An Avant Gard Triumph: prisencolinensinainciusol

OLL RAIGHT!

I’ve been trying to make this post for a few weeks now. Recently my wife sent me a link to this video on youtube. It’s called “prisencolinensinainciusol” and it’s worth your time.

This video went viral a few years ago. It is a song written by italian singer songwriter Adriano Celetano. It was written in the early seventies and it is a true Avant Gard masterpiece, made more so by the remarkable choreography and big band sound. In fact I believe this puts the song “Several Species of Small Furry Animals Gathered Together in a Cave and Grooving with a Pict” on the album Ummagumma by Pink Floyd to shame.

Many people say the lyrics sound like american english to non english speaking italians, but when interviewed Mr. Celetano says the song was about “incommunicability” (he’s obviously comfortable with polysyllabic words) and the rational for the composition was to do something that was simply fun after working on two socially and politically motivated projects. The words are complete gibberish in any language but they are rhythmic and fit the music.

I’m sure he is quite proud that after forty years the song is still a big hit, but I doubt it would be quite as popular as it has been if not for the choreography.

The choreography that helps make this such a fantastic presentation was arranged by Raffaella Carra a diva of some repute in the Latin world. She was the first woman on Italian television to show her bellybutton and was promptly repudiated by the vatican.

Regardless take five minutes out of your day and enjoy both the song and the show. I guarantee you’ll be singing and dancing to prisencolinensinainciusol all day.

Eyes!

2010 Interior Design Student Career Forum Design Competition Winners

Yesterday I had the opportunity to help Lilley Yee photograph the winning entries in the Interior Design Student Career Forum 2010 Student Design Competition.

It was a lot of fun seeing the boards and the students who won definitely did a great job.

Lilley was surprised at how easily I overcame the challenges associated with photographing these design boards. To shoot something like this really requires a tripod and soft lighting. The glare from the acetate overlays the students used can pose a problem but after twenty-five years of photographing glass walled rooms, mirror or marble walls, and enamel kitchen cabinets I didn’t think about what was required, or how difficult it could be. I just did it.

Oh, well. Chalk it up to the benefits of experience, and move on to greater challenges.

I have the boards posted in my portfolio gallery but I won’t release them for public view until after the ceremony. You’ll just have to wait to find out who won.

Now, it’s back to the electron mines for me.

Ciao.

Joseph Hittinger Published using High Dynamic Range Photographs

Joe Hittinger had a project I shot for him published in Palo Alto Online.

It was a great project that I shot using the High Dynamic Range Imaging technique that is making such a hit with all my clients. I like it because I can capture the essence of my clients design with a degree of fidelity to their creative vision never before possible. And since the supplemental lighting I need is either minimized or in most cases unnecessary we no longer have to struggle with reflections and light stands and cables, instead we can focus all of our energies on the creative aspects of styling and composition.

Take a look at the project at Palo Alto Online. com or check it out in my portfolio. I’m actually using photographs from this project of Joe’s in my CEU seminar for ASID.

ASID CA Peninsula Design Chronicles Fall 2009

I am very pleased and proud to find that the image I created for Joseph Hittinger of Joseph Hittinger Designs is featured on the cover of the fall issue of ASID CA Peninsula Design Chronicles.

ASID CA Peninsula Design Chronicles Fall 2009 Cover - Joseph Hittinger Designs

It really is a wonderful image and I can see why Joe won the Silver for Kitchens with it. And yes, this is an HDRI photograph.

The Bridge of Reality and the Spires of Night

The Bridge of Reality and the Spires of Night - B/W - HDRI - Mary Avenue Pedestrian Bridge - Cupertino, CA

This is a pedestrian bridge that crosses over I-280 at Mary Ave. in Cupertino, CA.

I was surprised and delighted to find such a marvelous example of engineering and design in this application. The spires and lighting are dramatic and inspiring. I have seen other images of this bridge on the web, but none of them have been of the bridge in it’s full glory at night.

It was great to get out and shoot something for no other purpose than to interpret it’s form and function from my own perspective, with no concern for a client or expectations from outside parties. It’s creating spectacular images like this, of grand and dramatic structures that are well designed in both form and function that caused me to fall in love with photography back in the 1980’s.

I do love my work and find it very fulfilling but this is simply fun.

The Reviews Are In on “Photography for Interior Designers”

The CEU I did for ASID CA Peninsula on Thursday was a rousing success. The attendees rated my performance and here’s what they had to say

(Yes, it’s shameless self promotion, but if I didn’t do it who would?)

The overall score for the CEU is 4.5 out of 5.

The score for quality of content is 4.88 out of 5.

Presentation skills ranked 4.5 out of 5.

Comments included

*         “excellent!,”

*         “practical and helpful” and

*         “this helped me look at photography in a different way, ”

*         “great content and visuals” and

*         “best presentation in years!”

I’m rather happy about this.

Photography for Interior Designers CEU Lecture An Overwheling Success

Last night at the Hunter Douglas Showroom in Milpitas, CA I gave a CEU lecture to the members of ASID CA Peninsula titled Photography for Interior Designers. The overwhelming positive response of the members who attended tells me I did a good job. I found that I enjoyed speaking to a room filled with eighty people.

I discussed subjects such as Photographic Composition, Styling for Photography and HDRI photography. These subjects are of importance to interiors designers because the quality of their photographs are important to the advancement of their careers .

At the encouragement of Marie Chan of Inter-Space Design, President of ASID CA Peninsula, I worked hard to ensure that all who attended left with a deeper insight to photography or a greater capability to either shoot better photographs for themselves or do a better job of collaborating with and directing their photographer on their next photo shoot.

After four months of work on the presentation actually giving the lecture seems anticlimactic. Regardless today I will begin the next phase of the project which is to decide if, where, when and how to arrange the next lecture on the subject; before the lecture even began there were requests to give another in San Francisco.

After all the work I did I want to make the most of it. So next week I will see what the future hold, right now. I have photographs of another prison to process and a residential walk through in Los Gatos, CA this afternoon.

Photography for Interior Designers

I will be giving a seminar on Photography for Interior Designers on Thursday Nov. 12 from 5:30 PM to 8:40 PM Hosted by Hunter Douglas 1870 Milmont Dr., Milpitas CA, 95035.

This seminar is a CEU for ASID Members and provides 0.2 Credit Hours.

I will be discussing subjects such as compositional guideline to make your images better, Photographing Space: Techniques to help you showcase your talent, Staging and Styling for dramatic effect and New Technology: High Dynamic Range Imaging.

Attendance is limited to 85 people and costs $45.00 for members of ASID and $55.00 for non-members but you have to RSVP to the ASID CA Peninsula Chapter office with a check or card payment by Nov. 6

I have worked hard to make this a truly education experience for interior designers with any level of experience. This will not just be a show of pretty pictures. I will be explaining tricks and techniques that I have learned throughout my career and  employ to great effect on every photograph I create.

Here’s a copy of the promo announcement. I hope to see you there.

Dean

This two-hour course will benefit interior designers of all experience
levels. The guidelines and techniques discussed will be beneficial
when applied to either a professional photo shoot or when designers
photograph a project themselves.

Attendees will learn of compositional guidelines allowing them to
better direct and control the outcome of their photo shoots, the
logistics and principles of styling for an interior design photo shoot
will be discussed and designers will be instructed in the evaluation
and application of new photographic techniques helping them make
informed decisions and gain greater control over their photo shoots.

Bay Area photographer Dean Birinyi creates beautiful architectural
photographs that capture the emotional character of his clients’
work and communicates their talents and design concepts.  With
more than twenty years of experience photographing architecture
and interior design, Dean listens to his clients to integrate the solutions
for many different but equally important needs into any image. Dean’s
talent for storytelling consistently helps his clients win design competitions.

BNI Networking and a Green Gift Idea

Last week I was invited to attend a BNI Networking breakfast in Palo Alto, CA.

There were at least forty people in attendance along with a few visitors. I was very pleased with and impressed by the degree of professionalism and camaraderie displayed by the members.  I was also very pleased to be the only architectural photographer at the meeting.

There were several presentations made by the members and each of the visitors were given the opportunity to give a brief, thirty second, presentation about our businesses. I was pleased to discover that although the time allotted was enforced they were quite willing to allow us to exceed the time to a reasonable degree.

One of the members, Mary Albitz of Jigsaw Java in Redwood City, CA gave us a presentation about a “green” jigsaw puzzle she offers for sale in her store. This particular puzzle was a 500 piece puzzle that hd wildflowr seeds embedded in the pieces. I thought this was a wonderful idea because so many times I have seen people, myslf included do a puzzle once or maybe twice and then the box simply gathers dust on the shelf or takes up space in the closet. This puzzle offers a wonderful and intersting alternative.

Here is what Mary had to say about it…

The green puzzles are called Green Pieces™ and are made by TDC Games.They are Earth Friendly 500 piece Jigsaw Puzzles. When finished, hang the puzzle on your wall or plant the pieces in soil to grow wildflowers. These puzzles have been backed with paper that is recycled, renewable and also imbued with the seeds of many wildflower species. Soak the pieces overnight in water and plant them in the soil or pot. Water them daily until they bloom to reduce your carbon footprint.

There are 4 different puzzles: a panda, a tiger, an eagle with American flag, and an underwater scene. Each picture is a photomosaic, meaning lots of little pictures make up the overall picture. Each puzzle comes with a trivia fact about the little pictures and how they relate to the big picture. For example on the Tiger puzzle, the thousands of vehicles used to create this image are only a fraction the number of animal species that are about to become extinct because of vehicle emissions. The panda puzzle is made up of more than 2000 logging operations which is more than the total number of Pandas left in the world due to deforestation of their natural habitat. The underwater scene is made up of over three thousand oil wells that if they were pumped directly into the sea for three hours, it would be the same amount that is spilled into the oceans each year. And the Eagle with American flag puzzle was created with over 3000 aluminum cans which is the same amount discarded in just the United States every single second.

When I saw the puzzle and heard Mary’s presentation I knew this was something that my clients and readers would be interested in. Take a look at Mary’s web site, or drop by her brick & mortar store; I’m sure you’ll find lots of interesting and innovative green gifts for your friends, family and clients.

Thanks,
Dean

ASID CA Peninsula Tours Rosewood Sandhill in Menlo Park, CA

Rosewood Sandhill, Menlo Park, CA

Friday afternoon ASID CA Peninsula toured the Rosewood Sandhill Resort in Menlo Park. This is a five star hotel and it shows in every way, from the gardens as you approach to the registration lobby to the pool and day spa everything about the hotel, staff and grounds speaks of quality.

I was most impressed with the approaches to critical hotel features such as the registration lobby, weight room and conference facilities. The dramatic framing of the transitional spaces was really quite impressive. The rooms, bar, pool and spa themselves, of course were spectacular but these transitional spaces had been given a degree of attention equal to that of the major spaces that is unusual in most hospitality projects I have experienced. I guess that’s one aspect of a five star hotel that helps them stand out.

I was on hand photographing the event and have snapshots of the spaces, the tour  and the Q&A afterward for you to enjoy in my portfolio galleries.