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Category: movies

February 26, 2023

My Life in 30 Seconds

A friend drew this wonderful pencil sketch of my face as the basis for the birthday gift piñata she made for my party. I’ve found that my birthdays have always been a time of reflection. Last year was particularly intense…

With my father’s recent passing, I’ve been thinking a lot about his legacy, which has led me to think a bit more about my own.

And I’ve been reflecting back on my journey to date. I’m talking way back and trying to take in my whole life. What’s my story so far, and how has it evolved?

One way I’ve gone through this exercise is to review the photos I’ve created and collected over the years. They document many of the moments that have helped to define me.

Create a Photo Montage of your Life
Five years ago, I created a little photo project, which I’ve decided to return to and update. It’s been really useful to jog my memories during this time.

The goal is to select just a very few pics that represent my life so far. And then create a photo montage in a short video. The result is inevitably influenced by the chosen group of pictures, which will vary each time I try this.

Still, these photos do represent one way to look at your life. And I’ve enjoyed this exercise to help regain a broader view.

My Life in 10 Seconds?
How many photos do you select? Well, one option is to squeeze down the number to how many can fit into a defined amount of time. Sure, if you don’t want to restrict yourself, the video might last for hours. But what if you just limit yourself to just a fraction of that?

When I first tried this five years back, I held my video to just 10 seconds, and
I explored a few different photo montages at that length.

Okay… That ended up being a little too fast, as my pictures needed to fly by so quickly you could barely register each image. Some of my viewers complained.

So this time, I’m giving myself the luxury of a whopping 30 seconds.

Barrett’s Birthday Photo Montage
Each birthday is a marker in time and one simple way to collect a group of photos to tell a story. So here are my birthdays…

Though birthday pics can look visually similar across the years (mine certainly do), when strung together, the collection acts as a sort of time machine.

For many of these photos, I tried to represent my age by holding up certain fingers. (I eventually gave that up when I ran out digits!)

Barrett’s Life Photo Montage
Without the guard rails of a specific life event to work with, which photos should you choose to represent your life? Yes, that’s a much harder exercise and one that will take more time to figure out.

I created this draft, but it’s hardly ‘finished.’

This montage offers more visual interest as it shows me out-and-about in the world (as opposed to stuck in front of a birthday cake). But it’s still missing a key ingredient in any life.

You’re Not Alone
Of course, it’s all the people you know. Your family and friends are such as important part of your journey. You need to include them in any photo montage that truly reflects your life.

So, happily, I’ve still got a lot of work to do on that front. Until then, my little photo montage is hardly complete.

What Comes Next?
No, 30 seconds is not a lot of time. And hopefully, it’s not enough for anyone to really work with.

If anything, it’s just a taste or an echo of something much larger… and longer.

But I’ve still found it to be a useful exercise to try to hone in on just a few highlights.

And perhaps, it might help focus me on what my next highlights could be.

Time machines can work in both directions.

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July 3, 2022

Why I Woke Up at 4:30am on Vacation to Shoot these 6 Sunrise Timelapses

If you’re on vacation and happen to have a front-row seat to the sunrise, you might want to consider working that into your schedule. Here are the results of my creative effort.

I’ve just returned from a restorative family vacation in Kennebunkport, Maine. We stayed at a magical house on the water with two other families. The house is in Cape Porpoise right on an ocean inlet that transforms into an otherworldly span of mudflats at low tide.

The birds woke me up on our first morning at 4:45am. I peered out our bedroom window onto the flats and took in a pre-sunrise sky ablaze in purple and pink-colored clouds. I saw one of the other dads already out there with camera in hand. There was no need for words. I gestured that I would join his sunrise photo shoot.

Half asleep, I grabbed my tripod and DJI Osmo Pocket camera to record a timelapse of the sunrise over the mudflats. I stumbled down the stairs and onto the edge of the flats to join my friend.

Sunday Cape Porpoise Sunrise Timelapse

Sunday sunrise timelapse

The Set Up
The sun was due in 10 minutes, and I was running out of time. I hurriedly set up my timelapse to run for 20 minutes, snapping a frame at 2-second increments. This gimbal also let me add a little motion in the shot, which is really nice. And then I let nature take over. I watched the sunrise and simultaneously created this 20-second sunrise timelapse video.

The result wasn’t terrible, but the length felt short to me. And there weren’t many clouds in my shot. Plus, my settings didn’t allow enough time for the clouds to really move through my frame. (Clearly, it’s all about the clouds.)

Monday Cape Porpoise, Maine Sunrise Timelapse

Monday sunrise timelapse

I immediately wanted to try again. So the next morning, I did exactly that. I adjusted the timelapse settings to record for an hour at 3-second frame increments. That would capture more of the sunrise and also help the clouds to move faster. Here’s the 40-second result.

The scattered cloud cover instantly made this sunrise more interesting, and the longer timelapse felt like the perfect length.

In Search of More
I sat down on the lawn with my coffee and felt both relaxed and incredibly satisfied. I had fed my creative self, and it wasn’t even 6am yet.

So I decided to repeat the exercise for the rest of the week. 4:30am… every morning.

Waking up earlier that I normally do ran completely counter to my vacation goals of sleeping in. But I adjusted with adding afternoon vacation naps to my schedule.

All sunrises are unique. Even though the sun is a constant, the different cloud formations create limitless timelapse opportunities.

That said, I think some of my videos were more interesting than others based on cloud position and movement. But that’s just one opinion. Here are the rest of my vacation timelapses. (I’ve sped up these Gifs a bit to capture the full 40-seconds of each video.)

Tuesday Cape Porpoise Maine Sunrise Timelapse

Tuesday sunrise timelapse

Wednesday Cape Porpoise Sunrise Timelapse

Wednesday sunrise timelapse

Thursday Cape Porpoise Timelapse

Thursday sunrise timelapse

Friday Cape Porpoise Sunrise Timelapse

Friday sunrise timelapse

Not to play favorites (every sunrise is perfect), but I think Wednesday was the winner.
(Any other thoughts?)

The Value of Greeting the Day
On the last morning of our vacation, a storm was predicted, but I woke up early anyway and walked outside to greet the day and feel the breezes. Yes, it started to rain, but it was light.

There was no sunrise. But of course the dawn did arrive. I sat down on an Adirondack chair with my cup of joe to just… be.

I took in the dark clouds overhead. I didn’t have a camera in my hand, but I still relished in the conclusion of my week-long morning exercise.

And then I understood that it’s not always about being able to capture a sunrise. Sometimes, just being there is more than enough.

My vacation was complete.

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June 26, 2022

Why my Son Prefers Star Trek: Strange New Worlds over Obi-Wan Kenobi

My dusty Star Trek and Star Wars toys have been waiting for years for the next generation to choose a champion. That moment has finally arrived.

I can’t tell you how happy I am. I’ve spent years unsuccessfully trying to introduce my 12-year-old son to the vast Star Trek universe.

First, I offered a couple of the original episodes. Way too slow. Then, I served up the Kelvin timeline with the 2009 J.J. Abrams’ movie. It didn’t stick. My boy didn’t want to go further “Into Darkness.”

“Discovery” and “Picard,” the two new Star Trek series on Paramount+ weren’t at all designed for him simply because of all those damn swear words. I didn’t even make the attempt.

I’m a life-long Trekkie, and I’ve been unable to pass the torch.

Family-Friendly Star Trek
Then, “Star Trek: Strange New Worlds” came out, and I watched the first couple of episodes. I was in shock. Could it be? Could this new series really be okay for kids to watch? Was this the moment I’d been waiting for all of my adult life?

I sat down with my wife and son on a Sunday night after dinner and nervously played the premiere for them. They were both skeptical.
(My wife was never a big Star Trek fan.)

The episode ended, and I stared at both of them. They each displayed a Vulcan look of mild satisfaction. They agreed to watch another episode. My hopes were bolstered.

The New Adventures of Ben Kenobi
But the next time we came together to watch a show, I really wanted to see the new “Obi-Wan Kenobi” series on Disney+. So we watched that two-part premiere. I certainly enjoyed this new Star Wars entry, but it was arguably a bit sluggish out of the gate with a slow build. (I did love that reveal shot of the light saber on Obi-Wan’s waist at the end of episode 2.)

I performed the same ‘Lester-insta-poll,’ and received a similar response. Good, though not crazy good.

Padawan or Cadet?
The third family screening would tell all as our son had been given the power to choose what to watch next. (We rotate that honor between the three of us.)

“Strange New Worlds” or “Obi-Wan-Kenobi?”

I could barely look at him.

I’d been waiting my whole life to again experience “Star Trek” through the eyes of a child. I still remember as a kid being blown away by the storytelling of the original series. That’s what always differentiated “Star Trek” from other sci-fi. It was so character-driven. Serious… and fun. And yes, occasionally even funny.

And then I watched as other sci-fi franchises muscled their way to the top of the public’s preference. Marvel and Star Wars. Of course.

I must admit that Marvel has really earned it. Movie after movie. They’ve barely stumbled. And then the expansion on Disney+. It’s impressive. Most impressive.

Yes, I think more impressive than Star Wars, simply because the entire body of work from that universe is uneven. Still, that galaxy far, far away is far from losing its grip on this planet.

And I know that has a lot to do with Darth Vader.

The Enduring Power of Vader
I remember seeing “The Return of the Jedi” at the Ziegfeld theater in New York City back in 1983. The giant theater was packed with kids munching on popcorn. And then there was the big moment towards the end of the movie when Emperor Palpatine was zapping Luke with dark Force lightning. Then, the camera shot cut to Darth Vader watching Luke’s apparent end.

Suddenly I sensed a huge wave of emotion flow throughout the young audience. Then the sound. It was a combination of hundreds of gasps and a few screams. Some kids just yelled.

The shot cut back to Luke writhing in pain. The audience’s roar of emotion increased.

And then back to Anakin staring at his son.

The entire theater exploded. The chorus of every kid there screaming at Vader to do the right thing.

Whoa.

Yes, Star Wars endures because we love to watch that struggle between the dark and the light. And who better represents that than our fallen friend Anakin?

The Federation Wins
Fast forward four decades, and Disney+ is now serving up a lot more Anakin/Vader.

But that’s only teased at the end of episode two of “Obi-Wan Kenobi.”

So when my boy has the foundational choice between watching the best of Starfleet or a fallen Jedi, he goes with… Star Trek!

I have to admit, it wasn’t really a fair fight because of the timing, but I still relished the victory.

Finally.

For the past few weeks, my son has consistently asked for more “Strange New Worlds” episodes. I think I can safely say we are officially now a “Star Trek” family!
(My wife is enjoying the series with us as well.)

It all comes down to great storytelling and character development.

Always.

At the beginning of every “Strange New Worlds” episode, there’s that short sequence where the Enterprise takes a few colorful victory laps before the Star Trek logo settles.

Yep, I’d say they’ve earned it.

Never Dismiss the Power of the Force
We eventually got around to watching episode 3 of “Obi-Wan Kenobi.” And I observed my son during the Darth Vader scenes. The James Earl Jones voice. The iconic breathing. The sheer power of the dark side.

My boy was mesmerized. He then started to mimic the breathing. And I saw the smile on his face.

Yep, even after 40 years, some things don’t change.

Hit It!
But a heathy dose of Vader in episode 3 doesn’t change the fact that “Star Trek” has finally beat out “Star Wars” in the Lester household.

I’ve been playing the long game, and it’s finally paid off. Thank you, “Star Trek: Strange New Worlds.” You’ve got a lock on the Lester family.

The torch has finally been passed.

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