low angle shot

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low profile perspective shot of the trails

trees

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the dizzling amazment of the trees at the arboretum

Arbo Dance

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MEDIEVAL MAPS by Patrick, Ben, Karen, Alex

Grass in Headlights

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Quack Attack.

Excuse the redundancy... I have also chosen to do my project on ducks. I'm not much of a plant person, so the most excited thing for me, as far as Arboretum experience goes, is the ducks. I love those ducks. They're so silly, and show up randomly all over the place. They really bring life to the Arboretum. However, it still seems to remain a mystery as to why they're there.. and how they got there. I would like to explore the existence of the duck population in the Arboretum: their origins, their managers, their feeders, their carers, etc. The population is something that is easy to take for granted and not think about. I hope thru research, I can better understand this population, and learn something new about them.. and ultimately, teach others about them.

duck population

I'm also curious about the ducks at the arboretum. I'd like to focus on the population fluctuations of the ducks there. How is their population maintained? What has been done in the past or present to maintain the population? I read in an article that the ducks were overpopulating due to peopl releasing pet ducks there, etc. and so to solve the problem people were starting to kill them. Animal activist people step in and started relocating the ducks in order to stop the murder of the arboretum ducks. I want to know what else these ducks have gone through.

Early History of the Arboretum

My proposal for research is to explore the beginnings of the arboretum as a project here on campus. I wanted to look into how this space has developed into the living museum we know it as today. I was interested in possible ideas and proposals that never really panned out or alternate ideas for how the space was to be used.

The Aboretum as a public, private space.

I am interested in the ways that people take the Arboretum, a very public, open space, and make their own private areas within it with little physical adaptation of their environment. People frequently engage in activities that denote some expectation of privacy or intimacy within the space with little demonstrated or appreciable hesitation that would result from being publicly exposed. So I want to know why people feel as though they can make a public space a private one, and how they do that satisfactorily.

Arboretum Protest/Inspiration

I am interested in the transformation of the arboretum from Putah Creek to what it is today, and the journey the land, the citizens of Davis, and the builders of the arboretum have been through. I want to research what kinds of reactions there were initially to the idea of an arboretum, and especially anybody who was against the building of the arboretum. There is a publication of poetry that is inspired by Cache and Putah Creek. I plan on researching community members' attitudes towards the arboretum through the poetry in this publication and also any other artwork that was inspired by the arboretum itself, but specifically written art.

The Arboretum's Design and Purpose

I propose to research the design of the arboretum in a few specific respects. I want to explore the relationship between the purposes the arb was designed for vs. how it is actually used. How do the original design and any renovations reflect the purpose that the designers had in mind for the arboretum? Which is considered more important/which is a bigger attractor: the naturalism or the designed nature of the arb? What does the arb say about designed environments, their effectiveness and their purposes? Did the designers want to accentuate aesthetics, education, ease of use, conservation, all of the above? I want to discuss the design ecology of the arb as well. What sorts of ecological problems were and still are present and are there natural solutions to these problems? How artificial is the human intervention in maintaining the arb?

What runs through a runner's head?

What does the arboretum mean to each runner that chooses to run around the Arboretum? Why do they run there? Why not run somewhere else? What do they think of before they get there? On their way there? As they start running? Do they zone out or remain in the present? What do they feel that place does for them? What does it feel like? I have a feeling it is more interesting than we might be led to believe.
These are all questions I would like to ask. it interests me and I feel it could be shot in a variety of interesting ways.

The Mighty Ducks

My arboretum idea is to do a piece on the ducks of the arboretum. What are the different kinds, where do they come from, do they make the arboretum their home or do they just merely pass through? I want to find out who/what feeds the ducks and if there are any interesting duck-related stories. Basically, anything duck related. I remember the first time I heard about the arboretum, people were like "oh yea thats where the ducks are, you can feed them." I wonder what makes this tie between the two so common.

Past, Present and Future

I think it would be fun to retrieve old pictures taken at the arboretum and locate the site where the picture was taken and contrast it with its present look, to have a visual representation of how much the arboretum has changed - a before and after look. To make it more interesting I was planning to take anything within the shot - such as, people - and have its current representation in the new film shot. For example, a picture of a guy wearing bell-bottoms and disco shirt in the '70 being contrasted with a guy wearing tight ripped jeans with a polo shirt (the 'modern look'). And if any future plans (visual representations) are available for the arboretum, i was planning to play on the same idea.

If you can add anything to this idea i'm open to suggestions.

public art

I'm interested in looking at all the public art that exists on the Arboretum grounds and the thought processes/ meanings behind each - particularly looking at how the Arboretum acquires pieces, who they work with, and the role the art department and the UCD student body plays in contributing to that art.

Characters of the Arboretum

I was thinking of doing profiles on the various eccentric characters of the Arboretum. Such as the lady in a straw hat that yells at the ducks in an Australian accent that Emily mentioned in her interview. I just think it’d be fun to get to know them and learn the reason why they choose to frequent the Arboretum.

arboretum as a prose for poetry

my topic is to look at the contemporary poetry that has been written about the arboretum. i like gary snyder, dave robertson and several others who have gone and used the arboretum as a tool for their works. there is a lot modern day poetry written about some of the places within the arboretum and it would nice to figure a connection between all the writings.

Allergens and the Arboretum

I'm interested in researching the various allergens lurking around the Arboretum- especially those that are not necessarily native to this habitat. How do these allergens effect students and teachers? I'm also interested in researching possible herbal or botanical allergy remedies that may be growing in the Arboretum.

Poetic Imagination and the Arboretum

I want to look into the Arboretum as both an environment for and subject of creative inspiration, particularly creative writing.

Through my preliminary research I've already found four people who have orgnized writing projects related to the arboretum. I would interview these people and probably conduct additional field research, looking for people writing in the arboretum and interviewing them about their chosen surroundings.

Research Topic: Rumors and Gossip

I want to research peoples perceived notions of certain areas of the arboretum. Peoples perceptions of cleanliness, naturalness, function, aesthetic, etc will be explored.

Arboretum as DIY/Fringe

I'm interested in the arboretum as a sort of DIY operation, particularly in relation to the campus and administration at large (how much support does the arboretum get vs how much it wants, what kind of freedoms and what kind of restrictions result from being on the fringe, etc.).

Shapes of the Arboritum, Psychogeometrics

My idea for the Aboritum project is to discuss the shapes of the arboritum. I have a vague understanding of pyscho-geometrics, which classifies the four different personality types into shapes:
Squares - Organized
Circles - Close emotional ties
Triangles - Leaders, efficiency
Squiggles - The free thinkers, the odd ones

I would like to look at not only the structural designs of the Arboritum but also the predominant natural shapes in the arboritum, leaves, trees, bushes, etc. I would like to compare the predominant shapes of the Arboritum, to the shapes of the rest of campus the "industrialized" sections if you will. My hypothesis is that the predominant shapes of both areas will be useful, balance is key.

The Mysterious Ruin

I propose to research the mysterious "ruin" near the South American Collection. This little nook is very interesting- from its unusual presence to its unique graffiti art, one cannot overlook this location. Apparently it used to be a water reservoir for farmers in the later 19th century, but now it stands as one of the arboretum's most unusual artifacts.

Remembering Where the Arboretum Comes From

Check this out: Putah Creek and the other not mentioned proximal bodies of water all contributed to the history and flourishing of Yolo, Solano and other surrounding areas economically, socially and otherwise. Would it not be wise to investigate into the lives and experiences associated with the shaping of Davis - our degree bearing hometown - and not to mention one of largest agricultural production centers in the modern world ( Come on! We feed the entire nation 80 varieties of fruits and vegetables exclusive to California) ? How exactly does the now stagnant body of water centered in the Arboretum fit into all of this? My idea is to uncover/rediscover just that! Wowee!

Private Tactics

I want to research the private, clandestine tactics that the public apply to the arboretum. For example, substance abuse, marriages(?), suicide, and/or "expressions of love".

robertson was the man

Robertson was the man today.

Light Layer

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first shots of running are black and white underneath the glow of the pathlight. camera was positioned to get a spectrum of light layers. next shot the light is focused in one stream.

colorful tunnel

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i added high contrast to accentuate the colors of the tunnel. this turned greyish lights into dark blacks heavily contrasting the areas between light and dar.

like moths to a flame

I think Mike did a great job as far as composition is concerned. I found that if i cross disolved them, the light "flares" line up beautifully.

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Hanging Needles

These are hanging needles. I love how they sway in the wind. I want to adjust focus from forward to back, but I don't want to be irritating.
Not sure but i think this is TV setting at 15 (that's 1/15th of a second). Or maybe it was some other setting.
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The Long Winding Road homage to daniel

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the long winding road. inspired. by daniel. where does the long winding dirt path leads us? we do not know, yet.

Waiting at Night

Andrea Manners likes to stalk joggers at night. Here in this video I have captured her in the act. From an overhead angle, this shot is utilizing slow shutter speeds, lowlight, and shadows for an (appropriate) creepiness. The only light source for this video is a lamppost in the top left, out of frame.

The waterfall

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Bridge

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I shoot the bridge seen through flowers of out of focus.
I thought that the color of flowers was really beautiful.
When shooting flowers really closed to camera, it is blurred so I can see flowers better.

Fences

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trying to show the physical boarder between the campus and the arboretum. in this case, a fence

Dancing Lights on the Water

Using the branches of a tree as a "frame" the shot begins on the branches -- aimed in particular at the leaf near the center of the frame -- focuses out, then ends focused on two lights reflecting on the water.

running man

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geoffrey running through the arboretum forest as rose captures the beautiful imaaAAAGES

The Bridge

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The lighting of the bridge and surroundings from a distance... (TEST)

lex3

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fshgn

Arboretum at night, focus on a pole.

lex2

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etqr

Arboretum at night, camera pointed straight up at an arboretum light half in frame and half out of frame. Alternating focus gives glowing effect. Notice the spider chowing down.

lex1

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dabf

Arboretum at night, night shot mode, camera is moved on a tripod alternating between light and dark areas in order to keep the auto focus functions, constantly fluctuating. I chose an area with a bout equal parts light and shadow. Light to my left darkness to my right.

talking near the water

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We are on the bridge watching people talk. It is a shot of a women talking to a man. They are very comfortable even though they clearly know that we are filming them.

Night Light & bugs

This is an experiment using slow shutter speeds in conjunction with lowlight environments. Setting the camera on a tripod, it was pointed at the fringes of one of the lampposts scattered throughout the Arboretum. The effect is eerie but hypnotizing. Look carefully at the bugs which intermittently cut into the light.

Lost in the Arboretum Sequence

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This is a sequence comprised of cellphone shots and a few sound effects; again, I was playing with scale, trying to create a jungle or lush minature world out of very close shots, and also getting into the topic of walking/ moving through space...

wheeeee!

I'm trying this out to see how it works. Please excuse the boring nature of this post.
Hilary

WELCOME to the Our Arboretum Vlog

Hello out there!
This VLOG is intended as a starting point, a visual catalog or clearinghouse for us all in TCS 101 and 190 (aka Technocultural Studies 101 and 190 at UCDavis) to post our visual and audio recordings, as well as our ideas and notes, about the

ARBORETUM

and/or, the

MOBILE VIDEO PIECE for the ARBORETUM

More on this project as it materializes.

For now, TCS 101'ers, please post your video with comments about your visual ideas, what time of day and where you shot, and any ideas about space/ place your shot connects to or expresses.

TCS 190'ers are also welcome to add video, imagery, and especially comments on the video, audio, and ideas posted here.

Root Reveal: near the redwood grove

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I wanted to explore moving through space by "dollying" out from an ECS in which you can only see the texture of bark, but nothing about scale, to a LS, which reveals the trunk. The arboretum is a microcosm or minature sample set of the plants in the world, and the camera can also play with scale, turning a view of a tiny detail into a universe. I also like that you can see the headlights of cars passing through this constructed "natural" environment.