I Fight Dragons

Remember all those old video games you used to play on your NES and your Gameboy? Do you remember any of the controllers? You might recognize a few:

This video really says it all.

Chicago-based NES-Rock band (the first and so-far only of its kind) I Fight Dragons plays video game controllers as instruments. The controllers are hooked up to computers, and the buttons correspond to certain sounds, which are controlled by the computers. Other items include the standalone Original Gameboy, which is equipped with a Little Sound DJ Cartrige, which lets you program entire songs and play them back.

This is yet another example of technology not being used how it was intended, but in a completely new and interesting way. I Fight Dragons is truly innovative, and truly "nerdy" to be able to come up with this idea. They are an incredibly fun band, frequently drawing references to their favorite old videogames and dreaming about a sci-fi future.

IFD takes advantage of the Free Economy idea, giving out all of their songs to members of their mailing list. This helps them raise a fan-base. Apparently this was a good idea, because Imogen Heap found out about them and collaborated on a song with them.

Feeling nostalgic about your old games? Don't worry. IFD has a fun little game at the top of their myspace page where you, too, can fight dragons. It's simple, just like the old games.

I Shoot Film

I shoot film.

Why?

Because the quality is better.
Because it's more natural.
Because they make moments bigger, longer-lasting.
Because I just like to.

What is it about film photography that makes it so great? Why is it growing in popularity while digital photography is growing in efficiency?

There are two reasons:
Nostalgia and artsiness.

Who is Nostalgic?
The easy answer: adults. People who lived before the advent of digital photography. Or broader, people who shot film before they shot digital, which includes me. I shoot film because I used to and because I like having something to hold. I like having my photos exist physically, rather than just imaginarily. I shoot film because I live in the nostalgia of everything before digital, where everything is tangibly real, not made up of abstract 0's and 1's.

Who is the artist?
The younger generation. The people who have always shot digital, but want to experiment. The people who just like the look of old photos. People who want their photos to mean more than a few pixels.

Here's the bottom line: when you take a photo with film, it's there forever, and the moment is more solid. Artists like to save moments. Nostalgics like to save reality - film photos are often more truthful. According to blogger Jade Falcon, "Photos are what help us connect to the past and see the future we had before us. Photos help us relive who we were and the moments we had at that same exact time. Our memories might fade, but photos can last for a long time capturing a single moment in all eternity." This quote sums everything up.