.mac blogging is no good

I've decided not to stay with .mac for blogging as its kind of a pain to use.

-andrew

New Site

Well I've decided to move over to Apple's hosting, so here is the new addy for my blog/ site.

http://web.mac.com/atarinaper/iWeb

More work

Well its been a while since I've updated. Much has been going on, I got back from Bishop a few weeks ago and immediately started summer school. Math is terrible as it takes me twice as long to grasp an algebraic concept as it does with science, history or english. Hopefully I will be picking up a new camera and lense with in the next few weeks as well as some other little do-dads like this guy: http://www.m-audio.com/products/en_us/MicroTrack2496-main.html

The m-audio portable audio recorder is awsome and with my newly found interest in trying to work with multimedia presentations to give web viewers more pleasure, it gives me the option to record ambient sound and conduct interviews with my subjects.

Over the next few weeks I will try and update more and more, but as you can see things are a little stressful, especially with another class starting today!

Soon though, classes will have finished and I'll be able to relax for a few weeks, before returning to the hustle and bustle as the Las Positas Express as the Photo Editor for the semester.

good night,

Andrew

been really busy

Well its finals time... and I've been super busy with school and work and planning a trip to bishop this weekend. Mike and I are heading out on friday or saturday, so it should be pretty chill, but it looks like tioga pass is closed still which sucks tons because its going to make our drive twice is long. But hopefully I'll be able to make some good images and have some fun climbing. Here is an image i made while at Crystal's cousin's confermation

Illegal Immigraion Protest, 4-10-06

I first got the idea for this article while watching the news on Sunday night, the night before the mass protests throughout the US began. I sat there in awe, wondering what exactly was going to be going on and if it would be like what happened in Los Angeles a few weeks prior to the event. I hopped on my computer and found a few protests would be happening around the bay area; Oakland, San Francisco, and San Jose were among the choices I had found. I picked San Jose to be the best choice, as its one of the biggest cities in the state and is home to a lot of Hispanics in the bay area.
Illegal immigration is a huge issue going on through out the US and there are many different sides to the story. One being that peopce who are coming here illegally and working should have just as many rights as the people that are here legally, and of course the belief that they are illegal sending them back and making stronger defenses around the border.
On April 10, 2006, a friend and I headed out to San Jose not realizing what we were in for. The roads were blocked, tv stations were out, helicopters were flying high but one thing was for sure, there weren’t very many people out. There was one thing though, people kept looking down the street as if they were waiting for something. Around thirty-five minutes later mass amounts of people came marching down the streets, statistics stated that over 20,000 people were marching that day, and for one reason, to give illegal immigrants rights and to stop house bill HR4437.
One thing I noticed while walking the streets of San Jose, was many high school age kids, holding signs and loitering. I stopped and asked some of them why they were there, and I mainly got, “I’m not sure, but I feel like it’s a great cause.” Another thing I asked many of the younger generation was, what the house bill was and what it meant for their families and friends. Most responded with the same answer of, “What bill is that? I’m not really sure what it means.” This really disturbed me as a young journalist, because I know what it is I believe, and it felt like most were using this march as an excuse to skip work and school.
House bill HR4437 does a lot of things but here are some of the following effects it would have on illegal immigrants, whether or not they are bad is up to you.
• Being an illegal immigrant would be considered “unlawful presence” which means that being here would be considered a felony and those that are being prosecuted would be forced to serve jail time and would not be allowed to ever become a citizen.
• The department of Homeland Security would build up to 700 miles of fencing along the Southwestern border.
• State and local police would be authorized to enforce federal law, if they do not enforce the laws they will lose state and federal funding.
There are many things that HR4437 will do, but one can’t even begin list it all, but is definitely a huge issue. Go online and read up on some of the opposing viewpoints on the issue and write to your congressman about how you feel.



check out more at: www.sportsshooter.com/villaphoto

Things to always have

So I got to thinking after coming back from shooting the Illegal Immigrant Protest on monday about things that I should always have with me. Here is the list that I've come up with so far:
1. Camera
2. pen/ pencil and Notebook, never know when you're gonna have to take caption info or someone's number.
3. buisness cards, always a great thing to have, in case someone needs some info from you.
4. Ipod and a decent set of headphones, one can never be sure when you're waiting around for 45 minutes waiting for something to happen, after a bad tip from someone.
5. Gaffers tape, I dont carry this too often, but I need to start, Sometimes things just dont work without the gaffers.

thats it for now, feel free to message me and add.

Portfolio

well I've finally gotten around to finalizing a portfolio that I shall soon make a printed version of. Here is a link to my gallery.

Portfolio Gallery


thanks for looking,

Andrew

Wow, im a lazy bum.

Well, I am sitting right now in my hotel in LA getting ready for the annual JACC conference. I havent updated in a long time, mainly because so much has been going on. I've been working alot and shooting a ton, so its nice to get away from the daily grind of things. Hope all is well in everyone else's lives,


Andrew

and a parting shot:

Fun Filled Day

Well today I woke up and went to English, then headed out to the dentist to get some cavities filled. After that headed back to school to work on the newspaper... here are some images from the day:



I picked this up and read it while I was sitting in the chair waiting to have a needle stuck in my mouth, so i could be numb for most of the day.



Will one of my editors wanted a sweet photo for an interview of him, so I had Whitney throw water in his face which he felt was amusing.


I also shot some of the Basketball team training today.

My pretty water in art class today. Enough said.



And then we have laura, crazy girl who loves art and apparently ice cream. Impromtu shot in art class just after I took a picture of my pretty water.

Climbing

wow, i really like to climb. Went to city beach tonight and had some good fun here are some shots from the Dyno session:




more to come tomorrow or should I say later today, its 12:30 am and I have a 9:30 class.

nite!

Snow on Mt. diablo

So it snowed on Mt. Diablo last weekend, so Crystal and I took a trip up to see it. It was actully snowing when we got up there, I couldn't believe it!
here are a couple more:

Chinese New Years

So i covered chinese new year's for my school newspaper last saturday night, ended up with some great images.






the rest can be found here: Chinese New Year Gallery

weeeee

Well for all you that check up on this thing... this week has been extremely busy. First issue of the semester for the newspaper at school, shooting soccer and shooting a show and trying to keep up with your homework is just intense.

But it has been worth it. Here are some images from the week:
1. Acalanes vs. Dublin High soccer game



Check out more here:Dublin High vs. Acalanes

2. I started a series that I am going to continue on saturday night that is about drummers, here are a few:



More of the drummersDrummers

3. Shot some of Bradley Hathaway a sweet poet last night.



And view some more of Bradley:Bradley Hathaway

School Is In.

So, school has started, which is going to be interesting. I've vowed to actully work this semester though, so I can complete my courses on time and get the ball rolling to a 4 year. Hopefully the weather clears so I can go shoot some soccer this afternoon, even though its freezing cold. I've started a Photo A Day project this semester, that I am trying my best to keep up. Sometimes I shoot film, so it takes me a few dayts to get stuff up.

Hope everyone else out there, is having fun in school, or at least trying to make the best of it.


~Andrew

Crystal's portrait session.

well today i got off work mad early so Crystal and I headed out to shoot some stuff.

here are a few:

Open Your Eyes, and see the world around You.

There is so much to look at that we miss day to day. The little things mostly, dogs in the arms of little girls, bright yellow coats and such. Sometimes it just feels great to sit back and watch the world go by, especially without participating in it. In life we get too caught up in everyone elses business, so much that we dont have time to look at our own. We dont stop and take time for ourselves.

At this point, I'm not spiritually fit to really start my talk on God, but each day that I concentrate more on myself, I start to see Him more naturally. Watching the world is something we all need to do more of, it inspires us to notice ourselves more, mainly because we take ourselves out of the pictures, allowing time to work on us.

This week, take 10 minutes out of your schedule and watch, whereever you are and write about what you see, visually and audibly. Concentrate on the peacifulness that the world tries to take away from us.

Answer some of these questions after each time:
How does it make you feel? How will it help you day to day? Where are you in life, not only spiritually but physically in life? Are you where you want to be?

an essay i wrote about ANWR

Expanding our Oil Resources, beneficial?
Our oil resources in the US are dependent on other countries and not our own and is something that needs to be addressed. Expanding our oil resources would not only improve our economy but would also help us become more independent from other nations. Hannity addresses this issue by showing an example of Liberals that are trying to restrict us from finding our own oil to lower prices of gas and to improve our economy. Hannity uses the example of the Artic National Wildlife Refuge to show us the pros of drilling oil, claiming that we already have enough land set aside. On the other side of things, we also find that there could be serious health risks to wild caribou that graze in the area. We must examine all areas in order to make a decision that could affect our country for years to come.
As we dive into many articles on the subject of drilling for oil in the Artic National Wildlife Refuge(ANWR) we find there are two mail views, those that are for drilling and those that are against it. In the heart of Alaska we find that Alaskans are pro-oil development and they predict there will be little or no impact to the environment. Alaskans also believe that they live in a state with many resources and that they need to harness the resources in order to live. “Most Alaskans are realistic about the fact that Alaska is a natural resource state. That’s what pays the bills”(Washington Post)
It’s understandable that Alaskans think this way, because they actually live there. Where as it’s the ones who do not live in Alaska that usually think that digging for oil is going to have a bigger impact on the environment. There is population of Porcupine Caribou that migrate in the ANWR, this is an annual trek. “First east away from the plain into Canada, then south and west back into interior Alaska, and finally north in a final push over the mountains and down the river valleys back to the coastal plain, their traditional birthing grounds.”(Markey) The opposition of drilling feels that this would ruin the population of Porcupine Caribou because of drilling. Claiming the oil industry will follow in the footsteps of Deadhorse and Purdhoe Bay. “They are part of a vast industrial complex that generates, on average, one toxic spill a day of oil, or chemicals, or industrial waste of some kind that seeps into the tundra or sits in toxic drilling mud pits.”(Markey) Which is a valid answer in my opinion, we do need to protect a vast majority of wilderness, because if we do not, one day it will be gone.
The fact of the matter is that drilling of oil in the ANWR is a good idea and there is already plenty of land set aside for conservation. “There are 171 million acres of land in Alaska fenced off for conservation and wilderness preservation. That’s an area larger than the state of Texas.”(Hickel) The part that oil companies want to drill is nothing more than a frozen wasteland for over ten months of each year, no trees. Yet for two months out of the year, lichen shows itself and during that period of time, the Porcupine Caribou graze and breed on that plain.
Most biologists believe that exploration and drilling of the plains will harm the Porcupine Caribou, but instead help them, in such the way of Prudhoe Bay. “That heard has not only survived, but flourished. In 1977, as the Prudhoe region started delivering oil to America’s southern 48 states, the Central Arctic caribou numbered 6,000; it has since grown to 27,128.”(Hickel) It is also important to note that Congress wants to set aside 1.5 million acres of coastal plain, a mere .08 percent of what is being conserved today. “It was stipulated that these resources could be developed at any time if Congress so voted. As a result scientists have studied this area for more than 20 years, and their work has produced estimates of recoverable oil ranging up to 16 billion barrels. Most of these scientists recommend that exploration be allowed.”(Hickel) Not only would we not be ruining our environment, but it would help us break loose from our dependence on other countries.
We are faced with the opinion that, drilling oil will decrease our need to be dependent on foreign countries for oil. This is a very persuasive argument considering we get over half of our oil from other countries. “Back during the Arab oil embargo, the United States imported only about 36 percent of our oil needs. Thirty years later, that number has skyrocketed to almost 60 percent.”(Hannity)
Most of the talk in the last few years has been about us going to war with Iraq for oil, but still we are depending on Iran and other countries to supply us with oil, why is it that we are still paying so much per barrel for oil? But those same people who are against us going to “war for oil” are the same people that are against us drilling in our own country to decrease our dependence on other countries.
Drilling oil in the ANWR would be beneficial to our economy. It would in turn help lower gas prices and provide jobs for the people in Alaska. Lowering gas prices and providing jobs puts more money into the pockets of Alaskans, thus making them putting more money into buying things, which in turn puts more money into the economy, making it rise. It could also cause to be more independent from other countries, allowing us to keep us out of the “war” we are in. At the same time, I am torn between the two sides. I love the environment. I love camping, hiking, backpacking and most of all I love watching the wildlife in different areas. I also believe that we do need to conserve what we have in the United States, because we not only effect ourselves when we drill but we effect the generations that will come after us. We must think of what will be better for economy and the citizens of the United States, this will take lots of time and discussions before we ever resolve this issue.

Works Cited
Hannity, Sean. Let Freedom Ring, New York, HarperCollins Publishers Incorporated, 2002.

Hickel, Walter J, “Drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge will decrease America’s Reliance on Foreign Oil.” Foreign Oil Dependence. At Issue Series (James Haley, Ed.) Greenhaven Press, 2004

Markey, Edward J, “The Arttic National Wildlife Refuge Should remain Off-Limits to Oil Drilling.” Foreign Oil Dependence. At Issue Series. (James Haley Ed.) Greenhaven Press, 2004 http://infoweb.newsbank.com/

Blum Justin. “Environmentalists make last stand on Alaskan Drilling.” The Washington Post 27 Oct. 2005: NewsBank. LPC Library Livermore http://infoweb.newsbank.com/

D’Oro, Rachel. “Alaskans Keen to Exploit State’s Resources Most Citizens see no Conflict Between Development and Protection the Environment.” Associated Press 28 Dec. 2003: NewsBank, LPC library, Livermore http://infoweb.newsbank.com/

yay for basketball

borrowed my friend eric's 20d today, to see if its a body that I am interested in buying eventually.

its a little hard to play with, but... here are two shots i came up with:




thanks for looking,

Andrew

Ahhhhh finals are here!

Yep finals are starting thursday... ugh i hate them with a passion. my desk is really funny right now, its covered in poli sci stuff for my test tomarrow. Hopefully i pull a C in that class.

well im out and back to studying laterz!

Is Nothing Sacred Pics

here are some updated shots for anyone who reads this thing:







hope all is well for everyone else out there.

~Andrew