What am I doing here?

This was one of those editing processes that took a few hours to create the final image. I had a vision and it really just couldn't become something I liked. But I changed the concept and I really like what I've come up with. Originally I wanted to just have eyes blended into the woods, but I just couldn't get it to blend right. This final image is better though, more powerful and less crowded looking. That's all.

Pop Art

When I took photo two in high school, we had to do a project called pop art. We had this rubber tile thing and carved out a self portrait and then made prints with paint. I didn't like anything about it. I don't like relying on my shaky, unskilled hands. But during my last edit (as seen in the previous post), I was reminded of that. I realized it had a somewhat pop art feel after I was trying to edit things a certain way. It's really just my take on it.

I've been dying to use this image because of the background, but because of the glare I hadn't wanted to use it. But now I've found a way to work with it. So, ta da!

Ugly

The other night, I'll admit, I was feeling really down. A lot of things are going to change. So instead of channeling my emotions towards something detrimental to my well-being like I normally do, I tried to create something. The reality is, it's not very pretty. But the point has been made and I'm exploring new techniques that are pretty cool. I have a few versions of this but I'll post my two favorites. I put them in the order I created them. I love the eyes in this first one. The second and third are very similar except for the subtle color in the third. To create these images, I layered a photo of cracked dirt I took awhile ago with a picture from my photo shoot in Ward with Hilary. Then I played with all sorts of effects. It's not exactly pleasant to look at, but it is interesting, so I'm sharing it. That's all.

Losing It

I needed to create something.

Something Completely Different

But it's still photography. I'm bored. I love the style I have right now, but I'm bored with it. What's special? What's incredibly different and unique? Yes, it is pretty. Yes, it conveys the meaning I'm trying to get across. But tonight I decided to do something very different than what I've done lately. I actually used GIMP again so I could play with layers. When I play with layers it's typically because I'm combining images. This time I took the image of a plant and turned it into something crazier, as seen below.

Then came the really fun part. I started layering photographs from my most recent photo shoot with Jasmine. I've come up with some things I really love. I'll show my favorite first. I put a motion blur filter on the plant layer which helps give it a dreamy look. I think this may be the new background on my computer. I just love this image.

Next up, inspired by Sara Strimpel, I made my first diptych. I'm not entirely sure how I feel about it. I know I like the image above more, but this one has something different to say.

This last image certainly has a darker feel and is something I stumbled across completely by accident. When adjusting how the plant layer was filtered over the main image, I clicked on one called hue and ended up with this. It looks like she has blood smeared all over her face, but it makes a powerful photo. I can't resist putting it up.

It feels good to create something different. I had explored layering random images with my portraits, perhaps I will continue with this. That's all for now!

 

Jasmine Part Two

Jasmine and I have known each other since fifth grade! And now she is going to leave for college in Florida. I took her senior pictures last year and it was really fun, so we decided to do another shoot before she leaves. Neither of us were sure we'd have any good shots, which would have been fine since we had fun, but happily there ARE good pictures! Here they are :)

I LOVE sunflowers. They're my favorite flower. We couldn't find a sunflower field. But there was a little patch of them on the side of the road that we decided to take advantage of.

This was a moment where she turned to talk and I had to say "Freeze!"

My favorite shot from today.

I've also been wanting to do a series of photos with the theme "when forever isn't enough." But it's tricky to create wistful photographs while still being original. This is what I've come up with today. It's not an entirely original picture. But it has a point and I like it anyways.

Hiding

Oh wow, I just realized it's 4:30 in the morning. I meant to go to bed an hour ago. But I was writing in my journal and stumbled across something I had written a long time ago. I've only included a snippet of it in these photos. Interpret it however you'd like. It's somewhat inspired by something called post secret. So here it is. I will probably continue working with this concept, just because it's a really personal thing for me. It's tempting to show my progress with more of my little projects, but we'll see about this one. I really haven't spent much time with this idea yet, but it's kind of cool to put a picture and words together. That is all.

Simple

This was taken at the aquarium last year and Sara Strimpel is the lovely silhouette. It was underexposed when I first took the picture so I upped the contrast so you can't tell anymore. I'm not entirely sure why I like it so much, but I do. That's all.