I wasn't embarassed, though I may have contracted E.Coli in my ungracefully eternal tumble.  

I had given in to gravity."Gravity is not responsible for two people falling in love," said he.
9/27/2010

"At This Stage In Life"

I like when people use this phrase. It's so true to the way we carry out our lives; we don't even realize the depth of our words sometimes. It makes life seem so much like a live-production. Lights, camera...surprise! We're already shooting. We've been shooting for a while, actually, regardless of whether you were aware of it or not. Crew members scurry, unseen, all around us. They move around in a frantic fashion, moving doors and windows and walls and sofas and kitchen cabinets around. A endless sea of an audience is before you, scrutinizing your every move. Applauding. Laughing. Mocking. Fidgeting. They cheer you on. They write mean things about you in the Sunday paper.

There are no rehearsals in this life. We can only strive to get it right when it counts to us. So what happens when you don't? The scene will only end, the curtains will just close, and when we're on our own again, we'll try to be ready for the next scene. The next play. The next stage.Makeup, please.

humanity's evolution

Before I say anything, the transition from the Dandy Warhols' "Sleep" into "Satellite Heart" by Anya Marina was so incredibly perfect right now. I feel scared because I feel that humanity isn't evolving fast enough. Fast enough to keep up with what we've created for ourselves. Intellectually and morally in this particular case...

..

Celina Garcia, senior, talks about Texas life in the early 20th century at her exhibit at the Museum of South Texas History.

Action, Adventure, Gourmet Recipes

Alexxa Leon teases fellow senior Abraham Ludden as she takes on the role of pappaazzo, repeatedly snapping several photos of him dressed up for picture day.

Seniors Kari Kimball and Danika Moran take a break from a morning of journalism workshops at the San Antonio Sheraton Gunter Hotel, jumping merrily on beds of fresh linen.

Trina Jones, senior, stays vigilant as she adjusts her Bat Girl costume.

Junior Elaine Campos, taking on the roll of Barbie, makes senior Carolina Cavazos laugh as she pantomimes doll-like movements in her AP Biology class.

Highly amused by a revoltingly deformed Halloween gourd, Abraham  Ludden (12) holds the funny vegetable out as Celina Garcia (12) backs away in disgust. 

Andy Fraser, senior, makes funny faces as he leaves a fellow photojournalism student locked outside Ms. Wilson's door.

At a CATE department meeting, Christopher Wedde and his colleagues patiently listen to the opinions of invited parents and employers of the internship program for the business and education track.

Senior Carla Hernandez makes pleasant conversation with Principal Magdalena Gutierrez before having to present on the education track at a CATE meeting.

Sophomores in Human Growth and Development class juggle a balloon back and forth with each other during their downtime on Halloween day.

Workers prepare to plant a new palm tree in front of the front office.

Linda Cerda, senior, glares at her classmates in her Human Growth and Development class on Halloween day. 

Senior Marcos Kellar tours the Mossasaur and Mammoth exhibit at the Museum of South Texas History as a part of his Education Track internship

Junior Alex ____ holds the door open as Danika Moran, senior, quickly makes her way towards the Concurrent Enrollment bus to UTPA. 

Danika Moran, senior, candidly runs into an old friend from Sharyland High School at the entrance of the Science Building at UTPA.

Freshmen Issac and Joe discuss their English 2 projects, due immediately after lunch.

Jose Duran playfully glares at the camera as fellow sophomore Hector Martinez laughs along on the bus to Mission High School.

..