Moving from Blogger!

Hi everyone,

Please update your reads, feeds, and what-nots. I have a new home! You can now find me at:

http://www.wilsonswordsandpictures.com/

First up - I have a juicy little article for you on how to get started on WordPress. Second up - To finish all the good work I have started on this site.

Feeling a bit sentimental, but I will not miss the odd way that buggy Blogger has behaved for me.

Thanks for stopping by,

Ellen

Spring Cleaning

No matter how much I dust things off or rearrange the furniture in here I still feel confined in Blogger. Some of my fellow Bloggers, like CatalystBlogger, Words at Home, or Words for Hire have beautiful sites. I have had problems from day one.


So, I need to step it up a notch and get a new house. I'm starting to move today over to Word Press and will be very busy setting that all up. I will let you know how it goes.

Just when I update all my links too. Of course I will take you all along with me.

The Art of Seeing

I told my eight year old daughter to turn off the TV, because too much TV was bad for her. She replied that she would eat carrots while she was watching TV. Because carrots are good for you. Thereby negating the bad effects of the TV.

That was pretty damn funny.

It seems we do this to ourselves a lot, though. We spend too much time online, digesting silliness. Or watching junk TV. We waste ouselves and do not give ourselves time to recharge. Instead, we divert our attention towards media goodies.

Of course we aren't perfect. We just want to relax and not think about anything sometimes. But our society keeps us on hyperalert, claiming if we pay attention just a little bit longer, we can have it all.

It's all an illusion. And I believe it! I for one am caught up in this online addiction. I think, oh, my, what does she say; what is he saying; I just know I'm almost on top of it all; and please, I must keep up!!!!

You really can't. But because I am all new to this I throw myself into the delusion with gusto.

What a fool.

When I was little I learned the Art of Seeing. My dad is an artist and he used to take me to art shows and galleries. I used to go into his studio and push my hands into paint, sticking them onto canvas, rubbing them all around.

The art of seeing is three dimensional. You have to soak it into your entire life.

So, I say, turn off the damn TV. Go to an art gallery. Art will teach you much about life. Learn what an artist is thinking through her paintings. Feel what he has to say through the observation of his work.

But it is not passive observation. And that is the point. The artist is transmitting something extremely important to you.

We can look at photography and writing the same way - the Artist's Way - the way of seeing. But that is for tomorrow.

Time is Passing Me...Please Buy!

Cano Scan 8800F Problems
No, those aren't sunbeams or the beginnings of rainbows in the corners of this picture, they are a problem that I don't have a solution to. Yes, I checked this slide under a loupe and it is technically perfect. But I can't sell it. A possible solution is having it scanned to a disk in a commercial photo lab. At $ 1.00/photo it can become a little pricey. That's why I bought the Cano Scan. I have hundreds of negatives and slides that need to be scanned. It seems it is with the slides I encounter this problem.

Sorry, I don't have an answer to the problem, but I will let you know when I do. If you have a solution to weird sunbeams in your slides using the Cano Scan, let me know.

The Digital Revolution is Here!
Digital technology is progressing so fast I have decided to wait a few months to purchase a new camera. That, and I just don't have the money. Photography is an expensive pursuit, but you can easily recall your expenses of digital camera equipment if you're a good photographer.

Just think, no more expensive slide film or processing costs to pay for!

If you are a writer, but have a keen eye and think you might be a good photographer, then by all means get a camera! You can easily double your money with pictures.

Time is passing me by, and I'm getting antsy.

A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words...
Do you remember that National Geographic photo of the Afghani girl with the amazing green eyes? I bet you do. And if you don't, you will remember you will when you see it. With the technology in digital camera equipment increasing exponentially, it is getting easier and easier to take these great shots.

In the future I will give you some tips on getting excellent photos.

And to think I started out with my clunky old Pentax ME Super...which I still love by the way.

Wave Your Flag!

I don't care what country you are from, you should proudly wave your flag over at Elance.

Or, maybe not.

I used to enjoy strolling over to the Water Cooler. It was a great place to meet other writers from around the world. We could all share our commonalities and concerns.

But recently, it has become veeeery quiet.

Apparently Elance wants its Providers to police themselves over at the Water Cooler. Interesting theory. I searched their guidelines and could find nothing on how to accomplish this.

To make a long story short, writer's have been complaining about having some of their concerns met that haven't been addressed. Elance has been continually vague (to their own advantage) on various issues.

Basically, they are making things up as they go along.

But if you say anything critical about Elance, watch out! - they are apt to throw you off your horse.

There recently has been criticism of Elance over in the Writer's Section of the Water Cooler. Lo and behold, some Virtual Assistants came over to "police" us. They threw flags up all over our little comment plots.

I started saving them the work of planting flags in my little comment plot by throwing up my own little flag.

All of this symbolic flag waving just begged the question: Just whose Virtual Assistant are you? Elance's?

I made the comment that these "Virtual Assistants" could be made up by Elance. And that it all sounded very reminiscent of a movie called The Stepford Wives. If you recall, the original Stepford Wives were automatons that policed all the other wives in the neighborhood. They were good little robots that did their husband's bidding.

Elance said they would not dignify this Astroturfing theory with a response. Well, they did dignify it by taking down the entire thread that criticized what was going on behind all of this "policing."

What I don't understand is that Elance wants to learn more about how to make their company a better place to do business with. They have a Suggestion for Elance section.

A few days ago a writer voiced the concern that Elance might remove the writer's category. And then another provider mentioned that the "top" 25 providers pull in a lot of money ($56,000 over a six month period) so therefore, Elance wouldn't be shutting down the writer's category, to which I responded:

That is very interesting analysis Niel, but that covers only 25 writers. What about the rest of us? As of today there are 11,479 writers. Add all the service costs associated with the rest of these writers doing business as Elance as the broker. I think it equals A LOT more then $56,000.

Suppose these 11,454 ( I subtracted the top 25 writers) pay $ 24.99 for a basic 40 connects/month membership. That equals $ 286,235.46. Over a six month period Elance membership profit equals $1,717,412.76 from these writers. Notice I haven't added in the percentages Elance skims off the tops of projects.

So, in the main, $56,000 over a 6 month period is chump change to Elance. The writing masses are the driving force behind all of Elance's profits.

Actually, I think this writer was really talking about Elance shutting down the Writer's Section of the Water Cooler. They may very well do that.

Don't get me wrong, if anyone says anything sexist or racist their comment should be removed. And there is always a constructive way to disagree with someone without cutting them down or harassing them. But people need to know the reality of doing business with Elance.

Elance wants to be seen in a favorable light, but in my opinion this does does not make them shine. It just makes them look arbitrary, capricious, and intolerant if they remove threads that criticize them or simply state reality.

Promo for Me and You

Speaking of all this nature and wildlife stuff...

I found a new venue to write for called matadortravel.com. Not only is a paying market, but they have a handy tool where you can upload your pictures into your account, which is essentially your portfolio. At your account you can also create your own blog, which is advertised at the site. So for all you aspiring travel writers out there, check it out!

The article I recently wrote for The Traveler's Notebook is "How to Become a Wildlife Biologist." Okay, my last name is not Ney anymore, and the cute girl in the corner is not me. Hopefully we can get that fixed. Anyway, if you are considering nature and wildlife photography, becoming a wildlife biologist is something to think about. The two professions go hand in hand.

Check out what editor David Miller has to say about corporate culture, traveling, and freelancing.

I think I'm going to like this place. A lot.

Writing the Wild Within - Part 1

Sooner or later you will have to get wild. You will have to shed your skin, and find the writer within.



Skin Keeps us Safe

We hide within a realm of things. We hide within society, and what we think our place is in it. We hide within ourselves, and who we think we are.

Sometimes we hide within our egos, or within our pain.

I'm sure you can think of many reasons to hide.

And although hiding can serve a purpose, it can also hold us back from being true to ourselves.

It is a constant balance between what we need as individuals, and what we need as a society.


Learn the Way of the Wild

I started out as a wildlife/nature photographer. I spent many hours crouching in the mud, and standing perfectly still while being consumed by black flies. How else would I catch my prey?

I was shooting pictures, and not game, but it is, and will always be, the same.


What I have learned is this:

There is a certain rhyme and rhythm to nature, and the creatures who dance in it.

Although we have seemed to have forgotten this flow, we can get it back.

The natural world can teach us much about conserving our energy, and giving it back to society. It can also teach us how to hide, and how burst out in full flame.

Perhaps we have lost these traits due to too much domestication. Too much civilization.

We can get it back...

Care to join me on the journey?


Thank you very much.