A left-brain week, this.

Water flows (IMG_5163)
Originally uploaded by gpciceri.

I was very busy using the other side of my brain, so no update this week. Fortunately, I just discovered ClustrMaps, that has two almost interesting features:

• Clustr is to Flickr like cluster is to flicker


• ClustrMaps is a WikiName in its nature

Of course, it is simply one of the most intelligent system to track site visits I ever seen, but you can check this on yourself.

And the winner is... (writing IPTC metadata into a jpeg)

IMG_5120.JPG
Originally uploaded by gpciceri.

Yes, I've experimented a little, but at least I'm able to annotate my pictures with the EXIF/IPTC metadata that dreamstime's upload system tries to read when you sumbit a photo - all of this without opening each photo by hand but using a batch procedure (thanks to Imagemagick's mogrify utility).

First of all the metadata: save them in a file named ./iptc.txt .

8BIM#1028="IPTC"
2#0="�"
2#120#Caption="I went to California - and nothing has been the same"
2#80#Byline="gpciceri"
2#5#Image Name="After a trip in San Francisco, photo num: %s"
2#25#Keyword="california"
2#25#Keyword="san francisco"

The meaning of these fields are obvious, isn't it ?

And then the python script that rules it all (courtesy of my left brain):

import glob, subprocess, tempfile, os

IPTC='./iptc.txt'
files = glob.glob('./*.JPG')

ipct=open(IPTC,"r").read()
for file in files:
    name = file.split('.JPG')[0].split('_')[1]
    title = ipct % (name,)
    outf = tempfile.NamedTemporaryFile()
    outf.write(title)
    outf.flush()
    print "processing:", file, name
    p=subprocess.Popen("mogrify -profile 8BIMTEXT:" +       outf.name + " " + file, shell=True)
    sts = os.waitpid(p.pid, 0)

It reads the metadata to add from the previous file, cycles over the *.JPG file in the current directory, substitutes the image number in the image name and mogrify the file - writing the metadata into it. Et voilà.

Ready for iStockphoto.com!!! (Pier fuga)

Pier fuga
Originally uploaded by gpciceri.

Well, iStockphoto staff has just reviewed my three samples and decided I'm ready to post my photos on their site. Here's the beef:
'''
Dear gian paolo (gpciceri),
Welcome to iStockphoto.com, the designer's dirty little secret. Congratulations, the iStockphoto administrators have determined that your images are commercially and technically ready for iStockphoto.com. Please begin uploading at your convenience.
'''
Here's my page on iStockphoto.com.

My first slide show

OK. This is my first attempt to create a slide show on slide.com: well, the slide uploader is not so clever as the flicker one - for example I've found no way to control how many files, and which, are still waiting to upload, neither the way to suspend/resume an upload. Nevertheless the resulting flash-driven slidshow is rather interesting. Even the HTML mock-up slide.com suggests me it's poor (way too big, and unrespectful of the flowpage for my blog style) - I've tweaked the flicker one to handle the slideshow.

Graffiti, right near my home.

IMG_4559.JPG
Originally uploaded by gpciceri.

It's a couple of years since graffiti appeared over an old factory wall, right near my home. Before someone clever decides to clear it, I've decided to save some picture of them for my city urban history.
Of course the entire slideshow is available clicking here.

Casual Flowers near a little river, Northern Italy.

A papavero
Originally uploaded by gpciceri.

Well folks, I remember ten or twelve years ago when a picture slideshow was composed of real slides and two carousel syncronized with music: now it's far more easier put together something nice, but it's not the same thing, of course. The river is called "Torrente Lambrone" and, in its part I like most, goes form its source, the "Menaresta" to the Lake of Pusiano.

Let's start to see if my right brain can make a living on his own

Statua
Originally uploaded by gpciceri.

So I've started posting this image on FeaturePics, where you can buy it at $0.99 for editorial usage (for personal or other usage you can download it form flickr, please only check the license, in order to fully understand it. This photo (like all of mine on flickr) is released under an Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareLike License, so to use it in a commercial context you should buy it on FeaturePics (of course you can just steal it, but this should not be fair). By the way, its price seems chip, but remember that for the same amount you can always go on Apple Music Store and buy U2 Sunday Bloody Sunday ;-)

My first photo book

Anna at 4. Shouting
Originally uploaded by gpciceri.

Stop the press. I've just authored my first photo book on qoop, simply printing my Children photo set on qoop.com. I've some doubts about photos' expositions (I usually underexpose and so my picture may be printed too much dark), but only seeing this first attempt I really understand what is the right exposition level.

Pictures from my SF trip, 2004

Clawns
Originally uploaded by gpciceri.

I've just put apart the pictures I took in my 2004 SF tour. The entire set is available here, on flickr

Things I can still try (with a little help from my friends) to achieve

Two brothers
Originally uploaded by gpciceri.

• Learn to write in English (well, not only nerdisms or other technical jargon).
  
• Take more beautiful pictures
  
• Share what I learn with other (possibly) nice people
  

Now I'm 39. So what?

Como, Villa Olmo, a statua
Originally uploaded by gpciceri.

Yesterday it was my birthday (thanks to all that still remember and call). Now I'm 39 years old. Well, Plato founded Accademia about at 40, so I've about I year of time to do something great.

Seriously speaking, I've spent half of my life mainly following my left-brain thinking path: now I suppose it's time to give the right part of my brain the chance it deserves.

Right-Brain thinking? Edoardo seems curious

Edoardo seems curious
Originally uploaded by gpciceri.

And reading this paper (a pdf file) could help him (and us, by the way) understanding what it means.

Or perhaps it's better to take a look at this article, from Wired (Feb. 2005)

Anna seems perplex

Anna seems perplex
Originally uploaded by gpciceri.

Well, my eldest (of two) children seems rather perplex. Perhaps she didn't have her favourite TV cartoon, today.