Texture and Light

The last week or so has been somewhat of a conundrum for me, the bigger shoots I planed didn’t produce the results I was looking for, but I did find a couple of shots with my phone that gave me some food for thought.

Here are some beach treasures that I brought home from my last trip to Galveston. Sitting at my kitchen table, I found myself arranging the pieces until I found a nice balance.

Someone asked me the other day about how I decided on when to make a photo black & white, I answered that the photo usually lets me know.  Images with high contrast usually like it when you take away the color. The fun part of playing with black and white images for me is the discovery of available textures. The drift wood, coral and shell are just teeming with crevices and curves. I love the variances in light and contrasts between the smooth wood and the sharp edges of the shell.

 

The past few months have found me focusing on my use of light and paying attention to how my subject is shadowed.  I went to a local artist, Sue Bown, and received some drawing tips that I hope to keep practicing in order to improve my photos.  She is amazing and I look forward to spending some more time with her.

It has been interesting to practice the concept of thinking in terms of only what you can draw (the dark or shadow on white paper) not intentionally trying to draw everything as a finished product. This really messed with my brain, but I think the process and change in focus really improved how I see things.  By drawing the shades of dark the image will take care of itself.

The same concept works with photography.  Focusing on the shell, it is given its shape by looking at the dark lines, the shadow coming from underneath defines the curve and gives it depth.  You can tell where the light was for this photo…coming from the left and overhead (the window to the left and the ceiling fan light above) It makes for a really minimal shadow but you still have a guide to define the elements of the photo and it also distinctly separate the items from each other. 

This cell phone study, if you will, gives me a guide for how I want to set up my studio lights to really make all of elements pop in my images.

The next shot, again taken with my cell phone, is of some items I keep on my desk.  They remind me to look at the light. They help me to recognize the way the shadows define the perspective of the shapes and give the items depth and definition.

 

 

Again, black and white is the perfect medium for this type of shot.  I focused on the base piece with triangle shapes. By bumping up the brightness and the contrast, I was able to pull the grain out of the wood and give some rough texture and contrast to the triangle and squares while leaving the circles smooth and softened on focus.  I like how the effect came out.

I think this has really given me some food for thought and over the next few weeks I want to explore more black and white images with my studio lighting…I’ll let you know how it turns out.

A Pocket of History - Natchitoches, Louisiana

A couple of weeks ago my family traveled to northern Louisiana to visit with some new friends and as luck would have it, there were opportunities to learn some interesting art history tidbits and take some cool shots. (Imagine that, I found cool venues for taking pictures).

I also discovered my new favorite adult beverage, a peach tea slushy, (oh my, best thing ever after touring a plantation!) but I digress. 

My friend took me to Melrose Plantation just outside of Natchitoches, Louisiana.  This place is awesome. We took the tour and heard the history of the plantation, which spans from French Colonial land grants up through today, and it is now a well-maintained historic site. 

The plantation’s past is filled with stories from the rich history of Natchitoches Parrish. My favorite segment of the property’s past is from the early 1900’s when owner Cammie Henry converted the property to function as a retreat for artists’ where, as a patron, she was part of the “Southern Renaissance” portion of American art history.  Mrs. Henry hosted many people from varied disciplines mostly writers and painters.  She let them stay for free as long as they were working and showed her their progress every day at dinner.

This historic setting displays several works by Clementine Hunter; including Ms. Hunters preserved house.  I had heard of her work, but did not expect to find so much of it here at Melrose. I learned about her incredible story during our tour.  Starting as a cook for the Henrys and eventually becoming an acclaimed artist, Clementine Hunter’s life is an inspiration to us all.  Ms. Hunter’s Africa House Murals are on display here and they are beautiful. They have just been restored, enhancing the vibrant colors and wonderful textures of her work.  The stories behind the images and the artist are worth the trip here. 

It was a wonderful day trip and the area is just full to the brim with historically significant sites.  The town of Natchitoches is very well known as one of the best small towns in America, or at least that is what I hear. Right now they are gearing up for their Christmas festival in the historic district of town. One more plug; you have to stop at Kaffie-Frederic’s General Mercantile in Natchitoches, it is an experience.

The photos below were taken at the plantation. Because of the original artwork in most of the buildings, photography is limited inside the structures, so I stuck to shooting outside. 

A Leap of Faith

This year I have been ponding quite a bit on what the next stage of my life will bring.  It is now several years after I originally sat down and composed my first post and I am taking a leap of faith by committing to “going public” with my photos. 

2017 has been one of so much change and upheaval in both my personal life and in the world at large. An acquaintance of mine put it well this last weekend saying, “The Universe is going through a great purge.” I believe this to be true.  When he said it, I had an instant vision of the Earth with an infected sore, we are in serious need of antiseptic washing and cosmic antibiotics. What does this have to do with photography and leaps of faith you ask?

Well let me tell you…

Photography is a way of honoring what one sees in the world.  It is a small tribute to the grand beauty of the Universe surrounding us every day.  If done well, others get to share in that frozen moment for as long as the paper lasts or the file is accessible. If we are lucky it lasts much longer than the artist who has the audacity to try and capture said moment.  So to me, this starts pushing the antibiotics in the form of love of beauty and spreading the love makes things better.

Here is where the leap of faith comes in.

First, you have to trust that your eye is seeing things in a way that others will enjoy as well.  (Is that faith or hubris? I am not quite sure yet.)

Second, your skill with your camera should be proficient and always open to improvement and critique. With this in mind I am joining the Galveston County Art League, lots of opportunity for both improvement and critique here. I have also been entering contests on Viewbug , a really positive web forum to enter contests and receive feedback on your digital shots.

And finally, the third thing because my OCD loves things in threes, faith comes into it with giving of yourself, your effort, and your craft.  Your photos give away your perspective on what you see. We look at lots of things, but photos freeze what we see. The exposure, if you will pardon the pun, comes when you open up to let others see how you view the world.  They get to see what grabs your attention.

Here are a couple of shots that have grabbed my attention since the last post,

Enjoy!