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The beginning
Born January 27th 1988 - I was raised in a house where TV was basically a non-factor. 3 sibilings (until 1996 when a 4th was added) meant that we always had reason to do something other than watch TV, and I have several handfuls of memories for being sent outside for a lap around the house for having too much energy. -
Pottery Classes
My mom signed me up for pottery classes behind the Firestation shortly after we moved to Wayland in 1991. I had always made her little things that she took special interest in - a plaster bird with 2 yellow feathers for wings, a horse head out of soft clay. I (my mother) still have several pinch and coil pots I made during that class. -
Avery Morrow suspended
Avery Morrow suspended for changing Word's autocomplete to dirty words on the homeroom computer: the power to alter computers for ways they aren't inteded to be used. -
Mavis Beacon
Weekly typing lessons in elementery school - starting around the third grade: typing as a fluency interface for computers. I enjoyed learning how to type mainly because I hated making mistakes. -
Jazz JackRabbit
At home we were never allowed to play computer games with guns - my neighbor and best friend Mark Froot was, and we used /mdos mode to access Jazz JackRabbit: the first use of a computer that I really enjoyed, was attracted to -
Logo
First exposure to programming languages came at a very young age - although I was extremely interested, I became discourage by Avery Morrow. He was suspended in 6th grade for changing the auto-correct on Word from 'sit' to 'shit', amongst many other technological deviencies. -
First Computer: Black IBM
My family got it's first computer somewhere around now. It was a black IBM, which was cool, because everyone else had a white computer. My nanny Elisabeth was rather computer saavy and set up the computer for us. It was a while before my mom realized we were playing games on the computer, Myst and VR Soccer 3D come to mind. Yes, we had to sneak in video game times. -
Tamagotchi
An interface for me to establish a personal relationship with (simple) technology: I cared about the well being of my Tamagotchi, and I cried when my sister (accidently?) kicked it off the dock. I wanted one because my friends had them - and truth be told - I was a shitty parent to my Tomagotchi. I remember lot's of wings, heavenly ascents and x's over eyes. It was a brief obsession, but represented a personal attachment. -
Alex Jenny cries over losing a game of Gameboy Madden
Neightbor and family friend Alex Jenny and I were at his house playing Gameboy (It might have been Sega Gamegear, I don't actually remember) but he started crying when a lost a game of Madden Football and I remember his mom acting like it was a usual occurance: what's this kids deal? Its a gameboy game, bro. No but seriously this moment stood out as someone who took gaming a bit too competitively even back then. -
AIM:
Sometime in 5th grade I created my first AIM account - my parents wouldnt let us have AOL because they thought the 'system' would use the information to kidnap us or maybe send mail bombs (not really) - so I had to download AIM secretly. It changed the way my friend Mark Froot and I could talk to and flirt with girls. He and I would IM with Alexa Walls and Erika Gorman, our 5th grade crushes: the ability to shroud embaressment behind a technological interface. -
David Froot's New Years Eve
Mark's younger brother David spends the new year's hour outside an ATM in Sudbury center, hoping the machine will Y2K and spew cash: the potential for technological failure is real (?). I didn't think much of it: the bomb shelters I saw in magazines seemed way far out to me at the time, becuase I didn't really make the connection that computers were in more places than just on my parents desk at home - and that their failure could have real implications. -
Nobles Net
I start at Nobles and am introduced to the FirstClass client world that is Nobles Net: a closed network of email, NoblesNet chat - and the ability to unsend emails. You could also read if and when someone had read your emails - a privacy invasion that might be the precursor to bbm? Just as dangerous.... NoblesNet chat was also a way to talk to to people in class, or see who was on late at night. NoblesNet really was a defining experience of community for me at Nobles. -
Nobles Students Hacking
A hacking scheme at my highschool was uncovered: a few students installed a keystroke program which stored all 16 digit numbers entered on the campus computing network: the possibility to use technology illegally or maliciously, in a gainful manner -
First Photo Class
My first photography class that I could enroll in. I had been eagerly awaiting this day since I could remember by father talking about taking photography at Nobles with Joe Swayze 30 years before. It was a b&w film class, and I was immediately drawn to depicting the modern world as classic and timeless. I used the camera as a way to romantascize my surroundings - particularily our barn and my younger bother Asher. -
Sam Kaplan
Saw a digital collage (photoshop) made by Sam Kaplan (Nobles senior at the time) and was enamored by it. I later found it on the network in the DDC (Digital Design Center) and saved it to my hard drive: desktop background and photoshop inspiration. It seemed fitting that I took it from the network without asking permission - as he had taken indvidual images from across the internet without permission: my first personal interaction with copyright / privacy -
Photoshop: Tupac Shakur
Downloaded photoshop and taught myself how to use it. Fell in love. First images: a single layer clone stamp collage of Tupac Shakur. I still have it (somewhere). -
Playstation 2
My brother Abram and I received Playstation 2 for christmas - the first video game console we were allowed to have. I have to admit that my mother's barring me of anything on TV likely lead to my interests in other parts of life - but seeing so few movies to this day has left me seriously socially handicapped. I am still playing catch up. But I am now a huge movie fan and like to think about them very critically. That could be due to the fact that I had been starving for my first 18 years. -
Facebook: Priscilla Tracy
A new girl at nobles invites me to join facebook. I sign up, thinking it is a waste of time - but immediately discover the ability to look at pictures of girls and chat with them: the wide aplications of social networking (I think that captured the most utilized function of facebook for many guys (and girls) of that age). Since then this has been my primary use of facebook. That and reconnecting with kids I went to Wayland Elementary School with (I've been a private school kid since 1st grade) -
AP Photo
Start AP Photo at Nobles with Joe Swayze - right where I'm supposed to be. Experimented in a variety of ways with the camera and printing process. The germination of a life long passion for the entire process of photography. -
Macbook Pro
My first macbook died after 4 years use during my senior year, so my parents buy my a new computer to bring to school with me. Powerful, beter capacity to handle photoshop: I still have it (although now it is in it's rather old in mac-years). -
Conor goes to Rome
My best friend studies abroad in Rome and writes and emails word documents home to friends about his travels. No photos, simple .doc attachements: how can I improve this idea? -
DSLR
I sold my Mamiya 645 (medium format film) and bought a Fuji S5 pro: a new world. It was new because it was fast (no developing OR scanning) and I could manipulate the images much more in Photoshop thru camera RAW. While these advantages were considerable, something in the process was lost. I didn't need to conserve my shots to 12 per roll as I did before, so less thought went into the framing..at first. There is also some magic in film that gets lost on a CCD or CMOS sensor - more to say -
BiHall Collage
Frustrated by the restriction of the static frame - I explore the interior of Bihall with a massive hand stitched photocollage. The seed for photomerge, and my interest in the distortions behind planar perspective. It was the first thing I did with my new camera. -
CS2: Photomerge
First use of CS2's photomerge - a tangent / photographic genre I am still working in and exploring in a variety of ways. I like to show people passing through time, holding place constant. I like to show place passing through time with the use of seasonal variations. This is the most attractive aspect of digital photography to me. The image on the left would not be possible using film. David Hockney certainly an influence, although unknowingly at the time (?). -
Wordpress: The Praha Update
My version of Conor's letters from Rome. I wrote a wordpress blog to update friends and family of my travels abroad - and as a primary way for me to share my photographs regularily with an audience. I chose wordpress because it was free, could host photo galleries, and had a number of skins I could use to customize the look and layout of my blog. I wanted all the attention on the integration of the photographs with the texts: a single column on a dark background www.samdawson.wordpress.com -
Citizen Kane
Screened Citizen Kane in a film class and was enamored by Gregg Toland's use of the camera and technology. I have since written a research paper on his innovations, specifically optical printing to obtain his signature 'deep focus' effect. I can still track his long shot of young Charles playing outside the cabin in the snow through my head. -
Blackberry Curve
I know the exact date because I can press "b" and see the first email sent to my blackberry - ie a chronolgoy of my life since April 18th 2009. Not only did I have the obvious email and browser capacity of a blackberry - I had GPS and Googlemaps, meaning that I am never lost - and always know where to find something (well, tangibly). My blackberry has also cut my time spent on facebook to near 0: I get updates and messages on my phone, so I rarely log on a computer. -
Flickr
After work I would go home and read and posrt in forums all night: my first glimpse into a digital community where everyone shared a similar interest. Primarily I used the Fuji S5 (my camera) pool as a way to garner specific technical info about my camera - and what has worked for other users. A big concern of mine has been sharpening techniques, color profiles, and workflow from the camera. -
GIS with Jeff Howarth
This challenging class introduced a world of visualization / representation through computer processes. A turning point for my interest and capacity to think critically in a variety of environments. I liked the class because of the capacity to solve a complex problem in (seemingly) infinite approaches. The same is true for photoshop: I can get a result through so many different first moves. -
BBM
My girlfriend gets a blackberry world phone and goes abroad to paris france. She and I can bbm at all hours of the day, for free. My roomate Ted likes to say: "BBM, ruining the independent abroad experience since 2001." Too close? Maybe. the point is affordable technology can keep two people otherwise seperated in constant contact, and that this might influence one's relationship to place: if you can talk to friends at home wherever you are, aren't you always home? -
Roger Deakins
Although I didn't realize until recently - Roger Deakins is another huge inspiration / admiration of mine in regards to cinematography. Some people know how to view and show their surroundings in and inherently beautiful and contextual manner - Deakins being one of these rare talents. The realization came when I watched Fargo and immediately recognized him as the DP of No Country For Old Men - likely my favorite movie. I have been on a Coen Brothers tear recently.
