Faking it!

We are having a course on Sound Design as a part of our course here at NID, and I never thought it would give me such a appreciation for things we hear!
Not to mention the realisation of how exactly the audio we hear in any moving picture is created.
I am not an audiophile, I love my music, but I hardly bother much about levels, and bass and all that jazz.. I just know when I like it or not and so on, I know the audio quality of my laptop is not that hot, and my phone just frankly sucks! but I didn't know how to appreciate a good pair of stereo speakers, and whole right nad left headphones things, and why Bose speakers are that hot!
Now there are positives and negatives to this new found knowledge..
One- I can put it to use in future, in terms of listening, the sounds I will record in the future for my film and so on,
but the downside?
I really know how badly my speakers suck, and too bad I just cannot afford any nice speakers etc right now!! Damn it! I have started wishing for all the things I used to mock before (citing others as audio/music snobs!) Well it looks like I'm about to become one myself..

Anyway.. this has made me realise a whole host of things, like how awesome that battle scene in Narnia really is, and how much the sound contributes there! Or how fake the film medium really is, considering that absolutely everything is recreated in a sound studio, and even if it is a sweet romantic scene with a soft little sigh and kiss at the end, and audio effects are all recreated artificially in a studio later!
How does that make me feel? A little sick, to think we get fooled into believeing that artificial world that has been created, that we actually fall for some of these characters, empathise with them, cry with them or laugh with them.
It brings to life how cynical and disillusioned the producers of those sounds and effects must be, or infact anyone in the glamorous world of film-making.They, who are involved in the business, would be the worst off in the end.. we still watch the end product, and love it and appreciate it.. but no matter how beautiful the end product, those creating the sounds itself would never be able to disassociate themselves sufficiently to forget how it came about, and thus remain, in a sense, the losers, just with heavier pockets.
And yet, it is this unreal magic which captivates us and keeps us spellbound, day after day, year after year, for the past so many decades! This same thing for which we shell out so much money every Friday or weekend, or even once a month! to be introduced into not just a fake story in a fake world, but also somehow be trapped into believing everything not just purely on visuals, but that sound.. which creeps upon us unsuspectingly, whihc introduces that realism, and makes us believe...

Entangled

Entangled by the twists and turns life often throws at you, its easy to get so caught up you don't even realize that you are trapped till you are hanging by a thread somewhere in mid-air.

Rough sketch for this week's Illustration Friday topic.

Daily doodle!

A group assignment this week, and we have been divided into 2 groups of 5 each.

After endless calls, we finally met to discuss, and work.. ofcourse not accomplishing anything really!

2 hours of not doing much, we dispersed again to have garam chai!

Some sketches from the time we were supposed to be thinking of each person's individual contribution to the assignment.

Jazz is the Sax!

There was a Jazz concert on Sunday night at the NID Riverfront. Riverfront, as we discovered much to our amusement later, refers to the Backfields of the campus! That certainly got a laugh from all of us, as many had spent a good part of two days trying to figure out what Riverfront referred to!
The performer? Saskia Laroo.. evidently she is a big thing where she comes from, which would be Holland.
Well she was... amazing! Never heard Jazz before, and never knew why it was so awesome or whatever, but that night made a convert of me!
Such music, it invigorated me, made me head bang! me! I'm the one who usually feels sleepy listening to loud music and with flashing lights! Yes, I have slept even in a disco, with music and dance on full blare all around me!
But anyway, getting back to the point, I loved it! Loved!
Now if only I could find her albums online somewhere to download!
I also tried to be the overachiever and tried to draw/sketch there. Went fully prepared with my trusty pens and small doodle book, but didn't account for the fact that the stage would be lit up and the rest of the place in comparitive darkness.. so I couldnt really see much to draw.. tried anyway, and came up with some of my most crappy doodles, add darkness to really jazzy music, impatience, foot tapping and pulsating crowd.. not exactly the ambience to draw patiently and in one continuous line!

The results... Fun, late hurried dinner, some sketches, and no sleep as had to then sit and complete the assignment I had been putting off for four days!

People sitting on the grass and listening...

The Director sitting and enjoying the show as well.

A photographer who kept coming in front of Saskia, and the bass guitarist.

Daily doodle!

Didn't manage to complete my set target of 30 posts of good work by the end of the month, and cheated as well with the old work demonstration! :( Its already 20 minutes into 1st December..

Very little drawing done this weekend! though it was a 4-day weekend! Watched movies, fooled around, somehow managed to waste a hell lot of time! and not managed any work!

Just 2 measly drawings done! One for Saturday and one for Sunday!

I'm getting very impatient these days, don't have that patience I had with the one line drawing, and then I scribble and ruin it. The strength of this lies, in my opinion, in recognizing the main contours, and knowing where to lead the line. If I were to just scratch around all over the place, then I'm sure anyone could draw without lifting their pencil or pen off the page!

Need to be more patient, and not draw in a hurry.. just not going to happen that way!

There are some examples of impatience coming up soon! Really terrible work sometimes!

Once again at the BMW

Had a drawing session with all the young kids on campus for a X'mas display! They are cute enough, till they start shouting, screaming for more chocolates, or just don't want to draw! I donot have my mother's patience for dealing with them! Managed to complete just one page after many starts, when either the subject moved away, or more likely, I was beckoned by one of the kids.

Well it wasn't as bad as I'm making out, somewhat fun to listen to their conversations, and see what they come up with!