tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-31374036234999398242024-03-13T14:32:21.890-07:00Culture & Technology Review>> The Modern Culture BlogUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger26125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3137403623499939824.post-85577157595406560172011-08-11T12:27:00.000-07:002011-08-12T04:20:33.877-07:002011 Sigur Ros Album Confirmed? (INNI)<div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Here at culture tech we were the first to bring you hints of a new Sigur Ros album – it proved to be our most popular article to date. Now we have some new and substantial news. At 8:12 PM I received a cryptic email from Sigur Ros’ email news.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5639682989284752898" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-p54ZXGml2xQ/TkQtzGYhfgI/AAAAAAAAACE/lBYb_egeSSY/s320/sigurrosinni.jpg" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer; display: block; height: 253px; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; width: 320px;" /></div><div class="MsoNormal"></div><div class="MsoNormal">The centre part of the email, containing the word ‘inni’ which translates from Icelandic as Inside, is a link leading the viewer to this <a href="http://www.sigur-ros.co.uk/?utm_source=sr1108&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=inni">page</a>, which contains this cryptic video. </div><iframe frameborder="0" height="315" id="tsFrame92680" src="http://cdn.topspin.net/api/v2/widget/player/92680" width="560"></iframe><br />
<div class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal">My assumption would be that INNI is the title to a new sigur ros album, which we know has been in the works since the spring (see our earlier article).</div><div class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal">The level of excitement here at Culture Tech is off the scale, this is one to look out for! Keep your eyes fixed. </div><div class="MsoNormal">George Maier, </div><div class="MsoNormal">exclusively for Culture Tech</div>George Edward Maierhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08021694065146564622noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3137403623499939824.post-145072007190304452011-06-24T14:17:00.000-07:002011-06-25T07:23:18.441-07:00The Future Of Paying For Pop: Google Wallet<div style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"><a href="http://images.ientrymail.com/webpronews/pictures/google-wallet_616.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="215" src="http://images.ientrymail.com/webpronews/pictures/google-wallet_616.jpg" width="320" /></a>Earlier this year Google showed off the newest of their mobile services designed to make life easier, Google Wallet. Google Wallet is an application that uses an Android phone equipped with a near field communication chip (or NFC chip) and links it to your debit or credit card. You can then leave the card at home and as long as you have your phone with you, make purchases using the application. Currently it’s in beta and only works in Portland and San Francisco but Google is committed to rolling out more cities over time.</div><div style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"></div><a name='more'></a><br />
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<div style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"></div><div style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"><b>Requirements and How It Works</b></div><div style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;">Currently in order to take part in the beta you need to own either a Nexus S from T-Mobile or and Nexus S 4G from Sprint. You also need to be a Citi Bank customer with a master card and be in either the Portland or San Francisco areas. If you meet those requirements Google will be happy to allow you to take part in the beta. Google Wallet is also easy to use, just add your card information in settings (Google will verify with your bank) and you should see it when you boot up the app. When wanting to pay for things just open the app, tap the card you want to use and enter your pin. You’ll see a message that it’s ready for payment and all you have to do is wave it by the sensor. Having tried it out myself for the first time recently, I was shocked at how quick and easy it was.</div><div style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"></div><div style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"><b><br />
</b></div><div style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"><b>Security and Availability</b></div><div style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;">Many first reactions to Google Wallet is concerns over the security of their personal information. Because Google Wallet requires your PIN it’s every bit as secure as a traditional credit or debt card with the added bonus of being able to locate your phone if it’s stolen via GPS. Often new payment technologies are slow to integration but many businesses are already equipped to support NFC payment. Any store with a MasterCard quick pay at the register all ready has the equipment needed and most new high end Coke Machine now also come equipped with NFC support.</div><div style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"></div><div><br />
</div><i>W</i><i>ritten by Maria Rainier</i><div><i><br />
</i><div style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"></div><div style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-5_hVkJc20i0/TfxzqEzr2hI/AAAAAAAAAAQ/lm38PgsiddI/s1600/Maria%2B%25281%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-5_hVkJc20i0/TfxzqEzr2hI/AAAAAAAAAAQ/lm38PgsiddI/s200/Maria%2B%25281%2529.jpg" width="133" /></a><i></i><br />
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<i>Bio: Maria Rainier is a freelance writer and blogger for First in Education where she’s recently written about <a href="http://www.onlinedegrees.org/calculator/degrees/criminal-justice">online criminal justice programs</a> along with a piece on <a href="http://www.onlinedegrees.org/calculator/salary/veterinary-technologists-and-technicians">veterinary technician jobs</a>. In her spare time, she enjoys yoga, traveling, and working with origami.</i></div></div>George Edward Maierhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08021694065146564622noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3137403623499939824.post-15842661101960782702011-06-23T07:40:00.000-07:002011-06-23T07:40:27.361-07:00Take Me There Egypt - Exhibit Review - Indianapolis, Indiana<div style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"></div><div style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;">Have you ever left the country? If like me, you don’t have the monetary funds to leave the United States, don’t be too upset. Though it would be nice to physically leave the country, it isn’t an option to some. I’ve found that there are ways to explore other worlds right here in my own city.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.childrensmuseum.org/sites/default/files/images/Departments/Public%20Relations/Seti%20puzzle.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://www.childrensmuseum.org/sites/default/files/images/Departments/Public%20Relations/Seti%20puzzle.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;">One of the most memorable of <a href="http://www.childrensmuseum.org/">tourist attractions</a></div><div style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"></div><a name='more'></a><br />
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<div style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;">The best exhibit they have now is the Take Me There Egypt! It’s so cool, especially in a little kid’s eye. When you first walk in you enter a gigantic airplane that simulates a plane ride leaving the country through the use of visuals and other sensory details. In the period that I was fortunate to work with the Children’s Museum as an exhibit design intern I learned about all the creative work that goes into the implementation of an exhibit like the one mentioned above.</div><div style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;">Every 5 years the museum plans to switch out this section of its massive floor plan. They want to be able to take the kiddos of Indianapolis to all the many countries they may or may not be able to see for themselves in person. The exhibit designers and researchers devoted months to figuring out all they can about the culture they are trying to communicate and display to their audiences. Some of the designers even get to venture all they way across the world to the destination they are depicting. They emerge themselves in the culture, they experience the people in their natural environments, and they collect keepsakes that best communicate the society’s way of life.</div><div style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;">I think it’s so cool that they bring back not only notes, but also physical artifacts from different countries with the idea of recreating environments for children to actively dive into. The exhibit designers set up spaces that mimic places like the homes, hangouts, and schools for the children of (in this case) Egypt. This allows the children of Indianapolis to see what life is like on the other side of the world. It also shows them that though they don’t live close to Egyptian children, they do still have a lot in common with them. It’s not only fun, but also very educational and experiential.</div><div style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;">Even if you’re not a kid, the Children’s Museum of Indianapolis is an amazingly fun time! I would suggest that anyone in search of an adventure should definitely look into visiting the world’s largest children’s museum. It would be fun to tell your friends and family that you got to visit Egypt without having to pay thousands of dollars on travel costs, don’t you think?</div><div style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;">Written by Meg- Meg414@technected.com</div>George Edward Maierhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08021694065146564622noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3137403623499939824.post-23686062355808736212011-06-21T10:12:00.001-07:002011-06-21T10:13:32.062-07:00Support editor George Maier's new short film...George Maier and Eric Riley are currently working on an amazing new short film idea, but it needs funding. The campaign has just started so please be the first to donate! http://igg.me/p/32294?a=173973&i=shlkGeorge Edward Maierhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08021694065146564622noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3137403623499939824.post-39618095122693181592011-06-18T02:53:00.000-07:002011-06-18T03:17:50.934-07:00Emmy the Great-Virtue<div style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"><i><br />
</i></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/--t43H8Ycsj8/TblDvP3oQyI/AAAAAAAAGkA/RPPMlqdv6r4/s1600/emmy-01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="181" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/--t43H8Ycsj8/TblDvP3oQyI/AAAAAAAAGkA/RPPMlqdv6r4/s320/emmy-01.jpg" width="320" /></a>Our current generation of musicians is lacking something: it’s not guitarists, it’s not computers, it’s not drum machines, and it’s certainly not auto-tune: We’re missing poets. A modern lyricist who can talk about imagination, emotion, and thoughts without resorting to blunt clichés or exhausted stories is rare. However, indie-folk songwriter Emmy the Great helps fight against that dilution with her new album, Virtue.</div><div style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"></div><a name='more'></a><br />
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<div style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;">To contrast against her impressive debut album (First Love), Virtue is more developed musically. While First Love was predominantly characterized by acoustic guitar riffs with occasional string/piano/drum arrangements, Virtue has a far-deeper rhythmic texture. The album’s production is meticulous and atmospheric, yet it is still subtle enough to let Emmy’s lyrics and singing remain the focal point. One thing Emmy does not experiment with is voice-distorting or modulating features as her words are clear and easy to understand; she lets the labor lay in interpretation rather than decipherment.</div><div style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;">I have a feeling that Emma Lee Moss (Emmy the Great’s real name) will sneak up on the general public over time. She has proven a few times now that she knows how make intelligent yet authentic, accessible music. It will be really exciting to see how her career progresses. In the meantime, we have an excellent installment that will keep us satisfied for a while.</div><div style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"><i><br />
</i></div><i style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;">Written by</i><i> Harrison DeSantis for Culture & Technology Review</i><br />
<i style="font-family: 'Times New Roman';"><span class="Apple-style-span">Visit</span></i><i> Harrison DeSantis's <a href="http://twitter.com/#!/H_DeSantis">twitter page</a></i>George Edward Maierhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08021694065146564622noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3137403623499939824.post-52088965122781561652011-06-18T02:38:00.000-07:002011-06-18T02:55:19.674-07:00Sprint and HTC Team Up To Create The First 3D Smart Phone<div style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"><i><br />
</i></div><div style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;">Last year Sprint and HTC teamed up to create the worlds first 4G smartphone the EVO 4G. The EVO’s high specs giant screen and interesting design quickly made it one of the most successful Android phones ever created. About a year later Sprint and HTC are teaming up to create the next phone in the EVO line and they are aiming to make it just as revolutionary as the first.</div><div style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"><a href="http://pocketpccentral.net/otherviews/android/htc/evo_3d/fntrear_zoom.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="306" src="http://pocketpccentral.net/otherviews/android/htc/evo_3d/fntrear_zoom.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><a name='more'></a><br />
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<div style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"></div><div style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"><b>Hardware, Specs and Design</b></div><div style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;">The HTC EVO 3D is the latest Android powered smartphone HTC has produced and like the EVO 4G before it, its spec sheet rivals the most powerful smartphones available. The EVO 3D features the latest Qualcomm Snapdragon CPU, which is a dual core microprocessor clocked at 1.2ghz. That’s more than twice as powerful as the single core 1ghz Snapdragon found in the EVO 4G. The EVO 3D also features twice the amount of ram or the original EVO, 1gb versus 512mbs. Despite the drastic increase in specs the phone actually manages to be slightly slimmer and light than it’s predecessor while keeping it’s solid black slate design. The EVO 3D features all of the same ports and radios found in it’s predecessor including the 4G WiMax for Sprints network. The biggest difference between the EVO 4G and the EVO 3D is in the display. Both feature a huge 4.3-inch LCD panel protected by gorilla glass but the EVO 3D bumps up the resolution to qHD and is the first smartphone in the world to feature glasses free 3D technology. This means you can enjoy 3D pictures, movies and games without those heavy and expensive 3D glasses.</div><div style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"></div><div style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"><b>Software and Camera</b></div><div style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;">The EVO 3D is running the latest version of Android available for mobile phones 2.3 Gingerbread with the latest version of HTC’s sense UI skin on top. Sense 3.0 features a whole bunch of cool visual tweaks that take advantage of the processing power such as a more 3D carousel home screen launcher and a redesigned lock screen. The EVO 3D is also revolutionary in that it’s the first phone with a 3D camera. The EVO 3D features dual 5 megapixel cameras on the back that allow the phone to take pictures and record video in 3D. The EVO 3D also features a front facing camera that’s perfect for video calls.</div><div style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"></div><div style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"><b>Price and Availability</b></div><div style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;">The EVO 3D will be available from Sprint stores and telesales starting June 24th for $200 on contract.</div><div style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"><i>Written by </i><i>Maria Rainier </i></div><div style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"><i><br />
</i></div><div style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"></div><div style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-5_hVkJc20i0/TfxzqEzr2hI/AAAAAAAAAAQ/lm38PgsiddI/s1600/Maria%2B%25281%2529.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" height="200" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5619493601733761554" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-5_hVkJc20i0/TfxzqEzr2hI/AAAAAAAAAAQ/lm38PgsiddI/s200/Maria%2B%25281%2529.jpg" style="float: right; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 10px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;" width="133" /></a><i>Bio: Maria Rainier is a freelance writer and blogger for First in Education where she’s recently written on <a href="http://www.onlinedegrees.org/calculator/degrees/legal-studies">online legal studies programs</a> along with a piece on<a href="http://www.onlinedegrees.org/calculator/degrees/speech-pathology"> online speech pathology programs.</a> In her spare time, she enjoys yoga, playing piano, and working with origami.</i></div>George Edward Maierhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08021694065146564622noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3137403623499939824.post-24812882627474360442011-02-22T16:44:00.000-08:002011-02-22T16:44:47.593-08:00Archibold Flamingo – Something new for the Dubheads<style type="text/css">
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<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-64Qv9pEBDJU/TWKOi125GKI/AAAAAAAAABQ/gaZLxzJ9q6s/s1600/archibold.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="121" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-64Qv9pEBDJU/TWKOi125GKI/AAAAAAAAABQ/gaZLxzJ9q6s/s400/archibold.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>For those who like their music Filthy and those always on the look out for the very best in new, up and coming artists in Dub, Drum and Bass, Dubstep and generally dirty low frequencies there is a great new blog dedicated to bringing you just that; <a href="http://archiboldflamingo.blogspot.com/">Archibold Flamingo</a>! They promote fresh producers, bands and solo artists and broaden the culture that comes with that territory with art and random snippets of goodness whilst bringing the very best to you.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"></div><a name='more'></a><br />
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<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">As a lover of all things bass-heavy myself I was extremely excited to see Archibold Flamingo come to surface and I think you will enjoy it just as much as me.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">Are you a producer? In a band or going solo? Well you can get yourself featured on their blog yourself to bring a whole new audience to your creations and provide them with something new in return. Just head over to their <a href="http://archiboldflamingo.blogspot.com/">site</a> and send them your tracks via the SoundCloud Dropbox.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">Definitely one to keep an eye on; Archibold Flamingo, Bringer of Filth</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><i>Written by Eric Riley for <a href="http://culturetechreview.com/">CultureTechReview.com</a></i></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3137403623499939824.post-55683897662540044922011-02-12T09:39:00.000-08:002011-02-12T09:39:59.184-08:00Get Free Samples with The Free Sound ProjectAll to many times Ive found my self feeling lost when it comes to finding good quality sound samples for music production and I know the same problem can arise when filmmakers need good sound fx for their work too. The Free Sound Project eliminates these hassles and allows you to create great things.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://media.freesound.org/files/logo/freesound_logo_large.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="105" src="http://media.freesound.org/files/logo/freesound_logo_large.png" width="320" /></a></div><br />
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I came across <a href="http://www.freesound.org/">www.freesound.org</a> when looking for a growling sample for my own work but I quickly found a whole host of impressive samples from voice to thunderstorms and all sorts of other interesting noises. The great thing is they are all really high quality and entirely free to use under Creative Commons Sampling Plus 1.0 which lets you sample, mash-up, or otherwise creatively transform the work for commercial or noncommercial purposes ( a full explanation can be found <a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/sampling+/1.0/">here </a>).<br />
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If you know of any similar sites like The Free Sound Project then feel free to let us know.<br />
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<i>Written by Eric Riley for <a href="http://culturetechreview.com/">CultureTechReview.com</a></i>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3137403623499939824.post-88064939687164332052011-02-06T05:13:00.000-08:002011-02-06T05:15:52.033-08:00Make a Professional Photography Online Portfolio<style type="text/css">
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<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_cGxgL7lwiGA/TU6cCircEgI/AAAAAAAAACU/vhdrWeB463M/s1600/Screenshot.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="234" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_cGxgL7lwiGA/TU6cCircEgI/AAAAAAAAACU/vhdrWeB463M/s400/Screenshot.png" width="400" /></a>An online portfolio can really give that professional edge to your work. Whether It's a page for potential employers to sample your work or just a place to share you work with friends and family an online portfolio is a must for any photographer. I'm going to show you how you can make a great looking portfolio really simply and more importantly; for free!</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"></div><a name='more'></a><br />
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<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">So you have a nice collection of photos that you have accumulated over you time as a photographer and you want somewhere to put them all. You can treat your portfolio as a gallery of your work, a place to show off the best of you. The only problem is, it's hard to know where to start. I found a brilliant site that makes the whole process a breeze; its called <a href="http://wix.com/">wix.com</a>, and they have specific templates for portfolios and not just for photography either. They have templates for all areas of design and advertising so there is a great selection to choose from.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><b>So let's get started.</b></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">When you first visit the site you will have to create an account, it's really simple. Then you will be taken to the 'create' page where you begin looking through a collection of really elegant looking layouts. You can click 'view' to preview the layout you are interested in and if you want to use it you can click 'edit' to begin customising the template.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">The editor is really intuitive to use, I found it a breeze (although sometimes it can run a little slowly). You simply click on the parts you want to edit and choose the option you want from the pop-up window. Because the layout is all done for you all you will really need to edit are the titles and text areas on each page and, of course, upload you photographs. You can play around with the colour scheme for each object too if you want to really make it your own.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">The uploader is straight forward and quick to use when adding your photos. If you already have your photographs on the web it is even easier with the 'URL' tab which lets you put in images straight from another site.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_cGxgL7lwiGA/TU6eLIU8veI/AAAAAAAAACY/r6uHDjSad2Q/s1600/Screenshot-1.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="233" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_cGxgL7lwiGA/TU6eLIU8veI/AAAAAAAAACY/r6uHDjSad2Q/s400/Screenshot-1.png" width="400" /></a></div><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><i>I used my flickr account for the photos on my portfolio. If you also have your photos on flickr it can be a tricky process to find your image's URL because of Flickr's copy-protection feature. The way I did it was to choose the photo I wanted in flickr and click 'share', then select the 'embed' code (not the 'direct link' that won't work) and find the image URL there. It should look like 'http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5210/5229449105_1e89e65f0d.jpg' or similar (the key is to find the .jpg extension, that's the actual photo). Then all you do is copy that URL into wix and it should work fine.</i></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">After you have finished editing your portfolio you can click 'publish' and choose a name for your site. For the free version of wix you will have a wix.com address but there is the option to append your own domain if you have one.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">Another limitation with the free version it the footer text advertising their site. Of course if you want to make your portfolio look more professional you can pay to have that advertising removed.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">I found wix to be a really easy way to make a web-portfolio, you can see <a href="http://www.wix.com/ericsweb/ericriley">My Portfolio</a> by following that link and I would love to see your portfolios too. If you know any other sites like Wix feel free to leave a comment below.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><i>Written by Eric Riley for <a href="http://culturetechreview.com/">culturetechreview.com</a></i></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><br />
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</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3137403623499939824.post-82630706882804528082011-02-05T08:40:00.000-08:002011-02-05T15:22:26.733-08:00Follow Us On Twitter<a href="http://clanoftubalcain.co.uk/blog/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/twitter.bmp" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://clanoftubalcain.co.uk/blog/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/twitter.bmp" width="320" /></a>Got a twitter account? Well follow us now and you can get the latest from The Culture & Technology Review straight from your twitter feed. All you need to do is follow our twitter page; <a href="http://twitter.com/culture_tech">twitter.com/culture_tech</a> by clicking on that link or on the twitter button at the very top of this page.<br />
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<i>George & Eric</i>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3137403623499939824.post-66501392531743814472011-02-02T04:56:00.001-08:002011-02-02T05:50:04.735-08:00Elbow - Lippy kids and New Album!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.aftenbladet.no/dynamic/00227/Elbow_227651m.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="258" src="http://www.aftenbladet.no/dynamic/00227/Elbow_227651m.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>Well, what can I say? Apart from If elbow got any better they would be elected gods of the free world. Elbow are essentially northern in heart and spirit - and it is reflected so freely in their music, which is independent and sounds completely different from anything I else I hear. One of the biggest things that has always stood out to me about Elbow is the lyrics, they manage to write such deep and amazing music that most of us can relate to on a daily basis. <br />
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I was taken to a different world by their last album Seldom Seen Kid, so when I heard news of this new album I lept for joy! They have released a studio video of themselves performing Lippy Kids from the new album on youtube in order to promote the release on the 7th of March...<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" class="youtube-player" frameborder="0" height="345" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/NItwaz0nLJA" title="YouTube video player" type="text/html" width="560"></iframe>George Edward Maierhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08021694065146564622noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3137403623499939824.post-6039282821178299752011-02-01T14:56:00.001-08:002011-06-18T03:48:28.852-07:00Sigur Ros in the studio for a new 2011 album<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_VZN1v4y6WPg/R1BmgWsWU3I/AAAAAAAAB-Q/ocJY5isSbt8/s1600-R/Sigur+Ros.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_VZN1v4y6WPg/R1BmgWsWU3I/AAAAAAAAB-Q/ocJY5isSbt8/s320-R/Sigur+Ros.jpg" width="320" /></a>After an immense year on solo tour the Icelandic pop (and indeed post-rock) star Jonsi is getting back into his comfort zone. Today I posted a question to the Jonsi.com staff as to whether he would be back in the studio with the Ros this spring and they replied positively, confirming that he would be, but they didn't provide any further information. The band had rumours of a new album over a year ago before they want into hiatus in order for some of the members to spend more time as fathers to their children, but these rumours were later denied by the band. Little is out there currently about this new album, but this is Sigur Ros we are talking about, one of the greatest and most outstanding bands in the world today. I can guarantee this new album will be one to scoop up on pre-order as a LOT of Sigur Ros fans have been waiting a LONG time for this. No release estimates yet, so your guess is as good as mine, and let's face it, it would be wrong for Sigur Ros to rush art.<br /><br />For those of you unfamiliar with Sigur Ros take a listen.<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><object class="BLOGGER-youtube-video" classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" codebase="http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=6,0,40,0" src="http://i.ytimg.com/vi/34ZtT4Th9Ys/0.jpg" height="266" width="320"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/34ZtT4Th9Ys?f=videos&c=google-webdrive-0&app=youtube_gdata"><param name="bgcolor" value="#FFFFFF"><embed width="320" height="266" src="http://www.youtube.com/v/34ZtT4Th9Ys?f=videos&c=google-webdrive-0&app=youtube_gdata" type="application/x-shockwave-flash"></embed></object></div><br /><br />I'm George Maier reporting as it happens for The Culture & Technology online<br />(www.CultureTechReview.com)George Edward Maierhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08021694065146564622noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3137403623499939824.post-36496942031807064352011-01-28T17:44:00.000-08:002011-02-01T14:28:18.921-08:00Homophobia and the mediaSo, I've been thinking a lot today about homophobia and homosexuality, mainly promoted by finding out that one of my friends believes that many of my friends are sinners who will burn in hell because of their sexuality. I know that he was just stating his beliefs... (be them homophobic disguised by a religious front) but I truly can't understand why anyone would believe an old book (that has been re-edited and re-written hundreds of times) over someone they have the indecency call their friend to the extent that they believe their 'friend' is fundamentally wrong. (You can tell who's gone from my Christmas chard list next year) <br /><br />So I was wondering how I could make this idea relevant to this blog, and, being a culture blog, I thought I'd throw in some cultural references in explaining my ideas. <br /><br />In the latest episode of Glee to air in the UK, episode 3 of season 2, Kurt says something that I think relates closely to many of us, in both a homosexual and more general sense regarding the matter: "God's kind of a jerk... isn't he? I mean he makes me gay and then has his followers going round telling me it's something that I chose. As if someone would choose to be mocked every singe day of their life."<br /><br />I think it's important to mention how far, as a society we have came over the past few decades, I mean, generally it is okay to be gay now... but at the same time, it really isn't.... I mean half your friends are iffy about it, then there's the people who randomly abuse you... I think the worst part is when someone you look up to, and aspire to be like tells you that they don't think homosexuality is right.<br /><br />I'm a big fan of modern family, and I am so glad that it contains a gay couple... It's right there, at the front of the battle and it's pushing hard on those too stagnant to accept the new reality. I was horrifid to find a video on youtube describing modernfamily and homosexual propaganda, using words like 'evil' to describe the gay couple. <br /><br />I can't remember what film this quote comes from, or if I have it right, it's just something that's stayed in the back of my mind for as long as I can remember, but I think it sums up my opinions: "I don't know if there is a god son, but I damn know for sure if he does exist and is as loving as they say, he would never send anyone anywhere else but heaven." <br /><br />I rest my case. Goodnight!George Edward Maierhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08021694065146564622noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3137403623499939824.post-5664191974436509432011-01-26T02:20:00.001-08:002011-01-26T02:43:34.417-08:00Get Inspiration for Great Photography by Looking at Great Photographs<style type="text/css">
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<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">There is nothing worse than the infliction of photographer's block; a complete loss of inspiration that seems like you will never recover from. I get the feeling often but I find a cure in looking at the work of other photographers, often ones I have never heard of.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_YUrw6ooCZj4/SvS5Qrl5NLI/AAAAAAAAA4Y/gPODbC0oLZE/s1600/CHI-1228.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_YUrw6ooCZj4/SvS5Qrl5NLI/AAAAAAAAA4Y/gPODbC0oLZE/s320/CHI-1228.jpg" width="315" /></a></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><br />
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</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">The picture above is by the late, Vivian Maier, whose work I came across by chance when looking for photographers to look at. Not much is known about her life but one thing is certain, she had an eye for brilliant shots. Thousands of her photos were auctioned off toward the end of her life including tonnes of negatives and masses of undeveloped film. The people at <a href="http://vivianmaier.com/">VivianMaier.com</a> are trying to bring all of this work to life and are researching her life to make a documentary about her work. I think it is a brilliant project which shares these photographs with people like myself who would never have seen her work.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">However my main point is that to get inspired you must look past your environment and instead look at the work of others to gain a better understanding of what works and what does not. Of course it is always better to find this out through your own photography and your own experience however when your suffering from lack of inspiration this trial and error method can feel like a chore and at times like that I always find that seeing the work of others gives me inspiration to try these new things.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">A final point I should make is that you shouldn't just look at photographers who picture the things you are directly interested in. In the case of Vivian, she was a street photographer where as I typically am not, but, her work was still massively inspiring because I was looking less at the subject and more at her, the way she framed her shots, the angles she chose and other little things that she would have taken into consideration when photographing the streets. By looking at other styles you can apply ideas to your own style and create some truly unique photography. <br />
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<a href="http://vimeo.com/18552203">The Hidden World of Vivian Maier</a> from <a href="http://vimeo.com/kitchensisters">The Kitchen Sisters</a> on <a href="http://vimeo.com/">Vimeo</a>.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #504d4d; font-family: Arial, Verdana; font-size: 12px; line-height: 20px;"></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><i>Photography by Vivian Maier</i></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><i>Written by Eric Riley for <a href="http://culturetechreview.com/" style="color: #328bac; outline-color: initial; outline-style: none; outline-width: initial;">CultureTechReview.com</a></i></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3137403623499939824.post-10089039595525587552011-01-19T12:51:00.000-08:002011-01-19T12:54:52.418-08:00This is what happens when pros use webcams and youtube<span class="Apple-style-span">I have to say, I was shocked to see Patrick appear before me this evening on a low quality webcam using some multi audio track editing to do a very interactive mash up cover - If I'm right this mash-up was first done by <span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-weight: bold; ">Kurt Schneider </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51); ">and crew - I highly recomend you spend a moment or two of your time watching this. <br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/z4WtSIPRZBk?fs=1&hl=en_GB"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/z4WtSIPRZBk?fs=1&hl=en_GB" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object></span></span><div><span class="Apple-style-span"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51); "><br /></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51); "><br /></span></span></div>George Edward Maierhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08021694065146564622noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3137403623499939824.post-30020281262823433852011-01-19T03:43:00.001-08:002011-01-19T04:02:50.144-08:00How to make stunning vintage style photography<style type="text/css">
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<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_cGxgL7lwiGA/TTbM550HSrI/AAAAAAAAACA/vkXUhwmvzf0/s1600/Nostalgia+Cat.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_cGxgL7lwiGA/TTbM550HSrI/AAAAAAAAACA/vkXUhwmvzf0/s320/Nostalgia+Cat.jpg" width="320" /></a>There is no denying that using vintage cameras can produce some really beautiful looking photographs and some may argue you can only really get that effect with the real thing. However, these days it can be hard to come across well working vintage equipment and it is also much more convenient to own a regular digital camera. But whether it be a simple point-and-shoot or a top end DSLR there are still ways to reproduce that vintage style after the photo has been taken. It can add character to that perfect shot or bring life to those not so good snaps. Here's how.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><br />
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</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><b>Software</b></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">To pull this off as realistic as possible your going to want to have your hands on a good image editor of some sort. For me personally, I love to use Adobe Lightroom just because it has a greater focus toward photography, whereas many others would be much more comfortable working in Photoshop and thats fine too. If your just starting out and dont like the look of Adobe's pricing you can demo their products for 30 days or you can look for some free alternatives on the internet. A lot of people I know love to use GIMP or Paint.net as alternatives to Photoshop, both of which are free and are equally powerful image editors. The important thing is to choose software you are comfortable with because there is nothing more inspiration-killing than spending hours trying to get your editor to do something to the point where you give up or end up with a final result that you are not happy with. Also, depending on which of the methods you choose to take you will want to look out for software that supports downloadable filters but more about that later.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><b>The Image</b></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">Now, 'vintage photography' is a pretty vague overview; there are many different types of vintage photographs whether we are talking about a simple black and white image, a sepia tone style of photo or the classic Polaroid effect and there are many more. Which style you choose should depend entirely on the image you have chosen, sometimes it might be instantly obvious to you which vintage style would compliment that image straight away, but if you don't that's perfectly okay because it means you get to experiment.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><b>Choosing a Filter</b></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">You will notice that a lot of image editors come with there own array of filters which can be applied with just one click but, whilst these are fun to experiment with, I urge that you don't just choose one and be done with it and there's a very good reason for this. You will notice that if you select the default Black & White or Sepia filter you instantly lose a huge amount of the depth in your photo and it can make the end result look quite flat. That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t use the built in filters at all, in fact, the majority of editors allow you to shape that filter to your image. As a quick example, Photoshop has sliders on the right-hand side of it's 'filter gallery' which allow you to control the black levels, brightness, contrast and a whole host of other settings for each filter in their gallery. The same level of customisation can be achieved from most good editors but the method may vary. At first you will need to experiment with these settings and use your eyes to judge what looks best and this will be different for every image, but after much practise you will be able to quickly judge what needs to be adjusted to make the filter fit your image and keep that depth from the original photo.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">Now you will remember earlier I mentioned downloadable filters? If you are not sure what these are they are basically an extension to the built in filters inside your editor. You can find literally 1000s of filters on the internet for your specific image editor (providing it supports them) and you should never need to pay for filters because there are plenty of amazing free ones available. A simple Google search for 'Free vintage filters for Photoshop' or similar will bring up masses of results and whilst the endless options might be a little daunting at first you will be able to experiment with subtly different filters to find one that fits your photograph perfectly. Again you will want to adjust these filters slightly as you did with the default ones in order to really make your image pop to life.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><b>Finishing Touches</b></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">You might be perfectly happy with the results already but some extra editions can really give the photo a genuine vintage look and even improve the original image. One that I always like to use is an effect called Vignetting which occurs naturally on a lot of vintage photographs. It is where the image loses brightness or saturation towards the edges of the photo, or the peripheral of the picture. You may now notice that the filter you chose did this automa<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">tically but if it didn't or you want to adjust its effect then you can do so now. If you use Adobe Lightroom you will notice vignette under the effects tab in the 'develop' window. In photoshop it is also fairly simple:</span></span></div><div style="border: none; line-height: 0.37cm; margin-bottom: 0cm; orphans: 2; padding: 0cm; widows: 2;"><br />
</div><ol><li><div style="border: none; line-height: 0.37cm; margin-bottom: 0cm; orphans: 2; padding: 0cm; widows: 2;"><strong><span style="color: #545454;"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">Create a new empty layer on top of the stack.</span></span></span></span></span></strong><span style="color: #545454;"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"> </span></span></span></span></span><em><span style="color: #545454;"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">Ctrl + Alt + Shift + N</span></span></span></span></span></em></div></li>
<li><div style="border: none; line-height: 0.37cm; margin-bottom: 0cm; orphans: 2; padding: 0cm; widows: 2;"><strong><span style="color: #545454;"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">Fill the layer with pure white.</span></span></span></span></span></strong><span style="color: #545454;"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"> </span></span></span></span></span><em><span style="color: #545454;"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">Shift + Backspace</span></span></span></span></span></em></div></li>
<li><div style="border: none; line-height: 0.37cm; margin-bottom: 0cm; orphans: 2; padding: 0cm; widows: 2;"><strong><span style="color: #545454;"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">Set the blend mode to </span></span></span></span></span></strong><strong><span style="color: #545454;"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">'</span></span></span></span></span></strong><strong><span style="color: #545454;"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">Multiply</span></span></span></span></span></strong><strong><span style="color: #545454;"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">'</span></span></span></span></span></strong><strong><span style="color: #545454;"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">.</span></span></span></span></span></strong><span style="color: #545454;"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"> </span></span></span></span></span><em><span style="color: #545454;"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">Alt + Shift + M</span></span></span></span></span></em></div></li>
<li><div style="border: none; line-height: 0.37cm; margin-bottom: 0cm; orphans: 2; padding: 0cm; widows: 2;"><strong><span style="color: #545454;"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">Apply the vignette filter to the new layer.</span></span></span></span></span></strong><span style="color: #545454;"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><br />
</span></span></span></span></span><em><span style="color: #545454;"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">Filter >> Distort >> Lens Correction…</span></span></span></span></span></em></div></li>
<li><div style="border: none; line-height: 0.37cm; margin-bottom: 0cm; orphans: 2; padding: 0cm; widows: 2;"><strong><span style="color: #545454;"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">Adjust the '</span></span></span></span></span></strong><strong><span style="color: #545454;"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">Amount</span></span></span></span></span></strong><strong><span style="color: #545454;"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">' </span></span></span></span></span></strong><strong><span style="color: #545454;"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">and </span></span></span></span></span></strong><strong><span style="color: #545454;"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">'</span></span></span></span></span></strong><strong><span style="color: #545454;"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">Midpoint</span></span></span></span></span></strong><strong><span style="color: #545454;"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">'</span></span></span></span></span></strong><strong><span style="color: #545454;"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"> sliders in the </span></span></span></span></span></strong><strong><span style="color: #545454;"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">'</span></span></span></span></span></strong><strong><span style="color: #545454;"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">Vignette</span></span></span></span></span></strong><strong><span style="color: #545454;"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">' </span></span></span></span></span></strong><strong><span style="color: #545454;"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">section.</span></span></span></span></span></strong></div></li>
<li><div style="border: none; line-height: 0.37cm; margin-bottom: 0cm; orphans: 2; padding: 0cm; widows: 2;"><strong><span style="color: #545454;"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">Hit '</span></span></span></span></span></strong><strong><span style="color: #545454;"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">OK</span></span></span></span></span></strong><strong><span style="color: #545454;"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">' when you are happy with the result</span></span></span></span></span></strong></div></li>
</ol><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_cGxgL7lwiGA/TTbNUoKt8tI/AAAAAAAAACE/2yjzZUx55CE/s1600/Through+the+Cold.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_cGxgL7lwiGA/TTbNUoKt8tI/AAAAAAAAACE/2yjzZUx55CE/s320/Through+the+Cold.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">You may have to look up how to do it in your specific editor. The main thing here is to be subtle so that it isnt to dominent in the picture. The effect your trying to achieve here is to add more focus to your subject in the image, vignetting will cause the viewer to naturally look towards the centre of the image and not be distracted by the background edges, this will make the photo easier on the eyes and will look a lot more pleasing.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">Let me know how you get on.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">Do you have any other tips for getting that vintage photo effect ? Then don't hesitate to leave a comment below.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><i>Photography by Eric Riley</i></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><i>Written by Eric Riley for <a href="http://culturetechreview.com/">CultureTechReview.com</a></i></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3137403623499939824.post-79652935811657429712011-01-17T13:09:00.000-08:002011-01-19T03:47:11.047-08:00Where has the art of filmmaking gone?<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc6/hs026.snc6/165681_127029287364492_100001722631932_172522_3906937_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc6/hs026.snc6/165681_127029287364492_100001722631932_172522_3906937_n.jpg" width="320" /></a>I recently made a short film called Happiness....<br />
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</div><span class="apple-style-span"><span style="color: black;"><o:p> </o:p></span></span>Happiness is a reflection of each and every one of us and the parts of our personality that we choose to hide or show when we interact with the people around us. The irony to the surface levels of this film exists simply to point out the distinction that the purpose of this film is to highlight. It's the contrast between the internal and the external.<br />
<div class="MsoNormal"><span class="apple-style-span"><span style="color: black;"><o:p> </o:p></span></span>It was experimentation with the subtlety of the film medium in expressing a message, choosing to let the viewer read it how they will rather than following the modern idea of forcing a plot into the viewers mind.<br />
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<br />
<a name='more'></a>I feel that film needs to be re-thought sometimes, and a step back needs to be taken for people to come to the realisation that filmmaking is an art, and films are works of art, not mass produced prints with instructions on how to look at them.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="apple-style-span"><span style="color: black;"><o:p> </o:p></span></span>Even many indie films these days follow the rule book so closely that they lose a lot of their potential and purpose.... Where has the Sundance sprit of filmmaking gone? Where has the idea of picking up a camera and saying ‘I want to express how I feel’ gone?</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="apple-style-span"><span style="color: black;"><o:p> </o:p></span></span>I’m no expert filmmaker, nor do I claim that my films or entertaining or even so much as ‘good’ – but they express me, with the dirt that I possess, un-cleansed and un-kept. And in the end isn’t that what filmmaking is about?<br />
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<iframe frameborder="0" height="225" src="http://player.vimeo.com/video/18876446" width="400"></iframe><br />
<a href="http://vimeo.com/18876446">Happiness</a> from <a href="http://vimeo.com/user5700006">George Maier</a> on <a href="http://vimeo.com/">Vimeo</a>.<br />
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I would love to hear your own experiences as amateur film-makers and remember that to be different you must break the mold. </div>George Edward Maierhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08021694065146564622noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3137403623499939824.post-80833537093762422922011-01-16T11:57:00.000-08:002011-01-16T11:57:46.370-08:00Noticed A Change?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2312/2328879637_c0d2e376ff.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2312/2328879637_c0d2e376ff.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>Just a quick update for our readers; we have moved our blog and made some redesigns to the layout to make it more user friendly for you. We appologise for the short period of down-time this caused but we promise to be back online as normal from now. Also if you have any suggestions or problems please feel free to contact us.<br />
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George & EricUnknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3137403623499939824.post-25453278899677128032011-01-15T11:43:00.000-08:002011-02-02T11:17:30.385-08:00Apple iPhone 5, iPad 2 and Apple TV Leaked info<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://osxdaily.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/ipad-2-mockup.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="185" src="http://osxdaily.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/ipad-2-mockup.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>There's always rumors circulating when it comes to apple products, its just the nature of the secrecy the company likes to keep about their product development but this new leaked information is promised to be pretty accurate and has been released by continually reliable sources who have revealed very accurate info in the past.<br />
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So what exactly has been revealed? Well the new products (excluding the iPad which has yet to be confirmed) will be running a new processor; the A5, which is the next iteration from the current A4 chip. It is supposedly an extremely fast multi-core chip which will apparently make a breeze of running 1080p content on the next generation Apple TV and will boost the performance of the next iPhone too. The iPad 2 hasn't been confirmed to be using this new A5 chip but it has a high likelihood.<br />
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The iPad 2 has already been seen in the wild but these, according to the sources, are not final products. The device will be thinner, have a much higher resolution screen similar to (but not the same as) the iPhone's retina display and most interestingly it will have an SD card slot! Unfortunately there was no mention of any USB ports but that was to be expected. The device isn't quite as ready as some have been speculating and is more likely to be released around April to coincide with Apples 12 month product cycles.<br />
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The iPhone 5 is under close wraps at the moment with only internal devices being tested at apple; probably to avoid the embarrassment from the iPhone 4 when it was found left in a bar. The sources did say however, that the new iPhone will be a complete redesign from the previous generations, again I'm guessing this is in response to those antenna issues in the iPhone 4. Apparently we can expect to see it launch in the summer if all goes ahead well.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3137403623499939824.post-19898506628905676412010-12-16T12:45:00.000-08:002011-01-15T09:59:27.386-08:00Dramatic Situations provides a fresh and interesting perspectiveI've been a fan of the Canadian artist/poet/photographer/amazing person for some years now. If I remember rightly he found out a blog post that I wrote some years ago and left a comment that lead to me contacting him back... eventually we swapped emails and we have been casual acquaintances ever since. Every time he posts new content to his site I'm amazed at the level of expression that shines through, there is a deep and rich incandescence within everything he produces that I think is deserving of respect and fine attention.<br />
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<br />
"I believe that<br />
You should<br />
Make a New Year’s resolution<br />
Everyday<br />
Do better than yesterday<br />
Be a better person than yesterday"<br />
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I can't help but find everything Corey Hamilton says to be exceptionally relatable, true and honest. This is a quality that most artists these days lack and is something I dearly crave.<br />
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Or was it youtube? Now that I think about it I may have first met Corey on youtube. He has an account, of course, and uploads wonderful video accompaniments to his poetry. I've always loved his videos. Most of them are filmed in his house or locally, it gives an insight to what he is really trying to express.<br />
<br />
I can't do Corey any justice in my untalented, scribbled and messy words so I recommend you check him out for yourself at <a href="http://www.dramaticsituations.com/">http://www.dramaticsituations.com</a>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3137403623499939824.post-13703269806572686142010-12-07T12:22:00.000-08:002011-01-14T07:05:34.919-08:00Patrick Stump Hits Home Hard!Fall Out Boy's front man Patrick Stump has been promising us a solo album since soon after the band split up and now it looks like things are closing in for the explosion of musical talent. I've been a Stump fan for years, I love his vocals and his composition work is the best in it's field in my opinion, so when I got a chance to hear a full studio recording, or in-fact two full studio recordings, I was jumping up and down like a mad man!<br/><br/>Patrick said on his website: "I recorded 2 separate versions of Spotlight and after months I still can't decide which one should go on the record." The two versions of the track are available for free download in the hopes that you will then return back to www.PatrickStump.com to vote for the version which you prefer. He also offers the option of streaming for free via his YouTube account.<br/><br/><br/>This is the first version: Spotlight (New Regrets)<br/><object height="350" width="425"><br/> <param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/PCegYgpgYXI"><br/> <param name="wmode" value="transparent"><br/> <embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/PCegYgpgYXI;rel=0" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" height="350" width="425"><br/> </object><br/><a name='more'></a><br/><br/>And this is the second version: Spotlight (Oh Nostalgia)<br/><object height="350" width="425"><br/> <param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/RKEFeIFJ8-M"><br/> <param name="wmode" value="transparent"><br/> <embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/RKEFeIFJ8-M;rel=0" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" height="350" width="425"><br/> </object><br/><br/>Out of the two I seem to get on best with Oh Nostalgia, but that's just my personal preference. Apparently my personal preference is met by the majority as the stats for the poll on his website indicate a swing away from New Regrets. I personally enjoy both versions and would be more than happy for either, or indeed both to find their way onto the album.<br/><br/>Something that stood out to me distinctly is Patrick's recent, and very noticeable, change in physical appearance and dress sense, you will see on both video backgrounds the new him: Thin and cool, a stark difference to the plump emo kid who fronted Fall Out Boy through the years. Even if he does seem to be doing a weird sort of pelvic thrust in both photographs...<br/><br/>If this single is anything to go by the new album will be a hit, and a great listen I'm sure. For now though, excuse me while I listen to Oh Nostalgia on replay.<br/><br/>All the best,<br/>George Maier<br/><br/>If you have any questions or suggestions feel free to drop me an email at GeorgeEdwardMaier@Hotmail.com or leave a comment below.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3137403623499939824.post-75006176323130479562010-12-07T08:33:00.000-08:002011-01-14T07:05:34.902-08:00Facebook - For such an ugly website....<strong>Is it only me who sees the new facebook profiles being introduced over the past week or so and looks away in disgust? </strong>Maybe I'm just awfully shallow? There seems to be an information overload... as if they want to shove everything about this person in your face. Should they abandon it for a more minimalist design though? It worked when Google made chrome, cutting out the million bars of rubbish IE seems to build up above the content of the actual page you are trying to look at.<br/><br/>Facebook has never really been a good looking beast, yet it's the most popular social network in the world today. What does this say about us? We lived through the windows 98 ugliness and now we are going back, smiling... Are we crazy?<br/><br/><a name='more'></a><br/>MySpace has recently gone through a massive aesthetic tune up, as you may well have noticed if you delve into such sites from time to time. I think it worked well for MySpace, it made a site that seemed to have been static as square for years into something hip and slick. Could facebook do the same? Why haven't they already? <br/><br/>I think it is largely a matter of facebook's trademark look. If they were suddenly go all visa on us then it would change our ideas of facebook, and people who knew facebook would have to rethink it, which could result in less visitors, which could result in less profit. The old saying goes that if something works then it shouldn't be fixed, and I suppose facebook certainly gets by as it is. <br/><br/>Who knows what the future holds for faceook's front end? Over the past few years it has shown some signs of trying to improve... but have they been enough? What is your opinion on the way facebook looks? How would you redesign it if you had the chance? <br/><br/>George MaierUnknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3137403623499939824.post-35709227534937320702010-12-07T07:19:00.000-08:002011-01-15T10:42:50.981-08:00The New Canon 60D, George Maier Discusses...<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://culturetechreview.files.wordpress.com/2010/12/img_1105.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="60D - A Quick Snap" class="size-medium wp-image-31" height="168" src="http://culturetechreview.files.wordpress.com/2010/12/img_1105.jpg?w=300" title="Ships" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A Quick Snap</td></tr>
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<strong>So what do I think to the camera and its features?</strong><br />
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I love the lens I brought with the 60D, a Canon S series 17-85mm IS (IS stands for Image stabilisation). The only thing I would change about that is the rather high figured lowest aperture setting of 4.0, having it be able to go to 2.0 would have been lovely, but, as it is, a brilliant lens.<br />
<br />
A wonderful swivel screen now appears! We've had these for many years on video cameras such as the popular consumer Canon HV series, its only natural to see them advance onto the DSLR scene as video becomes a key feature in the Canon range. I found it extremely useful for both video and still photography, and I hope they include the feature on the 5D MKIII!<br />
<br />
Video functionality was superb, I particularly enjoyed fiddling with 60P and slowing it down to 24P on my computer, effectively allowing me to shoot in slow motion. I can compare DSLR footage with that shot on the Canon XL-H1, the Canon XHA1 and in places the RED ONE, though lets not go mad, the RED ONE is one hell of a camera and in day to day terms the 60D doesn't compare.<br />
<br />
<strong>General Summary</strong><br />
The camera feels amazing to hold. While my 350D and 450D both felt plastic and light weight this feels strong and rigid, and you can feel it, it has a healthy weight to it. The camera is generally very easy to use, and comfortable to use. Some people in other reviews have made note of problems with the buttons on the back... I can only claim they must have a faulty camera, as mine was fine, no trouble at all, it was all instinctive for me.<br />
<br />
If you are restricted to around £1,100 - £1,800 then I would suggest it to you, as it seems to be the best within that price range at the moment. Note that I included lens and SD card in that estimate, that's ready to shoot cost - unlike many other quotes of something like £899, which only includes the body.<br />
<br />
To sum up the Canon 60D is a welcomed new addition to the Canon range, and serves its purpose very well, for the pro-consumer, keen amateur or camera enthusiast, this camera will serve you well and be your new best friend.<br />
<br />
If you have any questions then feel free to email me at GeorgeEdwardMaier@Hotmail.com or leave a comment down below and I will try to get back to you<br />
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George MaierUnknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3137403623499939824.post-35323339924547954842010-12-06T08:40:00.000-08:002011-01-14T07:05:34.828-08:00Write For CultureTechReview<img class="alignleft" title="Blog Writing" src="http://lgimages.s3.amazonaws.com/data/imagemanager/9706/writing-2.jpg" alt="Blog Writing" width="350" height="250" /><br/><br/>We at the Culture & Technology Review are calling upon all writers, any age and any topic, whether it be Art, Music, Technology, Photography or anything else you enjoy writing about. We are looking for great and unique writers like you to join our community. If your interested and want to hear more about the benefits of joining our team read past the break.<br/><br/><a name='more'></a><br/><br/>We understand the difficulty in becoming an established writer, even if you are producing the best content its not always easy to get it out there for the world to see. Many like yourself start blogs and other means of online article writing but getting an audience to view it is sometimes difficult. Thats where<br/><br/>we want to come in. Our mission is to bring our writers to an audience and our readers to great content and we feel the best content can sometimes be hidden away.<br/><br/>When you join our team you will have complete freedom over your articles, you choose what you want to write about and how often you want to create new content. You can submit as much or as little of your work to us as you choose and we don’t mind if you are posting that content elsewhere too, in fact we encourage it.<br/><br/>Your posts will have your name next to them, you can add information about yourself into your articles and even put links to your personal blogs and other sites.<br/><br/>But how does this benefit me? You may ask.<br/><br/>There are loads of ways that this is beneficial to you. By getting your name out there to a wider audience of different interests you are advertising yourself and your content to the world and this is a huge plus for your personal websites; driving your web-traffic and increasing your own fan base. Plus if you are looking for a career in any form of writing, being an official writer for a website will be a great addition to your CV and a massive boost for your experience in writing.<br/><br/>We hope you will see the advantage of posting to the Culture & Technology Review and if you want to sign up here’s how to:<br/><br/>Go over to our contact page and send us an email, if you have an article already then feel free to attach it to your email but if you don’t then don’t worry. Basically this email should contain your name, any website or blog you have already and a little bit about the topics you enjoy writing about. We should reply to you email within a day or two at most and then whenever you have an article to post on our site simply send it us and we will post it. Its that simple!<br/><br/>Thanks for your interest<br/><br/>Eric Riley & George MaierUnknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3137403623499939824.post-33069900006592951602010-12-06T02:15:00.000-08:002011-01-15T10:41:59.884-08:00George's Coldplay - Christmas Lights Review<div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">You know how there are some songs that just stick with you? </span><span style="font-size: x-small;">They embed themselves in your memory and flash back up in decades to come when you hear the</span></span><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">m through the radio. All of a sudden you are transported back to the Christmas of 1999, your family sat around the fire place all snug against the grasping cold beyond the window.</span></div><br />
<div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Coldplay's new track for the holidays feels like a sniff of the Christmas decorations on the 1st of December, which is actually when it came out. There is something awfully familiar and comforting about it yet at the same time it remains original, and it remains Coldplay.</span></span></div><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://culturetechreview.files.wordpress.com/2010/12/coldplay-christmas-lights.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" class="size-medium wp-image-15" height="298" src="http://culturetechreview.files.wordpress.com/2010/12/coldplay-christmas-lights.jpg?w=300" title="Coldplay - Christmas Lights" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Coldplay's Christmas Lights</td></tr>
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<div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Do I like the song? I love it! I feel like not loving it would be on key with not loving Christmas itself. I have to say I have been sat on the edge of my seat waiting eagerly for over a year now for something to come from Coldplay and this gave me the fix I craved so desperately.</span></span></div><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Looking forward: I know I, and many of you out there, are on the borderline of insanity waiting for Coldplay's new 2011 album, after hearing that snippet of Wedding Bells on TV a year ago... (For those of you who don't know of it I recommend a YouTube search). All that I can conclude from Christmas Lights is that Coldplay are going in the right direction, and It's made me that bit more desperate for Coldplay to hurry up in that studio of theirs!</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">I rate this song 9/10 for being a warming song for the festive season, and recommend it with all my heart. You wont regret spending 99p on a lovely festive fix.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">George Maier</span></span>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0