Steven O. Sloan

Photo

Wed, 20 Aug 2008 14:34:45 -0400

DVA has been spotted teaching students at Georgia...

Wed, 20 Aug 2008 14:21:59 -0400

DVA has been spotted teaching students at Georgia Tech…..they have no clue what they’re getting into.

My brother received word that he passed the CFA level 3, congrats bro!

Tue, 19 Aug 2008 16:28:52 -0400

My brother received word that he passed the CFA level 3, congrats bro!

❝ You have plenty of time….you just don’t have to sleep ❞ Lionel Gillespie, [our new...

Tue, 19 Aug 2008 15:53:00 -0400

❝ You have plenty of time….you just don’t have to sleep ❞

Lionel Gillespie, [our new studio instructor]

Women’s Fencing, via The Big Picture

Tue, 19 Aug 2008 00:24:00 -0400

Women’s Fencing, via The Big Picture

I like to repair my old jeans as much as I can….sigh, but...

Mon, 18 Aug 2008 22:11:48 -0400

I like to repair my old jeans as much as I can….sigh, but they still won’t last forever.

Timber - Josh Bales

Mon, 18 Aug 2008 21:48:50 -0400

Timber - Josh Bales

I’m sure going to miss this girl. Have a great time in...

Sun, 17 Aug 2008 01:37:22 -0400

I’m sure going to miss this girl. Have a great time in Sweden!

Spent a lovely couple days in Asheville on a photo project. Got...

Sat, 16 Aug 2008 00:54:00 -0400

Spent a lovely couple days in Asheville on a photo project. Got a chance to do some hiking along the Blue Ridge parkway on the way back. The weather was superb and allowed for some unplanned landscape shooting. [for those that don’t know, its really rare to stumble upon a nice landscape shot, most usually take a few days of planning to get something good, great shots take longer and a bit of luck] Shot from Black Balsam Knob overlooking the Graveyards.

I think I have one of these.

Sat, 16 Aug 2008 00:11:44 -0400

I think I have one of these.:

(via ericnelson)

I feel your pain. Being able to get on a ~36 hr schedule while I was studying in Sweden was absolute heaven. I wonder if I have DSPS or Non-24 though….hmmm.

16 minutes

Fri, 15 Aug 2008 23:25:26 -0400

16 minutes

look ted, it made it to the interweb after all...

Sun, 10 Aug 2008 00:44:49 -0400

look ted, it made it to the interweb after all...: funny stuff, I saw this a few months ago and was like, “dang, that looks bad…and that logo?” The joys of looking behind the process.

michaelgluzman:

a logo and website concept somnambulated designed in spring 08. who knew. modern no.20 won their fancy. too bad they screwed up both the logo and website design a bit. mostly they screwed up the site…

I’m a mountain person. via frogers

Sat, 09 Aug 2008 01:28:52 -0400

I’m a mountain person. via frogers

If Lee Coleman will email me [stevenosloan(at)gmail] , that’d be awesome. I’ll be in...

Thu, 07 Aug 2008 17:53:05 -0400

If Lee Coleman will email me [stevenosloan(at)gmail] , that’d be awesome. I’ll be in Asheville for a few days next week, maybe we could grab coffee?

This is pretty cool [thank you Flickr stats!], I’ve gotten...

Thu, 07 Aug 2008 17:51:29 -0400

This is pretty cool [thank you Flickr stats!], I’ve gotten some Twitter love for my coffee type, as well as a shout-out in a blog post about Typography Friday.

photo wallpaper What excites me about this photo? The idea that...

Thu, 07 Aug 2008 15:21:15 -0400

photo wallpaper

What excites me about this photo? The idea that maybe, just maybe, that plywood cladding the ceiling is the same plywood used as the forms for pouring the concrete.

In this world of news I’ve found nothing new I’ve found nothing pure Maybe I’m...

Wed, 06 Aug 2008 15:57:00 -0400

In this world of news
I’ve found nothing new
I’ve found nothing pure
Maybe I’m just idealistic to assume that truth
Could be fact and form
That love could be a verb
Maybe I’m just a little misinformed
❧
Let the wars begin
Let my strength wear thin
Let my fingers crack
Let my world fall apart
Train the monkeys on my back to fight
Let it start tonight

from Let Your Love be Strong - Switchfoot

14 Ways Starbucks Has Tried to Revitalize its Brand

Wed, 06 Aug 2008 15:52:30 -0400

An interesting read…my guess is they are loosing market share to authentic neighborhood environments, but thats just me. The ‘short’ cappuccino note is interesting as well…it is actually possible to have a cappuccino from Starbucks.

dihard:

“We’re not this young, beloved, entrepreneurial enterprise anymore… We have to do business in a different way.” – Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz

And that’s exactly what he’s doing – business in a different way. And then in a different way. And then in a way that’s different from that. In early January, Schultz reclaimed the CEO torch he passed on back in 2000 and has since been making some pretty drastic and rather disparate changes. And I’ve been jotting them down. So far we’ve seen:

1. Better coffee: Story has it that Schultz saw the line at Café Grumpy in Chelsea, which uses an $11,000 Clover coffeemaker, got a coffee and declared it the “best cup of brewed coffee I have ever tasted.” So good, in fact, that he discreetly bought the Clover-making company, the Coffee Equipment Company, and began installing Clovers at stores in Seattle and Boston in summer 07. Clover-made coffee sold for as much as $3.05, which is about a dollar more than Starbucks’ regular brew. He plans to accelerate the rollout of the machines in the US and international markets.

2. Worse coffee: Pike’s Place Roast. Though Starbucks denies it, the introduction of the Pike’s Place Roast was in response to increasing competition from Dunkin Donuts and McD’s (whose coffee tastes better than Starbucks, per a Consumer Reports survey). Starbucks wanted an “everyday brew,” which is a better way of saying it has placated the American taste for a limp brew.

3. The nostalgia effort: Trying to “return to our core – all things coffee” and conjure up some nostalgia, Starbucks reintroduced the old icon of the mermaid, with a brown logo carrying a tagline “Roasting Coffee Since 1971.”

4. Banish the breakfast sandwich: While it earns the ‘Bucks a tidy profit, it deviates from the core business – “all things coffee.” Plus, the smell interfered with the coffee aroma in the store, and thus, the Starbucks experience. Schultz swore to pull it in January…

5. Bring back the breakfast sandwich: …But rumors have spread that Starbucks is actually bringing the breakfast sandwich back. Apparently, they’ve been “reformulated to eliminate the ‘smell’ problem.

6. A mystery concoction: There’s a new concoction that Schultz refers to as “a game-changer in the coffee space, something in a cup.” I believe this is the Sorbetto frozen beverage that the ‘Bucks released in LA & OC early in July.

7. Ditch the music label: Yes if you didn’t know, Starbucks started a record label called HearMusic. It even has its own XM channel (now Starbucks XM Café). But Starbucks is scaling the business back. Good move, since it only sells an average of 2 CD’s a day per store. Talk about deviating from the core business.

8. Ditch the underperformers: In July, Starbucks announced its closure of 600 stores. Check this map for a closure near you, or peep the full list. It’s also dropping 61 of its 84 stores in Australia, and eliminating 1,000 support jobs (not including all layoffs due to stores closures).

9. Re-education: Schultz closed more than 7,000 stores for three hours in February to allow 135,000 baristas to relearn—or learn—how to make a espresso.

10. New store design: Starbucks is also apparently looking into changing the design of the 15,000 stores. Architect Magazine asked 5 teams of architects from around the country to share their vision of the 21st century coffee shop. Check them out.

11. One buck ‘Bucks: Starbucks offered $1.00 Short cups of coffee with free refills (in Seattle-area stores) earlier in January. Who knew there was a short?

12. Discounts to addicts: Starbucks said it will now offer its morning customers any iced grande beverage for $2 after 2 p.m. That’s a big cut, since a grande iced latte, for example, normally costs $4. Customers must present a receipt from their morning Starbucks visit in order to get the discount.

13. Starbucks Card Rewards: Now they want to reward loyal customers by giving them customizations like syrup or an extra shot on the house. So if you have a rewards card and you order a tall hazelnut latte, you will only be charged for a tall latte. Rewards card holders are also given up to 2 consecutive hours of free internet in the stores.

14. MyStarbucksIdea.com: Now you can join a Starbucks social network where you can share your ideas, engage in conversations, and play a role in shaping Starbucks future.

So which tactic will help this ailing iconic brand? Better coffee, or worse coffee? Breakfast sandwich or not?

Been playing with Lightroom 2 some more. I’ve been having some...

Tue, 05 Aug 2008 19:26:30 -0400

Been playing with Lightroom 2 some more. I’ve been having some trouble w/ runaway processes eating my processor and adjustment brush glitches, but overall have really been enjoying it [and keeping my old organizational system]. Above is a photo done in Lightroom & Camera Raw showing just how useful those gradient tools can be.

Those hoods look super comfy, wish they would make a version...

Tue, 05 Aug 2008 19:09:28 -0400

Those hoods look super comfy, wish they would make a version with metal paddles/levers. I never liked the feel of composites.

jamesnord:

After months of prototypes, speculation and spy photos, the Shimano Electronic Dura-Ace was finally revealed. I would love to try this out, it is like the paddle shifters of cycling.

www.cyclingnews.com