The Great Burn was a result of Gandalf the Grey being drunk again and lighting his pipe after which he fell asleep. The burnt tobacco has since become one of the 11 secret herbs and spices in KFC.
The great burn is my favourite. There’s something really odd about the depth/layers of the image. The background looks like one of those old painted film backdrops. And as for the (obviously) figure of evil...
Yes, it's funny creating the images... you never quite know what's going to come out: and can never quite get the same thing again. Part of the attraction...
Each one of these would make a great episode of The Anomaly Files, one of my favorite YouTube shows! I can picture Nolan standing there, in a shirt that would make Ken cringe, delivering amazing facts about the lesser-known weirdness of Santa Cruz.
Jun 16, 2023·edited Jun 16, 2023Liked by Michael Marshall Smith
I absolutely love these. There is such a sense of the bizarre, & the descriptions underneath add to that sense of unreality.
I've discovered Adobe have something similar to Midjourney, Firefly - far less faff & you don't need Discord. The downside is it's nowhere near as good yet. The upside is it's completely free ;)
"Make an old black & white photograph of three Victorian gentlemen and a large-toothed fish they caught in a foggy swamp." I'm not sure it quite got the idea - https://i.stack.imgur.com/POJKF.jpg
Ha - wow! Yes, I've got Firefly on Discord and have played a little, but it seems a long way behind Midjourney for now. I'm sure Adobe will get there: the integration of AI into the new beta of Photoshop is pretty remarkable...
Really glad you're enjoying these... it's the most fun I've mad making stuff up in ages. Though they are all true, to be clear.
I'm accessing the online version - my Mac's too old to use the new beta PS [House full of old Mac Pros, need to stay on Mojave]
I've found firefly can get quite 'Tim Burton' if you don't restrict it to photo-realistic - https://i.stack.imgur.com/bN11p.jpg I didn't tell it to imitate any style initially, it just went that way itself.
These are the best yet! Love these SO much!
Thank you :-)
What a dark imagination you have, sir.
These are the cheerful ones.
😂
You live in a city with a really spooky history ;) I'm jealous. Of your imagination, obviously.
Well, who knows what's true and what's not... if you believe it... ;-)
Love this, so much fun, Thank you!
Thank you!
The Great Burn was a result of Gandalf the Grey being drunk again and lighting his pipe after which he fell asleep. The burnt tobacco has since become one of the 11 secret herbs and spices in KFC.
I love that ;-)
Would make a lovely book with them all complied... just saying. Or postcards in a driftwood box with an accompanying booklet
Ooh. I'd thought of maybe doing a little booklet... but a box of postcards is an excellent idea!
A haunted Santa Cruz story series would be great too. You familiar with James Blaylock’s California stuff?
I'm not — I'll look him up!
I really love these, especially since they’re true.
Exactly — it's the trueness that makes them true.
The great burn is my favourite. There’s something really odd about the depth/layers of the image. The background looks like one of those old painted film backdrops. And as for the (obviously) figure of evil...
Yes, it's funny creating the images... you never quite know what's going to come out: and can never quite get the same thing again. Part of the attraction...
These are so wonderful! Thank you!!
Glad you enjoy them!
Each one of these would make a great episode of The Anomaly Files, one of my favorite YouTube shows! I can picture Nolan standing there, in a shirt that would make Ken cringe, delivering amazing facts about the lesser-known weirdness of Santa Cruz.
Actually I kinda like that idea...
These are so good. Absolutely LOVE the last one!
Thank you :-)
I absolutely love this! Wonderful combination of images and narrative! Thanks Michael!
You're very welcome - glad you enjoy them!
I absolutely love these. There is such a sense of the bizarre, & the descriptions underneath add to that sense of unreality.
I've discovered Adobe have something similar to Midjourney, Firefly - far less faff & you don't need Discord. The downside is it's nowhere near as good yet. The upside is it's completely free ;)
"Make an old black & white photograph of three Victorian gentlemen and a large-toothed fish they caught in a foggy swamp." I'm not sure it quite got the idea - https://i.stack.imgur.com/POJKF.jpg
Ha - wow! Yes, I've got Firefly on Discord and have played a little, but it seems a long way behind Midjourney for now. I'm sure Adobe will get there: the integration of AI into the new beta of Photoshop is pretty remarkable...
Really glad you're enjoying these... it's the most fun I've mad making stuff up in ages. Though they are all true, to be clear.
I'm accessing the online version - my Mac's too old to use the new beta PS [House full of old Mac Pros, need to stay on Mojave]
I've found firefly can get quite 'Tim Burton' if you don't restrict it to photo-realistic - https://i.stack.imgur.com/bN11p.jpg I didn't tell it to imitate any style initially, it just went that way itself.
I did persuade it to do an odd version of 'Lunch atop a skyscraper' though - https://i.stack.imgur.com/UKud5.jpg
These are all true, too… of course ;)
Well, I believe every word. I’m moving to Santa Cruz as we speak...or read...or write. What are we doing?
All of the above, and welcome.