Learn How to Make a Perfect Negroni

A lot of you know that I’m obsessed with wine. A handful of you know that my love of wine extends into my love of craft beers. A tiny number of you know of my love for old world cocktails. Recently I discovered a cocktail called a “Negroni” and I’ve been obsessed ever since.

How to Make a Negroni

Not just with this cocktail but with cocktails in general. I’m thinking about starting a YouTube channel where I teach people how to make amazing, old world cocktails and complete each one in under 60 seconds. There isn’t really anyone on YouTube doing something like this. There really aren’t any people doing reliably decent and regular cocktail videos which boggles my mind.

I decided to give this a go and make a pilot video. This was built from start to finish in Adobe Photoshop CS6. That’s a first for me, never thought about doing a video in Photoshop but since this was an experiment and since I only shot photos I figured why not? Any who, here goes!

The Perfect Negroni

  • 1.5 ounces Carpano Antica vermouth
  • 1.5 ounces Tanqueray gin
  • 1.5 ounces Campari
  • 1 orange

Fill an Old Fashioned glass with cracked ice. Pour on top of it each of the liquors. Zest an orange over the glass. Express the orange peel (inverted pinch to release the orange oils across the glass) and drop into the glass. Do a gentle stir and enjoy!

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Mary Lambert is an Incredible Artist who Must be Heard

Macklemore & Ryan Lewis The HeistLast October a video hit YouTube and absolutely exploded. I intended to do a writeup about it back then but life was busy at the time and I just didn’t get around to it. The video was a single from the debut of Macklemore and Ryan Lewis‘s first full-length album, The Heist. It’s one of the best albums I’ve heard in a good while.

The video is titled, “Same Love,” and is about the experiences Macklemore, Ben Haggerty, encountered in his life in regards to homosexuality and how it has shaped his beliefs on equality. The song is amazing, giving me chills running across my arms as I remember back to scenes in the video.

Macklemore explained that the song also came out of his own frustration with hip hop’s positions on homosexuality. “Misogyny and homophobia are the two acceptable means of oppression in hip hop culture. It’s 2012. There needs to be some accountability. I think that as a society we’re evolving and I think that hip hop has always been a representation of what’s going on in the world right now.” Wiki

In the song you hear an incredible female vocalist named Mary Lambert. She is to me the Adele of America. Not just because they have a similar look but because their lyrics and voice are magnificently emotive and powerful. They sing from the heart, from their real-life experiences. They are each beautiful in their own right but it’s their powerful storytelling that stole my attention.

Portrait of Mary Lambert by Seattle photographer Lauren Colton

Portrait of Mary Lambert by Seattle photographer Lauren Colton.

Mary Lambert is a Seattle local, singer-songwriter and spoken-word artist. Her songs are known to tackle women’s issues and speak to a level of honesty and depth that few of her contemporaries have ever explored. Her songs remind me of those by Antony and the Johnsons without the orchestral flourishes. Go check them out as well. Continue reading

David Foster Wallace Commencement Speech

Today’s inspirational and profound video was shared on Twitter by my good friend Samantha Ogborn. In a world where all we hear about is IRS scandals, Oklahomans losing everything due to massively destructive tornados and something called the Real Housewives of New Jersey, this sort of commentary is a relief. It’s inspirational, applicable to all of our lives and probably the funniest thing I’ve seen all day.

This is Water: Some Thoughts Delivered on a Significant Occasion about Living a Compassionate Life

In 2005, author David Foster Wallace was asked to give the commencement address to the 2005 graduating class of Kenyon College. However, the resulting speech didn’t become widely known until 3 years later, after his tragic death. It is, without a doubt, some of the best life advice we’ve ever come across, and perhaps the most simple and elegant explanation of the real value of education. Continue reading

Speed-editing a Portrait in Adobe Photoshop by Aaron Nace

There are tons of videos on YouTube of people doing absolutely incredible things with Photoshop. Most of the time these videos are more impressive than they are practical. It’s pretty rare that I need to create a disaster scene from found photos, as amazing as the video is.

Today I stumbled onto a post from FStoppers featuring Aaron Nace speed-editing a portait for an editorial audience. The original image was shot by Aleksandar Jaredic.

Aleksandar Jaredic Before After by Aaron Nace of Phlearn.com

Aleksandar Jaredic Before After by Aaron Nace of Phlearn.com

It reminded me of a photo shoot I did last year. I originally was commissioned to shoot 5-10 executive head shots. When I got to their headquarters the plan changed to an incredible 45 head shots and an event shoot. In my head I was totally overwhelmed but I couldn’t let the client know this. I was working solo and given 8 hours to shoot 45 people and an event. Impossible right? Continue reading

I’m Nacho Friend!

This video was shared on Facebook by my friend Sam. It illustrates almost exactly what happens to me when I have a bit too much. One of my friend’s, named Aaron (I have fifteen), has a recording of such a moment. If it ever makes it to the Internet I’ll have 14 friends named Aaron. Of course if he illustrates it like this, fair game.

“Two Chips” / An Animated Short from Adam Patch on Vimeo.

Here’s what Gawker had to say about it.

Guy’s Drunk Wife Tells Him a Lame Joke; He Animates the Result

Remember the other day when you were saying how much you loved the sketch series “Drunk History” but that you wished how instead of history it was a corny joke about tortilla chips that Morgan Patch told her husband Adam while sauced off her ass on a bottle of wine, which he then turned into an animated short?

I wish I had his skills and her jokes. You’re welcome and Happy Friday!

OMG: Water + Speaker + Camera = Mind Blown

I came across this video today and my jaw literally dropped. The guy behind it is known as Brusspup and his YouTube channel has a handful of illusions that are pretty inspired. But it’s the magic he does here with water that had me all giddy. Put on some headphones cause you’re going to want to hear this, as well as see it.

Ever since I created the first version of this video a year ago I’ve been wanting to try it again with more water and better lighting / footage. This is a really fun project and when you first see the results, chances are your jaw will drop. The main thing to keep in mind for this project is that you need a camera that shoots 24 fps.

The effect that you are seeing can’t be seen with the naked eye. The effect only works through the camera. However, there is a version of the project you can do where the effect would be visible with the naked eye. For that project, you’d have to use a strobe light.

So a hat tip to Brusspup for making me smile and look on in awe. Such a simple experiment all done with things I have in my apartment yet I never thought of doing this. He did a great job of explaining what’s going on in the video and gave plenty of instructions on how you can do this yourself in the full video description. Can’t wait to see what he does next.

The Veronica Mars Kickstarter is Awesome

Everyone loves Kristen Bell. Whether she’s the uncredited voice on Gossip Girl, being forgotten as Sarah Marshall, an electrified hero on NBC’s Heroes or the crime-solving sleuth known as Veronica Mars. Her ability to be absolutely adorable on screen is only matched by her ability to be the silver tongued protagonist everyone wants on their side.

Veronica MarsRob Thomas, the creator of Veronica Mars, has been pitching a movie version of the cult TV show for a while now. Sadly Warner Bros., who owns Veronica Mars, kept saying no due to the relatively low ratings the show got (ahem, Firefly). However, Warner Bros. said their mind could be changed if Rob Thomas could prove the fan interest was there. Continue reading