Pictures on the dust

Picture on the dust

On the dust?
That’s a stunning talent!

Baby Warning Instructions

Interesting ‘Do’s And Don’ts With Babies’ warning instructions that comes from a book by David and Kelly Sopp. Silly yet amusing that would lighten up your bad baby day.

26 more pics of weird baby warning instructions after the jump.

Source: Cool Stuff

Moon and Star on Earth

Where in the World are the Crescent Star Islands, aka the Moon and Star on Earth?

Where did the “Moon and Star on Earth” photograph originate? The above image was uploaded to the flick.com photography site by Ajith Kumar on 1 November 2005. He describes himself as a communication operator working for “Indian Express”, a daily newspaper. Sometime during or before 2005, Wilson Hayes included the image on a webpage entitled “What A Beautiful World.” The same image, with the same title, “The Moon and Star on Earth”, is also found in a collection of beautiful photographs by “Oracle Whimsical” entitled “You only pass this way once,” dated September 23, 2005. A third site, “Secretopinions.com” included it also. I found it at “Gar’Z”, circa 2006, where it was entitled “One of Earth’s Dynamics of Unity – Moon/ Star Lake .” In January 2006, the image was uploaded to a site of predominantly Muslim themed images from Turkey: http://spaces.msn.com/members/onurhoney/.

The crescent and star are symbols of Islam, therefore, this image probably originated with a person of the Muslim faith who is skilled with Photoshop, as it appears to be a composite of two islands. “The Moon” part looks like Molokini Islet, a small chunk of land located a few miles off the coast of the island of Maui in Hawaii. Molokini is popular with tourists who go there to dive and watch fish along the reef. Notice the boats lined up, and also notice that the top boat anchored off the crescent island, Molokini, has been copied and pasted over to the left, at the bottom of the star island. I don’t know where the star-shaped island came from, but it is not from the waters next to Molokini!

The original image that was obviously used to make the fake or composite “Crescent Star Islands” may have originated as an illustration for a Hawaiian newspaper, Maui News. The photograph was used to illustrate a story of the rescue of six Molokini divers in February of 2003: “MAALAEA, Maui (15 Feb 2003) .” In the news report the image is entitled “Molokini, Maui.” I later found that same image entitled “Molokini” used as advertising of an Oahu, Hawaii business, Will’s Condos.com, which I have copied below.

A Google image search retrieves many pictures of “Molokini Island”, which is also known as Molokini Crater and Molokini Inlet. One can also map this island on Google’s satellite maps and see that there is absolutely no star island next to it.

This actual land formation is probably geologically impossible, considering the various forces that create land masses in oceans. However, the hand of man is quite creative.

Thanks to Neddy’s Palaver

Inspirational Pictures And Quotes

Inspirational Pictures and Quotes..

Sensual Smoke Art

Sublime & Sensual Smoke Art

Sometimes “going up in smoke” can be a good thing

Natural smoke (and its Photoshop variety) seem to become more and more a media of choice for artistic expression. Some examples of “smoke art”, and marvel at how such an elusive substance can be possibly herded into fascinating shapes.

Artists inherently like smoke for its flux and dynamic properties, and the public seem to enjoy asking the perennial question “What were they smoking?” when seeing a radical and challenging piece of art.

(original unknown)

Abstract, natural smoke meets electricity

First, lets see how a NATURAL smoke can be made to look so wonderful – without any Photoshop manipulations. Sometimes all it takes is a good high-speed strobe flash and a correct exposure to capture ambient light.

Irene Muller examines the inner wisps and curls of colored smoke, producing photographs worthy to be framed in the process. See the whole series on her site.

(image credit: Irene Muller)

Or the smoke that’s produced in explosive interaction with electricity:

(image credit: Irene Muller)

More awesome electricity at play here:

(image credit: Luiz Santos, Ohio University)

See the rest of “high-speed photography of explosions” in our previous article.

Lighting Matches – simple act, enhanced by artistic flair

The most basic combination of elements: fire and air (smoke) – make for an endlessly mesmerizing and enchanting dance of evolving forms:

(image credit: Mike Brook)

“Fire and smoke” set from Brent:

(image credit: Brent)

“One Strobe coming from the left and to the rear of the match. Shutter was set to capture ambient flame” -

(image credit: Josh Beeman)

Unintentional Shapes

Unintentional… and all the more surprising for it. Seems like nature can best any our effort to conjure unusual lovely shapes (even if it’s milk drops descending into the water… with smoky textures)

(image credit: Maximilian Jaenicke)

Magical combination of smoke and sunrays in this photo, taken in a rice cracker bakery at Inle Lake in Myanmar:

(image credit: Bas Uterwijk)

Burning incense sticks makes groovy “colored smoke” – a series by Graham Jeffery:

(images credit: Graham Jeffery)

Thomas Herbrich has an excellent series “Smoke” on his site:

(images credit: Thomas Herbrich)

Putting an egg in the middle of the smoke action, makes it even more interesting:
(just make sure that no dazed chicken is about to stagger out of it)

(image credit: Sharlene Shappart)

Can’t get enough of this? Check out the “Artsmoke” Flickr pool for daily updates.

Photoshop Smoke Nirvana

What were they smoking? Maybe they inhaled a highly-potent concentration of Photoshop tips, tricks, skills and effects, mixed it with a heady brew of creativity – and produced these wisps (for the benefit and enjoyment of the paying client) -

And for the sheer luminous sensuality of smoke (can’t touch it, a moment – and it’s gone), here are a few retouched smoke dreams from one of the Russian Photoshop forums (where they also discuss steps of how to make such art) -

(images credit: demiart.ru)