ZAF622

I Blame The Olympics

Something occurred to me this past summer while watching the Olympics. Most of us do not have a gold medal to aim for. An Olympic medal gives an athlete a very specific goal to focus on as they train and develop themselves. How many of us have that in our lives?

Most of us don’t have that unless we look for one. So that is what I did. I started to look at my life and my interests in hopes of finding my Olympic gold. ZAF622 has been a big part of my life for sometime now and it has always been something that I’ve always wanted to develop into something bigger than a personal project. What would an Olympic Gold be for ZAF622?

The Webby Awards of course. The Webby Awards are considered the Internet’s highest honor. That silver spiral of ones and zeros is ZAF622’s Olympic Gold Medal. And I am adding it to the goals list.

Now I have something to focus on and keep in mind as I build The ZAF622 Show through out 2009.

14th Annual Webby Awards here we come!

Tags: personal project, webby awards

All 50 States

That is another goal I have for The ZAF622 Show, stories in and from all 50 states.

Thankfully the ZAF622 World Headquarters is centrally located in Colorado. A little bit more West than East but still a great place to venture out from.

Tags: 50 states

Where To Start?

That is the first question I have to answer with the ZAF622 show. Where to start? Right now it is just a big idea. Put on an internet show. But how? With what? With whom? Funding? Equipment? Releases? Promotion? The list goes on and on.

The idea has been in my head for quite some time now. But not knowing where to start has delayed me from doing anything, which is why I posted the idea yesterday. And now I will continue to post and dialogue with you about the process.

Currently the two biggest challenges I have on the table are equipment and show material.

The ideal camera for this costs roughly $5000. The camera I currently own and use cost $129.00.  The Flip Ultra. A decent little flash drive camera that I either intend to use it to the best of its abilities or sell it and put the money toward a better camera. I am leaning toward the second option because these days there are some really good consumer level camcorders available. And ZAF622 show’s current budget is exactly $0.00.

Optical zoom, audio inputs, and memory extension are basic functions that the flip lacks. I’ve played around with it and the digital zoom becomes grainy and the audio does not focus on the subject, picking up all ambient sounds. Which makes it useless outdoors. But it is a camera and better than nothing so I will use it if I have to.

The second challenge is show material. I have an idea what I want the show to look like but it is hard to start this without have anything to show people at first. This means that I will have to start basic and local and build from there. ZAF622 is still about people and their stories, just like I did with artists. Now I want to expand that to people in all walks of life. So called “ordinary” people have extraordinary stories to tell. That is what I want to find and document and share. Especially now as we head into what could be a very trying time due to the economy.

It is being dubbed a financial crisis and in a time of crisis people need to come together. But this is not like a tornado or a hurricane. A crisis of this nature happens at a different speed and is less tangible. People’s lives are changing and it is important that we all learn from that. By hearing from each other we will come together and help each other.

The concept is still vague and clunky I know. Which is why back in 2005 I focused on artists. It was easier. Now that I want to open it up more I am struggling to find my expanded focus. I believe though that the key is to just start and let ZAF622 find its voice. Because it will.

Thanks for coming along on this adventure with me. As always comments are welcome.

Tags: big idea, budget, challenges, internet show, walks of life

The ZAF622 Show

Back in early 2005 I started ZAF622 as a web based magazine that featured Q&A style interviews with artists. The first drafts and ideas for ZAF622 had a larger scope than just artists. But I felt that I had to focus on something in order to get started. And given my love of art I settled on artists.

Now that I have shifted my career I am able to give more time and energy into ZAF622. Which is why I am starting the adventure of ZAF622 as an Internet Show. What does that mean exactly? Well that is what I am here to start talking about.

I have a long standing personal belief that it is better to talk about something you have done than something your are going to do. I am also aware of the notion that it is good to talk about goals and things you are going to do. People do this for a few reasons. To raise the level of commitment because after publicly stating something your more obliged to follow through. And also when you start talking about something you can find people and resources to help you achieve your goals.

For both those reasons I am writing this post.

Once I hit the “publish” button I will be fully committed to the ZAF622 Show. I am now accountable to you, my reader.

And hopefully I’ll also get help from you, my reader. The ZAF622 Show is starting small but has big goals and aspirations. It is not something that I will be able to do alone. It is going to take a community of people.

Today ZAF622 Web-zine evolves in The ZAF622 Show.

Stay tuned!

Tags: goals and aspirations, internet show