Category Archives: Photography

A Day in the Life

Written by serene. Posted on August 18, 2010. Filed under Photography. Tagged . No comments.

For my daily art project, I did a photo essay. I wanted the day to be one of those dreadfully mundane work days, which feel endless and repeating. Below is the slideshow from the set. Try to not cry from boredom.

Boner List, July Edition

Written by serene. Posted on July 6, 2010. Filed under Culture Club, Nerdy, Photography. No comments.

1.  Fuck Yeah Daniel Clowes

True fact: if you don’t like Daniel Clowes, we cannot be friends.

2. Kayaking

Sure, you might look like a d-b, but it’s fun. And if you are super fancy and fashion forward you can bring a beer in a cozy to complete the amazing ensemble of fat suit life-jackets and awkward (flailing) rowing.

3. Sunshine in Seattle
Glasses

It appears that we will be breaching the 80 degree mark in Seattle this week. This means that the hipsters will break out their cut off skinny pant shorts, the curmudgeons will begin smiling at fellow humans, and people will fall in love. Summer in Seattle is epic in its awesomeness.

4. Smena 8M

Once upon a time I bought this old toy lomo camera. The translated “instruction manual” is hilarious, as it is full of unhelpful and poorly constructed tips that apparently were at one point helpful in Russian. My first roll will be hilarious (if I can figure out how to actually remove the film), and I promise to post the inevitable disaster to my flickr account.

5. Jenny Peterson photography

This Seattle photographer came to my attention when I needed an injection of inspiration the most. Her work is full of humor and weirdness and awesome light. Check it out.

What have you guys been checking out?

Pride!

Written by serene. Posted on June 28, 2010. Filed under Photography, Seattle, Uncategorized. No comments.

Pride Flags

Only my queer community could convince me to set an alarm on a day off.  But, I did, and I marched myself and my camera downtown to watch the Pride Parade and followed it to Seattle Center to party with my people. And I don’t mean ‘my people’ in some co-optive and evil way. I truly mean my people. I did it for my Uncle and my Grandpa and for a few hearts I may have broken along the way.

Seattle Pride is an interesting event. I should admit that my perception of Pride is almost entirely shaped by my four years as a Capitol Hill resident. For the unaware and non-Seattleites, you should come to my neighborhood. No, really, it’s a lot of fun. It is considered colorful and fun for a reason: two blocks away from me is a weekly drag revue at Julia’s, a few more blocks down Broadway is Neighbours (a gay nightclub), and let’s not forget the famous Babeland to give you a taste of my ‘hood.

There is a reason why I chose this neighborhood. Besides allowing my environmental footprint to be tiny (no car, what what!), the diversity and eccentricity is my fuel. I need my surroundings to be as plugged-in and energized as I am. There is no doubt that I cherish where I live. It’s vibrant, it’s fun, and it’s comfortable for me.

But, I digress. Back to the Parade: yes, the corporate floats were lame. Everyone from Wells Fargo Bank to Miller Lite was there. But there was also a lot of authentic community celebrating and bonding. There were families and leather daddies and Dykes on Bikes, and everyone in between. But don’t take my word for it – come join me next year!

DSC_0186

Art Projects

Written by serene. Posted on June 21, 2010. Filed under Nerdy, Photography. 2 Comments.

My summer will be all about art. I miss my creativity. I sometimes look at my negatives and my journals and sketchbooks and see all the verve and excitement and wonder where all that energy went. Then I remember being in school full-time and being trapped under oppressive gray skies and quickly see why I am tapped.

I digress! If you are in Seattle and need of some crafty or arty energy, hit me up. Maybe we can help each other out. My only request is that you be comfortable in front of a camera and not be a total turd.

Anniversary photo post.

Written by serene. Posted on March 30, 2010. Filed under I am a sap, Photography. No comments.

Where: Alexis Hotel, downtown Seattle
When: Last Week
Why: To celebrate a one year wedding anniversary. Well that, and I’m a sucker for a nice hotel.


Merry GIF day to you

Written by serene. Posted on December 21, 2009. Filed under Nerdy, Photography. 4 Comments.

There just weren’t words to capture how hilarious this moment was, so I had to make an animated GIF to share.

(p.s. Making an animated GIF in CS4 is hard. Try it sometime.)

How to have the best day ever

Written by serene. Posted on November 22, 2008. Filed under Friends, I am a sap, Photography. 2 Comments.

Step 1: Have a long phone call with a loved one.

Step 2: Take a sunny, snowy photowalk.

Step 3: Pick up a care package from home (thanks Ludie and family!).

Step 4: Ooh and Ahh over contents of care package. Particularly swoon if the contents are hot, spicy, and/or green chile.

Step 5: Cook with contents of care package.

Step 6: Stuff your face with tastes from home.

Step 7: Rub your belly in comfort and relax by watching episodes of Arrested Development.

There you have it folks. Don’t you wish everything in life were so simple?

Missing home

Written by serene. Posted on September 12, 2008. Filed under I am a sap, Photography, Travel. Tagged , . No comments.

Life is settling a little more every day. I’ve settled into routine, which involves Skype, instant coffee, KEXP online, and looking out at the gray sky and being reminded of home. I was warned that when the initial charge of being abroad for a long while settles, a pretty wicked case of homesickness will take hold.

It has. I’m dealing with a daily craving of pho, a mind which wanders to those of you who keep me sane and centered and laughing, and a desire to watch a lot of American television online.

The one positive change with adjustment is that school is starting to get more intense, not only in course work, but also adapting to the Danish style of teaching (which will merit an entirely different entry). In addition, my group of UW students have had an interesting week, including going to Dyrehaven (a deer park in North Copenhagen) and a visit to Nationalmuseet  (National Museum of Denmark). My personal highlight was retreating behind my camera and capturing some hilarious moments.

Lakrids smile.

Lakrids smile.

Another interesting part of this week included seeing an international reaction to the seventh anniversary of 9/11. Many of us were asked how we were feeling and what the day means to us. For me, the sentiment was stronger here. I will never forget that day and how I felt, and my memories felt amplified by being in an unfamiliar place, trying to decipher newspaper articles using images burned into my memory in a language I can’t read. Those emotions are even trickier to reconcile when people are asking you questions about your feelings, which inevitably leads to a political discussion (yet another blog post).

Super, super awesome

Written by serene. Posted on May 6, 2008. Filed under I am awesome, Nerdy, Photography. 7 Comments.

Go ahead, click the link. I’ll wait here.

No really, go follow the link. Just make sure you come back.

Okay, now you may be asking why I made you go to Amazon.com. See that book cover?  Go ahead, look at it again. On that cover is one of my photographs. So, if you put two and two together, that means I got paid for my photography. Rad, right?

This is the original, taken while I was in Paris last year.

I guess my photo blog finally paid off. Oh, special thanks to the VIP’s who helped me get an invoice together and figure out license agreements in a rush. You people are my rock.

A photo post.

Written by serene. Posted on February 19, 2008. Filed under I am a sap, Nerdy, Photography. 3 Comments.

I’ll cut back on being wordy. I’m preserving it for my study abroad application and English paper due tomorrow. But since this weekend was pretty filled, I’ll post a little somethin somethin.

Enjoyed beautiful weather by going on a photowalk. Somehow ended up at Pike Place Market, where I bought the best artichoke known to man.

Got all my hair cut off. Lesson learned: specify what “shorter” means.

Went to a surprise birthday party for a friend that I have now officially known A Long Time. Not only is she one of the smartest and funniest people on the planet, but we can also joke about silicone implants and dog farts. Everyone should have a friend like this.

 Other things that happened, but have no photographic evidence:

  • Half the keys on my laptop won’t work now. Curses.
  • I went to my first industrial show. The afterparty at The Mercury (members only goth club) was icing on the pale, heavy eyelined cake.
  • I survived my first midterms week at UW. Barely.
  • Inundated with past friends crawling out of the woodwork. Quelle etrange.

Phew! I think that brings us up to speed. What have you crazy kids been up to?