"I remember growing up with television, from the time it was just a test pattern, with maybe a little bit of programming once in a while." - Francis Ford Coppola
There was a time in early television when broadcast were not on a twenty-four hour cycle. Programs were typically seen from 6:00 AM until sometimes midnight. The use of a test pattern mostly went away in the 1960's with the advent of color television. But I remember them clearly.
After signing off, a test pattern would be displayed. Many of the adopted test patterns contained the graphic of an Indian along with other patterns on the chart.
All of this served a purpose.
Broadcasting a test pattern daily and sometimes hourly, allowed people to make adjustments to their home television sets, TV repairmen and broadcast engineers to adjust cameras and other equipment. Everyone had an opportunity to adjust perspective, framing, linearity, contrast, brightness, etc., etc.
It is said "an experienced broadcast engineer could glance at the drawing of the Indian Chief and quickly know if everything was OK or if more careful adjustment was needed."
Then what?
Life is kind of like getting everything adjusted and perfectly set. We prepare ourselves, take all of the right courses, read the program guide and make sure everything is perfectly adjusted. We then sit there doing nothing.
Do we prepare only to sit and stare at a test pattern?
What we do is get up and start living our life. We do all of those things we were adjusting for and preparing to do. We live life, we sign-on and begin broadcasting our lives in full clarity, framing, linearity, contrast, brightness, etc., etc.
It would do television stations no good if all they did was broadcast a test pattern all day long. They prepare and then they broadcast their shows. The same goes for our lives. To prepare and do nothing gets us nowhere.
Get up and do life.
Stay inspired my friends!
