Posted on

Stratford Oaks Tales – The Tale of Cricket and Cracker

We’ve just finished the third book in the Stratford Oaks series by Dr. Suzanne Mellow-Irwin: The Tale of Cricket and Cracker.

Stratford Oaks Tales – Book 3 –  The Tale of Cricket and Cracker

Dr. Irwin has continued her series with the help of photographer, Ian Jarvis. Imaging Specialists has added photos made by Ian and other photographers to the story of two burros, transplanted from the dusty American Southwest to the lush, green hills of Alleghany County, North Carolina.

The photographs are a departure from the first two volumes that were illustrated with artwork by Zach Hamm.  But design elements like fonts, gradients and page layouts should help make this more “grown-up” story of the animals at Stratford Oaks Farm familiar to fans of the series.


Stars of the latest story – Cricket and Cracker

ISI designed the cover and interior pages, again, this time and we added an artistic, painted effect to the images so that photos from different sources (local photographers, stock and family photos- even the Library of Congress!) would have a uniform look throughout. We, sometimes, added elements from different photos to build scenes for the book. The donkey  at right in the photo, above is an example. We added Cricket (or maybe it’s Cracker?) from another photo.
No historic photos or photos by Ian were manipulated.

Ian’s exceptional photo of the view from the porch at Stratford Oaks. ©2018 Ian Jarvis.

The book incorporates a little area history in the telling of the story of the donkeys. We added one of our own photographs of the historic 1908 Courthouse just across the state line in Independence, Virginia.

Image Copyright ©2018 Imaging Specialists, Inc. Sparta, NC

If you’re looking for the perfect Christmas gift, consider the third installment of Stratford Oaks Tales – The Tale of Cricket and Cracker.

The road to Stratford Oaks Farm, featuring a view of the old Woodruff Homeplace in Irwin Valley, Alleghany County, North Carolina.
Posted on

Alleghany Memories Special Effects

Our high-tech special effects department has suspended an oil can from the Mitchell’s General Store by a filament (fishing line) in front of an experimental, non-standard, color key background.

Removing the background…

A resulting video showing the removal of the background. (Unfortunately, the stripes on the can were similar in hue to the background we chose.) The result of a colorblind art director- and not really noticeable at this stage of the process.

Our result: A clip suitable for an emmy. If the stripes weren’t invisible, that is.
But plan to watch, anyway!
It’s our latest effort, Alleghany Memories – featuring The Mitchell Family of Sparta, broadcast next week on Alleghany Community TV and, online, at
ahgs.org

Posted on

Walking on Holy Ground by Pratt Davis – New from Star Route Books

 

Walking on Holy Ground, the new book by Pratt Davis.New from Pratt Davis: Walking on Holy Ground, Essays on Being Present to the Mystery of Life that Surround Us.

Part Opening page featuring a photo by Pratt Davis.

Walking on Holy Ground is a collection of individual essays, “that invite readers to look at the ordinary surroundings of their lives through a contemplative lens. The essays ask us to a slow read, not a quick read, where we can sit with, think about, and chew on the thoughts shared in them. Each essay gives us a glimpse of the Mystery that surrounds us and the Meaning that runs like a thread through our lives. We are asked to stop, look closely, and appreciate the world around us. We are encouraged to see below the surface of our lives and experience the Mystery and Meaning for ourselves.”

We added images by the author, stock photography and one of our own photos (page 5, New River) and provided cover and interior page design for the project.

112 pages, softcover, 6″ x 9″.

Chapter Opening page.

Posted on

Alleghany Memories’ Successful Season

For a few years, the Alleghany Historical – Genealogical Society has produced a television series called Alleghany Memories. The series features interviews that last around an hour each with, “older folks from our area,” and is broadcast over Alleghany Community Television.

Imaging Specialists has always helped with graphics for the series, but this year, we’ve been editing the episodes, as well. We’ve also added photography to help illustrate the stories and we created new title and credit sequences with the help of local broadcast personality, Sonia Joines.

AHGS revived the popular series in 2017 after receiving a grant from the Alleghany Community Fund, a component fund of the North Carolina Community Foundation. Alleghany Community Television has partnered with the Society to photograph and broadcast the series and the Alleghany County Library has hosted two live tapings of interview sessions.

ACTV also hosts the programs at ACTV.ME, a web site that provides live streams of the episodes, anytime, worldwide. To date, the six finished shows from the 2017 season have been accessed 1303 times and have been viewed a total of 115 hours, online.

A group from the Annual Hillbilly Show is interviewed in the Duncan Meeting Room at the Alleghany Public Library.

Shows, this year, have featured Hugh Hash; Lucy Roe and Doris Stoker; Amos Wagoner, Jr. and Mayor John Miller; Sue White, Cordia Truitt and Billie Caudill; and two episodes with Una Lindh. We are currently editing an interview of a group of Blue Ridge Opprtunity Commission “Hillbilly Show” performers that includes Helen Crouse, Agnes Joines, Gary Joines, Jean Osborne, Gary and Bobbie Parlier, and 2017 Possum Queen, Nancy Hall.

Interviews can be taped almost anywhere in the County and subjects can choose their interviewer. For more information about Alleghany Memories, please contact Lucy Roe of the Historical Society at 336-372-4942.