Category: Design, Art & Photography

My interest in photography started back in elementary school, and I studied it all through high-school. The shift from analog/film to digital changed so very much, yet so much remains the same.

AI Generated Island Vibes

Carl SetzerLeave a comment

I have a fondness for YouTube music videos and often play them in the background while I’m working. Lately, I’ve been feeling island vibes, so that’s what I’ve been choosing. Today, this one rolled into my algorythim and, well, AI is struggling.

The music is fine, pretty much spot on for my mood. But the video, though…oh my! We have cliffs that move into each other, and then fade away, boats just appearing in bays, a speed boat zipping across the sky, and my favorite: two party boats, one of which is speeding backwards with another boat, right off the stern, moving at the same speed but sideways. Ah, physics!

So, AI is pretty amazing and has a lot to offer, but it’s not quite ready to take over the world.

Zines!

Carl Setzer
person holding white printer paper

I really enjoyed Zines back in the 90s (their heyday). If your first thought is “what’s a Zine?”, check out this article.

My blogging colleague Bernie has started creating them again (inspired by Austin Kleon’s reboot of the genre). Take a look at Bernie’s blog post.

I had friends who invested a lot of time and effort into Zines. Sadly, I’ve lost touch with all of them. I do wonder what happened to them. It was all part of my life in downtown Seattle in the 90s. An amazing time, culturally. It was challenging in a good many ways, too. That Seattle is pretty much gone, though. Pretty much all the grittier apartments, for instance, are now condos occupied by wealthy tech workers. It’s a fascinating exploration of the City’s evolution.

Anyway, did you ever create zines? Care to share?

Some video work today

Carl Setzer

I spent some time this morning trimming this video out of Trinity’s service last Sunday. A local choir, the Evergreen Ensemble, performed with us; their music was stunning. As I was watching (I was running media that service), I thought “I want to pull this out and post it on our socials”. So, I whipped open Premier Pro and made this little piece to share (posted on YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok).

I am always pleased when I get to create fun projects, even small ones like this. Though I’m no master of Adobe stuff, I enjoy getting in with this stuff. For a bit of creative diversity I used Canva to create the thumbnail. I’ve come to deeply appreciate Canva’s simplicity. It makes creating something like this fast and clean.

I do love creating content and managing websites and social media. I find this work delightful and fulfilling. I guess I should find ways to get more of this in my life.

Today’s Morning Haiku

Carl Setzer1 Comment 
with my morning tea
the gentlest of breezes
sunlight through the clouds

I love calm mornings. Today, Seattle’s weather seems to be pivoting from rain to partially cloudy. Blue skies punctuated with white clouds. Summer’s heat abated, whether temporarily or for the rest of the year is uncertain, but I’ll take the respite.

Autumn Approaches

Carl Setzer2 Comments
Today's haiku
orange and red leaves
as i gaze out my window
glories of autumn

The maple just outside my office window already shows autumn colors. Of course, September approaches quickly. Less than a week (Sunday) brings the new month. As tempting as it might be to make some reference to the passing of time, it doesn’t feel very creative.