genestho.ca :: make it happen

CaseCamp Montreal :: Looking Back

Dan — Wed, 05 Jul 2006 14:48:06 +0000

Last night I participated in Montreal’s inaugural casecamp. Pretty cool process.

CaseCamp is is a marketing-oriented ad-hoc gathering inspired by David Crow and BarCamp. It’s open to anyone and completely free. It’s about telling stories. Presenters, following The Rules of CaseCamp, share case studies of their work. The goal is to create a commons for discussion, learning and networking between all participants.

So how was it? Well, I left with mixed emotions. First, I need to put out there that I’m not really in the field of marketing. So, it’s possible that I was simply the wrong audience. However, I am interested in systems, self-organization, and the notion of the unconference, AND I used to be in the filed of advertising and marketing. So…

Last night’s casecamp took off around 6PM with a great line-up of presenters sharing real-life cases with the group of 60-ish participants. Great stuff! I really enjoyed the candid, open, and honest sharing of ideas, tactics, and strategies. It really had the feeling of community, especially given the often competitive nature of the biz. Also, those folks that spontaneous gathered for the ad-hoc event were great. That room last night had the feeling of creativity all over it! So, from a content and networking point-of-view, fabulous evening!

Now looking at it through the lens of the UNconference and self-organization… I have to say that I found the evening had many flavours of a real conference, albeit without the hefty price-tag and with the caveat that this was a first shot at the process. Presenters, well prepared ahead of time, stood at the front of the small auditorium (graciously provided by Radio Canada for the event) and did their ten-minute spiel. Then the audience asked them questions for about five. Hrrmmm… Presenters, audience… Sounds like a conference to me.

I found that the physical environment, though really nice for a conference, didn’t fully allow for dialogue amongst participants. Instead, questions were directed to the presenters and answered to the person asking the question. What was great though, was that the conversations did take place at the bio-break and at the end of the evening. Fabulous. And, to be perfectly fair, it was acknowledged that the space wasn’t… perfect. So again, fabulous.

I wonder if there’s an opportunity to turn this into something of a dialogue, where participants can speak more with one another rather than just the presenters and whether the presenters could be… well, a little less prepared and glossy. For me, a spontaneous gathering is just that – spontaneous. And to me the word spontaneous is not synonymous with well prepared. But then again, that might just be my own perception. I wonder about how we could instead see the content of the sessions generated, driven, and created by the participants, the day of, during the course of the event, rather than by a single organizer (hate to say it, but there was some organization to this… as no one had a say in the presentation topics other than those choosing to present), or small group of oganizers, in advance. Some thoughts in progress… All while being so appreciative of the event itself!

Overall, I really enjoyed the night and look forward to participating in the next Montreal casecamp. Special thanks to Mitch for taking the lead on helping the Montreal contingent get under way.

Read Mitch’s post about the event

Lightning will Strike!

Dan — Sun, 02 Jul 2006 17:26:43 +0000

Fabulous!

I’ve just found a great online resource to help me with my lighting-capturing-skills. And to quote Mr. Dynamite: “Chicks dig guys with skills.”

Check it out: Lightning Photography - Photo Tips

As a side note to this short piece…

I realize that I haven’t been posting in my words section lately, most probably as I am busy writing my MA and thus all my writing energy is being channelled into that work, but I am suddenly finding energy around blogging again. Not sure where this is coming from, perhaps lately being in a perpetual state of reflection is pushing me to share those reflections. Also, I’ve (again) realized that my thoughts aren’t really my thoughts until they are shared with another.

So, you’re the other. Thanks for that.

I’m going to try to let this new energy flow into more regular posts.
We’ll see how that goes…

War :: What are we doing?

Dan — Wed, 24 May 2006 13:44:16 +0000

So in the last few days, I’ve been posting some shots I took in the Mont Royal cemetery, specifically, in Veterans’ section. What’s been great is reading people’s reactions to these images. On my end, it was a quite powerful experience being out there, so I’m glad that this translated into the images.

One of the aspects I really love about having my photoblog is hearing from others and starting conversations on topics of interest. There was one that recently struck me and inspired this reflection/rant of a response so I though I’d share it to see if others want to input:

I was struck by your comment in particular re: “the other aspect is that life goes on”… you got me thinking. I think that part of my having taken and shared these photos is that my life DOES go on, regardless of where and what my country’s soldiers are fighting. For me, that’s the travesty I live with ever day that I’m conscious of it. It’s that piece around becoming numb to war and fighting as “just something that is happening” and that “[my] life goes on”.

I believe We are becoming complacent to war, potentially more blindly accepting it than we used to, in having a newly formed fear for our own “security”. North America’s been living the NIMBY (Not In My Backyard) lifestyle for many decades, but with the newly (perceived) security risks, we seem to accept new behaviours from our government, with which we may not necessarily be as morally and ethically aligned to.

It’s all about feeling safe now.

You know, this is a tough one for me. I usually like to have an alternate answer to a problem I’m seeing. However, in this case, I don’t have the answer. All I have is this pit in my stomach telling me I’m not sure what we are doing is right.

Reflection in progress…

Warning: bureaucracy at work is hazardous to your health

Dan — Sat, 25 Mar 2006 02:59:15 +0000

READ THE ARTICLE

An article in the Globe and Mail. Don de Guerre is a professor of mine for my Masters in Human Systems Intervention.

Warning: bureaucracy at work is hazardous to your health
VIRGINIA GALT WORKPLACE REPORTER
Friday, March 24, 2006

Yatta :: Say No More

Dan — Sat, 18 Mar 2006 16:07:54 +0000

Okay, wow. A friend recently brought me into the world of Yatta… For those who haven’t yet experienced this phenomenon, click on the link below and prepare to drop your jaw:

Yatta on Google Video

My Fours

Dan — Wed, 01 Mar 2006 14:05:46 +0000

Four jobs I’ve had in my life

Door-to-Door Saleman
Club Med G.O.
Web Designer
Technology Integration Specialist (in schools)

Four movies I can watch over and over

I Heart Huckabees
Napoleon Dynamite
The Big Lebowski
The Matrix (series)

Four places I have lived

Ottawa, Ontario
Paradise Island, Bahamas
Governor’s Harbour, Eleuthra (Bahamas)
Montreal, Canada

Four TV shows I love to watch

The Mercer Report
MythBusters
American Chopper
Law and Order

Four places I have been on vacation

San Francisco, California
Rodney Bay, Saint Lucia
Verbier, Switzerland
Canoe Lake (etc.), Algonquin Park, Ontario

Four of my favourite dishes

Pizza
Butter chicken
Rosemary Lamb
The Lemlin Turkey Tetrazini

Four websites I visit daily

Singer.to ~ Refreshing the daily grind
zinkwazi.com
Business Week’s Innovation & Design
[daily dose of imagery]

Four places I would rather be right now

On a mountain
In a canoe
On a rock face
In Wakefield, Quebec

Four bloggers to tag

Who’s in?

The Future of the Blog

Dan — Fri, 24 Feb 2006 14:54:18 +0000

Six Apart’s Mena Trott helped start the stampede by co-designing user-friendly software. But she thinks the blogging trend is only just beginning.

It’s hard to imagine the world without blogs. The publishing technology has become a cultural and political force. One of the reasons for the rapid growth of the blogosphere is the existence of user-friendly blogging software such as Moveable Type. The program was designed with simplicity in mind by Mena Trott, a former graphic designer and early blogger (she launched dollarshort.org in early 2001), and her husband, Ben Trott, a programmer.

Business Weekly’s Innovation Q&A: Read Full Artcile from FEBRUARY 24, 2006 here.

Photoblog Comments: Service or Disservice

Dan — Sat, 18 Feb 2006 15:16:45 +0000

The magic of referrers became quite clear for me yesterday. As I perused my photoblog stats, I noticed an irregular referrer that for some reason was sending a lot of traffic my way. Curious, I clicked on the link to then find myself on a random message board (which I will keep anonymous).

Some Context…

Here’s what I found:

I’m getting sick of this photoblog [stuff]. Day after day I post photos… and hardly anyone visits and those who do never leave comments. Except people I actually know.. and that’s because they feel some sort of obligation to.

[Screw] that. I see [crappy] photographs all over the internet with 10+ comments for each photo. Are my photos really that [crappy]?

I’ve about had enough of putting my stuff online.

And yes, this is a temper tantrum.

Followed by (which is what my stats picked-up):

like this, for example:

http://www.genestho.ca/genestho/index.php?showimage=207

or this

http://www.genestho.ca/genestho/index.php?showimage=215

20 [frigging] comments? That picture is [crap].

“great composition: the curve with the white house and the silo it is beautifully done. enjoy your work”

“Superb shot, the colours and motion blur are spot on - looks like it’s from a car advert!”

Are these [friggin] people blind? The tonal range sucks and there’s a hideous blue cast over the entire image. It’s a [friggin] snapshot from a moving car.

My Reaction…

Wow, the magic of the Internet! I sat and wondered how to respond. Realistically, I was quite flattered to be the one singled out and at the same time a little pissed that I was being discussed half-way around the world without really ever having had an opportunity to participate in the conversation (though I DID register in the forum and post a few responses, which by the way, got some great conversation going). Then I got a little perspective… Man, did this discussion ever make me curious. So what’s the real issue here? BLOG COMMENTS!

The Question…

Are comments on photoblogs helpful or do they detract from the essence of the artistic process?

Thoughts in Progress…

Interesting. This has been an ongoing conversation with family and friends ever since I started my photoblog.

There were earlier moments when I posted pictures I considered fabulous, but that received very few comments. This used to upset me, because I was equating the number of received comments to the quality of the photo. Interesting how externally driven my photography had become.

Then, there were photos that I posted just to see what folks thought (e.g. the shot taken from the car with the “blue cast” mentioned above) and these received many comments. Huh? What’s that all about? Do I have crappy taste in photos? Can I have clear perspective of my own shots? Am I too close to them…

So this got me thinking about my own process. In that, I reframed how I saw my comments to being more of a place where others could post reactions to shots.

So why do that?

Here’s the new deal for me… As I reflected on my paradigm, one of my favourite sites coincidentally stopped allowing for comments to be made. Following this, something interesting happened to me. Though I continued visiting the site, I realized that I did not feel as connected to the images or my fellow photoblogger. I realized at that point the magic of commenting / allowing for comments - connectedness.

I feel that commenting allows for a conversation to arise, from the conversation comes learning, and connectedness. This process reminded me of the paradigm of social-constructionism, which states that it’s through conversation that we create our reality. Of course, my perspective sheds light on my need to individually respond to every comment made on my site.

Hrrmmm… An aside question: in service of co-construction, I question whether I should be replying directly in my comments area or individually? I digress…

Right, I remember when I first learned about blogs this idea of social-constructionism is exactly what I thought. I remember thinking about the power of blogging as a medium for co-constructing something.

Interestingly, many might share different views on the process of commenting; perspective is everything. Though I might just want to engage in learning and sharing through commenting, others might comment with reciprocal expectations. To each his/her own.

Closing…

In service of co-creation, I felt moved to share my perspective on commenting. I sincerely thank the individual who initially posted to that foreign message board as he triggered great reflection on my part. Thanks for that.

The conversation begins.

Shot Without Consent

Dan — Tue, 07 Feb 2006 16:33:07 +0000

>> Local photographer crusades against Quebec-only restrictions on street photography

by KRISTIAN GRAVENOR
Montreal Mirror :: Aug 4-10.2005 Vol. 21 No. 7

So you got one of those newfangled digital cameras and you’ve gone snaphappy, shooting photos of friends, relatives, strangers, pedestrians, squirrels, buildings, trees and fellow party animals. Then you send them around or pop them up on a Web site.

You might consider slowing down.

Little known fact about life in Quebec: if you don’t have official permission from the people who appear in your photos, they can sue you for making such images public. And that applies even if you were to e-mail the picture to a few friends, or put it on a little-frequented Web site.

Quebec is the only place in North America where photographers are required to get permission from the subjects of photographs that will be presented to the public. The only situations where such a permission is not mandatory is when the photo is of a crowd, if it’s considered legitimate news or considered to be in the public interest.

The rule is being strongly criticized, especially by veteran local photographer Gilbert Duclos, who describes the legal requirement as “imbecilic.” He’s presently touring with his 2005 documentary, La Rue Zone Interdite (This Street Off Limits), about the harm the rule is doing. Appearing in the film are photographers, including Roger Lemoyne, Yves Beaulieu and Marc Riboud, jurists, including former Supreme Court Chief Justice Antonio Lamer and Duclos’ lawyer Viviane de Kinder, and journalists like Robert Ménard, founder of Reporters sans frontières.

Lens and law

Duclos has a pretty good idea about the issue. It was his 1988 photo of Pascale-Claude Aubry, then 17, wearing a black sweater and sporting cropped bleached hair sitting at the entrance of a downtown Scotiabank that led to the law. Duclos donated the photo to a small, now-defunct literary magazine Vice-Versa, which used the image on its cover.

Aubry - who hadn’t given permission for the shot - claimed that the photo led people to “laugh” at her. She demanded $10,000 in compensation. Duclos offered an amount of “what I would have paid a model.” She refused and sued, with the case going all the way to the Supreme Court of Canada.

Aubry won. In 1998 the Supreme Court ordered Duclos to pay Aubry $2,000. More importantly, the court issued the edict that henceforth, publishing an unauthorized photo of somebody violates Quebec law.

“I denounce that decision,” says Duclos. “I find it so stupid. I was in shock when it was announced. I never thought I’d lose. For years after that, I stopped doing photos in Montreal. Other photographers tell me, ‘Gilbert, since your judgement, it’s hell shooting here.’ They all feel that they can’t do anything because they have to ask permission all day.”

Duclos believes the decision violates artistic expression and damages the future historical record of our era. “The whole story of street photography is based on images taken on the street without permission,” he says. “The most beautiful photos are taken on the street just like that. When you ask permission, it’s no longer natural. I feel that if the photo is degrading, then I can understand people objecting, but if it’s somebody walking on the street eating an ice cream on a hot day or something, then it’s not defamatory, there’s nothing wrong with it.”

Duclos’s documentary was most recently screened in June at a photography conference in Prague. It will appear at the Ex-Centris theatre on Sept. 9 (in French).

He tried to interview Aubry for the documentary, without luck. He blurs out the forbidden photo of her in his film.

Watch what you shoot

Duclos blames the limitation on shutterbugs on the French Civil Code, which prevails in Quebec over common law, practiced elsewhere in North America. “The right to [one’s own] image is an invention of French law,” he says. “I made the film to show the stupidity of that notion.”

But media lawyer Mark Bantey - another opponent of the photo restrictions - argues that a complaint made in another province would likely lead to the same restrictions applying there. “Right now it only applies to Quebec Civil Law, but I’m convinced that it will creep across the rest of Canada,” he says. “I’m surprised it hasn’t happened already, but I’m sure one day it will.”

Nowadays, he says, people whose image appears in a paper without their permission - even when it’s an image of a crowd shot or news report - are calling up media outlets to complain, asking for a payoff. “It has become a cottage industry,” says Bantey.

Duclos doesn’t see any immediate solution. The Supreme Court could overturn its own decision, but he doubts that will happen soon. “The danger is that it leads to self-censorship,” he says. “If I can’t publish my images, I’m not sure I still want to do photography. The decision goes against the whole tradition of photography.”

A Representative Parliament :: I Think Not

Dan — Thu, 26 Jan 2006 16:44:46 +0000

On Tuesday morning, I awoke to find my best-of-worst-case-scenarios for this election had unfolded (i.e. a minority Conservative government). My curiosity then shifted to examining how representative our government had turned out; did it truly reflect my Canada? Interesting stuff…

I could go into much detail here, but FAIR VOTE CANADA does a way better job of explaining it than I ever could. So please have a look on there site and feel free to drop back by and post your reaction.

FAIR VOTE CANADA

Thanks Mom for passing this particular piece of info my way!