#Boosted my confidence a bit. Though I will need to challenge myself more with poses as time goes on. I need to build my intuition!

[artsy-foxo]

The final sketch is on top, and steps 1 and 2 are on the bottom.

For a first day attempt, I think I did a wonderful job!

[the-gay-cryptid]

Camping Trip

I have never been an outdoorsy person. Not really. Sure, I like walking in the field behind my house. It’s big enough that I’ve gotten lost a couple times and had to consider the possibility that I’d need to call my parents to help me. But I always had my phone in those situations. I had food and water and was never more than an hours walk from civilization. Even so, when i learned of our sophomore retreat, I decided to embrace the wilderness.

For our retreat, we went into the smoky mountains for a few days with our classmates and three teachers. It wasn’t exactly camping, since we were actually sleeping in dorms, but the dorms weren’t nice. The building was freezing cold and the bunk beds didn’t have actual mattresses, just those thin mats we used in kindergarten at naptime. Then there were the ladybugs. Those perfectly harmless and charming little red and black bugs. Signs of good luck. Signs of a lovely spring day. They were everywhere.

One of my closest friends once admitted to me she was terrified of ladybugs after her house had a small infestation. I used to laugh at her. Then I got to Tremont and had to sleep with a towel over my head so the ladybugs didn’t get in my hair or mouth while I slept. In the mornings, i had to shake them out of my hiking boots. It was disgusting, but I could at least appreciate the potential for a story of my classmates shrieking in the night because a lady bug had crawled on her face.

I complain a lot about the dorms, but they really weren’t so bad. Even the communal bathroom wasn’t too bad. And that’s coming from someone who locks the doors for privacy when I’m just brushing my teeth. Would I ever actually choose a communal bathroom? Absolutely not. But I could live with it so long as the next ones didn’t have ladybugs trying to escape the shower water by flying into my hair.

Every morning we rose from our uncomfortable beds that left my shoulders cramped for almost a week and went to breakfast. Breakfast was okay, with it’s bland pancakes and even more bland yogurt. But there was hot tea, and that was all I really needed. Lunch and dinner weren’t much better, but they served brownies after dinner, which were surprisingly good. After breakfast (and lunch) we went on hikes or had rest time. Most people spent rest time in the dorms sleeping or hanging out. I opted for the hikes that our biology teacher took a few girls on.

They were short, easy hikes that usually took us to the river. The water was freezing cold, and we all took advantage of it to rub down our necks and foreheads after we’d been running around the forest. It was so quiet out there. I don’t live in the city, and I do wander around the field, but I can’t ever escape that faint hum of civilization. Of cars. Of shouting children. But out there, standing on a rock dangerously close to the river’s edge, I heard only water and wind. It would’ve been disturbing if it wasn’t so beautiful.

On our last day, we went on the hardest hike of all: The Waterfall. The walkways were narrow and right on the edge of the mountain. We had to walk single file and warn each other of loose leaves and mud. Even so, several of us fell and finished the hike with dirty hands and clothes. Some parts of the trail were so steep, we had to climb on our hands and knees, like we did when we were kids running up stairs. Unlike the stairs, the mountain was uneven and muddy and didn’t just leave us with carpet burn when we slipped.

With the worst of the hike over, we were faced with the next challenge: scaling rocks to get to the actual waterfall. The paths on this hike were all extremely narrow, and as we got closer to the waterfall, the rocks got bigger. Though they’d been worn down a bit over the years of people climbing over them, we still had to boost each other up. Getting down them was much easier, since we could essentially just slide down.

If we had felt like it, we probably could have just walked upriver and bypassed the rocks altogether, but one of our girls had fallen in the river during an activity the day before, and she’d come out bruised and so cold her whole body trembled and her lips took on hinted hues of blue. We’d all given up our spare blankets to warm her when we got back. She was fine after some hot chocolate a good group hug, but walking in the river was still a no go.

Surprisingly, no one got hurt on the rocks. After them, we finally reached our destination. The waterfall wasn’t huge, only a couple stories tall if I had to guess, but it was still pretty. We partook in the Tremont waterfall challenge, (dunking your face in the freezing water beside the waterfall for seven seconds) and painted our faces with mud made from rubbing two river rocks together. I swear that mud was magical, because it cleared my skin by nightfall.

I’d made it through the hike without a problem. I’d shoved my face in cold water. I’d put mud on my face. I’d taunted my teachers with my classmates so they’d stick their faces in the river too. But when I finally injured myself, it was because I was posing for a picture. It wasn’t even a dangerous picture. We were just standing on a rock a little ways into the river. We only had to hop across spaces between the rocks, and the spaces were each no bigger than six inches across. Just like I’d done on every single hike that went by the river.

It was a stupid mistake. I had gotten confident from my lack of injuries throughout the entire trip, and this was our final hike. So my dumb, arrogant self tried to jump to the next rock. Fun fact: river rocks tend to be wet and slippery. As any half wit could tell you, it’s best not to jump on them. Hell, even I knew that when I was jumping. But I assumed my boots had good grip on them. Thing is, my boots were meant to grip dry rock and dirt.

My foot slid from under me and I went down. I didn’t fall in, thank God, but I skinned my hand and knee on the rock. Several people panicked when I fell, since I’d barely caught myself before my head collided with the stone. I’d gotten close enough that the edge of the frame of my glasses got scratched, but my head itself thankfully didn’t hit. I was okay, just a little bloody. I got a bandaid and sat for the picture. I actually still have a small scar on my knee from the fall.

The best hike was not the last one though. The best had occurred on our first full day there. There’d been whispers of it from the moment we saw the whiteboard in the mess hall with our day’s schedule: the night hike. Those words were murmured like rumors of a haunted house among middle schoolers. I thought nothing of it. We were just going to bring our flashlights for a late night hike. No big deal. Then dinner rolled around and we were informed that, no, we would not have flashlights. Then I freaked out a little.

I am perfectly willing to admit that I’m a tad afraid of the dark. I’m not scared of monsters hiding in the dark under my bed or anything, I’m just scared of all the things that can go wrong when you can't see. I have a recurring nightmare of going into the kitchen late at night to get a glass of water, only to drop it and have it shatter around my bare feet, leaving me stranded and bleeding until someone comes to rescue me. That nightmare is the reason I keep a huge plastic water bottle in my room at night. I know I don’t have to be afraid of dropping glass in the forest, but there are other very real things to be scared of.

The forest was overrun with wild boars, for example. Our guides had all warned us how to spot tracks and what to do if we saw one. They even pointed out some of the traps they’d set to capture and relocate the boars since they’d started to over populate in the park. There were also wolves, as our guide told us in a story about how she’d accidentally run into a couple on the verge of a battle one night. There were also owls. We weren’t warned about them, but we could hear them. Owls are too often forgotten to be the vicious predators they really are. They’ve been known to attack people’s heads before, and just the thought of those vicious talons sinking into the back of your head is terrifying.

We walked in a darkness so thick, I couldn’t see my hair when it fell across my glasses. We walked single file, whispering warnings about loose rocks, roots, and steep step downs. We clutched the shoulder of the person in front of us and stayed pressed to the mountain to keep from falling down its side. I tried to map in my head where we were going, recalling that my teacher had mentioned one of the paths we’d taken on an optional hike was used for the night hike, but I quickly realized I was not on that at least vaguely familiar trail. Then I lost my grip on the girl in front of me.

I’ve always had anxiety. It’s gotten worse since I got older, but I learned how to manage it, and it rarely left me unable to think clearly. But then i was in a dark forest with nothing to hold onto. I was acutely aware of how far I was from civilization. Of how close the edge of the trail was. I was alone and lost. I felt a scream in my chest, but it couldn’t get past my constricted throat, and I could only gasp in the fresh air that felt too pure for my emotional state. I imagine i might’ve looked comedic. My eyes wide as I jerked my head around and fumbled with my arms straight out for a tree branch. But i felt absolute terror deep in my chest, like I was already on the verge of death.

I looked up at saw billions of stars. Living somewhere so rural, I’d never known how truly dark the world could be, nor did I have the faintest idea that I could see so much in the sky. So far and many that I knew i was very small and insignificant among them. I’d never seen so many. I’d never seen a sky so black. It was cold and vast and I was small and alone. I did not find fear in that sudden understanding. I found calm. Looking back, my reaction was incredibly melodramatic, but it felt so crystalline and simple at the time. I thought if i’m going to die, then this is a beautiful last thing to see. Then my teacher put her hand on my shoulder and guided me forward till we reached the group again. The group which had only made it a few feet in the brief thirty seconds i’d faced what I imagined to be a very evident demise. Fear certainly turns us into drama queens.

I didn’t lose track of the group again, but I had another moment to admire my insignificance in the universe. We’d separated, going a mere five or six feet from our stopping point, and sat down at the order of our guide. We were told to sit in total silence for five minutes, at which point she’d call us back. I sat on the cold damp river bank and looked straight out. I couldn’t even tell when I’d blinked or stared into the woods. Both were equally void of light.

The bank of the river was made up of cold, damp mud that chilled my hands and legs. Without thinking of all the bugs that might be there, I laid on my back and closed my eyes. It was so calm. So strangely quiet. It was too cold for crickets to even be out and chirping, so the only sound was the river. And something else.

I strained my ears, but kept my eyes closed. The sound was constant and distant, and also extremely familiar. I sat up and opened my eyes, searching the shadows for any movement. It sounded like another group of hikers talking in the distance. Probably just like us. I heard them laugh and heard their changing inflections as they talked. I even thought I could make out a few words. But I couldn’t see anything. They sounded like they were just up the river, but they never got any closer.

A sudden fear began up my spine again. What if it was my group? What if they’d started back and I’d not heard the guide calling us? I felt sure I hadn’t really wandered that far, only a few feet or so. But it was so dark out there really was no way to tell. Oh god, what if I was alone? I could never find my way back, i didn’t even have my flashlight with me. I’d left it in the dorms after we’d been told we wouldn’t be allowed to use them on the hike. I could maybe survive for one night; I’d watched Man vs. Wild plenty of times. But I didn’t have anything useful. Just a journal, a pen, and a lightweight jacket in my bag. You can’t exactly defend yourself from boars or wolves with those.

I began turning side to side rather frantically, searching everywhere for any sign of anyone I knew. My heart pounded so loud in my ears, I couldn’t hear my group in the distance anymore. I turned and sat on my knees, opening my eyes as wide as possible to make them adjust and start to see anything. In one of my panicked turns, I saw something human-ish in shape leaned against the rock. When I squinted, i could make out a small, pointed nose and straight hair.

“Angie?” I said softly, and the head turned. “Oh, just making sure it’s you.”

“It’s me,” she answered. I sighed, knowing instantly she was telling the truth. Even when she was whispering, she still had her distinct Vietnamese accent.

Now that I knew I wasn’t alone, I faced out to the river again. The sound was still there. It was still the same distance away. Who in the hell was out there whispering and giggling, but not actually hiking?

And then, like someone had smacked me upside the head and knocked the obvious explanation into my head, it hit me. The river. It was the river. What I mistook for voices was simply the gurgling water against the rocks. I finally understood why we describe brooks as “babbling”, because even now that I was aware of it, I couldn’t shake the belief that what I heard was people.

I could imagine how people can go crazy getting lost in the woods. The deceptive sounds of nature could lead anyone to believe they weren’t alone in the unbreakable darkness out there. Stories of fae and madness made so much sense now, and firmly set my intention to never go hiking alone or without damn good supplies ever again.

With the misunderstood danger gone, I tilted my head back and looked up. The stars were beautiful, and I was breathless. I decided then and there, I’d spend as much time watching the stars as I could from then on. I’ve always loved space. I love how big and vast and full of potential it is. It’s exciting. Like a gigantic mystery novel waiting to be read. I’d been describing myself as insignificant in comparison to it, but that just wasn’t true. I wasn’t insignificant because I couldn’t be compared to it. I am just a small living thing trying to compare itself the the entirety of the universe. It just wasn’t fair to myself.

Our return hike was silent. No warnings whispered over our shoulders. Just silence as we all returned to the dorms to sleep. I didn’t talk much that night. I called dibs on the first shower, and I told my friends goodnight. I laid in my bunk, towel over my head, and closed my eyes and dreamed beautiful things of a void of stars and whispering creatures living in shadows.

[spoonie-living]

Photo: Oscar Alexander

[Image: A thin, olive-skinned person sitting sidesaddle in a manual wheelchair and looking down with a smile. The text reads, “Interview with spoonie model Pansy St. Battie / ❤️️, Spoonie Living” in black and green gothic font. The model has one arm rested against their knee and the other bracing themself against the side of the chair. Their hair is a huge pompadour of two shades of green with yellow roots. They have thick brows and matching purple eyeshadow and lipstick. They are wearing all black, with a bleach-stained leather jacket, layered necklaces, a crop top, a high-waisted skater skirt, and huge lace-up platform shoes with cherry blossoms suspended in the clear plastic of the platforms. Their wheelchair is decorated with matching flowers.]

Interview with spoonie model Pansy St. Battie

Folks, we’re delighted to bring you an interview with Pansy St. Battie (@qcrip), a spoonie model who’s been making waves with their glamorous wheelchair shoots.

You may recognize this particular one we posted recently, L E G E N D A R Y.

Pansy is a desi, queer, trans, chronically ill, and mentally ill disabled model with quite a portfolio. If you want to know more about their story, especially if you’re interested in modeling yourself, just click the Read More!

[CN: brief mentions of drug use, homophobia, ableism]

Q: To get started, I'm sure all our readers would love to know: what's your spoonie cred?

A: Well, I'm officially undiagnosed for most of my systems. Unofficially, my doctors suspect I have EDS. Besides that I got chronic fatigue, joint inflammation, hypermobility, scoliosis, seizures, you know, all that fun stuff. I'm a well rounded medical mystery.

Q: How has disability impacted your life, identity, relationships, and work?

A: Disability has impacted me in two major ways that directly correlate, negative and positive. The first is obviously direct ableism. Having to deal with ableism led to a lot of lost friendships, lost aspirations, and lost opportunities, and of course the inevitable confidence issues none of us love to talk about but most of us have.

On the flip side, it gave me a lot of time to myself, and put me in a lot of situations that called for me to introspect on who I am, what I value in society, and what's truly important to myself. I credit my interest in modeling and fashion quite a bit to my disability. Fashion and makeup became something I could do without leaving the house, and modeling became a way to reclaim my otherwise medicalized body.

On the work side of it, it attracts a lot of fetishy weirdos who want me to pose for their self congratulatory shoot of the day (unsurprisingly, they get blocked), but it also attracts a lot of brands and artists who genuinely see the value in me as a model. Those are often brands run by people who are bold, take no shit people (dare I name drop Laura Byrnes, of Pinup Girl Clothing), and people who stand for causes and make art that I believe in.

Q: What does an average day look like for you?

A: It changes so much, but I sleep super late. Like the only way you can convince me to wake up at a semi-reasonable hour is if I have a shoot. Usually besides that I wake up sorta late, and then either go to the doctor or take my dog out depending on how lucky I am that day. Then I get home and I give myself some time to chill out.

Quite honestly, the best self care for me is dressing up and taking photos, but I'm also into Pinterest and watching cartoons on more average days. Then usually studying and then staying up super late doing stuff like answering these questions and sending emails. Which is why I sleep in late probably, to be honest.

Q: You have a lot of marginalized identities. Do you have any thoughts on the ways they intersect with disability and the interplay between them all?

A: Well obviously, they all intersect in the medical landscape. I can't get painkillers and they all think I do heroin! Like, if I did do heroin that'd be a horrible excuse to mistreat me but my drug tests have come out clean since the beginning of time. They also always think I'm pregnant which my current relationship doesn't exactly lend itself to. Oh, and some doctor told me I have seizures because I'm too gay, which is ridiculous, but a hilarious story I have now.

Then there's the social aspect which is just, complicated. I think I'm lucky in the sense that working freelance and being financially secure allows me to chose who I spend time with and avoid people and places that are scummy to me. It obviously affects a lot of things though, especially when it comes to discrimination. I'm like, wait, why are you discriminating against me, there's too many options! Also when people say they're praying for me like wait, why, it could be so many things!

Q: How did you get into modeling initially? How has your relationship with it changed over time?

A: I initially started modeling by accident when I had the pleasure of doing a lovely shoot with Shameless Photography for my birthday. It really boosted my confidence, and from there I got to shooting with friends and started posting photos and let it grow.

I think the biggest change is my skill level and confidence. I obviously didn't know what I was doing super well at first and I think that makes it way more nerve wracking. I think once I started studying and practicing I became way more confident. I became able to take risks, and to know who I am as a model.

All through, though, it's been a very empowering and healing process for me. I know for a lot of people the way the industry is, it's not. I [make] strong choices to frame myself and work with people that frame me in the way I want to be seen, but it's also tough because I know plenty of people need to make the choice between self-advocacy and enough success to get food on the table. I'm very lucky to not have to, and because of that this really has become my passion.

Q: How does your modeling intersect with your disabilities? What challenges have you faced, from an industry perspective or just logistically?

A: There's obviously the major challenge of people that don't want to hire me because I'm in a wheelchair. It's weird to me that people think it won't sell clothes because like, everyone sits down in clothes. It's not like no one wants to see what clothes look like while seated. Abled people don't stand 24/7. Then there's travel because I can't exactly get on a plane on the regular. That's tough for agencies, and it limits the scope of people I can work with for obvious reasons.

Q: What sort of advice do you have for fellow spoonies who are interested in modeling? Any resources, sites, or communities to recommend?

A: My biggest advice is just to find people, friends, family, college photography students, professional photographers if you can afford it, who you enjoy working with, and take photos.

The downside is the modeling industry is super exclusive. It's hard to make a living off of it, and hard to get famous. If that's what you aim for from the start, you're going to be disappointed.

The upside is models are needed for so many things. If you're modeling because you enjoy it, there's always going to be brands, artists, and your own instagram to model for. If you're good at it and you hustle you can make a bit of cash. If you get lucky, you can make more, but that's just luck.

Q: Finally, what's your favorite spoonie product or life hack?

A: Wheelchair cupholders! They changed my life. Also Biofreeze.

Want more Pansy in your life?

Pansy St. Battie on Tumblr Pansy St. Battie on Instagram Pansy St. Battie on the web

...and if you like their work, why not buy them something nice?

[chloepalmerblog]

Module Feedbacks Reflection.

Initial Project Feedback:

Chloe Palmer

Used module well to work on a variety of Fashion editorial shoots on multiple well chosen locations.

Your project proposal doesn’t necessarily get to ‘why’ the outcomes might work. What is it about these locations that works in a fashion context? How do we define ‘instagrammable?’ I’m not sure to what extent the locations are ugly or undesirable? Your research is fairly limited in terms of established sources; I realise the look you’re going for is linked to the area of industry you want to work in, but studying the work of people like Juergen Teller, Corinne Day etc give you a better starting point for visual research. You’ve done really well to work with models, the wide range of models lends the project a professional feel, the poses/gestures are moving in the right direction, though occasionally some can look awkward. Sometimes the models look really good and suit the theme, other times some things can change the mood, such as eye contact and smiling. Sometimes the colour is off and a bit green, make sure you’re correcting white balance before adding filters or making other changes, though this could be the printing. The amount of work you put into organising your shoots, working with models and organising locations is exemplary; you should be really proud of your professionalism and work ethic.  Cover image is really good and feel the final page spread is getting closer to what you’re after which suggests that this exercise has been useful for you. Your dummy is evidence that thought and time is going into the layout.  Your evaluation highlights some of the successful areas and evidences your developing skills and ideas, though does overlook some of the less successful areas mentioned above which would better support your major project.

Your proposal for Major Project has a lot of potential, as discussed in sessions it is important you use each week to build on supporting workbook alongside the practical week.  For major project suggest using your workbook/ sketch book more regularly to document the journey of your project ensuring you clearly document all learning outcomes showing for instance your - ability to synthesize theoretical concepts and practical skills to produce a coherent body of work and communicate it effectively.   Important to show contextual research for project.

Creative outcomes with supporting evidence (equivalent to 3,750 words) - 75%  weighting

69%

Critical and reflective evaluation  (1,250 words) – 25%   weighting

59%

Overall

66.5%

Jamie Dormer Durling

Richard Edkins

Reflection:

I was very pleased with my results for Initial Project. I wish I could of know the developments before hand and I would have improved my grade to bump into the first grade mark. However I can take on this feedback and work on them through my Major Project.  I understand that I did not say why the outcomes might work. I believe that the images and location was successful if I was able to get strong images. If there is a connection with the model and location, then they work well together to make a stronger image. The locations may not be fashion related but by having the fashion there brings its attention and focus to the fashion. I believe the fashion is more interesting when there is a unique background that works with the model. If the model looks comfortable and confident and knows how to pose correctly with the items there; then the image automatically works as a whole. I believe anyone can create a cool image if they work well with any location. The fact that the location is different and challenging makes the image fun and unusual. Unusual tends to intrigue the viewer as it is somewhere they have not seen used as location. 

Instagrammable means a Photo or a Picture that is worth posting on Instagram. However I believe a instagrammable photo is of something that is popular and in trend during that current time. 

My research was limited within books and photographers. However I found the most successful research was through YouTube videos where photographers did this challenge. It was easier to understand when you see someone work with the location visually. I felt like this trend or style of photography was new and popular. Therefore finding photographers who have done this was limited. All my research would come from being online as books would not have the relevance. However I could have had a library session and find locations that seem to be challenging through photos. 

I understand the images may look different and not right to some people but I have edited my preset to my style. Therefore it may not match everyones taste. I understand I need to check the white balance so that the skin tones and light areas do not get changed dramatically. 

I believe I worked hard with getting models and arranging lots of photoshoots. I had plenty of images that I could have used for the book.

I believe that Rich said a good point about using a workbook or notebook to document your work. I will use notebook to write down any meeting I have had with Chloe, so that I have the information stored to come back too. It is a big project, therefore there is lots of things to discuss so writing everything down is important. I will aim to document as much as I can, even conversations through text with Chloe. We want to make sure things get done and that we remember what we have discussed. 

I will take this feedback and work on developing myself through the Major Project.

Critical and Contextual Research Feedback:

Reflection:

My first reaction to my markings for the dissertation and research proposal and presentation was I was very pleased. I feel like writing essays is not my strong point when it comes to education. Hence why I am very passionate about photography. I was worried about this module the most as when I studying my Foundation Degree at City of Bristol College, I did not have the full support I needed. My tutor for the module was always ill or could not make it into college. Therefore I felt like I struggled by not having the support I needed as essays was not my strong point either.

 However, with this dissertation, I was given as much support needed to pass it. Sam was always available for a tutorial or able to read through my plans and writing sections. He always responded to my emails and helped as much as he could. Sam sent through structure guides and many lessons/lectures on how to write a dissertation. I also contacted Hannah Raines who works at the libraries throughout the university buildings. We had spoke through emails about any referencing enquires. I had a library session where we went through the library in depth, to find books that were relevant and beneficial to my research. 

By having the support I needed, I was more confident when writing my dissertation. As I was nervous about getting these results back, I was surprised by the marks I had received. I was expecting to just get a pass but I managed to get a high 2:1 grade. Of course, I was gutted I was a very small percentage of a first but I am still very happy that I achieved that grade. I worked very hard to get that grade as I knew essays was not my strong point. I feel like I made a good use of the library and its books. 

The first draft of my Research Proposal had grammar and spelling mistakes. Therefore I fixed those mistakes and was able to boost my marks a bit more. Sam said for me to include more books in my research. He stated that there was lots of books written about body image/feminism. I acted on this feedback and had a library session with Hannah to find as many books relevant to my essay. Even though my essay is a modern topic, there was still lots of books I found on certain sections of the essay. I felt like I found and red through many books to increase my knowledge on these subjects. 

If I had to do the presentation again, I would include more information about money and its impact on online behaviour, as Sam said that would be important to address. This would be an extra slide to the powerpoint to explain this. 

For the dissertation, I realised I should have done more study of fashion photography. I felt like my essay had so many turning points into another essay, it was hard to narrow it down. However I should have included a little section about fashion photography itself. For example, about the necessity for women to look a certain way, in order to sell them products. For the survey, Sam said I needed to analyse their different reasons/answers more. Instead of making a generalised statement. I understand this as those who disagreed has an important point to make swell and I should focus on them more. 

Overall, I am very pleased with these results as I thought I was not going to do as successful in this module. I have surprised myself and realised I am much better than Ii thought I was.

Research Portfolio Feedback:

Reflection:

I enjoyed this module as I was looking a new skill that would be beneficial for my business. I managed to look lots of new editing skills on Lightroom and a few on Photoshop. However Lightroom is my chosen editing software. For this module the key thing to understand what is happening in the industry. I understand that it would be useful for myself find out why these popularities have become. I understand that once I learn about these, it will increase how I am critical when evaluating ideas. There is some trends which are worth following and some that are best ignored as Jamie said. I agree with Jamie as I have found trends that are popular and are worth getting on the band wagon. However it is also important to understand why some trends do not become successful. I believe it's important to know what makes something popular. And how it does that. 

I believe I have made some good critical observations of others work, this helps me understand how they have created that particular style. 

Jamie said with my preset can be inconsistent with indoor ones than outside ones. I do struggle sometimes with the indoor ones as the lighting is difficult. However I believe I have improved greatly with editing the indoor ones. I have created an indoor preset which is just the lighting has been boosted and the shadows have been decreased. I understand what Jamie means as I have been working on it for a while. It is not perfect but I have developed since. If I have more time, I would try and develop my preset for indoor to be more successful. This would. be done by watching more Youtube Tutorials on how others do this. I understand I need to keep the whites as white as possible. Presets are good and efficient but the skin tones may be affected by the colour scheme. I believe I need to focus on the skin tone more so that it does not look odd or clearly showing there is a filter on it. 

I believe that a preset may not fit all images of different models with different skin tones. However I believe it is a starting point where most of the editing is done and then I can adjust any anomalies that make the photo look wrong. There is lots of ways you can edit your image to look like, whether it is changing the whole look or making someone look more tanned. It just depends on what the client wants their images to look like. They might edit a particular way to match their social media feeds. 

Overall, I am happy with my grade and understand Jamies Feedback. Next time, I will be more informative about how a preset may not fit with every image and how I would adjust that so iit would work with the image. I would make my notes from workshops and tutorials more detailed so that I have all the information needed. The more detail allow me to reflect on the workshop better. 

[evnoweb]

An Interview with Terry Greene

Terry Greene is a “Program Manager for @eCampusOntario working at the traffic circle of learning, tech, and open education.”  Terry’s online personality wavers between very serious and not so serious but he’s always interesting. Over the Christmas Break, Terry was kind enough to take some time to be interviewed.

Let’s find out more about Terry.

Doug:  First question, as always.  Do you remember when we first met (online or off) and what interested you in maintaining the connection?

Terry: We have never met IRL, but I remember following you and always taking note of the people you would boost through #FollowFridays or This Week In Ontario Edublogs. When I was included in that list myself for the first time, I swooned. Still swoon. Every time. It is a huge honour to have a blog post of mine chatted about by you and Stephen Hurley on your voicEd show. Also, I had no idea that there were times that I came across as very serious! Maybe I need to tweet more dad jokes.

Doug:  eCampusOntario has been an interesting engagement for me.  My first connection to you would have been through a mutual friend, Alana.  eCampusOntario brands itself as a “team”. Who are the team members?

Terry: Yeah it is an evolving team to be sure. I am part of the Program Manager team, which are all secondees/contract positions. These positions were always designed to be temporary. We were all extended for a second round, which comes to an end in June. Two of the PMs have already moved on actually. The band is breaking up! Peg French and I will hold down the fort for the rest of the way! Joanne Kehoe (back to McMaster) and Jenni Hayman (off to Cambrian College) have already moved on! We dubbed ourselves the PMers. I am quite confident that I will reach out to them for advice on a regular basis for the rest of my career. There is also a team of 15 or so permanent employees working away in an agile way at the head office in Toronto. There’s the leadership group, the finance team and the Creative Comms team working hard every day for Ontario’s Colleges and Universities!

Doug:  Who manages the eCampusOntario and OntarioExtend Twitter accounts?

Terry: The ecampusOntario account is run by Julia Martineau from the Creative Comms team. She tweets out in French and English and lets us know about all the exciting things eCampus is up to. The OntarioExtend Twitter account is run by me and Alan Levine. Since it’s just for one of the eCampus projects, we can kind of get away with having a little more fun with that one. Like this tweet, for example: https://twitter.com/ontarioextend/status/1062035100882345986

Doug:  Through your efforts, I’ve been able to make connections with and follow some interesting blogs from College and University instructors and professors.  They’ve most definitely taken me beyond my traditional K-12 comfort zone. Is there a list of educators who are part of this project somewhere?

Terry: Through various Ontario Extend cohorts and side projects like the 9x9x25 reflective writing challenge, we have a list of 80 blogs that currently have made 983 total posts. Some of them are inactive at the moment, but there is a whole lot of great sharing going on! https://extend-domains.ecampusontario.ca/all-blogs/

And stay tuned for a whack more to appear as we launch our Extend mOOC, which currently has about 300 participants interested in signing up. Not all of those will choose the blogging route, but we hope a fair chunk do.

Doug:  Thanks for the list. I’ll look forward to looking through it for fresh blogging content.

Throughout the project that I’ve followed from the outside, there have been a number of challenges posed and interactions through blogs on their end.  What’s the measure of success for this project?

Terry: To me, anyone who is interested in judging whether or not something is worthwhile can decide for themselves using whatever criteria they’d like. I personally deem last semester’s Ontario Extend side project, the 9x9x25 Reflective Writing Challenge a great success. It was able to produce 373 blog posts from 43 different blogs, all writing reflectively and in the open about teaching and learning, mostly in Ontario. Blog posts inspired comments which inspired further posts. Some of the blogs were team efforts, so they brought those teams together. People grew their Personal Learning Networks. Participants were ecstatic to have the honour of their posts being discussed on your radio show with Stephen Hurley, TWIOE! That’s a whole heck of a lot of great connections being made and many were by groups and people who had not been exposed to Ontario Extend before. I would have judged the effort worthwhile to get a tenth of what we got.

Doug:  Have these people actually met each other face to face?  Personally, I think that the project would be a wonderful session for the Bring IT, Together Conference.  

Terry: I really enjoy meeting face to face with people whom I’ve connected with only online. It’s kind of surreal usually. Always fun. And I’ve never been to BIT. That’s a great idea. Maybe we can round up a few people who’ve never met IRL and throw them on a panel together!

Doug:  What will happen to these blogs?  A recent post on your blog https://learningnuggets.ca/9x9x25/the-legacy/ seems to indicate that things are about to change.

Terry: We will continue to syndicate blogs for anyone partaking in Ontario Extend activities, and try to drum up reasons for people to post on a regular a basis for as long as we can. I’m hoping for eternity. The post you linked to was to mark the end of the initial 9x9x25 activity. The idea was to have people make 9 posts over 9 weeks, with every post being 25 sentences at least. That came to an end, and we would like to mark the occasion by putting together a “best of” awards show on Twitter.

Doug:  Will you keep the LearningNuggets blog active?

Terry:  Learningnuggets.ca will always be my domain to share ideas, think out loud, and just basically be my brain’s steam valve. I always seem to find a need to post something here and there. I have one cooking right now about our thoughts for running the ExtendMOOC. It’s not often you get to actually do some work with your number one hero. I get to this term. Alan Levine aka CogDog aka Open Education Subject Zero is working with us on the mOOC.

Doug:  In addition to blogging, you are also active in podcasting with “Gettin’ Air”.  I follow it on voicEd Radio but your blog indicates it’s anywhere people like to find podcasts!  As I write this, you have shared 45 shows. What’s the driving force behind this initiative?

Terry: I guess I should make it more clear that it is a voicEd Radio show! (https://voiced.ca/getting-air-ecampusontario/) I am proud to be a part of that community. It began as another outlet for eCampusOntario to connect with people about how best to go about teaching and learning with openness using technology. This week’s episode featured Ryan Martin, from Queen’s, who developed an open source ed-tech tool with some of his students. And next week I am very excited to chat with Chuck Pearson (@shorterpearson) from Tusculum College in Tennessee. He is an intriguing fellow!

Doug:  What does Open Learning mean to you?  Why is it important to you?

Terry:  Open Learning is a gift. A gift for you and a gift from you if you are able. When people share their work, ideas, and the resources they’ve created, when they can, we all benefit. I am still learning more and more about open and trying to help make sure it is a force for good. I think of it like this: we all have mountains to climb in our work. Openly shared learning resources and practices can give us a free lift part of the way up towards the summit.

Doug:  That’s a pretty strong conviction and you have to believe that those that buy into it just make their community stronger.

Can K-12 learn from the eCampusOntario experience?  What would you recommend as big takeaways for them?

Terry: Whoa. tough question! I don’t think I know enough about the K12 world to comment here. Could be we’re just catching up to things y’all have been doing for years. I’ll say one thing though: We should all talk more.

Doug:  While not everyone posts their “Top 10 Lists”, everyone does have them.  Who or what would be on your Top 10 Twitter List of people to follow? Extra marks for telling us why.

Terry: Let me try top 5 and see how it goes!

Alan Levine, @cogdog. You’re going to come across him eventually if you have anything to do with open and ed-tech. The most generous in a world of the very generous.

Maha Bali @Bali_Maha, co-founder of Virtually Connecting, prolific and outspoken critic of anything in education that needs to hear it.

Audrey Watters @audreywatters. Writes at hackeducation.com. Hack Education is going dormant for most of this year. I think that is a good thing because it means she is focussing on writing her book, Teaching Machines. Plus there are about 50 Kajillion words of hers already written. We need some time to catch up!

Squad Goals Network @sqdglsntwrk. A biased choice, as I am a member of the gang. Are you too? Yes. Yes, you are. As soon as you think you want to be you are in. It’s a group of people who want to increase access to each other’s work. You’re invited.

Chris Gilliard @hypervisible. I feel like keeping up to date on what Chris has to say is the best way to keep your digital wolves at bay.

Doug:  Extra Marks!  Way to go!

Since we run in different connected circles, it would be no surprise that we have different learning networks.  What’s the most unique follower that you have?

Terry: I’m going to name a unique account that I follow, that I wish followed me. @G2Institute. The Institute of Gremlins 2 Studies: World-class commentary and analysis of the film Gremlins 2: The New Batch. The silliest of premises, taken seriously. We can learn something from this technique of applying serious methods to silly things.

Doug:  What’s next for Terry Greene?  Your header says “Terry Greene just trying some ed-tech stuff, don’t mind me”

Terry: Next for me is that we are launching the ExtendmOOC! We have 299 people signed up to run through the Ontario Extend modules together in Open EdX. It will be a whole lot of sharing of pedagogical approaches and ideas. It’s not too late for others to join, too! Add your name here: bit.ly/ExtendMOOC and we will be in touch.

Other than that, my secondment to eCampusOntario ends in June. I’m excited to see what comes next!

Doug:  Thanks so much for taking the time over the holidays for the interview, Terry.  I appreciate it and I know readers will as well.

Terry: It was an honour and a privilege.

You can stay on top of Terry’s latest here:

Twitter:  https://twitter.com/greeneterry Blog:  https://learningnuggets.ca Podcast: https://voiced.ca/getting-air-ecampusontario/

An Interview with Terry Greene published first on https://medium.com/@DigitalDLCourse

[sustainhealthmagazine]

.@CaseyBatchelor tells us how she boosted her body confidence with fitness app Yoga Blitz

(adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});

Many of us find it difficult to lose even a stone in weight but you lost an incredible four stone in six months, was it hardwork or did you find it easy to shift the weight?

‘I would never say it was easy but it was fun because I did it doing something I love – Yoga! Actually a combination of yoga and high intensity exercises that I called Yoga Blitz.’

What was the secret to the weightloss?

‘The secret was that combination of simple yoga poses mixed with intense fat burning moves like jumping ‘Goddess squats’. Plus I followed a calorie controlled diet because as we all know no exercise can work off a bad diet. So it was doing them together that really worked.'‘

 For those fans who are putting "lose weight" at the top of their goals for this year, what tips would you give to them?

“I would say ‘don’t quit’ is my number one tip. I think most people can stick to a weightloss plan for a few days or even a couple of weeks, but for it to really work, you have to make it part of your life. So choose something you enjoy – like I did, have a plan and if you fall off the wagon – just make sure that you don’t go ‘oh well that’s it I’ve blown it, I’ll just give in. I’ve had one donut, so I may as well have 6!!’ Just say ‘tomorrow is a new day and I’m going to get back on it.”

What advice would you give to those who struggle to lose weight?

‘I would say that you’ve got to find a way to fit it into your lifestyle. So if you always go out at the weekend, have a few drinks and some junk food, then plan for that, so that you really cut back during the week and save the calories up for your days off.'‘

How long have you been practising Yoga?

‘I’ve been practising yoga for 5 years now and qualified as a yoga teacher two years ago.’

I saw that you are indeed a qualified Yoga teacher, how did that come about?

“I just loved it so much and wanted to take it to the next level, so thought learning more and getting qualified was the way to do it.”

Apart from Yoga do you do any other activities to keep you fit?

“Not really to be honest – Yoga Blitz is such a full body workout and on my plan it’s all broken down into short five minute routines so you can fit it round your day, so apart from that I don’t really need to do anything else.”

Do you advise long workouts or short bursts?

“It doesn’t make any difference in terms of your fitness (in fact HIIT – High Intensity Interval Training) is more effective than aerobic (slow and steady) exercise but I love working out in short bursts because it fits round my baby Florence’s nap time!”

What advice would you give to stay on track with 1. Losing the weight and then 2. Keeping the weight off?

“1. Choose a plan – and get organised for it. I really believe if you fail to plan, you plan to fail! So decide, then shop for your diet plan and schedule in your diary when you are going to workout – set alarms on your phone if that helps. And consistency is the key – it doesn’t matter if you only lose a pound a week as long as you keep going you will get there in the end. 2. You have to make sure it’s part of your lifestyle otherwise if you just go back to your old habits, the weight will slam back on super quick. So yes have a night out but the next day rein it in a bit to make up for the calories you’ve ‘spent’. Or do an extra workout.”

Do you get sweet cravings? How do you deal with them?

“Yes I have a sweet tooth! I have found lots of great no-sugar or low sugar alternatives – like Halo Top ice cream which is only 360 calories for a whole tub or rice cakes dipped in chocolate which are only 30 calories each but give you a sweet hit.”

 Certainly sounds like we should be looking into that then haha.

Tell us about your Yoga app YogaBlitz, how did that idea come about?

“I developed this because I was in desperate need! I’d just over-indulged during pregnancy – eating for 6 never mind 2! So I piled on four stone and no, it didn’t just drop off when I gave birth sadly! So I started doing my usual yoga but then realised I need to add in more fat-burning moves to really get the weight off. So this is really the first ever fat burning yoga system in the world! And I’m super proud of it! I managed to lose the weight myself and am now getting a buzz helping others do the same.”

What sets your YogaBlitz app apart from the others out there?

“I’ve lived this myself – I’m not one of those perfect fitness influencers who’s never had any weight problems. Despite being a trained yoga teacher, I got totally unfit as well as overweight during pregnancy but found a way of losing it which works and is really fun. Also the workouts are broken down into short 5 minute routines so you can fit them round your day and the diet is delicious – just what I call ‘normal’ food like sarnies and egg, beans and chips!”

Are there recipes to follow on the app?

“Yes there are loads of recipes – some of them with demo videos to show you how to cook the meals and all super easy to follow and cheap to cook for – no fancy ingredients!”

What’s your favourite recipe to cook?

“I love the Spag Bol because I am always so thrilled to think you can eat that on a diet!”

Do you have a cheat day? And what meal do you go for?

“I definitely go out and have cheat meals – I love a steak with chips and of course a gorgeous pudding – like a chocolate mousse!”

 Now I’m feeling hungry myself, think I need to get to the gym to stave it off!

How do you find time to practice your fitness regime with two little ones around? Well it’s really so much easier with Yoga Blitz because each routine is only five minutes long – they add up to half an hour in total  - but you can do them in segments. I designed it that way so I could fit it round looking after my baby and doing the housework!

What would you say to those who say they can’t find time to fit Yoga into their lives?

“Honestly everyone has five minutes don’t they? Or even half an hour. So you just have to make it important.” 

Do you get your lovely partner Dan working out with you as well?

“Yes!! It’s hilarious – he was so impressed as he saw me getting into shape, he started asking if he could join in! So he started setting his alarm to do it before work with me – couples goals eh?”

How do you feel the industry can make further moves in shifting the change from body image to true health?

“I think there have been lot of positive changes – girls now aspire to have a more healthy look than years ago when super skinny was the goal. But yes it would be great for everyone to be taught in schools about the benefits of exercise – and how not exercising can shorten your life.” 

What do you think about the keyboard warriors and trolls out there who feel the need to abuse people like yourself trying to do good and make change in their life?

“I think a lot of the trolls are very sad people who get a feeling of power by attacking people in the public eye. I try not to focus on them though or complain too much because I know I’m very lucky to have had the breaks I have and make a living doing what I love.”

What’s next in the pipeline for Casey?

“I’ve got a new Yoga Blitz programme launching soon – Beach Blitz so am going to be filming in some lovely beach locations for that – told you I was lucky! So can’t wait to share with everyone!”

Casey’s Yoga Blitz – 90 Day Challenge is available for £14.99 a month Sign up at  www.yogablitz.com

(adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});

READ NEXT

[adamboden]

Does Drama Really Matter? Are you having a laugh?

I'm not here to bang on about EBAC proposals or defame another Tory MP, but I have seen article after article this year answering the question 'Does Drama Really Matter'? Why are we even responding to a question that is so distinctly rhetorical. Ask Google. It also wonders 'Does theatre matter'? Lists the even worse 'Why does theatre matter to you'? Follows with 'Does theatre even matter'? and the aggravating 'Why does theatre education matter'? Siri led me to an article entitled 'Drama Matters: Does It?' Of course these links mostly lead to articles, blogs and videos from advocates of drama, but posing the question in itself suggests the possibility that it doesn't. Isn't it time to stop entertaining the negative altogether, when the positives are so clear to see in any good drama education, inside or outside of school. Let's change the question. Can I suggest a few.  What would the world be like without the arts? Answer - Even Worse.  What life skills can be learnt through the arts? Answer - Most of them.  What six day a week mundane jobs can be relieved between clocking off and the next impending shift by the arts?   Answer - all of them.  Additionally, while I think about it... What incredible affects can the provision of arts training have on our young people? Maybe that's the one we should be asking. For decades, leading drama providers for young people use the phrases 'have fun', 'develop confidence', 'realise potential', 'make new friends' and in recent years we've started to add 'develop life long skills' and 'explore creativity' to our websites and snapchat stories, as we attempt to combat  a politically induced stigma surrounding the arts. But it's never been enough. Do we need to try a little harder? As arts providers, it's been made clear to us, that as wonderful as these benefits to participants are, the government, and an increasing number of parents,  don't think it's enough. And maybe, maybe... sometimes it isn't. If we are using great teachers, providing arts classes at the very best level, then we are providing all these transformative skills, and additionally, much much more, that even more importantly, is incredibly relevant to the problems currently facing not just our young people, but our society today. Don't get me wrong, as the principal Applied Theatre practitioner at one of the UK's foremost performing arts schools for young people, I'm as guilty at the next school's social media marketeer. In the paragraph above, I probably just paraphrased my own last Instagram post, set under a couple of really smiley children having incredible value for money. It's difficult to start including #grit and #criticalthinking when it's hardly going to get the parent down the road to click on a pirate adventure day. This is definitely not happening overnight.  I'm not pretending here that I'm at the forefront of critical engagement within the provision of arts. Far from it. I spend most of my time teaching, while incredibly educated researchers are putting in hour after hour of tremendous work to try and prove the worthiness of the arts to the non-believers. But that doesn't mean I can't do my bit at this level. Let's be honest, after school and weekend performing arts schools are where this all starts for so many. It is a massive stepping stone in the struggle to prove impact and sustainability in the arts. So it's important that we get it right. We know that teaching children a song and dance number from Oliver can boost confidence and co-ordination skills, AND if the choreography leans far away from the original, we're even boosting creativity. Children have fun performing 'A hard knock Life' and they can improve their vocal skills, but start to talk about the orphans situation in the correct way, AND we start to include empathy in the process, something which naturally declines in the adolescent brain. At Bodens, we have belief in increasing our student's grit and determination. Already articles suggest it has no effect on academic achievements (Daily Mail.. does that count?)  while suggesting perhaps it is more useful after the age of 16. What does that mean? How is that a negativity? Aren't we building students up to achieve and keep on achieving throughout their lives. Apparently not. Just up to the exams. Even if that were the case, isn't it already established that drama helps students achieve in other subjects? Or should I save that for another question? Does drama do anything? So we need the drama to compliment the rest of the education. The Maths, English, Science etc. are an incredibly important part of who our young people become, and so is the drama education. Emphatically. I once worked at Toys R Us with an A Level student. He had four of the things. All A grade. Couldn't sell a 'Cozy coupe' to a toddler though. Maybe not the most important thing in the world, but he also failed to talk warmly to a customer, make eye contact, understand the social perspective of a young black girl's parents wanting a black barbie (this was 1990 and change was on it's way). And to be honest... cozy coupes usually sell themselves. Anyway. Getting back on track... Bertolt Brecht spent a lifetime challenging audiences to think for themselves.Our young people are facing a spiral of fake news in their feeds and have to be able to think for themselves... something which many subjects are actually steering away. You can't get much further from critical thinking than a Scholastic Aptitude Test. Brazilian Practitioner Boal works to heal communities, surely there is a place for his teachings within our own fractured towns. Starting with the next generation is usually a good idea. It was 1942 when Russian Practitioner Michael Chekhov specified his acting teachings were most probably for the actor of the future. Well here we are, and his techniques centre around focus, being in the moment and spiritual awareness. If you ever wanted mindfulness away from a smartphone app, there it is right there. These are merely a few examples demonstrating what the arts can offer in school, after school and at the weekends, alongside having fun and making really good theatre. But you have to have the right teachers to do it. The danger is that by this continued dismissal of arts education impact, and a lack of schools and funding providers taking the subject as seriously as they should, we are losing amazing drama teachers on a daily basis. Of course there are a plethora of young performers willing to turn their hand to teaching until the next acting job arises, and they do bring an amazing inside knowledge of the industry to their classes (something which we always try to include at times throughout the term) But they are not actually teachers armed with the knowledge of what the arts really can do for our young people. What the arts can really, really do for them in the right hands, with the right backing. That's what we need to be going on, in school, after school and at weekends.  After I completed my MA in Applied Theatre at Royal Central School of Speech and Drama, I found myself left with this question... If we can make really great theatre with young people, teaching them to act, sing, dance and realise their potential, and alongside that have an opportunity to impact on the rest of their lives: transferable skills, how they see the world, truly thinking for themselves, grit and determination, mindfulness, acceptance (personally can't abide the word tolerance) and the ability to perform in the real world as themselves... then why would we not make the most of it? At Bodens performing arts, our fully qualified teacher's also have training along the way, at every level of teaching, to ensure they make the biggest impact they can. It's not always easy, and it demands planning and passion that is admittedly 'possibly' easier to sustain in a privately funded school where our hands are maybe not as tied.  We need the arts to be backed as the serious subject that it is, so seriously good teachers are teaching it, and the impact is as powerful as it can be. All over the UK there are pockets of amazing performing arts schools with incredible teachers working their magic on the future of your young people, and within schools up and down the country, drama teachers worthy of a Robin Williams film, with their backed departments, are having incredible success both within the teaching of the curriculum and the transformative powers their classes can have. We need to shout out about these teachers, embrace them and embrace the arts in and out of our schools. So let's stop discussing if we need the arts and spend more of our time on why. Because that matters.