Journal

Consolidation

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I am working toward keeping all of my web properties here under a single domain.

New long-form posts will be here. Previous posts (2022-2002) are now in the Archive. I don’t do social media anymore but I do like to fire off some quick posts, mostly to myself and they are now in the Micro page of this website.

The only web property not hosted on my web server is the photography website. I’m okay with that because I prefer the free hosting there and the way it displays images better.

Is this the perfect solution? I don’t know yet but the tinkering has been fun.

As of now, not everyone can see this website due to my domain name chrisdenbow.website being transferred from one domain registrar to another. 5-7 days they say, which is an eternity in tech time.

Post Process Photography

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Lately I have been attempting to find a more efficient workflow for my photography processing and organization. I have been an Adobe Lightroom user since 2006 to help organize and edit images. A few years ago Adobe switched to a subscription model instead of a one-time purchase. This is disappointing. To save money, I have looked for a solution that can do everything Lightroom can and own it. It hasn’t been easy and I have tried them all. I’ve gone back and forth but somehow I keep coming back to Lightroom so why fight it? Shut up and take my money. A history of the back and forth below:

  • 01/01/2018 Lightroom is the best, I’ll never leave.
  • 05/01/2018 Why am I paying Adobe every month? I wonder what Capture One will do for me?
  • 05/15/2018 C1 trial expiring, do I want to invest $200 for something I am not too happy with?
  • 03/24/2019 Converted from Windows to Macbook. Adobe? Pixelmator? Both.
  • 02/02/2022 Cancel Adobe, hello again Pixelmator and Apple Photos
  • 02/24/2022 Don’t listen to me, I’ve resubscribed to Adobe Lightroom

The whole point of this is to stick with what I know, enjoy the process, appreciate the software solutions offered and pay the monthly fee. This time I went with the 1 TB Lightroom Only plan because I do not use Photoshop. Same cost, less software but more cloud storage. Perfect.

Version 1.0

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I have had a need to simplify my websites and the expenses that come with them. Everything changed today.

A year ago I transferred this website to WordPress.com for simplicity and ease of use but I gave up too much control. Today, I transferred it back to my own web server and taking full control back. This move will save over half the expenses too. At the same time, I moved my photography website back and forth between web hosts, Adobe and my own server as well.

I signed up with a Adobe Photography plan again mostly because of their web portfolio hosting that comes with the plan. This is cheaper than hosting my portfolio on WordPress or my own web server.

Today is a fresh start for this site. I have moved all of the articles published previously to the Archives page. There was an unfortunate issue with migrating the data over resulting in the first ten years going missing or a corrupt .xml file. Now the records go back to only 2011. I’ll keep sorting that out as I don’t want to lose all those memories.

ChrisDenbow.com was rebuilt in an hour and it will take time to clean up the migration process, slap some paint on the walls and customize the site to my liking. For now, we’ll log this attempt at version 1.0

Photography: A New Hope

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A constant comment I hear among my photographer peers is that they feel like they’re in a creative pit. They’re bored and uninspired. And yes, let’s be honest, I have as well. Who hasn’t?
I’ve found a few cures for the ailing inspiration in the past and am looking forward to implementing new ones as well.

I’ve been too comfortable and lazy. In the past I would eliminate technical setbacks with gear and software. So, I’ve sold all of my equipment. And then I changed to a new system to see how the other half did it. But over time I was still unsatisfied. Lesson learned: equipment doesn’t matter.

For now, I am exploring and re-learning analog. Don’t misunderstand, I still enjoy my DSLR but I’ll be using it less and may even sell that as well eventually. But when I allow my brain to go manual and take control over automatic this or that is when I like it best. I get creative. I have to think and plan. It isn’t easy. I don’t want it easy anymore. There are constraints and limitations with film photography that are different from digital. If going analog gets too complacent then I’ll try an instant camera or a toy camera.

What’s Next?

I’m questioning everything lately. Do I need my photography website? Do I need a place to show galleries and portfolios? Who will see it?
I’m not offering anything unique then the next photographer. I may have some great work displayed there but so will she and he. What can I do that will set my website apart from them? Why should you follow me in the future?

I’ve been enjoying the idea of real, honest to God, tangible products that you can touch. I’ve embraced the physical portfolios and it all started with the art show in September when I offered prints for sale. I had prints leftover and so they went into an album and it thrills me in a way that photography hasn’t in such a long time. I had prints made from some of my recent road trips and those too went into an album. Magical. Now that I’m shooting 35mm and instant, they have their own albums/journals.

When I get my shit together and organized, I’ll even self-publish photo books and zines. I had. A few printed off in the past but that was back when the self-publishing industry was getting started. The offerings have improved and I’m honestly looking forward to this. Again, if I can get it together.

Perhaps these ideas will help distinguish myself from the bored, uninspired photographer. Perhaps these ideas will help me get out of those negative, bored places as well. The visitors to my website may appreciate the distinction from a bored photographer shooting the same thing as the other 12 million people fighting for attention. By making tangible products, I’ll be happier. Even if it is for myself.

Waiting for a muse is just not realistic. She isn’t real. I’ve realized that inspiration rarely comes to you but instead it is something to pursue. Doing the work itself can be inspiring. Planning the projects, cultivating my ideas, projects and products can be very beneficial.

Creativity is difficult to obtain and maybe this is why so many people are bored and uninspired.

Un-Linked

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This past week I had an email from LinkedIn, the online professional networking website about a position I held. Someone was disputing my tenure there. Well, that prompted me to correct the mistake. Oops, I failed to update my last day there.

Well, that prompted me to say that after thirteen years of LinkedIn it was time to delete that account. Poof. Gone, just like that.

Ahh.

Art 1

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Here are a few masterpieces of art I enjoyed while visiting the Art Institute of Chicago recently. As evidenced in my photo portraiture, I have a love for faces. We find portraits fascinating because we are fascinated by people like ourselves. We’re also fascinated by people unlike ourselves. It is who we are and that is what makes us delightfully human. Similar but different. Fascinating.

Digital Minimalism

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I’m currently reading four books at once. Bad idea but the public library had all the desired books I had on hold ready to go and they are all on heavy demand. Digital Minimalism by Cal Newport is one of them. I really wanted to to read and review this book so much, that I petitioned the library to order it. Success.

Step one is kicking the smartphone addiction. By removing a majority of the apps that are not in use or are major distractions, this will help free up both mental and hard drive space. Also, disabling notifications is a great way to regain control of your time and attention.

I am stopping right there for now and applying what I am reading to a test. As of this writing I have forty two applications installed on my iPhone xR. The iPhone storage gauge says I can save 325 MB by offloading unused apps. I’ll run that soon and then keep on with more.

I’ve also shelved the Windows desktop in favor of using the iPad as a PC replacement. Another experiment to see if it is possible to downsize. I am missing my mouse and re-learning keyboard shortcuts.

The distracting apps removed from my iPhone will stay on the iPad as it will function as both a tool and entertainment hub.

Who’s Rules?

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“I didn’t write the rules — why should I follow them?”

                                                   – W. Eugene Smith

Offline

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Since I am no longer subscribed to an internet service at home, I have been relying on public WiFi and my phone’s hot spot. This has been challenging for me, especially since I need a connection for my continuing education.

I just remembered today that you can save a web page to your computer and still reference it…even when you are offline. I use Firefox because of speed and security so that will be the reference used here. Your web browser should be similar, experiences vary.

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Click the Settings icon and choose “Save Page As…” (as shown above.) Then decide where you want to save it. When offline, locate and open. That web page is now viewable offline. It goes without saying…even though I am going to, but you cannot click or navigate this page while offline, only view. Neato.

Below is the saved web page. A tutorial I needed to reference while offline.

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Now Developing

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Picking up the Python programming language is going smoother than most of the other languages I have attempted to learn so far. If I am going to become a full stack developer I need to get in the habit of using best practices such as…

1. Developing a working solution by solving a problem.

2. Work it out first either by using pen/paper or a mind map app.

3. Utilize an up-to-date Integrated Development Environment (IDE)

4. Master at least one language

5. Keep it simple

6. Ask questions. Reach out to others to learn from.

7. Utilize Github more often. Submit several more pull requests.

8. Brush up on my Linux skills (installed on my machine via VirtualBox.)

9. Look up terms I don’t understand.

10. Read up on current trends

Developing these habits, I believe, will allow me to…develop.