29 August, 2012

Photos has been printed


I am ready for the dead line at least the main thing which is my final work. Still need to do bits and bobs as my research which I don't like very much to be honest.
Print quality was not too bad however, this was less than I was expecting. Slightly brighter (or lighter) than my image and also strong cyan. Skins might be seen paler than original. But elsewhere, fine so I'll go with them for the submission.

And what I need to do more is preparing for the final exhibition. 6 frames and prints for them. Which means literally extravagant.

27 August, 2012

My birthday is not special typically


26tht of August was my birthday. First time ever for me to get older abroad. But, the situation was basically the same. People are normally on their vacation therefore my birthday is apt to be ignored. I know that my friends are not particularly interested and the reality is what the image above shows.

This Peroni is what I bought in Pesaro last April and I was keeping this for a while, waiting for something special happens. Consequently, it took about 4 months. Peroni and fishn' chips which are not good for my facial skin and health obviously.

24 August, 2012

Last sessions


My final photographic work is coming to the end. Dead line is 3rd of September but, before that I have to prepare for photos printed and research things which are not supposed to be proper compared with previous practice.

Making portraits is quite fun. Meanwhile, it takes time because during people's training, I don't want to interrupt them and even if they are OK, it should seem to be a bit arrogant. Moreover, some people don't want to be photographed.
If there is enough spaces to capture the practitioners, it is quite lucky. In fact mostly, it is impossible. Therefore I am obliged to wait for the end of the sessions.

How many times have I got to the gym in total for this project? Need to count it. Anyway, I'm looking forward to see my images printed.

20 August, 2012

True colours


Colour is difficult. Especially when it comes to photography, colour matching is quite important if you take colour pictures not black and white. Cameras can record one particular moment quite as it was. But its colour is not necessarily accurate. It is much obvious in this digital imaging age.

When photographers edit their images, they adjust colour temperature and tint. Yellow or blue and red or green. If you adjust them correctly, the images can be seen beautifully.
But, this is a theoretical matter and therefore it may not accord with actual colour when you see the real subject. This problem is applicable to exposure as well. If it was actually dark and you photograph it, when you look at the image you might increase its exposure brighter.

So, problem is what the true colour is, what the accurate colour is.
Colours are depend on colour spaces, which are sRGB and Adobe RGB. And also when you see your images via computers, the colours are up to the monitors. Moreover, when you get your images printed, its colour should be different amongst photographic printers or paper.

Of course it is quite important to try to reach the actual or accurate colours. But it is impossible to recall true colours and also as I mentioned there are many dependency. Consequently, it is necessary to take some sort of compromise into account.

18 August, 2012

Superb curry

 
As I wrote before a friend of mine who is studying textile design in Glasgow gave me a gift which contains a lot of Japanese food. I was gradually consuming them and this time, I cooked Japanese style curry. Ingredients are pork, potatoes, carrots, onions and a bit of garlic. As I am lazy and in order to shorten cooking time I used tinned potatoes and carrots.

To be honest, it was absolutely brilliant. Delicious and divine. I have never ever cooked curry in Japan on my own however this was definitely successful. Japanese food is the most elaborate and the most prominent, this is no doubt! Thank you so much indeed, Asami.

15 August, 2012

Another thing that I noticed watching the Olympics, commentaries of the BBC don't always call athletes name. Instead for example, 'French man' 'Japanese' 'German' 'Dutch' namely they call just athlete's nationalities. For me it sounds impolite as obviously they have got own name. In particular, it might be because of its accent, their pronunciation of Japanese sounded discriminative. 

14 August, 2012

What was the London 2012?


As I have written some articles here, I was watching the Olympic Games all the time since obviously I am interested in sports and athlete very much, and also I needed to keep looking at the ridiculous ticketing website to get any opportunities for the tickets of rhythmic gymnastics. Therefore, my interest and what I had to do were all together over the last 17 days.

The way in which I watched was mainly via BBC website online streaming. Because it provided more than 15 channels every time with you and you can select channels whenever and as many as you want to. Therefore I made the most of it. BBC, well done.

One of the reasons that the Olympics is the biggest sports event is that it offers you chances to get to know different kinds of sport. Sports for instance football, basketball, tennis and so on, they are normally based on commercialism. In other words, you can watch them as professional sports. However, there a lot of sports which are not necessarily professional even if the sports are common. Badminton, table tennis, handball, hockey, water polo, Judo, wrestling, whatever. You might have ever heard these names but, it is normally quite rare to watch.

For me, handball was interesting. It is so speedy and player are always busy. Physically hard and strategically complicated. But, if the gap of the score is more than 2 or 3 points, it is quite difficult to catch up with the opponent and all the matches tend to come to an end without overcoming the gap. Weightlifting was fun as well. I don't really want the athletes to make mistakes and I was always wishing for their successes. This particular sport made me feel like that.

Meanwhile, I suppose that the London 2012 had a different aspect and BBC was trying to agitate the country. In my opinion, the politics in this Olympics seemed to be 'self-satisfaction'.
For example, although the opening ceremony was quite big scale as usual, I though it didn't have some sort of consistency in it. I know Britain is so diverse society and I appreciate some elements in the opening ceremony. But it was not enough to represent what the UK is at least for me. Music, films, those kind of entertainment which were produced by the Britain was interesting but, not very much fascinating.

Jessica Ennis who is an athletic athlete competed heptathlon and she got a gold. Presumably, she was supposed to get it with considerable margins as she has been world No.1 in that field. Of course she is one of the greatest athletes but, BBC and crowds emphasised too much. They completely made her as an iconic symbol of the Olympics for Britain associated with her appearance.
Bradly Wiggins, Chris Hoy, Farah, and so on. Even not gold medalists, BBC and crowds got to be absolutely noisy and exaggerate nation's athletes. Union jacks could be seen almost everywhere, even if British athletes don't compete with. This was annoying when I went to Wembley Arena. As I wrote before, their attitudes were always like that and then they never stop doing. Moreover, some spectators waved their hands to cameras when they were filmed when athletes got closer to them during the competition. What a ridiculous. How childish they are.

However, the fact that the Britain got 65 medals including 29 golds was so great and I thought that British athletes well done under the massive pressures. Consequently, it can be said that they are quite mentally strong. Contrary to this, Japanese athletes seemed to be weak psychologically. Football team both females and males, fencing... 

Anyway, although the Olympics which tend to be utilise politics every time, in the case of London 2012, I assume that this seemed to be politics for domestic rather than diplomatic. Otherwise, BBC and people in the UK might have not boasted what they are.


13 August, 2012

London 2012 Olympic Games Rhythmic Gymnastics Final day

I got to London again for the final day of rhythmic gymnastics as I wrote before, I was able to get a ticket for this. Groups final took place on the day. I was at the venue with my Japanese flag, Italian one, Belarus one, Ukraine one, and also with my camera therefore somewhat I was busy during the competition.
 

Although the groups final was second top priority for me, it was still fun and exciting. Basically, as well as individuals, Russians were supposed to win unless they make big mistakes. This is how unfair the judges are. So I support Italian team at the top because their throwing and exchange are unstoppable and attractive anyway.
From the past results of international competitions, team Russia and Italy are so competitive. Team Italy won world championships 3 times in a row from 2009 to 2011 (all-around). On the other hand, team Russia is a former Olympic gold medalist and also they got a win at the world cup Minsk, which was a last international competition before the Olympics.
One more team which is Belarus is also stable. They are always top three in every competition and they were 3rd place in Beijing 2008.
Therefore, these particular three teams have been almost dominating the podium.

I clearly remember that I was firstly got fascinated by watching group competitions of Beijing 2008. And this was applicable to the spectators in Wembley Arena. A lady who was sitting on next me was a typical. Every time gymnasts make tricks, she gets excited with 'Woo!' voice. I sometimes did the same though. Other people were pretty much the same and they made good atmosphere. However, as I noticed when I was in Day 1, the spectators were not real rhythmic gymnastics fans again. Namely they were watching it for the first time. So, annoying thing this time for me was that the spectators go buying some drinks or food during the competition. This was always happening. Some people were always walking around and they could be observed from even TV. I am quite not sure if they came to watch a sport or to have something to eat or drink. Enough destructive.

Groups competition is always divers, devised and ingenious. Choreography, costumes, tricks, combination, and exchanges. Despite its charms, this is one of sports hence the groups have to be marked. To me, I still don't know how the judges evaluate gymnast's performance. The result of the competition was Russia has got back to back, Belarus got 2nd place and unfortunately Italy was the 3rd as they made a big mistake in the 3 ribbons and 2 hoops routine. But, I suppose gaps of ability of each team are not that huge as the scores show. Every team has its characteristic which is so beautiful. So, I think I should take a look at groups as well, not too much at individuals.

12 August, 2012

She is history. She became a legend.

I still think that I should have been there as impressive history has been created by a gymnast from Belarus whose name is needless to say, Liubov Charkashyna. Visual images and videos about this story are still adequate to make me cry.

I tried to get a ticket for this particular day hundreds and thousands of times at the ridiculous London 2012 ticketing website. And in order to this, I did not buy for the day 2. (However, again, I should have got there without any tickets and required people around the venue who might have extras.) Anyway, I was at home with my tiny laptop and decided to watch online streaming. Of course, my Belarusian flag was on my shoulders since I could not help doing so.

The competition has began. Non-stop to the end. 10 top gymnasts all over the world competed toward three couloured medals. But, it was almost and already obvious that Russian Evgenia Kanaeva would be supposed to get her second gold and Daria Dmitrieva who is a No.2 gymnast might be able to get a silver. In other words, the result was partly semi-expected and at the same time it was quite remarkable that who would get the rest of the places (= bronze).



Until the first half, Son Yeon Jae was sensational. After first two routines, she was at the 3rd place. She was ahead of Luba, Aliya, Silviya and so on. She actually has fascinated spectators and made her rhythm and atmosphere completely. From my point of view, movements of her arms are so tender. The motions remind me Stephane Lambiel who is a former figure skater. On the other hand, Luba was performing quite shrewdly without big mistakes and she was 4th place at the end of first half.

I was watching her performance with the flag and praying for her. And seemingly she seemed very steady, I thought she might make it. But still Son Yeon Jae was so good. Even I felt she can be a highly promising Asian gymnast near future.

At the second half, Son Yeon Jae finally made a massive and decisive mistake in her clubs routine. She was not able to catch them properly and fell off on the floor. Eventually, the possibility for bronze medal for her has been disappeared unfortunately. At the Olympic Games, athletes who made mistakes have no choice but to be a loser. This is a kind of destiny.
There were two stable performers including Luba and yes, Aliya Garayeva. Both of the gymnasts did not make a fatal mistake as a whole. After the third routine which was clubs Luba was ahead of Aliya by merely 0.300 points. It was unclear who wins after final routine.


At the final routine which was ribbon, the order was Aliya first and Luba was after that. Aliya has performed so superbly and got 28.250 poins. And now, Luba's go. In order to secure her bronze she needed more than 27.950 points. At that time I was worrying about her ribbon routine to be honest, because at the qualification she has got only 26.550 points and as a result this caused to be qualified at 5th place.

Again, I was watching her performance with my Belarusian flag and seriously praying the God for her success. From the live streaming, I found it was silent despite her routine was going to decide the 3rd place. Therefore music of her performance stood out necessarily. Pressures were unavoidable obviously. But, she did make it. Luba finished her final routine without any mistakes, it was literally perfect and enough to get her bronze. She scored 28.075 points and this made 111.700 points overall which meant ahead of Aliya just 0.125 points. Absolutely competitive. Expression soon after her performance was like this as Olivier has taken (if I were there, I would not have taken these because I must have applauded to her). And she kissed on the floor which was quite impressive.


Despite whole the competition has not been finished yet, honestly I have cried for her in front of my laptop along with the Belarusian flag. I suppose it was because of the following reasons. Firstly, I was moved by her performance and expression simply and totally. Secondly, I was not at the venue and was not able to see this historical moment. Obviously, it was ultimately disappointing and regrettable for me. Thirdly, anger against the foolish organiser. Tears came out gradually from my eyes.



I saw her that much emotional expression for the first time and even felt unusual. Although I've been watching her for approximately 3 years, she has never shown like that. Of course I was impressed by her performance and her achievement which is bronze medal but, her acts were more than that for me.

In fact, even though she has got a lot of prizes, she doesn't have medals of all-around of neither world championship and European one. Therefore, this Olympics bronze was the first major title for her in terms of all-round. In a way this might specify how unlucky she used to be.

After a few days, I read some articles about her and they were basically saying that the reason why she expressed that emotionally was because she had been feeling tremendous pressures inside. And after finishing all her routines, she was relieved and thought that she doesn't have to go training tomorrow. She might take care of the rival Aliya but, I definitely understand her feelings. Because pressures cannot be seen, invisible. Moreover, it does not have any units which means unpredictable and also not scalable. Therefore I really really respect and admire her.
She comments in another articles saying that this bronze medal is not hers but for her country, coach, rhythmic gymnastics in Belarus and again, all over the country. What a lovely lady she really is. In addition, it can be said that she was carrying massive expectations and sort of burdens through her career.

All in all, there was a exquisite, breathtaking, magnificent drama on the day and there has been hidden stories behind the drama. I was fascinated by this particular sport more and more. Liubov Charkashyna, she became history and a legend. She deserved. Nobody can eliminate what she has done  11th of August 2012 and it should be everlasting.

Finally, just one thing I have to write about here. I really did not know about the fact that Luba has lost her mother in 2009 when she was 20 years. Although I believed myself as a big fan of hers and I have been watching and supporting her over the last 3 years, I'm disqualified because I did not notice such a significant affair. In her interview, she mentioned that she will dedicate her medal to her mother.


10 August, 2012

London 2012 Olympic Games Rhythmic Gymnastics Day 1


It's been almost two weeks since I started to try to get a ticket for individual final but, time has passed without any result for the particular day. During my attempts, I managed to get a ticket for group final as I wrote before. Because of this, I was refraining from buying any types of tickets except for the individual final as every ticket and train fare costs a lot and of course I thought watching just qualifications was pointless for me. But, in this case I can not watch any individual competitions live despite I'm living in the host country and of course I can get to the venue with in two hours. Then I decided to buy a ticket for qualification day 1 and made it.




£24 for day travel card and £95 for the match. I don't want to convert this into Japanese Yen.
Firstly, I noticed that my allocated seat was awful as it was above 1st floor, too far from the mat. The degree of the spectator seats are steep therefore it's easy to watch the performances but, seemed too small as well. In terms of photographing, it was not suitable at all. Before the competitions begins, I came across a photographer Tom inside of the venue and he was trying to swap his seat to better one. According to him, he made it and got a seat on the floor level, very close to gymnasts performing. I should have followed his way but, my aim and priority were not to photograph but to cheer gymnasts so I chose a sort of compromise.

Secondly, as I expected there were lots of empty seats as images indicate. In spite of this situation, to get an official ticket online is extremely hard. I was able to find many seats for official photographers which were not used, and also numbers of booked ones (perhaps for sponsors). This was an exactly the same phenomenon when I've watched volleyball games about a week ago.

Thirdly, many spectators were late for the commencement of the match. Consequently, the late spectators come and take seats during the competition which was simply destructive. Moreover, one of them started eating at the seat. Eating itself is not prohibited but,  again as the image points out, she occupies an empty seat next to her and enjoys sort of picnic. It smelled considerably, probably curry or something spicy stuff. Above all, the spectators were unsophisticated in terms of watching a sport. Because they don't know much about what rhythmic gymnastics is. Most of the crowds were Union Jack holders, in other words British which means they are not real rhythmic gymnastics fans. Certainly, the atmosphere at the venue was different to regular competitions but, I supposed this is a different way.

Anyway, show must go on as follows.


















Only Hoop and ball took place for the day 1. Probably, every gymnast had certain amount of tension and due to this their performances were quite stable. I didn't see big mistakes, which was good. However, as I mentioned earlier it was too much distanced from my seat. Not to mention, I took my Belarusian flag with me and waved it from my seat. I was not quite sure if Luba was able to recognise it but, I suppose I was a sole person who waved Belarusian flag. Maybe flilmed by BBC.

Another thing I regarded was that many of gymnast's leo were renewed. This should mean that the Olympics is something special for gymnasts.











At the group competition, I waved a Japanese flag which I was supposed to use at the volleyball match and also an Italian one which I purchased for volleyball as well. Not only waving but also I shout to cheer team Japan in Japanese. Although this was my first experiences, it was not too bad. Perhaps this is because there were not so many Japanese supporters which makes me much more proud.

When it comes to performance by British team, crowds made massive noise even though they are not familiar with this particular sport ( I assume that they just want to be excited). And it seemed to me childish as usual.
And I'm not sure if every competition I've ever seen has done same thing but, there was a commentary at the venue and she commented something about the last performance. To me it was annoying because obviously it was for the crowds who don't know about rhythmic gymnastics. And basically, she can't criticise gymnast's performance since they might listen to the comments. Eventually every comment have to be positive which should not necessarily required although I hardly listened to it.

In summary, as I have written, I felt some kind of gap between the gymnast's concentration and the people's attitude. Gymnasts performed so well but spectators were not synchronised to this. Including the ticketing problem, the first Olympic Game experience was quite odd for me in different aspects.