The Forest Preserve

This one was fascinating in itself. It was day time, but the forest is very full and shadowy because of the trees. It created this dark ambiance that just felt right. For example, Lauren has red hair and in the light against the trees in was the perfect contrast because light was not overpowering any part of the visual. As we moved further, we went to the pond, and subtle bits of light shimmer on the waters. Over all it was very calming until you got bit by a mosquito.

The beach

This was another night adventure and the only light was the light in the distance. We had light coming in from the street lamp through a sandy path passed the gazebo. Beyond that there was light from the buildings along the shore and that created layers in the sky. The skyline was cloudy but it had different shades of purple and it looked like mountains in the distance. Everything against it looked like a silhouette, you can especially see that with the cattails. This was a beautiful sight.

Downtown Wilmington

This was my favourite light observation. We were walking down the street that is against the river in downtown Wilmington and I decided to walk to through two buildings because of the stars. I approached the railing and it was beautiful. You can see a line of lights similar to the ones on Chancellors against the railing all the way to the end. Then in the distance you can see the lights on the bridge. The stars are there but they are not as clustered because of light pollution but it was a peaceful scene.

What did I learn about sound design?

Sound design is an interesting concept because sound is all around us. Every sound we hear is an ambient sound because it is all just background noise usually. What makes that sound different from sound design? If you think about it, design is well, a design. Sound design is manipulated sound. For example, we had a sound called metal hits and another called clicks. These two sounds separate were very different sounds and we decided to overlap them to attempt a clicking similar to that of a camera. Instead we accidentally created a clock ticking sound and it worked out a lot better than what we were planning for. These types of adjustments in the real sound are what sound design basically is - creating sound for some type of format so it can be heard a certain way.
My favourite type of sound design is foley art. Foley art is a physical manipulation of sound. For example in Cloudy With A Chance of Meatballs, they used (if I remember correctly) wet cloth balled up dropped on the ground to create the sound of burgers dropping when they were on the dock. Foley art is a productive way to create emphasized, more vivid sounds. This is effective because majority of the time you have to record your sounds post filming because while on set the sounds do not always sound the best.
From this project I learned a quite a bit about how to change sound for the best within the program. I especially learned how to work with the sounds you have and use them to your benefit because it was a challenge at first. Our concept set us up for a lot of film sounds and we did not have a whole lot of those. We had to use sounds from a blender, a switch, metal hitting something, etc to create the kinds of sounds we needed. I'd like to think if someone was listening to our soundscape they would not be able to tell where the sound originated, but could only hear the sound that was meant to be heard.

The Absolute Film

Absolute Film is a film moved from the early 1900's that may also be known as "Pure Cinema" and "Integral Cinema" depending on the location. This movement was named and based off of "Absolute Music" at that time. In the early 1900's all film was considered experimental and some filmmakers at the time painted on and changed film strips to see what would happen. At the beginning they associate art with making film and that is how the first few films came to be. I really like the way they went about it because Ruttmann, a painter and a musician brought his together to create films and move from just being an artist. This is something I am trying to do now, and he created Absolute Film by taking a new direction.

Response to Natalie's Presentation

I think her Prezi was really well done and it never lost my attention. You can tell she really researched Mekas and what he has accomplished. I was interested to hear about the kind of movies he made.I am not a fan of documentary anything normally but his approach for that time was different from other filmmakers. It was more in the experimental direction because he used an amateur-like style. Through his experimental film making he became known as the godfather of American Avante-Garde Cinema. He is the one who discovered these types of films and it eventually branched out to be more intricate than the films he produced during his time.

Synesthesia and Cymatics

Synesthesia- I am actually really fascinated by this concept. I wonder what it would be like to hear a name that comes with a taste, or to see colours every time I hear a certain musical note. To people born with this, it does not seem like a big deal, but I feel like you are enhanced on your senses when they crossover. This crossover lets people feel their interactions with life a little deeper. It is like a whole new understanding of the world around them.
I was very appreciative of the musical video featuring the girl playing the violin and sharing with us the kinds of colours she sees and how she sees it when she hears certain notes. It was a beautiful light show, and I cannot imagine an experience like that. I could see the downside of it at night while you are driving for example, but besides that I think people with Synesthesia are gifted.
Cymatics- This phenomenon is an interesting idea but anyone can manipulate sounds to create movement. It's a matter of the vibrations. People who cannot hear, can feel the vibrations of music and still feel a connection to the sound being played. In class, our example was images of sand being shifts on a plate-like object. Vibrations are a hum and that physically hum adjusts whatever is touching it. So for people who cannot hear, that hum lets them understand what others are listening to. When it is something grainy like sand, the vibration sends out waves and pulls the sand in all directions, but it usually patterns out. I find this fascinating as well and it is very experimental. People can find new ways to manipulate things like sand just by adjusting the sound waves.

Sound Recording Experience

We spent our time at Wrightsville Beach and the Mayfaire Town Centre. In Wrightsville we parked a little ways down the street, perpendicular from the shore. As we walked towards the beach access, we focused on the sounds around us and I made some noise on the objects around us. Once we got the beach, we gathered shells and made noise under the pier. It was a busy day at the beach, we just had trouble get the right levels for when the waves came crashing. Eventually we walked back up  towards the cars, and found some neat sounds near the showers and entrance to the pier.
After that we ventured over to Mayfaire to see what kind of sounds were over there, and we went into Barnes and Noble and Michael's to get their noises. We also got an ambiance for Cold Stone. It was definitely an experimental journey for us because we observed a lot of different ways to create sounds with the objects we found. My favourite thing to stumble upon was the echoing alley way. It was a different kind of sound that we all found interesting.
Overall it was a solid sound experience.