http://jurilog.jp

Turning Red Bull F1 at Japanese public way

I think, Red Bull seems to make an effort to allow excite things
to take root in Japanese Society.
For example, Air Race is not famous in Japan,
but they are keeping to cary Air Racer every year,
and make the stripe in Japanese air at their sponsored music event.

In this year, they carried their F1,
and demonstrated at not only the event
but a pubric way for Japanese Eathquake Disaster Charity.

I surprised that GoPro HD shop-bought camera was put on F1
as the on-board camera :-)

This week is very important for Red Bull Racing between Monaco and Canada Gp,
But Buemi showed us his genuine hospitality
with highly safety conscience by his driving.

I paid a donation again, and got a can of Red Bull to pay my respect.

Animated sendai map before the quake and the after.

NASA released their satellite view of Sendai,
and I made the Animation for the comparison.

This Image was captured at February 26, 2011 and March 12, 2011.
You see the devastating grand erosion by the quake and tsunami.

Now Rescue teams is coming from around the world,
and a lot of the victims are taking off by them from the new gulf.

Flooding from Tsunami near Sendai, Japan : NASA
http://www.nasa.gov/multimedia/imagegallery/image_feature_1892.html

Detail of the Tokyo Tower Bent

Tokyo Tower Bent by japan quake,
and closed until confirming safe conditions is done.
I believe they'll be able to solve their problems.

Take 3D pict with Nintendo 3DS

Today, Nintendo 3DS was released in Japan.
The game console was closely packed by a lot of the 3D and communicative ideas.

3DS have a 3D Display with stereo camera. You can take 3D pictures and see on the display.
Now, I converted the picture data ( 3D MPO format ) to stereogram movie.

The camera's basic performance is not good.
It may not be able to memorize good image data with enough resolution and exposure.

But The 3D pictures will be amplify the user's communication,
and they will be memorized the special experiences with their Friend and Family.

It's just for fun :-)

Flying ISS with HTV2 over The National Art Center, Tokyo.

Last month, I went to see H-IIB Rocket with HTV2 Launch at Tanegashima.
The Launch was succeeded and HTV2 has been docked to International Space Station( ISS ).

And this morning, the ISS with HTV2 flew over the National Art Center, Tokyo.
I could see HTV2 again :-)

H-IIB and the Toasted Launch Pad

January 22, 2011, H-IIB rocket and H-II Transfer Vehicle(HTV) was launched from Tanegashima Space Center.

H-IIB is in 10 largest rockets and it's capable to carry the HTV to the international space station( ISS ).

300 kg of water, food, crew commodities,science experiment materials, fluorescent light, LED and such as the component was packed into the HTV in this mission.
HTV was given the nickname Kouno-tori( White Stork ). HTV will be continue to carry science and space materials carefully as a new born baby, after the space shuttle years.

I went to see the launch and took the movie.
you see not only the launch but the burned Launch pad at the next day.

When you visit Tanegashima, you may find nice cafes and Onsens.
I feel relaxed pace of time at there, compared with Tokyo's.

Sunny breakfast at the nice guest house.

I couldn't understand enough for the beneficial of space development, but I could feel technology, nature and future at once. It was a precious experience for me.

10 Biggest Rockets Ever Built
http://astroaviator.com/2009/09/12/10-biggest-rockets-ever-built/

H-II
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/H-II

HTV-2
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HTV-2

Tanegashima Space Center
http://www.jaxa.jp/about/centers/tnsc/index_e.html

360 degrees Tokyo Illuminations (2010-2011)

When viewer watch a picture, they doesn't only see in the picture but over the frame. The clipped picture is spread over the viewer's mind by their imagination.

But there is a person who cannot believe such as the viewer's imagination. He just hope to capture 360 degrees whole around picture in our sight, without clipping. That's me :-)

Few years ago, I tried to take 360 degrees pictures and compiled to a movie. There was no spherical fish-eye lens for APS-sized sensor DSLR at the time, and I used wide lens with fish-eye converter. But it had not enough resolution.

Today, I can use spherical fish-eye lens dedicated DSLR, SIGMA 4.5mm f/2.8 Circular Fisheye. I put up a rig with Anti-vibration mount on my bike, skateboard track...etc.
And I tried to take the interval pictures of illumination again.

Vibration was remained yet, but it has good resolution by the new lens.

You see London type Double-decker bus in front of Louis Vuitton Roppongi Boutique :-)

Fly me to the moon on iPhone 4

I have thought that star watching looks so hard works.
It's required to carry a heavy expensive telescope and
difficult equipments, go on sleepy midnight ways to country side,
and peer over a Planisphere for hours and hours.

But I didn't know that we could do star watching at anyplace,
even if we were in downtown area.
And today, there is good Planisphere Apps for iPhone and iPad
to find stars easily.

Finally, I got a small telescope and put iPhone on it
to take star's pictures.

I used Borg's Pencil Borg(175mm f/7) telescope and Vixen's LV5mm eyepiece.
In the case, 35x telescopic image was shown by the system.
I tried to see the moon to test it.

In general, Such as the high power but small telescope projects darker image.
But iPhone 4's back illuminated sensor is proof a dark picture in such as the darker environment.

And I arrived at the beautiful moon!

I used sharpness filter for the image, but it contain enough resolution
to see the moon's cratered details.

Tomytec - Borg: Pencil Borg 25
http://www.tomytec.co.jp/borg/products/detail/summary/9/1

LOMO like pictures by iPhone 4

I tried to make DOF(depth of field) Adapter and put iPhone 4 on it
to defocus background images.

DOF Filter is darker filter and It can't use for a sensitive camera.
But iPhone 4 have backside illumination sensor,
it's very tough for such as the darker conditions.

And I could take LOMO like old cinema image by iPhone 4.

The Movie is here.

Today, We have DSLR Camera Movie and we can get
high quality image with less effort. I couldn't find
any of the reason to use iPhone 4 on DOF Adapter ;-)

I found that iPhone's Retina Display is best Electronic View Finder
to adjust Manual Focus, I have ever seen!
I need manual focus function on iPhone 4.

$50 cheapest 'Pad'

Recently, My friends get some tablet devices, foo-Pad and bar-ndle :-)
But I got cheapest electric pad, Bookie Board.

The Simply Device allow Writing,

and Deleting.

That's it.

The device looks no Digital Circuit, and the (Analog) resolution is very high.
And it keep the writing with no electricity.
I like the simplest tablet.

Boogie Board

http://www.myboogieboard.com/

sakura DSLR movie

In this spring, I got new DSLR camera allow video capture, at last.
it's available Manual video capturing in inexpensive price range.

In the season, you see beautiful Sakura in Japan.
and I tried some capturing test.

#1 Dark Place

In DSLR movie, available in dark place.
But not too sure. I see some noises in the movie.

And I need to care not to jiggle my hand in
such as the macro movie.

#2 Take movie on motor bike

I rode my Ducati bike for the movie capturing. But Ducati is worst bike for that.
The heavy vibration is characteristics of the feeling while riding :-)

I want to ride BMW's with flat-twin boxer engine.
It's powerful engine with low-vibration.

#3 360 degrees capturing

In this movie, I used still image captured my older camera and Wide fish-eye converter.
I want to use new camera with better lens for more resolution and frame in next time.

Structural 3DCG Animation

Fractal graphic evokes a fundamental beauty in a natural shapes.
Basically, simply repeated graphics make beautiful geometry.

Context Free is such as the 2D geometric shapes drawing software.
http://www.contextfreeart.org/
And in 3DCG, try "Structure Synth".
http://structuresynth.sourceforge.net/

In 3DCG Animation or 4D world,
Quartz composer is one of the best software, I think.

Quartz composer is development tool in Mac OSX User Interface Programming.
But it's often used for Visual making tool for VJ's.

It's very easy to use. The functions is appear visualy in the window.
And patch each function box to make the graphic flows.
You can make interesting 2D/3D Animations only patch it.

If you want to make more complexity animation,
you can use javascript and OpenGL Shading Language(GLSL).

And the Quartz Composer tool is free for Mac OSX User!
If you have OSX Update Disc, Install the Development tools,
and search it in the "Developer" folder.

I made the demo and tutorial movies.

The below link is for a 4DCG animation by Quartz composer.
http://www.subblue.com/blog/2009/9/20/quaternion_julia

But I can't understand enough for The 4D world.
The world is a wide place :)

change your vaio p

VAIO P is very small size PC, but it's good for my daily usage.

The screen resolution is incredible high density, I can't see each dot.
And the horizontal resolution is higher than my MacBook Pro.

The aspect ratio is very unique,
I couldn't find good Wallpaper for it yet.

But now, I'm ready to change your VAIO P.
The pictures is suited for VAIO P desktop resolution, 1600 x 768.
enjoy!

Solar Eclipse Animated.

Moving Moon's shadow taken from "Himawari" weather satellite, Today.

Japan Meteorological Agency
http://www.jma-net.go.jp/sat/data/web/suneclipse_observation.html

Juri at Odaiba

I drived rent-a-IQ

to see the real scale GUNDAM.

Large Robotics Art in the wild

Last month, I went to two art events.
One was Theo Jansen Exhibition, another was the parade by La Machine.

Theo Jansen is an artist, who builds Air-powered large animal robots.
He aim to make Keep-alive animals without any of his help at nature location.
And his animals have some functions to gather the wind and walking by the power.

His concept is so Ecological, but his
animals can't move only natural wind yet.
Gathered the wind by a car, used compressed air and many of his animals was
woven plastic tubes. That's depend on fossil fuel.

But I think, the gap between the concept and the reality is one of the attraction. And his animal's moving give us a good opportunity to feel the wonder for real animals and the environment.

La Machine is a street theatre company.
They performed at Japanese public street in Yokohama port area.

They was based Royal de Luxe, giant marionette performing company.
They use very large mechanical animals for their performances.

I feel so strange to the large spider's walking in the familiar sight in Yokohama,
but I could feel deja-vu,too.
The sight was just in the PATLABOR Robot Comic's world I dreamed
when I was highschool student!

Google : Theo jansen
http://images.google.com/images?&q=theo+jansen

La Machine
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/La_Machine_(production_company)

Royal de Luxe
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Royal_de_Luxe

PATLABOR
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Patlabor

Design for Wedding

Last month,My friend gave me a chance to make a sign board for their Wedding Reception.

In those cases, It's often used Calligraphy hand writting
or such as the hand made art.

I thought the couple (especially, the groom) had
a well balanced life. And they'll grow up with a lot of the trying.
I used algorithmic generated CG by "Structure Synth" software
to express them.

It's preset data "tree".

Some of the pattern,

and layouted.

Signboard at the Gate

For the entrance,
I putted the wings into acrylic resin box with a lot of the feather.
In my story, the lovely wings was formed by the feathers :-)

Next time, I want to make a funiture with such as the algorithmic generated design.

Structure Synth
http://structuresynth.sourceforge.net/

movie with lensbaby

I got new "Lensbaby" SLR Camera lens.

Lensbaby's features is here.

- the center is forcused, and peripheral part is off-forcused.
- tilt the lens, and you can choose forcused point in your image.

That's used for toy-camera effect image,
miniature faking effect and more unique expression.

The lens is for SLR Camera. But I put it on my Camcorder.
New model "Lensbaby composer", is easier the tilt control than previous product.
And that's controlable when recording a movie.

I made some test movies.
And that's just a test.

juri-san test

buildings test

all the tests

I should be careful not to jiggle my hand, and keep clean the lens and screen enough :-)

Lensbaby movie gallery

http://lensbaby.com/gallery-movie.php

gadget music live

Last sunday, I was on the stage at music event to
played DS-10,SU-10 scratchable small sampler and Electroplankton.
The event was "OTODUST 2", for mobile musical gadget and the music.

The performer played DS-10, TENORI-ON, or such as small electric musical instruments.
Many people showed many precious instruments, Yamaha Miburi, Uda,
Gakken Theremin Premium, HP Speak & Spell, Stylophone...etc.
Not only consumer productive instruments, but own making one.

The movie is the event's digest. Let's see. ( Uploaded by 'NEMO-san. Thank you! )

I haven't play music in public since I was in high school( ! ),
but the other genius performers helped me, and I could enjoy it
with applause ( with no booing :-) from the nice audience.
Thank you!

Uda( musical instrument. not Udder. Japanese )
http://uda.la/index.html

TENORI-ON
http://www.global.yamaha.com/design/tenori-on/

Miburi ( Japanese )
http://www.yamaha.co.jp/design/products/1990/miburi/

Miburi ( Google )
http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=miburi

Noriko ( the band used such as instruments. Japanese )
http://www.club-noriko.com/

Electroplankton (Google)
http://www.google.com/search?&q=Electroplankton

DS-10
http://www.aqi.co.jp/product/ds10/en/index.html

SU-10
http://www.loopers-delight.com/tools/SU10/yamahaSU10.html
http://www.synthmania.com/su10.htm
http://www.vintagesynth.com/yamaha/su10.shtml

OTODUST( Japanese )
http://remoto.818nc.jp/otodust.php

TENORI-OFF ( poorman's TENORI-ON, But the inventor said the materials was not cheap... )

SLR Camera makes new Cinema.

D90 is new middle class Digital SLR Camera from Nikon,
and it's the first SLR to offer movie function.

Most people may not understand the availability.

Why record by Motion-JPEG? ( Can't use MPEG-4? )
Manual Forcus only?
Not Full HD? / Why 24p?

Nikon did by halves?

Most advantage of the movie function on Digital SLR Camera is the large sensor.
The sensor size is same as 35mm professional film camera for a large studio.
We can use the cinema like expression include the ability to use
selective focus effects by depth of field, with cheap cost.
And think the functions for Digital Cinema,

Motion-JPEG: No GOP correlation. That's good for editing.
Manual Forcus: OK, MF is trusty than AF. ( but we need close up focusing mode )
720/24p: 720 is enough for Digital Cinema, and 24p is just flame rate for Motion Pictures.

But there's fatal problem we'd use Multi AE mode constantly
during we use the movie function.
Movie mode don't reflect the choise of the mode dial,
Damn means we couldn't adjust manually :-(
IRIS was fully opened dualing Movie mode.

OK, There is the way we can use IRIS on the Movie mode
when attach a manual rens for the camera. ( ex. Ai Nikkor 35mm F1.4S )
SLR Camera couldn't control such as the rens.
But no way to control the shutter speed and gain, by manual.
The problem stop to use it for Digital Cinema.

Now, D90 movie function isn't enough to use Digital Cinema,
but They opened The Door.
I hope more functions at the firmware upgrade.

...and I NEED the functions for EOS !

Nikon: D-movie
http://imaging.nikon.com/products/imaging/lineup/d90/en/d-movie/

Digital Photography Review: D90 Hands-on
http://www.dpreview.com/previews/nikond90/page10.asp