ASMR: An Underground Community

Recently, a subculture has emerged from the depths of Reddit and Youtube. Known as ASMR, (Autonomous Sensory Meridian Response) it is a widely unknown phenomenon where a person feels a "tingling" sensation in their head, spine, back or other parts of the body in response to certain auditory or visual triggers. ASMR videos are meant to trigger this euphoric sensation in their viewers. This is done by a person whispering (usually a female) or making sounds with objects into a 3D microphone, which creates a realistic atmosphere. Although the word "meridian" is basically a more polite word for orgasm, ASMRers swear that the sensation is not meant to be sexual, but caring or loving. The videos may seem extremely strange or boring to the average viewer, but to thousands of people these videos are a source of relaxation and pleasure. Many people even use it to calm anxiety or battle insomnia.

Here is one of the most popular ASMR videos by youtuber GentleWhispering, with over four million views. To get the full effect, you must wear headphones.

Yes, this is probably one of the strangest things you've ever seen in your life. But for a second, just put aside the fact that you watched either all or part of a video of a woman whispering nonsense into your ears and playing with hairbrushes. What I find interesting about these videos is their use of binaural recording. People who produce these videos use 3D microphones, which are basically two omnidirectional microphones, to make it feel like the listener is actually in whatever situation the actor is portraying. When you put the headphones on and listen to some of these videos, the effect is jarring, because it sounds like someone is actually speaking into your ear. Whether you feel a sensation or not, it is an interesting use of audio that I have never experienced before being used in this way.

There has been no scientific research as to why people feel these sensations or what the sensation actually is, but with such a large following, it's hard to ignore this abnormal phenomenon. The community of ASMR is growing exponentially, and if it proves to be medically beneficial, it may be a better alternative to drugs for those who suffer from anxiety, insomnia or other issues such as these.

Light: The Brightest Form of Art

I was flipping through reddit.com the other day (like a good college student should) and I came across this really cool picture posted on r/pics. He strapped a flashlight to his chest and then took a long-exposure shot. The result was fantastic...

Original reddit post

After being a little inquisitive, I found his personal website: DennisCalvert.net
He's posted dozens of amazing pictures here that he created with artistic lighting, but what I found most exciting was his tutorial section where he explains how he made several of his pictures.

Keep in mind that there is no serious photoshop work going on here. All of these were created with specific lighting tools to create really interesting designs. To see how he made any of these visually stimulating pictures, check out his tutorial page here.

Of course, this blog mainly focuses on films and not photography... so let me reel this in a little.
Because film can not take long exposure shots like photos can, the possibilities become a little more narrow unless you want to use special effects. However, there are still plenty of ways to artistically use lighting. By this point most of us understand the standard three-point lighting system like in this diagram:

When all of them are used, you get a nice looking shot like this one here:

It looks great, but the absence of one or more of these lights is when you can get a really interesting shot. Take for example this shot from There Will Be Blood:

In this shot there is only one light source on Daniel Day Lewis and he is blending right into the background. It really pulls our attention to his face and makes us wonder what his eyes are so transfixed on. 

Here's another example from The Third Man, where one light is creating a dramatic contrast between the character and the environment. 

I pulled all of these pictures from an album I found (on reddit... of course) which explains lighting and color temperature really well. Check it out here.

On a final note, I just want to say that we really do live in a world of free education today. You just need the motivation to find it!