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This is an archive of the flow14 blog, which was live from 2006 – 2014. I've preserved all the relevant content and comments and I'm leaving it here to preserve my little piece of internet history.

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iPhone 365 – a video of my year in photos

Starting back in 2009, I’ve participated in a photo-a-day project called iPhone 365. At the end of every year, I’ve created a video/slideshow to showcase all of my photos. This year, I managed to capture 365 photos (my 3rd consecutive year).

This year, I mixed in bits of video amongst the photos – I think it adds a nice feel to the piece, and it’s something I hope to do more in 2014.

Production Notes

All photos & video were shot with an iPhone 5

  • Apps – Shooting: Camera (default), SlowShutter (long exposures), SnappyCam (for action)
  • Apps – Editing: VSCOcam, Camera+, Image Blender
  • 365 Video: Downloaded photos from my 2013 365 Flickr set using Photo Grabbr then compiled and edited everything with Adobe Premiere. In years past, I compiled the video using Apple iMovie; taking a bit of time to learn how to use Premiere was a huge step forward – it provides a lot more control over the timing of each photo and I’m much happier with the quality of the finished piece.

Innovation – just say no

I ran across a great post on Frank Chimero’s site recently in which he comments on Scott Berkun’s article, “You should ban “innovation” from your vocab” (also a great read). Frank’s thoughts on red flag words really, really resonated with me:

When asked who the audience is, they say “everyone.” This exemplifies a lack of focus. I usually follow this up by saying “If you’re talking about whales, would you talk the same way to a class of kindergarteners versus a class of Marine Biology majors?” Everyone doesn’t work. Making something for everyone makes it useful for no one.

I hear about this broad target audience of “everyone” way more often than I care to. One, because it’s easy (for the requestor, anyway). Two, because if you’re talking to everyone, that surely translates into more sales, right? If you aren’t sure of the answer to that question, read the previous quote again. Know your audience; I guarantee it isn’t everyone.

KC Design Week

Kansas City Design Week
I’m happy to announce that I’m a presenter at the first annual Kansas City Design Week on Thursday, February, 4.

I’ll be presenting with couple of other guys from work; we’ll be talking about the impact of design on business and how a the perception of a brand is shaped by the design of products, user experience and messaging. We’ve had a few calls with the organizers of design week and quite a bit of brainstorming amongst ourselves. After a breakthrough today, it feels like the presentation is finally starting to come together… excitement is building.

KC Design week is all about celebrating the value of design, including graphic design, industrial design and architecture. There are a bunch of cool design-related events throughout the week (all of which are free), so head over to KCDesignWeek.org to check out the schedule and reserve a space for yourself. From what I’ve heard, about 90 people have registered for our session, which means we’re *this close* to a sold-out show.

And if your at the AIA building on the 4th, stop by and say ‘hi!’.