[ By SA Rogers in Architecture & Public & Institutional. ]
106 vertical concrete tubes making up a massive disused grain silo in Cape Town, South Africa are sliced and carved from the inside out to produce cathedral-like spaces in this incredible transformation. Architect Thomas Heatherwick and his firm contrasted the cold, aging industrial appearance of the complex with faceted glass and organic shapes for a futuristic looking result, a fittingly monumental setting for the Zeitz Museum of Contemporary Art Africa (MOCAA), the world’s largest museum dedicated to African contemporary art.
The silo once stood as a symbol of economic progress in 20th century Cape Town, but as the world around it changed, it was abandoned. Sitting empty since the 1990s, the silo had become a bit of an eyesore, especially as the waterfront around it modernized, but remained historically important. Heatherwick’s project creates 6,000 square meters ((64,583 square feet) of exhibition space in a total of 80 individual galleries along with a rooftop garden, book store, restaurant, bar and conservation laboratories.
“We were excited by this opportunity to unlock this formerly dead structure and transform it into somewhere for people to see and enjoy the most incredible artworks from the continent of Africa,” says Heatherwick. “The technical challenge was to find a way to carve out spaces and galleries from the ten-story high tubular honeycomb without completely destroying the authenticity of the original building.”
‘Tubular honeycomb’ is a good way to describe it. The interior photos reveal voids carefully carved out of the bases of the concrete tubes, revealing their geometries in whole new ways. Some of these tubes act as skylights, while others hold glass elevators or spiraling staircases. The museum stands as an awe-inspiring example of how adaptive reuse can reveal qualities you might never have expected in existing structures.
[ By SA Rogers in Architecture & Public & Institutional. ]
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Nobody likes a grainy photo, right? The majority of the time we want less graininess. In the digital world, we see grain as the enemy. But is it really? I’ll tell you now that grain isn’t always bad. I’ll go even further than that and say that grain can actually be something that adds to the strength of your photographs.
Film grain gets a bad rap because it’s often confused with digital noise. The two are, in fact, entirely different. In this article, I’ll talk about the difference between noise and grain. Then I am going to show you how to use Lightroom to purposefully ADD grain to a photo. Get ready. Be bold. Embrace the grain.
The difference between digital noise (sensor noise) and grain comes down to the light sensing properties of each. Digital sensors convert light into an electronic signal using an array of photosensitive diodes. These are the “pixels” or “picture elements” of the sensor. Digital sensors carry “noise” based on a number of things such as the size of the sensor, its temperature, and the ISO setting.
Digital noise at ISO 5000
Film, on the other hand, uses light sensitive silver crystals which are embedded in the emulsion of the film. The physical manifestation of these crystals is what we perceive as film grain. The higher the film’s ISO, the more crystals are present, hence more grain.
Agfa Vista Plus 200 ISO 800. A cropped section of an image by Akio Takemoto
Grain is an organic characteristic of the analog film process. It’s almost like a fingerprint exclusive to the type of film you’re using. Perhaps that’s why film grain is gaining a growing acceptance among new photographers in this digital age of imaging.
This notion hasn’t been lost on the developers at Adobe and they have given us a way to simulate the grain patterns present in film with our digital images. Depending on your photo, adding some creative film grain can impart a vintage feel of earthiness to your digital image. And you’re about to learn how to do it in Lightroom in…3…2…1….
I hope you enjoyed the dramatic countdown.
You can find Grain in the Effects panel of the Develop module in Lightroom CC. It’s where you can do a number of things but for this occasion, we are going to focus on the grain section. You’ll notice there are three adjustment sliders; amount, size, and roughness.
This is how you will essentially replicate those light sensitive crystals found in film emulsion I mentioned earlier.
**Note, it’s wise to apply grain (like most effects) as the last part of your final steps in post-processing.
The amount of grain is controlled by, you guessed it, the “Amount” slider. Think of this as the number of crystals you are adding to your image. The higher the amount, generally the higher ISO look the effect. Here’s a +40 grain amount on an image shot at ISO 640.
It is a good idea to use a large increase in the amount of grain while adjusting the next two sliders and then back it off from there until you reach the desired amount.
The size of the grain plays a big part in how apparent it will be in your final image. Larger crystals will be more noticeable even at low amounts. It’s virtually the same concept as high and low “grit” sandpaper. Now here’s a +40 boost in grain size from the last image.
Keep in mind that the further to the right you move the slider the larger each grain will become. This can diminish small details in your photo so use with caution.
Grain roughness is closely related to grain size. The difference is that the roughness slider controls how raised the grains appear to be from the image. Essentially how rough or smooth their surface appears. The next image shows the same +40 amount of grain with the size set back to the +25 default. This time I increased the roughness to +70.
Think back to the sandpaper analogy. The more raised the grain the rougher the overall texture and thus the texture of the final grain effect.
Here are a few more examples of using simulated grain in Lightroom. Black and white images have always loved grain.
Black and white image with Grain set to +50 Amount, +71 Size, +50 Roughness
Grain set to +30 Amount, +66 Size, 0 Roughness
Grain set to +60 Amount, +18 Size, 80 Roughness
Never forget that grain is completely different than noise. Grain is, in some ways, the signature of film. Adding it to your digital images can sometimes, not always, give your photos a non-mechanized flavor that hints back to the organic appeal of analog film.
You can control this effect easily in Lightroom by adjusting the amount, size, and roughness of the grain. The combinations are virtually limitless. Just remember, as with all processing effects, use them up to, but never past the point they were intended. That being said, never be afraid to experiment and “go against the grain”…sorry, I had to say it.
The post Tips for the Creative Use of Grain in Lightroom by Adam Welch appeared first on Digital Photography School.
[ By Steph in Architecture & Houses & Residential. ]
With an entirely custom-built interior, a nine-foot-wide sliding glass door and a warm modern aesthetic, this grain silo converted to a compact home seems worlds away from its humble farmyard origins. Architect Christoph Kaiser purchased the 1955 corrugated steel wall silo from a Kansas farmer and had it dismantled and shipped to downtown Phoenix, Arizona on the back of a pickup truck to begin the renovation process that would transform it into a beautiful, cozy and affordable two-story residence.
Once set in place in the up-and-coming Garfield Historic District, the silo began its dramatic makeover process. Large doors and windows were added to bring light into the previously darkened space, and the oculus at the top used to promote air circulation to the stored grain was turned into a skylight. Views of the Phoenix skyline are strategically framed, with the other windows looking out onto a spacious private garden.
With the silo’s tiny footprint, maximizing the interior space was a top priority. Kaiser designed a built-in, all-in-one solution that’s essentially one big piece of furniture to accommodate all of the residents’ daily living needs. Curved to match the line of the walls, the custom interior is clad mostly in reclaimed walnut flooring scored on Craigslist. Kaiser even designed a one-of-a-kind ceiling lamp with hooks for hanging pots and pans to save space. The Eames wire chairs are the only elements that weren’t custom-made for the home.
A spiraling staircase leads to the sleeping loft, which is equipped with a digital projector so the couple has their very own mini movie theater in their bedroom. The bathroom, finished in glossy floor-to-ceiling penny tile, boasts a rounded custom vanity and compact Duravit toilet. When the nine-foot window is opened to the garden in nice weather, the home seems to expand.
“It was love at first sight: an affordable, challenging prospect,” the architect tells World Architecture News. “The thought of assembling a kit of parts that fits in the bed of a truck, and ending up with a home for two was a tantalizing challenge, very appealing from a carbon-footprint, sustainability, and shall we say, ‘architectural rigor’ standpoint.”
An amazing hybrid of preservation and transformation, this project involves carving a series stunning spaces inside a huge series of concrete silos set …
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As dozens of decades-old nuclear missile silos slowly slip into disrepair and decay, a precious few are taking on new life as pre-apocalyptic family homes.
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[ By Steph in Architecture & Houses & Residential. ]
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[ By WebUrbanist in Architecture & Public & Institutional. ]
An amazing hybrid of preservation and transformation, this project involves carving a series stunning spaces inside a huge series of concrete silos set alongside the waterfront of Cape Town. Once the tallest structure in the city, but abandoned since 1990, this converted complex will provide a home for 80 art galleries and create a hub for cultural activity.
The spatial solution proposed by Thomas Heatherwick Studio involves scooping out huge voids within the existing industrial heritage site. This approach in turn exposes visitors to the tubular interiors of the silos via a newly-formed atrium while conserving much of the original building exterior. Meanwhile, below the surface, a series of re-purposed underground tunnels and storage spaces will provide additional access to the architectural history of the complex.
The non-profit endeavor will exhibit contemporary African art via indoor galleries as well as a rooftop sculpture garden, bookstore, restaurant, bar and more. THS will be working on the Zeitz MoCAA (founded with the collection of entrepreneur Jochen Zeitz) with a series of local partners including Ven Der Merwe Miszewski (VDMMA), Rick Brown Associates (RBA) and Jacobs Parker.
In an interview with DesignBoom, he architect sough to ask and answer the critical quesiton: “How do you turn forty-two vertical concrete tubes into a place to experience contemporary culture? Our thoughts wrestled with the extraordinary physical facts of the building. There is no large open space within the densely packed tubes and it is not possible to experience these volumes from inside. Rather than strip out the evidence of the building’s industrial heritage, we wanted to find a way to enjoy and celebrate it. We could either fight a building made of concrete tubes or enjoy its tube-iness.”
Of the project, David Green (CEO of the V&A Waterfront) said: “thomas heatherwick understood how to interpret the industrial narrative of the building, and this was the major breakthrough. His design respects the heritage of the building while bringing iconic design and purpose to the building.”
Regarding the search for a perfect site, Jochen Zeitz explains that “for five years we investigated suitable sites across Africa. The V&A waterfront provided an iconic heritage building, situated in one of the most visited and iconic sites in [the country].” Meanwhile, all of the existing silos will be capped with glass to let in light and show off their shape from above.
Take your pick between a pair of once-abandoned silos: one lets you explore nearly 100 vertical feet of underwater space with hidden caverns, while the other …
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An abandoned factory complex in Spain has been transformed into a massive office for an architecture firm, leaving much of the old machinery intact.
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[ By WebUrbanist in Architecture & Public & Institutional. ]
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The world’s major fashion magazines are plump with advertising images of the size-zero models, with their flawless complexions and perfect bone structures. Much to the everyday girl’s dread, these images can also be found pretty much everywhere, especially in portrait photography. However, imagine for a moment if these models weren’t perfect? Would the images have a greater impact? Would people Continue Reading
The post Rebellious Portrait Photography That Goes Against the Grain Like You Wouldn’t Believe appeared first on Photodoto.
Apply artistic effects to pictures / photos in a PowerPoint 2010 presentation without loading an external image editor.
Artistic effects can help photographs stand out in a presentation, and in some cases when needed, blend in. Instead of editing images using an external editor, Microsoft PowerPoint 2010 comes built-in with a variety of effects.
For example, “Blur” may be useful when trying to place text on top of a picture, making it more readable. “Glow Edges” makes a photo look as if it is lit in neon. “Light Screen” creates a cubist / 8-bit / blocky image. “Paint Brush” may alter some photographs to look instead like paintings. PowerPoint comes built-in with 22 such artistic effects….
Read more at MalekTips.
New Computer and Technology Help and Tips – MalekTips.Com
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