I missed a few days here. I was getting ready for a class and then taking the class and then processing the information from the class and, well... I got nicely sidetracked from posting to this blog.

It always takes me a while to mull over what I learn in any class. This was private instruction on studio lighting techniques utilizing my own make shift studio space.  Lots and lots of info to process.

My instructor is John Griffith, a local photographer that I admire.

I will repost what I published to Facebook here:


I'm still processing all the information I gleaned from my class with John Griffith. John is a local photographer I admire. I love his work and appreciate his philosophies of working with models. I was thrilled at having an opportunity for my daughter and me to have a private session class with him on studio lighting.

Wow - we packed a LOT of learning into our time. He came to my house so he could see first hand my available studio space. He brought some high end equipment so I could see what possibilities were available, and then explained how I could do without those high end things until when/if I could justify them. I'm thinking the amazing professional strobe lighting is not in my future. I couldn't afford to replace the bulb. The bulb is more expensive than my previous camera. The unit without the bulb costs more than my current camera. LOL But he told me how to best use the lighting I already have and what I will need to upgrade to the next step.

He also gave me some great advice on how to modify the natural light sources I'm dealing with to give me more control. I'm feeling more confident in being able to get the images I'm trying to create.

A lot of the class time was spent analyzing images that I liked and images that Cate liked and understanding how to figure out "How did they do that?" I think I'm starting to understand how to purposely place my light sources to get the look I want. I'm excited again about working with some models for portraits. I had been getting a bit frustrated.

He let us pop some images into Photoshop that we shot in RAW format. I think Cate really liked that. She is much quicker at grasping the technical stuff than I ever was, and my old brain is very very slow. But I'll get it eventually.

He was fun to talk to, comfortable to be around, all in all it was a good day and well worth the very reasonable fee he charged for his time and expertise.
If you get a chance to take a photography or lighting class from him, I highly recommend it.

ICAD Day #8

My friend Willow Sauerwein, of Estuary Magicks, posted a card with some burned paper techniques. It reminded me of some work I had done a long time ago using a soldering iron on paper. 

I had really liked the piece, but unfortunately I no longer have it. It was the first (and last) time I agreed to do one of those round robin swap things. My piece, that I had put a lot of work into, went out and never came back. I've never again trusted anyone who proposes that type of swap.

At least I have a photo of it. :( I hate it when my artwork is destroyed or stolen. 

So, this brought up some bad memories, but reminded me of a cool technique. Mixed blessing.

ICAD Day7

More of the same.  

I think I'm working on something...

Or I might just file this idea away for future reference.

ICAD

 Day #6

Photographed with backlight.

I will be working on this more today.

ICAD Day #5

No prompt

I was looking at paper flowers on Pinterest.

This worked. I like it.

************************************************

I wanted to make how I did this a little clearer.
Some people seemed to be confused. ?????

There are a million tutorials for making paper flowers online. 

It's fun!

ICAD day#4

They have 'prompts' for each day. I had been ignoring them.

Saw lots of things with puzzles done with the cards today.
 I assume that is the prompt. I made another folded thingy.
 Realized I could stick a couple of my puzzle die cut pieces in it. 

Wallah

Whatever

I am enjoying working with this limited starting point. 

I should probably start using old index cards for this. 

I toss out the ones I use for notes and shopping lists...

ICAD

https://www.facebook.com/groups/icad2014/

Day  #3

Revisiting some old techniques.

ICAD Day #2

Sharpie Marker, Prismacolor pencils and ballpoint ink.

Doodled while watching Game of Thrones.

ICAD Challenge 2014

I decided to participate in an online art challenge. ICAD - Index Card A Day.

Check it out. Could be fun.

http://daisyyellowart.com/icad/icad-faq.html

My first day:

I decided to play around with doing some oversized beads with painted index cards. They seem pretty sturdy. I sprayed them with a clear sealer, so I think they will hold up.

One of the small beads apparently got hung up on my sweater so isn't showing. I'll see if I can get a better photo tomorrow while there is still some light.

A bit better pic.

This has been totally neglected

I have not posted anything here in...well...years.

Maybe I should start again. Might encourage me to be more productive.

I am brainstorming with some on line friends about chatelaines. This might be a good place to post about that.

Wish me luck?

https://www.facebook.com/groups/694141900638778/

Updating after a very long and busy while

My friend Adrienne, form Wales, came over for a visit.
They apparently do not have Asian markets in Wales.
I thought she might get a kick out of Fubons. :) I noticed things that I might not have noticed if I was just doing my usual shopping and not showing it all off to a visitor. ;)



A welcome kitty of course.




This lovely shrine was set up near the front of a store.




Great color, texture, line and form in this screen.
Made me think of some of the assignments for my photography classes.




Wonderful patterns.




Such creative packaging.




I suspect I will be using some of these images for collage work...




Everyone was so friendly.




Adrienne said this was one of her favorite teas. Loved the display.




Lots of dragon motifs.




I had to stop for a bubble tea. MMmmmmmmm- Bubble Tea!!
Adrienne was not impressed. LOL




Looks like he must have had a great laugh.




Parrot Fish




Luscious!




Food colors in Asian stores can be a bit disturbing for some of us. ;)




All of the labels are sooo bright. The whole store is a riot of color.




The produce section is fantastic.




Color- yep- lots and lots of color. Supersaturated, sometimes garish, always joyous color assaults your senses at every turn.




Sometimes it is hard to decide if the colors or the textures are most appealing.




Seriously textured




I found myself wishing I had some molding compound...




This will make a nice layer for adding textures in Photoshop. :)




More texture...




More texture... and interesting colors too.




Really loved the textures in this screen. I took a lot of photos of this...

Out and About (with camera)

One of Portland's nicknames is Bridgetown.







We had to stop by the hospital to pick up a prescription.
This fellow was circling overhead. Not a good sign... ;)



Then we headed for:



Lovely rural community with no free parking. I don't think they want visitors.
We did stop by the Bybee-Howell house.





Late afternoon. I liked the way the sun was shining through the branches.



Still some nice flowers blooming- although they were looking a bit tired.



Berry season is very close to over.



I have been wanting to get photos of this old building along Highway 30 for a long time. I only got a couple of shots before the security guard came over and told us that we couldn't take photos there "because of 911". Yeah, right. grrrrrr



Jax had an explanation for this house: Fishmen.



We decided to drive on out to Scappoose rather than try to get back through Portland during rush hour.
We found a surprisingly good restaurant!