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Smartphone Video to the Rescue

Posted on March 24, 2014 12:00 am by TheAngelForever

Confession: I am always forgetting to take our little video camera with us. While I usually have my point and shoot camera with me, the quality of the video is not the best if I need to zoom in from a distance. Thanks to being a member of the Verizon Lifestyle Bloggers, I have the new Nokia Lumia Icon smartphone. While in NYC on Friday, representatives from Nokia came to talk with us about the technology available from this powerhouse. They began by sharing this slide, which really was a powerful statement.

I sat there thinking about those words for a while as we learned more of the Nokia specific technology within this phone. When they were talking about the video camera, I knew that I had just tested it out at my son’s band concert. With over 100 children on the stage and countless families moving around in their seats, I wanted to see – at least for a short time – what the video on the Nokia Lumia Icon could do. I knew that it would record in full HD, but would the PureView imaging help me to get closer to the stage during the concert without reducing the quality of the recording? How would the four high-performance microphones and Nokia Rich Recording work together to capture the music rather than the background noise of people sitting in the seats around me?

While my video is not very long, I think it showcases several items in the low light auditorium. Here it is to see what you think.

As you can see, it was a low light venue with a lot of things going on in the background. The audio clearly picks up the instruments on the stage and not my wiggly six year old sitting next to me. In addition to this, the zoom feature works and does not take away from the quality of the video. I now want to test this out in better light to see if it helps a bit and add in my portable tri-pod to help. The Icon has image stabilization built in and it definitely helped with my shaking hand.

So time to fess up. How often have you had to use your smartphone to capture video on the go and did it live up to your expectations to capture those priceless memories?

Disclosure: As a member of the Verizon Lifestyle Bloggers, I receive devices like the Icon to test out and share ways that I use it in my life. My trip to NYC was paid for by Verizon Wireless. I am a long time Verizon customer, and all opinions are my own.

Categories:
Technology video

NYC for #VZWBuzz Learning

Posted on March 21, 2014 12:00 am by TheAngelForever

Hello from New York City. I arrived here Thursday to meet up with my fellow Verizon Lifestyle Bloggers.

Timon came along with me for my adventure. JSL asked me to take his picture along the way like I did in Atlanta. Who could say no?

More coming about my adventure here later because it was an interesting story. TechyDad joked that it would be a great blog post. I leave you with a photo of Timon at dinner.

Be sure to follow along #VZWBuzz on Twitter and Instagram to see what we are up to tomorrow.

Disclosure: As a member of the Verizon Lifestyle Bloggers, I receive devices to test out and share ways that I use it in my life (like mobile blogging right now). My trip to NYC was paid for by Verizon Wireless. I am a long time Verizon customer, and all opinions are my own.

Categories:
Technology travel

Purim Carnival with the Nokia Lumia Icon #VZWBuzz

Posted on March 18, 2014 12:00 am by TheAngelForever

Sunday was a big day in the Jewish community as we celebrated Purim. I have so many memories of this holiday as a child and now as a parent. This is the holiday when people dress up and celebrate, make noise with groggers at the mention of Haman, and eat delicious hamantaschen. It truly is a great time when you see kids of all ages parading around in their creative costumes (see the photo below). I thought that Purim would be the perfect time to test out the new camera on my Nokia Lumia Icon smartphone because while working at the carnival I would not have time to use a regular camera. I received this phone last week as part of the Verizon Lifestyle Bloggers program.

When we dropped the boys off at Hebrew School Sunday morning, TechyDad and I went to help with the setup of the Purim Carnival. Of course, the moment TechyDad walked in, fellow Whovians knew exactly who he was and started geeking out with him. By the time we arrived, most of the games were already set up.

The Prize Table where I was going to be working during the carnival had not been started, so we went over to sort things out and get it ready for all of the kids.

I took the photo of TechyDad just before the Purim Carnival started. I took one with the Icon and then decided to snap another one with a recent Android smartphone I have received from Verizon. The lighting in the room was tricky and in hindsight I should have asked TechyDad to move. This would have helped with the light that was odd over his head in the background and the entire wall of windows scattering light. Again these were quick on the fly photos like I would take with the kids while out and about. I do believe that one of the photos was more true to the colors in the room, much more crisp, and handled the lighting better. The answer will be below, so make sure to look at the original from above again.

I kept busy with another member of our synagogue at the prize table the entire time. I really never saw the boys unless I happened to catch Harry Potter, Hiccup, or Doctor Who in the distance. Thank goodness the boys came to get some prizes from time to time.

I had hoped to test out the video of the band playing during the festivities, but I never had a chance to get over. I think it really would have been a great test with all of the background noise from kids playing games. No doubt there will be another opportunity. Over all, I am beyond impressed with the camera on the Lumia Icon. Next, I hope to learn how to use the manual settings because I have never seen a smartphone with so many advanced options and I truly want to explore it more when I have time.

So did you take a guess at which photo from the original at the top of this post came from the icon? Well, here’s the answer now:

Did you guess the right one? More photos coming again soon along with others ways I am exploring with the new smartphone in my life.

Disclosure: As a member of the Verizon Lifestyle Bloggers, I received the Nokia Lumia Icon to test out and share ways that I use it in my life. There was no other compensation. I am a long time Verizon customer, and all opinions are my own.

Categories:
fun holidays local event Technology

Pushing Past The Dark Side of Stress

Posted on March 12, 2014 1:40 pm by TheAngelForever

Have you ever had a time where you swear you are living in slow motion and yet it still seems like a blur to you? This is my reality right now. So much on my mind, work to get done, and the feeling of stress building up. Then, add fighting off some sort of virus that is causing an autoimmune response that is extremely painful. I know to help that, stressors need to go. Of course, let’s be real if it was that easy nobody would ever be stressed. And being a parent often means that we put our needs at the end of the line.

The boys are really into Star Wars right now, so Darth got me thinking. Basically life right now is me trying to use all of The Force that I can find to escape from the trenches of stress (or The Dark Side). Some days it seems like Storm Troopers are just going to burst through the door and carry me off. Other days I feel like Yoda is whispering in my ear and giving me Yoda-isms that will keep me going.

I know things will get better and these stresses will eventually make me laugh, but that is hard to see in the here and now. The reality is my youngest, JSL, needs triple surgery and we are still waiting to hear back to schedule that. I know it will help him in the end, but general anesthesia and my first child to have surgery is hard to handle. We haven’t told the boys yet, so if you know them, please do not say anything to them. I know this is something that will help JSL and we have tried everything over the last two years to avoid it. The sleepless nights recently are a quick way for me to recall why this has to be taken care of soon.

Then, I have to worry about the big kiddo’s response. NHL is so afraid of surgery, blood, and all things medical. I don’t want him to panic and ruin the successes we have made in school right now because he is so concerned about his little brother. As an Aspie he will worry about JSL and I never know how it will show up. He would internalize it with concerns about his life at the same time, panic, or shut everything out of his mind.

Speaking of school, my mind is constantly on hyper speed with worries and concerns about middle school for NHL. Middle school is rough no matter what state you live in, district your child is in, or any other factors. It is a rough age group and kids are cruel. NHL has no idea what going to middle school means and I worry how this drastic change could shut him down. While Common Core has really put a dent in his love of learning, this massive life change could be the final nail in the coffin.

So if things are a bit scarce around here, I apologize. While I love blogging and it is therapeutic, sometimes you have to push it to the side to take care of those around you, including yourself. That last part is the one that I am having the hardest time with and I bet many others do as well.

Categories:
me moments

Finding Math is Fun

Posted on March 7, 2014 12:00 am by TheAngelForever

The kids and I have had a lot of fun working on activities for the posts that I write on the Bedtime Math blog. They have helped us to keep busy this winter along with some items from the other talented writers. Here is a sneak peek at something JSL and I just did that will be coming soon. Can you tell what we were up to?

Be sure to check out some of the latest from the Bedtime Math blog that may be perfect while the weather settles and you are trying to keep warm the last few weeks of winter.

Shape-shifting Cookies – My latest is making a traditional Purim cookie to play with shapes while baking.
LEGO Fun Printable – Derek gives us a printable to use with LEGOs that kids will love trying.
Edible Optics: Make Your Own Magnifying Lens – Kim shares how to create a magnifying lens using gelatin.
Five Silly Balloon Games that Build Math Skills – Angie tells us how to play five different balloon games that will keep the kids asking for more.
Cocoa Calculations and Marshmallow Math – Candace allows us to keep warm with a nice treat of math on the side.

These are just some of the latest and more always being posted, so please stop by and say hello to all of us. If you try one of our activities, be sure to take some photos and let us know.