How did three LA Mid-City houses become an Instagram hotspot? Like an “art” project, they were painted Pepto-Bismol pink by Matty Monahan and his company The Mural Agency at the request of M-Rad Architecture, according to Curbed. From the rooftops to the driveways to the landscaping, every inch of these three properties were painted pink almost two weeks ago in the Pico neighborhood of LA. The homes, which are scheduled for demolition into a 45-unit apartment complex, have been attracting a flock of unwanted visitors who have been taking eye-catching photos for their Instagram accounts. The piece emulates Monahan—who refers to himself as The Most Famous Artist—and his company’s experiential services as described on its Instagram account: “company by @themostfamousartist that creates and installs ‘Instagrammable’ experiences as a service for brand partners worldwide.” To get inside the artist’s head about what is referred to now as “The Pink House,” we spoke with Monahan to discuss the concepts behind work. First, we asked Monahan where he was born and where he lives now. His response? True to that of what you expect from a devoted millennial artist. “I was born in the U.S. and I’ve lived all around the U.S. I’m currently a nomad with no physical location, but storage units in most major cities, living off Airbnb, friend’s couches, hotel tonight, kind of really embracing digital culture. I was a Stanford three-time educated tech founder, turned data driven conceptual artist,” he said. While the rise of his “Instagrammable” artwork has upshot Monahan’s name into the spotlight, the 31-year-old artist has previously experienced notoriety for his former career as a Silicon Valley tech founder. A few years ago, instead of creating artwork, Monahan ran his social advertising company as the CEO of AlphaBoost. So how did the former Silicon Valley tech founder turn into aspiring artist? Well, we didn’t press too hard for specifics, but we learned that due to a scandal involving a video of Monahan drunk and naked while on vacation in India that was posted to Facebook, Monahan stepped down from his position at Alphaboost in 2013. When asked about his inspiration for producing art, Monahan wasn’t shy about the fallout of his past career and how it’s played a role in his artwork. “There’s a couple of different reasons I started producing art. It could have been when I stumbled around drunk and naked in India, which ended my tech career and started my quest for something else. If you Google “Drunk, Naked founder,” you can find that article and dig in on that,”Monahan said. He continued, describing a near death experience he had that same year in Berlin and an art class he did poorly in while attending Stanford University as other key standouts for why he decided to pursue a career in art. Monahan discussed how his insider knowledge in the tech industry is a strong attribute to the success of his latest artwork. “Through media, Instagram and the digital tools available to me that I both built and learned about when I was a tech entrepreneur, I’m able to perpetuate my ideas and my art to the masses,” he said. Monahan also had a lot to say about his self-proclaimed title, “The Most Famous Artist.” “I’m trying to become the most famous artist because that’s never been done before. Most people describe the most famous artist as an adjective, yet no one’s ever actually, as a matter of fact, become the most famous artist,” he said. Finally, we asked Monahan what advice he would give to aspiring artists who are yearning for the kind of recognition he has recently received in the press. “I guess if you really want to be like me, you’re going to have to be willing to sell out,” Monahan replied. “My suspicion is that in the future, the artists that matter from this generation—the 21st century internet artists—are going to be praised for their collaborations with “grams” (Instagram accounts) and the way they utilize social media influencers.” Although the idea of “selling out” may sound jarring to some artists who have taken more traditional paths, Monahan does make a fair argument. Last week, Monahan’s pink houses attracted thousands of visitors all within the first week of the project’s completion. With that, it seems as though the deeper meaning behind a lot of today’s contemporary artwork is moving with the tide of society—a perplexed fixation for online appeal. See more images take at the #thepinkhouse below: via RSSMix.com Mix ID 8230553 http://ift.tt/2sU1d2B
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After months of anticipation surrounding CNN‘s $25 million acquisition of Beme—Casey Neistat’s now-defunct video sharing app—the YouTube star has finally revealed some additional details on what we can expect from this media partnership at the Cannes Lions advertising and media festival. In short, CNN and Neistat are set to release a daily news show that targets a younger audience compared to traditional news outlets. Beginning with a pilot, the show will begin airing four days a week with the intention of airing shows seven days a week. But this isn’t going to be your typical news show—Casey, who is known for viral, sometimes outrageous video content, isn’t the type of guy who will be reading news from behind a desk. Rather, Neistat will be maintaining his charm, authenticity and style while informing viewers on what they may have missed or may not know, instead of the breaking stuff. Neistat expressed the ambition to start branching out and digging into investigative journalism as well. Photo by David Johnson for the Fall 2014 Issue of Resource Magazine CNN Worldwide President, Jeff Zucker, explained to Variety: “We have hundreds and hundreds of reporters and people who can tell video stories, and can stand up there with a mic and trench coat. We don’t need more of those. Neistat has a confidence that allows him to just go for it and not care what I think or anyone else things – just to tell the story.” Along with the launch of the new show, CNN and Neistat are rebooting the Beme app entirely. The version will be fully interactive, utilizing a new feature called Panels, in which viewers, instead of leaving a comment, will be able to upload 15-second videos in order to share their thoughts and opinions with others. Staying true to his roots, Neistat expressed that he doesn’t want this to be a glorified news show with big press releases and ad intake. That’s not how he started out, and not the direction he is looking to go with CNN. Yet what CNN does allow him to do is scale his work into something larger than himself—he explained that his daily YouTube viewership peaked at 5 million, so this gives him the opportunity to cultivate an even larger audience. It is unclear when the show will officially start streaming, but we will update you when it does. Check out Neistat’s most recent vlog below!
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Google launches a new initiative to monitor terrorist and extremist content across the internet giant’s platforms, specifically YouTube. Kent Walker, senior vice president and general counsel at Google, posted a blog post which stated: “Terrorism is an attack on open societies, and addressing the threat posed by violence and hate is a critical challenge for us all. Google and YouTube are committed to being part of the solution.” Walker outlined the four steps Google is taking to combat the problem: increase technology to better detect extremist content, hire more experts, introduce tougher video standards and expand counter-extremism efforts. Their increased technology will use more efficient video analysis models, updating those Google has used within the past six months. The increase in engineering will include new “content classifiers” to more quickly identify and remove extremist and terrorist content. Not relying on just the video models alone, Google has vowed to hire more members of the YouTube’s Trusted Flagger programme for human detection to identify problematic videos. Google’s tougher video standards include monitoring videos containing suprematist religious views by not monetizing or promoting said videos throughout YouTube. These videos usually don’t get immediately get flagged since they don’t directly violate YouTube policies. With more experts, they’ll track down extremist videos that aren’t usually flagged and flag them as they see appropriate. To expand their counter-extremism efforts, Google will put out more targeted online advertisements to make viewers aware of the situation by redirecting them to anti-terrorism videos. Google will also team up with counter-extremist groups to help further identify radical content. Google is collaborating with other big Internet names, such as Facebook, Microsoft and Twitter to broaden the arch of their approach to tackle online terrorism. In regards to past efforts, Walker said, “While we and others have worked for years to identify and remove content that violates our policies, the uncomfortable truth is that we, as an industry, must acknowledge that more needs to be done. Now.” [via Huffington Post, featured image via Flickr] via RSSMix.com Mix ID 8230553 http://ift.tt/2sL8fXu YouTube musician Austin Jones, whose covers of Twenty One Pilots and Panic! at the Disco songs garnered him millions of views and hundreds of thousands of subscribers, has been arrested on two counts of child pornography. Arriving back in the U.S. after a show in Poland, Jones was taken into custody at the Chicago O’Hare Airport. When he was arrested, authorities say they found sexually explicit videos on his phone. The 24-year-old social media star is accused of encouraging two 14-year-old girls to send him sexually explicit videos. This isn’t the first time Jones has been under fire for exploiting his fans—in 2015, Jones asked fans to send videos of them twerking, but later apologized on his YouTube channel after being exposed by a fellow YouTuber.
Throughout the Facebook messages between the respective girls and him, Jones manipulated the young girls by saying things such as, “Prove you’re my biggest fan,” and “I don’t want to have to find someone else.” Within his instructions, Jones instructed the girls on how to dress and to say “I’m [age] years old,” while they danced. His manipulative messages led to multiple video replies from the two girls, one girl sending back 25 videos, eight of which were sexually explicit and the other girl sending 15 videos, 10 of which were sexually explicit.
In light of this case, YouTuber Aurora Skies posted a video (watch it above) exposing Jones for sending her messages via Twitter asking for videos when she was 14 years old. In the video, Skies states she never sent Jones any videos, but she admitted to sending Jones a photo of her in her cheerleading uniform. Jones continued to pine for more videos even when Skies refused. His most recent video, asking fans to like his new Facebook page, has almost 50,000 dislikes with the comment section flooded with hate comments about the recent pornography charges. Jones is facing 30 years in prison but is currently out on bail. The judge said while Jones is on bail he is confined to his home and ordered stay off the Internet. As of now, Jones’ Instagram, Facebook and Twitter have all been deleted, but his YouTube channel still remains up. via RSSMix.com Mix ID 8230553 http://ift.tt/2sHMtTW
After posting a few photos on my social media from a weekend trip to Cuba, friends came to me with questions about how I was able to get such ‘up close and personal’ photographs in this short amount of time. This inspired me to share my process and some personal suggestions as to how you can get better travel images from your trips abroad. These people were genuinely just hanging out on the stoop like this, but I waited for the man to walk by to get the best composition. 1) EquipmentLet’s start here and I’m going to be real with you. If all you have is a smartphone and you really want to take excellent photos: it’s not impossible, but consider getting a nice camera. Not to say that the latest iPhones don’t have good cameras, but they will not allow you to get the quality and depth you will want from a DSLR camera with a quality lens. A decent camera could run you anywhere from several hundred dollars to thousands if you want to get fancy, so if money is tight, consider renting one for your trip—the better your camera and lens setup are, the better the quality your photos will be, and the more serious your subjects will take you. These photographs were all shot on a Sony A7 II with a Sony 24-70mm f/2.8 lens and I was extremely happy with the outcome. The A7 II is a pro camera with a phenomenal color profile and the 24-70mm f/2.8 lens is a standard range for portraits and scenes with beautiful depth of field and excellent sharpness… but it ain’t cheap (and I promise I wasn’t paid to give it a thumbs up). I saw this boy exit this doorway and couldn’t believe the color synchronicity so I asked him to pose for me. 2) Travel light and fit inI like to be inconspicuous—it’s not usually the best idea to lug around a big camera bag filled with lenses and accessories: it can be heavy and also catch unwanted attention. All you really need is one or two lenses max with a nice range and an extra memory card and/or battery. It’s also good to not bring too much attention to whatever you’re wearing, including jewelry or other expensive looking items. This may sound obvious, but the more you dress down or look like the locals, the better they will respond to you and the less of a target you will be. If you’re a lady cakes, it may be smart to stay conservative with your attire. I walked past this salon and decided to just walk in and ask if I could take some photos. The guy on the right jumped in the chair so he would be a part of it. I’m pretty sure I caught these guys in the middle of flirting with each other… they weren’t mad at me capturing it. 3) Tell a storyWhether you’re a professional or just intending on posting your photos on social media, coming back with images that tell a story will be much more enjoyable for your viewers. So, instead of only taking selfies in front of monuments or landscapes, consider photographing all aspects of your trip: your hotel room, its view if it’s nice, your meals, people you encounter, souvenir shops, still life, street performers, lifestyle, landscapes, interesting or unique cultural experiences you come across, etc. Broadening the subject matter of the images you shoot will be much more interesting for your fans and you’ll learn a lot more from the experience altogether. Sometimes, perspective is everything. I like to look through cracks and doorways, you never know what lies on the other side. t’s also good to pay attention to what’s going on in the background and to include (or exclude for that matter) subjects that may add depth to the photograph. Ché Guevara is a central Cuban figure, so I wanted to capture an image that shed light on him. No pun intended. As much of a tourist picture trap street performers can be, it’s also possible to take uncommon photos of them if you really spend a little extra time with them. Classic cars are constantly breaking down in Cuba, this kind of scene just goes with the day-to-day lifestyle. 4) Go deeperIf you’re in a touristy city or neighborhood, consider leaving the main sites and finding areas where the locals hang out, live and work. Go to other towns nearby. Wander into places or alleyways (that don’t seem threatening) off the beaten path and try asking locals to give you recommendations or to take you into obscure neighborhoods so you can capture typical scenes and more authentic moments. If it feels right, go into shops or homes; ask the owners if you can hang out and take some pictures. Maybe get your nails done or hair cut at a local salon if you want to photograph the shop. On my trip to Havana, I wandered through several gated doorways looking for interesting subjects and, with some luck, I stumbled upon a colorful outdoor gym where some guys were working out, an impoverished brothel, and a boxing ring where a group of kids were practicing. Getting images like that would be impossible if you didn’t put yourself out there to explore deeper. Just be careful and know where your limits should be drawn. Exploring neighborhoods outside of the main tourist areas—even if they seem desolate and scary at first—can get you shots that most tourists don’t have. Just be careful I stopped to watch the kids play, and at first they were wondering why, but eventually they stopped paying attention to me and that’s when I was able to capture the moment more genuinely. I wandered into a gated area into this colorful gym and followed this man around for several minutes, capturing him working out. He probably thought I was crazy, but I just smiled and he let me. I wandered into what seemed like a brothel building and was ushered by two women to the home of this older woman who told me about her financial problems and illnesses. I asked our driver who took us to Viñales to take us to a tobacco plantation that was not touristy, as some of them can be. It’s always a good idea to let the people who are guiding you know that you are interested in local things so they don’t automatically bring you to the most touristy locations.
5) Be confident and fearlessBeing confident goes especially if you’re a woman traveling in a place that may feel male-dominated and where you really have to hold your own. The key is to remain cool, collected and to not care what people think. Handicaps lie in fear and in worrying about people’s judgments or of getting rejected. You will probably get stared down or shooed away at some point on your trip, and that just goes with the territory, but with owning it lies great power. If you are confident and brave, while still remaining kind and caring, your subject will feel comfortable with you and give you the power to direct them, should you want to. When you have conviction, it’s easier to move people to more aesthetic backgrounds as well as encourage them how to pose, without being obnoxious or invasive. With that said, it’s important to feel out your limits and not overstay your welcome. took several photos of this girl and she was NOT having it. I just smiled and played dumb, and got my shot. You notice the strangest things when you’re actively looking… This was literally just a room off a main street with 3 red sofas in it and a guy hanging out. These guys were not even posing, they just looked like that! So, I poked my head in through the window, smiled and started taking photos, hoping they wouldn’t beat me up. This man was really not happy with me taking his photo. At first he was reading the paper, and then as I continued to take photos, waiting for him to look at me, he eventually dropped his paper down and gave me the stare of death. That’s when I left… 6) Connect with your subjectsTalking to my students over the years, it seems that one of the challenges that often comes up is shyness and fear of asking people to pose. It’s normal that going up to strangers may seem uncomfortable, but if you turn the fear into excitement and just realize that people don’t bite, it will be easier, especially if you manage to truly connect with your subjects. Smile, laugh, flirt if you have to, be silly or act stupid if you think it’ll ease up the interaction. Be genuine and genuinely interested in what they might be doing. Ask questions if you’re able to communicate adequately. People are immediately attracted to or put off by others’ energy, so you’ll want to have the kind of vibe that makes people comfortable around you. If you are entering into impoverished areas, be compassionate and empathetic towards people’s needs. Try to always ask your subjects if you can photograph them, unless you are going for a candid moment and if you have gifts, food or small change, consider giving your subjects something in exchange for taking their photo. In some countries, this is expected. Also, you should show them the photo(s) you just took and tell them how wonderful they look. Overall, genuinely connecting with your subjects is most important if you want to get deeper images. I walked up to this man and started asking him about the watches he was repairing. We quickly made friends and then he let me take all sorts of photos of him from all different angles. I liked his facial expression here best. This man stole my heart. If I had been able to speak Spanish better, I would have loved to listen to his story. I especially wanted to know why he was wearing two watches My friend and I hung out with this guy taking photos of him for at least 5 minutes as he made a sale to a little old lady. He was very excited that we were showing so much interest in his pig. 7) Get creative and be prolificShoot, shoot shoot and don’t stop at one photograph and at one perspective. If you have the time and available memory, why not take several photos of the same subject? I like to play with composition, angles and pose, so that I walk away with options. The same scene can be shot in infinite ways, and you can only do better if you try different perspectives. Get creative: look for reflections, shoot through things, shoot from above, from below, turn your subject into the light or away from the light, shoot wide, shoot close. Working your creativity will serve your images and will teach you to become an overall better photographer. I like to shoot the same photo from several different angles and with different focal points. You never know what’s going to end up looking best. I’m always paying attention to reflections, mirrors and such as they can really embellish a composition or perspective. This woman let me take several photos of her and her son, and as I got closer I noticed the man in the background, which made the scene all that more interesting. shot this from the backseat of a taxi, as I noticed all the reflections going on in the window, and took several, patiently waiting for the most interesting juxtaposition to happen. Sometimes, if you find objects in the foreground that you can shoot through, you end up with much a more compelling composition. By hanging out and taking several photos of same scene, you can capture completely different energies and images. 8) Be aware, patient and passionateI could not stress this one more: the best photographers are those who remain aware and patient. Keep your eyes wide open at all times, your camera ready, and be a committed observer of your environment. Go the extra mile for your photography. Watch what people are doing closely and their interactions, look up, look down—you never know what is right under your eye that you don’t quite see, and also, wait for things to happen. The famous National Geographic photographer, Steve McCurry, gave me this insight a long time ago: if you find a beautiful mural or an attractive landscape, but nothing interesting is going on right then, then wait for it to. Stand there for as long as you can take it until something worthwhile takes scene, and if you’re not happy with that, then wait some more. I noticed this little scene and stood there waiting for some sort of interesting vehicle to pass by so I could get more of an action shot. At times I don’t even put my camera to my face until I see the moment about to happen, so that it doesn’t change people’s attitudes. I stood here waiting for people to walk by for a decent amount of time, hoping I’d get the best composition. This boy was just hanging out against the wall and I knew if nothing else was going on that it wouldn’t be as exciting of a shot, so I waited for a bit until something happened in the foreground. It’s also important to be quick to shoot, because moments can be quite fleeting. 9) Follow the lightLight can make or break a photograph. Broad sunlight is typically going to be harsh and offer dense shadows, which could be exactly what you’re going for or could ruin everything. There are no solid rules in my opinion about when to shoot or not shoot, but there are definitely ways to interpret and follow light appropriately so that you can capture what speaks to you most. Of course, sunrise, sunset and diffused light can be softer and more attractive, but don’t get discouraged if you can’t shoot during those times, there’s always a way to produce excellent imagery with the given conditions: it’s just a matter of trial and error and paying attention to what works best for you.
I’m always looking for interesting displays of light, especially when it highlights subjects in uncommon ways. Light is very important when trying to get great photos of monuments and landscapes. Remember, these places have been photographed over and over and over, so if you want to capture something different and better, it‘s a good idea to visit them at an attractive time of day. 10) Editing and retouchingA good photographer knows that sometimes it takes another set of eyes to edit photos. Consider showing your first batch of selects to one or several people and get their opinions. Sometimes, we tend to fall in love with a photograph because of the memory we had while taking it, but it may not necessarily be the best shot. If there’s something I’ve learned from top photo editors, it’s ‘less is more’ when making edits, and only show your best work: your photos are just as good as the least compelling image. Secondly, if you have a photo editing software such as Photoshop, Lightroom or any others, they can be your best friend. A photograph straight out of the camera can definitely be wonderful, but a little bit of doctoring can go a long way. Perhaps in a photo you took, the light was just too harsh and there weren’t many great colors around anyway, so consider popping the image into black and white and see what you get! Or, saturate the colors a little to make a photo pop. Crop in if you didn’t take the best composition, and maybe try several different crops to see which looks best. Nowadays, you can download plenty of filter presets for Photoshop or Lightroom which can also allow you to stylize photographs in one click and give your images a different feel. With that said, be careful to not overdo it, sometimes over-Photoshopping or intense presets can downgrade the professional quality of an image. I edited this image a little differently than I normally do by moving around some of the saturation and giving it a slightly more vintage feel. Because of the harsh shadows and uninteresting color that was going on in this image, I switched it over to black and white, which gives it a more timeless vibe and forgives the lighting better. 11) Have fun!Overall and most of all, have fun! Photography is not meant to be stressful or scary and traveling is supposed to be liberating and enjoyable, so please make the most of your trip and don’t worry too much about getting the world’s greatest travel photo—Steve McCurry is busy doing that for us all! The people you connect with and the wonderful moments you share are what are most important, in my opinion, and the photographs are merely physical means to remember them. I’d love to see what you capture… if you feel inspired, shoot me an email at [email protected]! To see more of my work, check out my website www.EricaSimone.com
via RSSMix.com Mix ID 8230553 http://ift.tt/2sE8G5E Ever wonder when and how robots will take over the world? Well the site, Will Robots Take My Job, determines the likelihood of your unemployment. With the vast growth of computer technology, machine learning, and AI, soon enough, robots will have the ability to take over a wide-range of professions. On the website, simply type in your job title and press enter. The system will then determine the percentage rate of a robot taking over your field of work. It also gives you the statistics of the growth of you occupation by a certain year, how many people are currently employed, and the median annual salary. For a profession like accounting, don’t hold your breath—according to the website, there is a 94 percent chance a robot will be taking over your job. About the same goes for models and baristas.
However, the comforting side of things is that most creative fields are unthreatened. Photography only sees a 2.1 percent chance of robot take over while writing/journalism sees 3.8-11 percent. Video editing, on the other hand, is apparently 31 precent likely of a robotic takeover. The data used on the platform is derived from a report titled a report titled “The Future of Employment: How susceptible are jobs to computerisation?”, in which the authors examine “how susceptible jobs are to computerisation, by implementing a novel methodology to estimate the probability of computerisation for 702 detailed occupations, using a Gaussian process classifier,” according to the site. To create the platform, the founders of Will Robots Take My Job extracted the data found in the report alongside added Bureau of Labor statistics to accompany the findings. Despite the estimation that about 47 percent of total US employment is at risk, that doesn’t mean the future is bleak. Keep in mind that these “robots” will need to be built, trained, and repaired. And what better people to take on those roles than those who already have first-hand experience in them? Check out the platform to see just how much your job is threatened.
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The idea that social media has evolved for purposes beyond social use is an understatement. While posts featuring evening sunsets, birthday celebrations, and (unsolicited) selfies are still applauded, the power of social media has long surpassed its original objective. Social media is now largely used in business to market products, promote brands, and connect to current customers. On a greater scheme, social media has been used as a weapon to spread causes for social struggles of freedom, justice, and equality. Civil rights movements have capitalized social media’s influence, making cause’s values and ideas unavoidable to everyday users. In recent years, movements including the Women’s March, Black Lives Matter, and the Human Rights Campaign have all been leaders in multiplying supporters through social networking. (You can also read our cover story on Jerome Jarre and how he’s using social media to redirect millions of marketing dollars to help humanity.) On the night of the recent presidential election, Nov. 8, 2016, Teresa Shook, resident of a small Hawaiian island, took to Facebook expressing her concerns for the future of gender equality under the country’s new administration. That’s when she catalyzed an uproar for the Women’s March on Washington. It started with a Facebook event invite. Women’s March on NYC by Jason Leiva Shook’s initial Facebook event included the 40 of her friends of which she personally invited. When Shook woke up the following morning, she was shocked to see that 10,000 strangers had RSVP’ed to the event with 10,000 more expressing interest. In total, her 40 Facebook invites sparked a whopping 500,000 men and women to march in D.C and 600 subsequent marches throughout the rest of the country in weeks to follow. Shook, a grandmother who is in her 60s, told the Washington Post, “I guess in my heart of hearts I wanted it to happen, but I didn’t really think it would’ve ever gone viral.” Shook continued: “I don’t even know how to go viral.” On the day of the Women’s March on Washington, Jan. 21, Shook made an on-stage appearance addressing the hundreds of thousands of who took to the streets of D.C. “I’m overwhelmed with joy. A negative has been turned into a positive. All these people coming together to unite to try and make a difference. That’s what we’re going to be doing for the next four years. I see it’s really going to happen,” Shook said in an interview the day of the march. Women’s March on NYC by Jason Leiva While Shook’s use of social media sparked the event itself, the greater power of social networking didn’t end there. The official Women’s March Organization promoted partakers in the March on Washington and marches around the country to post the hashtag #WhyIMarch on their Twitter and Instagram accounts. The #WhyIMarch hashtag makes marches searchable to users, encouraging further awareness for those unable to attend the march. Black Lives Matter has also utilized social media as a key instrument in their organizations efforts to gain awareness and momentum. A study conducted by the Pew Research Center called “Social Media Conversations About Race,” was performed to analyze how and why social media users use the hashtags #BlackLivesMatter and #AllLivesMatter within their posts. For some users, the hashtag serves the purpose of the cause. For others, the hashtags have been used to do just the opposite. According to the study, the hashtag #BlackLivesMatter was used roughly 12 million times on Twitter from July 12, 2013 to March 31, 2016. Researchers found that while 38 pecent of #BlackLivesMatter tweets were in support of the movement, 11 percent of tweets compiled of opposition. In addition, the 51 percent of tweets including the hashtag were sorted as neutral references to #BlackLivesMatter, general racial issues separate from the specific movement, and the 2016 election. While social media has proven to be positive for social rights movements, the study shows the harsh reality of how users largely take advantage of social networking to damage social struggles for equality. To target such users, the Guardian reports that in recent years, civil rights groups have sought out executives at companies like Twitter and Facebook to moderate abusive users. However, as reported, moderation systems by such companies are largely viewed as being “racially biased.” Civil rights groups argue that data shows how Facebook specifically censors activists of color and Black Lives Matter posts, but ignores posts of white supremacists spreading violent threats.
In effort to work with social networking companies to improve company moderation systems, 70 civil rights organizations collaborated in a letter to Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg and director of Facebook’s global policy Joel Kaplan. The letter urged Facebook to not only stop censoring political speech for social justice, but also for the company to take further and larger steps at targeting offensive users. Black Lives Matter has argued that although Facebook most certainly has the means to address these problems, the capable company has yet to make the issue of primary concern. Despite obstacles to improve the supervising of social networking sites, without doubt, social media has progressed development of social freedom and equality, and will continue to do so. With the direction of our country’s growing social and political awareness, whether or not you enjoy seeing social rights movements across your news feeds, it’s doubtful that such stories can be avoided. No matter if you enjoy seeing social struggles for freedom and equality broadcasted on your news feeds, it’s undeniable that social media’s growing influence on such causes is an incredible outcome from where social networking once started. via RSSMix.com Mix ID 8230553 http://ift.tt/2s1LUU2 I don’t know where I first heard the name ‘Serengeti’, but ever since I was a child, the word provoked romantic visions in my head of wide open, dusty plains filled with eye-catching wildlife. So when I first visited the Serengeti last year, I was left speechless when those visions proved true. It instantly became one of my favorite photographic locations I had ever visited, and I was determined to get back as soon as possible. And luckily, this year I will be spending over a month in Tanzania, mostly in the Serengeti, leading photography trips for The Giving Lens and Discovery Photo Tours. It’s hard to really explain the adrenaline rush that will hit you like a ton of bricks the first time you see a herd of elephants or a pride of lions start to walk your way. Staring blankly in awe of such powerful creatures, it can be hard to get your camera at the ready and your settings dialed in before the moment passes. But eventually, you learn that these magnificent animals are indifferent to your presence. They are too busy foraging for food and seeking out shade and water in the scorching African heat to worry about a tan colored Land Cruiser with a bunch of giddy humans and giant lenses. You start to learn how to photograph them, and soon, you start seeing some incredible captures in the back of your LCD screen. Suddenly, the ease of the Serengeti has made you feel like a National Geographic photographer. Housing some of the Tanzania’s best landscapes, Serengeti National Park also plays host to an immense amount of wildlife, including the ‘Big 5’, which is rhinoceros, elephant, buffalo, lion and leopard. In fact, over 3,000 lions are believed to live in the Serengeti, making it Africa’s largest population of the big cat. With the black rhino being extremely endangered, it can be hard to find one in the park, but no harder to find than the elusive leopard, even though the leopard population is over 1,000. These extraordinary cats know how to hide. They aren’t as chill as lions, where your safari car can literally pull up next to one and not get much of a reaction. But somehow, in all my time on Safari, the Serengeti was the only time I had spotted a leopard. In broad daylight nonetheless (they usually can be found in the early dawn). This mother had just killed a gazelle and was dragging it out of her hiding place to her two waiting cubs.
And all of this, in front of some of the most amazing sunrises, sunsets, and moons that I have ever seen. We even camped in the middle of a fenceless site in the Serengeti, which got really interesting when an elephant came into camp at 9 pm looking for food.
I could go on and on about why the Serengeti is so special, but honestly, it’s one of those places you can’t really understand the beauty of until you immerse yourself. So until then, I will leave you with more of my favorite photos from my time in the Serengeti. Nature is raw, powerful and beautiful, and that is no more evident than in Serengeti National Park in Tanzania. For more information on my upcoming photography workshops and tours of Tanzania, visit The Giving Lens and Discovery Photo Tours. via RSSMix.com Mix ID 8230553 http://ift.tt/2s7wxbj Let’s be real: being on camera is hard. Like, way hard. (Why am I talking like a 14-year-old at a Homecoming dance?) But I’ve come to understand the power of showcasing WHO I am, in addition to WHAT I do. A intro/bio video, a tutorial, or educational content on behalf of my business has proven to be incredibly helpful in terms of organic marketing. Now, I get it, it’s not easy being on camera. It’s awkward, sweat-inducing, and adds on 14-pounds (or at least that’s what I tell myself…never mind the ice cream I stress-ate for days before the shoot). However, I’ve learned a few things along the way, and I’m sharing them today to ensure you’re prepared to slay your video productions. HOW TO PREPARE CREATING A VIDEO FOR YOUR BUSINESS
I hope this advice helps as you prepare to create a video for your business. If you’d like to see the videos I produced on behalf of my business, you can check them out HERE on my Facebook page. I wish you all the best and can’t wait to see you slay it on camera. Remember, you have something special to share, so share your unique business perspective with the world…we’re waiting for you. via RSSMix.com Mix ID 8230553 http://ift.tt/2sg9HAe Improving your ability to get great candid photographs is one of the most important ways to improve your photography. However, there is a big misconception that candid photography is just about hiding in the bushes so that people don’t know you are present. This couldn’t be further from the truth.... The post 6 Tips for Becoming a Candid Photography Pro appeared first on Expert Photography. via RSSMix.com Mix ID 8230553 http://ift.tt/2sTy9oN |
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October 2021
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