ray (should be) ban(ned)

The 80's are back and so it would seem is Ray Ban here with this viral video. Watch it first and we'll discuss in a minute.

Ok so this went round the agency today and although it did get fairly widely slated it is clearly quite clever. I suppose there are people out there who won't realize that it is all done in After Effects or some such tool and to those it works as a good viral video, one you really do want to send round to all your mates. To the more savvy viewer they will realize that this is just a shameless promo piece for Ray Ban featuring two obnoxious guys. But it is still a good video with a good concept and one that everyone wants to look at even if just to see how it was done. And if you notice on the car window the words "Never Hide"... type this into google and the top hit is the Ray Ban website. Clever!

poll daddy

Who's your daddy? Just found this cool little widget for all you bloggers call Poll Daddy. Create your own poll and host it on your site. This is a great and simple way to find out what your readers are thinking as it is incredibly difficult to get people to comment on your blog (for me at least). So I figure this is a simple way for people to cast their thoughts. So first up: what is your favourite messenger client. For me it is Adium which is a multi-client app for the mac allowing me to include people from all the major messenger programs. That way I only have one window open to keep in touch with all my friends. Oh and it also features tabbed chat windows which is lovely. Check out the poll here

normann

Oh I just love the pretty things in life, this being one of them. From the Danish design house that is Normann comes this gorgeous washing up bowl and wooden brush which I happened to find in a very cool kitchen shop in Eastbourne today. Looking through their site you can see that they make some really lovely and inventive products with that typical Scandinavian simplicity. Oh but it's yellow too and makes the sink look so much prettier.

fedex slingshot

I saw this banner ad for fedex titled slingshot and I had to share. The reason I like it is because it surprises you a little by being able to pull the package outside of the ad. The way this is done is for the advertiser to buy a space bigger than the area that the ad looks like. Within flash you then create an invisible background so that the page beneath will show through. It then appears that the fedex package pulls beyond the confines of the ad. It is an effect done many times before but where this ad works is in its simplicity. For best results view WITH sound. Oh and if you are in the industry or working in flash you should add banner blog to your list of bookmarks because at some point you will probably have to make a banner and this is an invaluable resource.

latte art

There is nothing better than a good cup of coffee to wake you up in the morning. And the art of making good coffee is one that coffee drinkers take seriously. I'm sorry but blasting some milk with steam and pouring it on top of espresso and serving it in cardboard does nothing for me. When I lived in Bermuda they had a great coffee house called Rock Island where they roasted their own beans and brought in speciality coffee from around the world. This is true java. Filtered coffee at its best. I so don't get the new found, British affection for milky frothy drinks. Ok so good espresso is great and a proper latte is also very good. But rarely is it the case that coffee houses here make good ones of either. If you are a true coffee fan check out this site where they show you not only how to create awesome designs in your coffee but more importantly how to make good java.

the big 5 oh oh oh

A big thank you to everyone who has viewed my blog as I approach the big 5000. Just a couple more clicks.... It's been a great 6 months and I am loving doing my blog. I hope you enjoy it as much as I enjoy writing it. Would love to see a few more comments though but hey ho ;)

chris jordan

Chris Jordan is a US based photographer who is doing some really interesting portraits of America. His fascination with patterns in consumerism have driven him to take pictures of the effects of our ceaseless consumption upon our environment. Often his work is only revealed upon closer inspection as you look closely at the work and see that what looks like a beautiful and colourful pattern is in fact a mass of plastic bags. His work is often significant in the numbers he uses: the quantity of cell phones thrown away each week, for example. Some of his work is photoshopped and some isn't. His reflection on the devastation of Hurrican Katrina shows his interest in the way mother nature can wreck havoc back on her unworthy inhabitants. Powerful stuff. And some genuinely unique photography and artworks.

running the numbers

intolerable beauty

in katrina's wake

Today's mood

Yesterday at work was one of those 'nothing works' days. It is sad but true that even with the best mac/pc set-up sometimes things do go wrong. Ok so this was one day where the app I am creating had lots of bugs that seemed unfixable which was incredibly frustrating. But sometimes the best thing you can do is just walk away from it all and come to it fresh another day. I saw this video and it made me laugh. There is so much mac/pc rivalry these days but I do feel pretty much beyond all that now. I don't really care if people decide to buy a cheap pc and struggle with all the malware and viruses. I don't buy into the form over function thing that mac spouts. I just want a machine that is reliable and fast. And I do have that in my G5 set up at work. But really it is time for an upgrade (I've put my request in for a top of the line Mac Pro so here's hoping).

crystal maze

Ah the heady days of 90's British TV. Doctor Who had died a death with the advent of the terrible Sylvester McCoy. The Tripods were but a distant memory (brilliant cliff hanger but no resolve as the next season got the axe). And so young and impressionable boys like me had to make do with TV like the Crystal Maze. In my mind it was the best thing since sliced bread. In case you are unaware what I am going on about let me enlighten you. The premise. Camp as tits Richard O'Brien, who was last seen in The Rocky Horror Picture Show and whose career had all but been washed ashore some distant island, takes a host of contestants around a set of four 'zones' as they pit their wits against various physical and mental challenges. There was the ocean zone, the pyramid zone, the industrial zone and the future zone (or something like that). You can see why I loved it. Having been brought up on the dodgy effects of the Peter Davison era of Who and with gameshows like The Adventure Game this was a breath of fresh air because it was all real. It reminded me of a game I used to play at the Trocadero in London aged 15 which had the set of Aliens recreated in a basement there. You were guided round the set and aliens chased you. The thrills were real. Ok so the crystal maze was undoubtedly shite as you can see from the following videos...

First off is a clip of just how bad it got in the crystal maze as those god awful contestants tried and usually failed to win crystals (thinking back I don't think I ever saw anyone win the major prize)...



So now you have the jist of the thing here is the spoof that I saw today that made me cry with laughter....



And if you're feeling particularly brave here are links to the first ever episode

E01 pt 01
E01 pt 02
E01 pt 03
E01 pt 04
E01 pt 05
E01 pt 06

And as a little secret. I once applied to be on a Christmas special of the crystal maze kids version. The official line as to why I didn't make it was "a bit too old and a bit too clever". Ha. Story of my life :)

reasons campaign

So the safe sex campaign for the GMFA, I have been involved with, is now live. The ads focus around six guys and their reasons for 'choosing' safe sex. GMFA doesn't preach or lecture so the campaign had to focus around positive ideas based around why gay guys have safe sex. The print ads are running in the gay press right now and are being drip fed in. The full print campaign can be seen here. The banner campaign (which I built) is now live at puffta and will be going live very soon at gaydar and gay.com. Check it out here but be warned that like all banners you may need to refresh the page a few times in order to see the ad. It should look something like the screenshot below.