Videos

Today, I have to talk about some video things and have to research a bunch of things. I have to define some words that are vocabulary for making videos. So these are the words: 
Zoom - A camera shot that changes smoothly from a long shot to a close-up or vice versa.
Pan - Swing (a video or movie camera) in a horizontal or vertical plane, typically to give a panoramic effect or follow a subject.
Tilt - Move or cause to move into a sloping position.

Transition - a passage from one scene to another by sound effects, music, etc.

Fade - To appear or disappear gradually, especially by becoming lighter or darker.

Video Editing - the process of editing segments of motion video production footage, special effects and sound recordings in the post-production process.

Close-up - shot in which the subject is tightly framed and shown at a relatively large scale.

Extreme Close-up - The shot is so tight that only a detail of the subject, such as someone's eyes, can be seen. 

A video I have seen that I really like is Tomska's video called "Kill Bing".

http://youtu.be/Erwxpr5viCM

This video doesn't have the BEST transitions but it does have REALLY good video editing. The camera shots are very well done and are neatly put together. I like the effect they put at the end which the fast motion of Tomska's hands kind of slows and overlaps them on the normal video.

Another really cool video by Tomska is called "Needles"

http://youtu.be/3I3LCyLY_m0

There aren't really any transitions but the way the movie is shot is really good. They do many close-up shots. There are also a lot of shots that are over the characters' shoulders. The effect they do with the glhe gun are really good and perfectly aligned.

One gift that I received this Christmas that I would give to someone less fortunate

This Christmas I received many gifts, but there is only one that I could give to someone less fortunate that I know will not be used for evil. This year, my family gifted me with clothes. I would give this to someone less fortunate than me because they probably can't afford to have as many things as I do. I would also give this to someone else because I believe I already have plenty of clothes and more would be completely unnecessary. My family has always taught me to help others and give to the less fortunate. I try to help others as soon as I got the opportunity.

I would also give away my ukulele away. I'd give it away for someone that aspires to be a musician or that wants to play in a band. I would also give it away because it cannot be used for evil either (unless they sell it and use it to buy drugs or alcohol or other illegal substances). This also gives that person something to do. It may keep them away from doing drugs and also from being bored. They could use it to get a job as a musician or get money from the streets. But if I give them the ukulele I would also have to buy a ukulele tuner so that they can tune it to the correct tune and play right.

Websites I like

http://mylifeisaverage.com/ This is one of my favourite websites. The content is hilarious but the design is very user friendly. The design is pretty simple and the colours don't hurt to look at. I love the fact that the design matches the content of the website.

http://dearblankpleaseblank.com/ The design of this website is pretty awesome. The menu at the top is cool because of the way it works. Also, the way you can submit the post is pretty cool because it doesn't take you to another page and the menu pops out from underneath.

http://grouchyrabbit.com/ Has a cool design. I like how the dots and slashes outline the page. I like how it has a menu at the sides that filters the posts you want to see. The thing that I don't like about this webpage is that it gets a glitch sometimes. The glitch doesn't allow you to go to the next page of submissions and the glitch can last for a long time.

http://ubikt.com.gt/ This website design is really cool. It's very simple and user friendly. It's easy to find all of the information you're looking for. I like the sub-menus that it has and that it also tells you on what part of the page you're on.

I want to brag a minute

I don't usually brag... I like to be peaceful and try to not get in trouble with anyone :) but I'm very smart; I'm probably the smartest in my grade. I got 273 in a math MAP test (the maximum score is 280) and got the highest grade out of my entire prom. I have won all of the MAP math tests except, for one bimester that the machine wasn't working properly and had to do the entire test three times (by the third time I was simply bored and desperate to finish). I have also won most of the other MAP test awards for the highest score. I'm also a successful athlete. I rock at volleyball and I'm the best of my team. I have gone to participate at AASCA tournaments since I was in 6th grade. AASCA tournaments are international school tournaments from Central America that only a hand-picked team of 12 people can go to. Also, I have trained with the high school volleyball team since 6th grade, too. I am an ace at playing video games. I love the Zelda games and passed 4 of the games... TWICE. I have passed Assassin's creed, all of the Ratchet and Clank games, Need for Speed and a bunch of other video games. I bought my own 3DS with the money I earned from a hair styling exhibition in which they used my hair. I'm proud to say that the DS I bought with my OWN money is awesome and I'm starting to finish The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time on my 3DS with all of the side quests completed and EVERYTHING done. I'm proud to say that I know 2 languages and a little bit of Korean. I have also gone to many placed for school competitions like Knowledge bowl. I am proud to say that I have very good grades and for a whole year I got straight A's.

How technology helps me :)

I think technology is a pretty big deal. Technology helps us accomplish everyday tasks, do homework and many more things. I want to talk about Google. Google is the best search engine EVER. I use Google almost every single day. It has a friendly interface and even if it's your first time using it, you will know what you are doing from the first time. It will be the closest to awesomeness you could ever possibly get. It has helped me do homework, look for pictures and waste time. which reminds me of a super awesome website that is called www.iwastesomuchtime.com and it just totally rocks. Next up, Facebook. It rocks, too, but it will never be as awesome as Google. It can help you socialize over the internet, ask for homework, contact relatives and play many games that are kind of addictive. It has been really useful for me because I can contact family members that live far away. Next is something I like to name a "social virus" (means that most people have it or want it and it becomes kind of addictive) which is the BlackBerry. This little phone is great, but it can may give you the feeling you're dying if you're not able to use it for some time. It has a chat called BlackBerry Messenger (BBM) which is included in the phone. You can download many apps to it like Whatsapp, Windows Live, Facebook (tadaaaa!), DropBox and many other things. All of these can come very handy if you don't... abuse them.

Lack of security in Guatemala

Well... I really don't like to talk about this aspect of Guatemala, but it was the one I could say the most about. Nobody likes to live in an insecure country, face it. The insecurity in Guatemala affects every aspect of it. I think it even stops the rise of its economy. The thing is, if people think Guatemala is insecure, then nobody will want to come, therefore stopping the income from tourism. Also, it's VERY bothersome (or at least for me). When I ask my parents if I can go outside, it takes a really long time to convince them. I can't go to Oakland Mall unless I go with a large group of people or with some male relative. My parents don't like me going to my friends' houses because they don't trust ANYBODY. Thing is... Nobody wants it... but nobody tries to make an effort to improve security. It affects everybody and everyone should unite to improve. We can't wait for someone else to make a move! That's all we have been doing and look at where it led us! We HAVE to do something about it or else it will just keep getting worse! We have all been witnesses that politicians always make promises to improve security but, seriously, how has that been working out for us? We have to start acting and counter-attacking. So, next time you think about complaining about the insecurity, you better think "How can I help with this situation?"