The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas

I just got done watching one of the most inspiring touching movies I have ever seen:The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas.

It is about a young boy, Bruno, the son of a Nazi lieutenant colonel. He has a headstrong sister, Gretel (called "the Hopeless case"). They used to live in a five-story mansion in Berlin but are one day suddenly transferred to a place called "Out-With", by his father's boss, the "Fury" Adolf Hitler ("Out-With" is really Auschwitz, and the "Fury" is the Führer, but Bruno can't pronounce the words correctly). Bruno , angered and confused by his father's decision to move and desperate to go home, spends his time in his room, without any friends to play with. He misses their old home. In such a small space, there isn't any room for exploration (a hobby of Bruno's), as there was in the house in Berlin.



From his bedroom window, Bruno spots a fence behind which he sees many people in 'striped pyjamas'. These are Jews, and they are in a Nazi concentration camp. One day his parents come to an agreement that both Bruno and Gretel need a tutor for their education, so they hire Herr Liszt. To Bruno, Herr Liszt is the most boring teacher one could ever have; he teaches social science instead of reading and arts, which Bruno prefers. So, in boredom and confusion, Bruno wonders what is going on at "Out-With" (Auschwitz) and why people are always dressed in striped pyjamas there. One afternoon, he goes exploring, and meets a Jewish boy called Shmuel, a name Bruno has never before heard but that apparently is quite common in the concentration camp. Shmuel soon becomes Bruno's friend and Bruno visits every afternoon to talk. Bruno is told that the people in the striped pyjamas on the other side of the fence are Jews and that he and his family are "the opposite".



It has a very tragic end; I won't spoil it for you but it left me crying. This movie is a good one for kids to watch because it teaches about the Holocaust from a very innocent point of view.

Daisy

Golden

National Hugging Day!!!!

National Hugging Day: When: Always January 21st

What a great day! This is an opportunity to give and to receive. Give a hug, and you automatically receive one in return. Sure, someone might not hug back. But, how often does that happen!?! Hugs are loving. Hugs are therapeutic. Hugs are caring. Hugs are celebratory. Hugs make you feel good inside. A Hug can heal someone who is suffering or going thru a hard time.

Have you ever received a hug from someone who didn't care? I didn't think so. That's proof positive that you're loved and cared about. Celebrate today by giving hugs to family, friends and loved ones. You'll love the warm feeling you get.

Is it just a show?

This is a subject that really gets to me. I am increasingly upset that it seems like worship in church has become a show more than an experience. As a worship leader it really concerns me that people come to the services to watch the show, see what we sing, what we wear, or to see if we slip up. rather than coming to praise God.

It seems like lately we determine if the service will be good on who is leading that day..that's a shame because the worship team considers every service to be equally important and they work hard to make it so. Sometimes even musicians have declined to play a service simply because they do not like who is leading worship...what is that???

When are we gonna learn that the worship service is not intended to be a show that you just come to watch, but an experience in which you actively participate. That means you sing, you dance, you raise your hands. One of my biggest peeves is to look out from the stage and see people with their hands actually crossed! It makes my participation feel cheap, like I'm only there to entertain you. If you want entertainment I rather you stay home and watch TV. But if you want God to touch you then you have to also take the action of touching Him.

Mmmmmm...pie!

Selective Colouring

Selective colouring is a term used to describe the ability in Photoshop to take a picture and only leave certain parts in color while the rest is in black and white...just like in the picture below. This allows us to emphasize some parts and make them pop. Pretty cool huh?

More Photoshop magic

Today I want to show you something cool I did with Photoshop. I really love this program, it is a must for every photographer out there. Last year I shot our model Eddie as he sat in my class...it was a pretty decent shot;



As I looked thru my photos recently and came upon this one I realized I could improve on it a little bit. So, I opened it up in Photoshop CS4 and took Eddie out of the background and put him in a blue one. I chose blue because his shirt also has that color and it would anchor the picture better. Then I simply smoothed out his skin, and sharpened it a bit more, focusing on his eyes and cropped it a bit tighter. The result is this:



Not bad eh? Now Eddie can download it and use it for his MySpace, or give it to his mom to post on the refrigerator door...hehehe. I love Photoshop, don't you?

The Seed

Amazing that a big mighty tree can grow out of such a little seed ain't it?

The Banner

We Must Praise

If I were a drummer, I would use my cymbal
If I were a writer, I would use a pencil
I would use my voice, if I were a singer
No matter who or what we are, we must praise

If I was a doctor, I would use my research
A prolific dissertation, if I was a speaker
I would use my hands, if I were a potter
No matter who or what we are, we must praise

Let the people of God bless Him
Let it ring with love and truth
With our gifts we exalt Thee
Merciful, wonderful God
We must praise

If I were an eagle, I would use my wings
Since I'm a believer, I use everything
Make a joyful noise unto the Lord
All ye people
No matter who or what we are, we must praise

There She Stands

Steven!

100

Photography Tip #55

This is one tip I really want to stress: under NO circumstances ever relinquish your camera....ever; even if it's for "just a second". Humans are funny creatures and we always have a desire to take a closer look at things in our own hands. Inevitably someone will ask you to let them see your camera and will hold out their hands...don't give it over; a true photographer never gives up his/her camera just the way a good soldier or cop never does with his guns.



There have been countless times when a photographer has "lent" over his camera to a friend, only to have this friend accidentally drop it, get it wet, or otherwise damage it. And then what? I guarantee this friend won't pay for it..to them it's just an object. They didn't have to save to buy it. They didn't buy the accessories for it; therefore they will assume they don't have to pay you back for it. I have seen this countless times. People only value what costs them to get.

Consider your camera's monetary value. Take mine for instance:

Body: $500
Kit lens: $100
Zoom lens: $300
Memory card: $50

That's $950 total! And you want me to hand that over???? If it gets broken who's gonna pay me for it? Most people don't know the value of these things and that by breaking it you're also impacting the time it takes to replace this equipment. It's not just "oh, Ill just give him $200 and he can go to the corner store and get another one".



On the flip side...those of you who aren't photographers, never ask one to let you see their camera in your hands. If you drop it or damage it legally you have to replace it and cameras nowadays ain't cheap.

The kid from TV

I spotted this kid while watching one of my favorite shows...Law & Order: SVU. What really struck me was the size of the vein on his neck...lol. The scene called for him to cry and be upset and suddenly the vein popped.

Photography tip #72

How many times has this happened to you: at a party or get together, or on vacation you take a bunch of pictures with your digital camera, you check the pictures on the screen and they look good. But, when you transfer them to your computer you see that some if not most are not as sharp as they should be...even badly blurry! What gives???

Well, the pictures will always look nice and sharp on the camera's small screen because it is small. The pixels are close together, so it looks good. Your computer screen is bigger, so it will show the true nature of the pics. This sucks especially if you were gonna use the pics to send to grandma or to friends or to post on your blog or website...but there is hope!

All you have to do is as you look at the pictures in your camera, use the close-up feature to zoom into the picture... this helps you see whether the picture is really sharp or not.