XYNNImagery

Posts Tagged ‘miami dade college’

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A Therapeutic Occurrence.
I feel that in order to accurately represent Miami from a visually standpoint, everything has to be exposed. You might be surprised to hear this, but there’s more to this city than just the damn skyline and south beach, seriously! I can’t name one major city that does not contain an unusually vast homeless population, can you?

I was able to take photos regarding a cover story for the college paper; this article spoke on the topic of homelessness around campus. But what’s truly unique about this scenario is who I was able to meet: a Miami native who is simply down on his luck.

In dwntwn, exactly one block from where I reside, you will find 43-year-old Jorge Valdivieso, husband and father of 2 kids [son, 8 and daughter, 5]. This man lost his job just 2 months ago and is now living on the streets.

Jorge’s situation is so complex because despite his circumstances, he still has a family to attend to. He explained to me the actions he’s taking to make sure his wife and children are secure and not without shelter. One of those ideal methods is how he attracts pedestrians for money.

This is How You Hustle! ↓
Jorge has managed to sculpt a serious hustle game with these roses he creates from plants [It's like a plant of a plant o_0] It’s seems to be quite the money-maker; Just within the ten minutes I spent with him, he must have made at least 10 bucks! I asked what got him into this ‘artform’ and he replied:

” There’s this Jamaican guy I met on the streets that told me ‘Look mahn, you learn how to make these plant-flowers, you’ll never go hungry mahn.’ ”
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Food For Thought.
It’s when I take really meaningful photos like this that teaches me to be as open-minded as possible. Even more, it teaches me to become increasingly grateful towards the fortunate lifestyle that I live.

As Jorge’s story portrays, nothing is guaranteed in life [our stable job, our warming home, not even our existence]. This is a point that we need to recollect more often.
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How Was it Done? ↓
Ahh, so I had to use the partial monochrome method, once again. It was necessary for this shot because I want you to closely focus on Jorge and his flowers as opposed to everything else going on in the frame.

1. I kept the original photo in color and used the Photoshop Quick Selection tool to outline Jorge’s body and the flowers.

2. Once that is done, I right-clicked on what I outlined and selected ‘Inverse Selection’ which will outline everything but what I selected initially [I hope you're not confused already]

3. Here’s where I call for the CS4 plug-in Silver Efex Pro to convert the selection to monochrome, leaving Jorge and the flowers in color because it was not within the selection scope.

This Is Not An HDRI!
Really, I promise, this is not a high dynamic range image. I used another plug-in by Nik Software called Color Efex Pro, which has a abundance of presets that can give your image the HDRI look. I may use this technique more often because it’s a bit faster yet just as effective as Photomatix.

.stay tuned | see you soon.

SIZE DOES MATTER ➠ FULLE SCALE IMAGE
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No, seriously! Ask Questions.
I’ve been receiving excellent comments and questions regarding xynn tii imagery.™ But now I want to officially welcome everyone to ask questions, providing them as a comment on the fansite wall or even within photo comments.

Whether you have a question regarding the post-production of the images I take or you have a personal question for me [whatever it may be] all you have to do is ask.

The greatest part of this process is how your inquiries will be answered! → Find the answers to your questions within the details of the next image update. So you get a two-for-one: While receiving a response to your comment, you are also presented with another premiere image! Most of the responses with be in the “How Was It Done” section of the details, as you will see below.

I feel this Q & A scenario works both ways because I’m usually presented with questions I would have never considered to bring up. At the same time, I’m providing insight to those interested in my photos. >_<
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Image Detail.
I find myself taking countless images on the Miami Dade College Wolfson campus, literally across the street from where I reside. This of all places has got to be the most notorious location out of every campus of MDC. It’s the legendary X.

Several of the older press colleagues of mine have spoken of this monument being here for quite some time. This downtown campus opened in 1970 [when I was -30 years old ^_^] and apparently this X monument made its way on campus in the 80’s. Yea, I know… I should way more about what I’m photographing. >_<

What I enjoy most about the scenery is how many students it attracts on a daily basis. It has that ideal courtyard feel and students seem to like that. Some even consider doing every possible thing with the exception of going to class, and it is all done publicly, right next to that damn X. =/
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HOW WAS IT DONE? ↓
All of my HDRIs are initially merged and tonemapped using Photomatix Pro. Unfortunately, that’s only the first step of about 10 total. =_= One of my fans Glerick Ignacio asked a couple questions. Let me respond to them now…

➟ Prevent Ghosting
The term ghosting is used when you have moving subjects within your frame, such as people. When you use the long-exposure setting on your camera, anything that is not stationary will more than likely be blurry and deformed as a end result. From what I know, this can only be prevented within the original photo by not using that long-exposure setting. The Photoshop layer masking technique is my favorite because it allows you to remove unwanted ghostings. You can achieve this by going to Layer > Layer Mask in any Photoshop version. c;

➟ Monochrome Editing
There is this crazy! Photoshop CS4 plug-in I was able to get my hands on called Silver Efex Pro. I use this plug-in like I have no sense, I’m serious. All of my latest monochrome images were converted and treated using this plug-in. It is made by Nik Software. They’re the best.

Keep those comments and questions coming!
.stay tuned | see you soon.

via xynn tii imagery.™ flickr.

I tell ya, if I got a nickel each time I heard that statement… well I’d still be broke, but the point is that I’ve heard it quite a few times. c;

This is one of several sculptures scattered around the Miami Dade College Wolfson campus in downtown Miami. It’s directly across the street from where I reside so I’m there all the time for images. It’s simply referred to as the “X” and it’s an common meet-up spot for many of the students.

What this location is mostly known for though is attracting musicians. Don’t ask how it has come about, it just is. I always see bands and spectators in the area, relaxing, more than likely waiting for their next class to begin. So with that, I felt it was necessary to get some musicians in the frame, creating a true representation of what the “X” is all about.

These guys were real cool and didn’t mind me taking the photo. Actually to be honest, I don’t even think they realized I was even there; they were mad focused on their tunes. 0_O

SO WHAT’S NEXT?
Another hdri image from the construction site I visited the other week. I’ve still got a couple more to share with you from that assignment, which was a great experience. Or maybe next I’ll share with you a shot I got of the American Airlines Arena just after the SOS Haiti Concert ended. I’m not really sure yet. =/

.stay tuned | see you soon.

SIZE DOES MATTER ➠ FULL SCALE IMAGE
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The only reason I’ll ever leave my balcony door open is to hear the sound of drills and jack-hammers raping the Miami streets [and also to save money on my energy bill! c;]

There is never a day that goes by where you will not come across a construction site in Miami, especially in the dwntwn area! It’s just human nature. As you may have already seen through some of my previous images, Miami is going through a serious facelift, or self-proclaimed “Manhattanization wave.”

29 floors and two blocks away from my place of residence is a relatively new construction site on the Miami Dade College campus. Apparently a premiere 13-level Culinary Arts building will be added to the MDC Wolfson campus by October of this year. 0_0

It was so frazy [fcukin crazy] how many people I had to go through just to get permission and access to this construction site. Affiliates of the MDC campus and managers of Turner Construction Co. were so focused on my safety, it was ridiculous. Everyone was afraid of getting sued in the event of me getting injured, so I had to wear the hard hat and vest, as expected anyway. =/

I’ll be posting several other eye-candy images from this construction site during the course of February, instead of all of once [everything in moderation].

HUGE APPRECIATION ↓
to Andrew Knight of Turner Construction Co. for getting me on the site smoothly. & thanks a billion to Lazaro, Manolo & Sergio [great Miami press colleagues of mine] for helping me choose the best image from this assingment to share with all of you. Make sure to see the larger version at xynn tii imagery.™ flickr! c;

& yes, I’m always in love with your fanbase! ^_^

via xynn tii imagery™ flickr.

Dwntwn Miami is growing excessively fast; so fast that I doubt the city is ready for what it’s creating. It’s puzzling how the city continues to approve of mass land development projects for 50+ story towers and fails to consider expanding the roads within the area. They’re forming ways to lead traffic in, but not making room for them to leave=/ All I can say is WOW, let’s start thinking outside of the box ! please.

Okay praise-time: I love this condo residence in the center frame, which held its grand opening in January 2009 [it's actually still under construction]. &amp; If you know your history of dwntwn Miami [yea, I don't even know the history and I live here] then you are aware of the legendary Everglades Hotel being the predecessor of the land that is now occupied by these two 55-story towers called Everglades on the Bay.

The design has a real presidential look and even includes some sexual connotations within the interior design, which is quite common for perverted Miami. [ Oh, I decided to head to the front of the American Airlines Arena to get some of its title into the frame. Not too many Miamians really appreciate this arena, but l'm a serious fan of its architecture ]

So, whenever you decide to come experience the very chilly 500 degree weather of south Florida, make sure to stop by the Everglades on the Bay. It’s necessary ! c; Also, swing past the construction site of what is going to be the first Marriott Marquis in Florida, which is merely peaking out of the right side of the frame. It will open in July 2010.

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via xynn tii imagery™ flickr.

The Miami Book Fair Int’l is a highly credible event; so such that political-figures and media-related celebrities come every year it is held. [ they love to promote their books at this event ] I really strive to photograph as many a-listers as possible. Plus I had the pleasure of covering this event last year, so I knew I would be able to photograph someone ‘important’.

This image has to be one of the most intriguing that I took during the Book Fair author speakouts simply because of the man sitting on the ground. While Ralph Nader was delivering his message to the audience about his book, Only the Super Rich Can Save Us, this man came toward the stage and sat on the ground. I’m assuming he wanted to peacefully ’speak out’ without having to say a word. =/

The reason I chose this photo is because it looks as if Nader is gesturing at the man on the ground? =/ It tells a story, right ? Enjoy viewing these Ralph Nader images, in addition to PBS Newscaster Gwen Ifill and Former Vice President Al Gore. c:

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