Category: Core

P-GO – still playing, level 28. It seems to give me, I mean I’m doing so many things at once right now and pushing myself mentally. P-GO keeps the wheels spinning.

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Been building the back end of Fovi8, and it’s going to be killer. It’s the fifth time I’ve built the concept and the programming is better than ever, cleaner code, faster system, APIs, etc. Very excited to be coming to the end of the process and move into the next phase.

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Work is all about the philosophy WWJD? And it ain’t about Jesus, it’s about putting the focus on producing great photographs and getting them in faster and at higher quality than anyone else.

Sent a bunch from my phone from an assignment the other day, even with the knowledge that no one in the office was in any position to receive them, and the writer on the story would probably not have a story in until 4pm or so. Still, I was sending ready-to-publish images out of the D4 as the event was happening. Want to continue that all the time.

You’ve got to push yourself, and that’s been my thing this year. Oh, I’m getting overwhelmed with images out of the Narrative Clip that’s taking a shot every 30 seconds? The solution was obvious – triple the amount of photos it’s taking by lowering the interval to every 10 seconds.

Flood the system.

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Watched the third Presidential debate this morning, on youtube playing at 1.5x speed.

What a bizarre place we’ve all come to, where we yell at each other with such hatred and spite. It used to be all under the surface, and now people just throw it out there.

On my walk I found a sticker posted close to the ground (dog level) with Donald Trump’s face and the words “Please Pee on Me.”

Brilliant sticker work. **Not expressing an opinion on Trump**

Go through my posts and there is a long tradition of photographing street art of various positions, various statements, etc.

It’s about making a visual record of the world.

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Lately I feel like I’m living in the movie Groundhog Day. Every day seems the same, with the morning routine, the dog walk, working on code, photography, watching a show with my love.

It’s a great thing, and I go to sleep every night looking forward to it starting all over again. My love and I are alone in the house, having raised two of the most amazing children the world has ever known. We are so proud, and lucky to call them both dear friends.

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And I always come back to the thought of these writings here in the Daybook. The thought of posting them, the pros and cons of such action.

I think as of today they will continue to remain offline.

The way the world is, with such a capacity for hate and shame and derision, I don’t see posting these at this point.

But I realize that eventually I will succumb and they will be out there.

Of course, there is no loss in delaying that action. This is for me not you.

This weekend is when the twice-yearly neighborhood meetings take place. They kicked off last weekend with a women-only event, where one speaker posited the idea that people in the neighborhood are being too sensitive to those with same-sex attraction, those who aren’t married, those who can’t have children.

It was nearly a year ago that the neighborhood organization came out with a hateful policy toward the LGBT community and their children.

I’ve rarely been prouder of my family – the four of us – than in our unity on this issue. Tolerance, love, understanding, hope.

Back from RNC – biggest memory I guess is that they used a wire photo on the front page instead of my photos. I had a great one, too. I got seriously f*cked by my own org. Thanks!

I’m really down on a lot of the major tech offerings. I’m completely off goo now. And as far as facb, it’s so dominant now that I need it for research/journalism purposes (but not going to post there anymore, or read).

Observation: there’s a group of PJs on facb that is always posting about copyright infringement, rights grabs, and generally judging everyone. It’s natural, as the money in pj has completely evaporated…

…but my main point about the facb pj group is this – > why are they on facb? of all places to talk about protecting your IP, controlling your destiny?

And why are so many others there? I think back to the 80s punk rock philosophies that defined me so much. DIY, own it, control it, don’t go in for these multinational corporations (who are always corrupted in the end).

Why are there huge groups of punk rockers (old school punk rockers) on facb.?

I need to go completely open web.

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I keep thinking about starting up a new WP blog at trent.photo. Somewhere I could throw all kinds of things that I collect along the way – photos, screenshots, stories.

I think WP is one of the tech companies who has not lost their way – still believes in the customer.

But I keep nearly pulling the trigger, because the people on this planet are all producing way too much content. For some reason people (including myself) think that they are being read, that their photos are being looked at, etc.

Junk content. I’ve done pretty well avoiding it lately. The worst app for it in my life is the web browser. I need to block some sites so that they are impossible to reach. I get nothing from them.

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The amount of data input is still too high. I need to spend more time and thought cycles with less content. I need to filter out the noise and gain better focus. It’s coming.

Also, I just finished Vanderpump Rules Season One. Wow. Junk food too tasty, apparently.

Being a dad – you get laughed at because you still haven’t fixed the rear view mirror of your car. But

This trip is about over. The sun is rising and I’m about to drive home.

For all of the homesickness I felt on the trip, the photos were good. Even the parade that I didn’t expect much from produced at least a couple of interesting photographs.

And Short Creek was a good time. Was able to connect with some good people and hear their amazing stories. They are so generous in sharing and I owe them a lot of gratitude.

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I’ve cut out a lot of junk food media, and spent the morning reading from The Digital Antiquarian, a blog collecting histories of the development of early computer games. Very fascinating, taking me back to my teenage years when I would spend hours glued to a screen absorbing these games.

In those days I had a focus so clear that I would nearly reverse engineer the games

Now my memory is more spongy – sucking in more data than ever imagined, yet a little sloppy recalling the details.

Maybe it’s age, but I think a big part of it is the amount of data consumed. It’s sunrise and I’ve already checked in with a variety of sources, reading dozens of headlines. It’s the kind of intake that would have been impossible without current technology and networks. And I don’t know that it’s terribly good practice. Something I’m working on -> consuming healthy, nutritious data.

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TV: Black Mirror Seasons 1 and 2. Episode 2 of Season 2 was 5 star. Wow. Truly disturbing and brilliant and bleakest of comedy.

Though I should say this is a trap I constantly fall into. When I’m alone on the road experiencing no social interaction, at my lowest, I find myself reading a book about prison or watching a show like Black Mirror.

Or maybe my media tastes are just always bleak.

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Driving back we listen to AM radio – fascinating. Did you know there’s a cure for cancer that’s just flaxseed oil and cottage cheese? Order now!

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4th of July.

It’s my third morning waking up alone in a hotel room. The sunrises are beautiful and I’ve made timelapses of a couple.

But being alone so much can crack you. I’ve been ready to go home for a while now.

Looking back, I came down … I mean I came down here for good reasons – the photos were there. But I need to be home now.

Today we are covering the parade in Hurricane, and then we’ll hit Short Creek for some of I don’t know what. That part doesn’t seem planned out. That’s why I came earlier.

There was a huge gathering in Short Creek on Saturday, and a small fledgling parade through town. I got some great photos.

As always I check in with myself – never mind.

Daybook posts are supposed to be where

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The big issue I’m dealing with

I’m taking in too much content. I’m too isolated. And when I’m around people my mind is busy computing all the data I’m taking in.

Inputs are -> web, podcasts, longform articles, ebooks, music, video.

I need to cut web drastically. I read so many articles and pages. But the same information comes to me in a better, nuanced way through podcasts and longform. Even books.

Podcasts? N asked me how many I listened to regularly. It was 38, and has grown since. I need to start weeding out the ones I don’t really care about. At least the episodes. No harm in subscribing…

So I can listen to more music. Because when I’m listening to music my mind is processing all the data it has taken in, and coming up with ideas.

As far as video, I’ve experimented with YouTube over the past week – it’s mostly garbage, at least the stuff in my feed. Nothing would be missed if app was deleted.

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Mostly I need to be writing here.

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Not sure when I’ll upload all these recent writings.

Because a few things – why the need to share? questioning that whole idea of social sharing.

Really the important thing is what you create as an artist. The behind the scenes, the thoughts and opinions? Not so important. The focus should be on the work.

Also, the way everything is recorded and tracked and monitored is on my mind. Considering the idea of simply posting the photographic work without words, a la Gilles Peress.

Words today seem like traps that you set for yourself, giving others a snare.

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Do need to start posting photographs.

Feel the need to get off Facebook, and disconnect from Google services.

Wondering why do many artists and punk rockers and iconoclasts are helping build up the world’s wealthiest men by posting on and using these company’s products.

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I’ve been listening to Tim Ferris’ podcast. Lots of interviews with people doing incredible things, pursuing a lot of ideas and goals similar to me.

Efficiency. Pure, cold efficiency.

Need to take an overview of everything I’m doing and trim a lot out.

Now, seemingly always, drowning in content.

Reading like three books, in the middle of a film I’ve seen before, and also now converting all the longform articles in my reading list to PDFs (400+ so far) so that I can read them.

Because I’ve now got two iPads – one for movies and one for books/PDFs.

It’s out of control, a race I’ll never win. If anything, it gives my brain a problem to work on – the cataloging and sorting of the content. I spend as much time on that as anything else.

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Over 10,000 photos from the Narrative Clip 2 so far, mostly all unusable. Still, another thing to keep the mind occupied.

Ideas about how to keyword those – timelapse, then I don’t know. Do I actually edit this stuff or just collect.

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Back on the idea of building a panoramic rig. I had this idea a couple of years ago, and the only problem was the cost. Now that two years have passed, maybe the gear I need for this project will be less expensive. Maybe.

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Sent out an e-mail yesterday about a project. No response from the team. I think that particular ship might have sunk.

And yet I spent an hour coding this morning. Probably time to put it on pause.

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New owner at the main client.

Much better transition than the previous new owner.

Then -> this newspaper was sh*t yesterday, but now that we own it it’s gold.
Translation: everyone who works here except us new owners is sh*t.

Now -> you’ve done a tremendous job throughout all of the previous drama.

I’m hoping that we can move ahead, lose the PTSD that a lot of us have from uncertainty and drama.

I’m hoping for new projects to spring up (including the ones I have pitched months ago).

I’m hoping for communication and accountability. Two things we are in desperate need of.

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Filling in at the office today.

First stop – sharpen three pencils, grab some index cards.
Now to see what’s on the schedule. It’s 9am.

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Scheduling takes seven minutes. One new assignment, one time change, a few switches to be made. Now 53 minutes until morning meeting.

One of the assignments simply reads:
Third south is not in compliance with fire code

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Out of meeting at 11:15 – it went long – chartbeat demo

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Meanwhile…

+ backing up photo archive to another external drive
+ downloading newsgroup materials
+ upload to overcast.fm/uploads
+ calibre: download metadata for ebooks
+ eat energy bar
+

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I thought my Meanwhile list would be a lot longer, but work was a full shift putting out fires and scheduling things. Everything on the Meanwhile list was pretty much background tasks.

But, there were some great moments.

+ Still on the budget of stories being worked on months later, the item “LDS Water Bottles.”
+ We sit through a demo of a new live tracking web stats system, which shows that our most popular piece of content today is a cake recipe.
+ I find a box of floppy disks, one labeled “Minority Job Fair.”

Yesterday I had a profound experience. I was the lucky one chosen to photograph the ceremony where a new Justice on the Utah Supreme Court was sworn in.

I left the event feeling an overwhelming aura of positivity. My goal now is to build on that feeling and carry it with me.

The speakers at the event were smart, and funny. And even those whose politics are called into question seemed to leave those things at the door. This was a celebration of great accomplishments, sacrifice in search of excellence, work ethic, goodness.

The good words that were being said about the new Justice were the kinds of things you would normally only hear at a funeral.

And it was so uplifting to be in the room.

Of course I kept contrasting to my own field, my own situation, and my own feelings. It’s been over a decade since

I need to find, or build, a space like this uplifting ceremony. Yeah, a space, not a one-time ceremony, where people are respected, their talents acknowledged, and positivity reigns.

And where there is no love given, no love is returned.

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It’s easy to start blaming myself for not stepping up to the plate and trying to fix everything. As if it’s not enough to do my job at a high level, that I have to step in and fix every problem that’s brought to my attention.

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Was it about five years ago that we took the local SPJ contest digital?

So many things look so different when held up to yesterday’s ceremony. Maybe the ceremony was the exception in human life. Even if so, it should be the model we strive for.

I think back to all the work I did for a local group, and all the knowledge and experience and lessons learned that came from the experience. And the nearly complete silence when it came time for gratitude.

The group is going in a different direction now, and I wish them the best. And yet, there is a lot of sorrow in the complete lack of not only gratitude, but leaving behind the knowledge base that five years of the project built up.

Good luck starting from scratch without a single question asked. It’s a shame that things changed. When I started with the group, their was such a welcoming, loving atmosphere. But the group’s membership changed and the attitudes became different, exemplified by the number of board members who were taking home honorary awards (especially the one given to someone for an accomplishment they had specifically opposed and stonewalled for a full year!).

I tell myself that I write this stuff down so I’ll remember it. Maybe it’s more base and vain than that. Maybe I’m smarting from a lack of attention and gratitude.

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I’ve had three co-workers get married without even telling me (sometimes not telling anyone in the department).

Before I would think, that’s strange, why didn’t they tell me?

My thought now that it’s happened again is, I must be doing someting wrong.

From what I understand, they didn’t tell anyone, but still – we make things about ourselves all the time, right?

I think I’ll buy a wedding gift, despite hearing the news third-hand.

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When I look back on the last twenty plus years working for the place, there have been clashes. In the competitive nature of the place and the business, we’ve all bumped

Cut to the chase: the photographers I work with are people I respect deeply. Each has talents that I envy, knowledge and understanding that I lack, kindness and empathy I admire.

Do they know that?

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It’s not about hate, it’s about love. The articles written and broadcast about yesterday’s ceremony won’t be able to capture the humor, the respect, the legacy of that hour.

I hope to take those things and build something for myself and those I love. Because I can handle the silence from those outside the warmth of the campfire. The problem is, there’s no campfire right now.

Sitting on the baseline with my Sony RX-100 iii. It draws a lot of questions from other photographers. The funny thing is, they never seem to get it.

And even when I answer all their questions with, yes, it is good enough for a working pro, they tack on some bullsh*t requirements that no one’s going to meet.

So tonight, I confirm the camera is ten frames a second for thirty in a row (RAW files!), that it’s great in low light, though definitely no Nikon D4s or Canon 1D-X, it’s great for just about everything.

Just glad I’m not a camera manufacturer. You can never please a photographer. Ever.