The Wednesday Heart - Grand Ole Bestiary

Digital manipulation is a big thing in photography these days and, like any other photographic trick, can either be done awfully or fantastically. The person behind the Grand Ole Bestiary does it with a quaint flair and great execution that makes these photographs highly collectable.

This first one, of a kitten-woman walking a puppy, is just so cute:



The thing is, the principle behind this technique isn't particularly hard. And yet so few people manage to make art like this with their photographs without making it look a bit tacky. What I like about these photographs is that there has obviously been a lot of effort put into getting them exactly right.

I also like how the Grand Ole Bestiary matches people so well with their animal. It's like one of those Facebook quizzes, but awesome and in photographic form:



I'd also like to add that this shop is an excellent example of tapping into a niche and doing it really, really well. Wonderful photographs, wonderful Etsy store! I heart you Grand Ole Bestiary!

International Garden Photographer of the Year

The winners were just announced for the above competition, and while I am a bit sad still that I didn't get anywhere (I was so sure that at least one of my photos would make the highly commended list!) I can rest happily knowing that nothing I made would have competed with the image that actually won the competition. It was this spectacular black and white fairy-tale-esque garden view. The image really holds your eye.

They are holding their next competition soon and I totally plan to enter. I keep having all these ideas for how I can do better this time :-) The categories I'm thinking of entering are Trees, Wildlife in the Garden, Plant Portraits and People in the Garden. I like the idea of the Edible Garden category but I just can't think of what I would photograph that hasn't been done to death.

If you'd like to enter too, the address to go check them out is www.igpoty.com

The Wednesday Heart - The Eye

Occasionally you come across a photographer who imbues everything they do with such style and panache that even their photos of the most mundane items make you go Wow! The Eye is one such photographer.

This photo for example has such a simple object, and yet manages to convey an almost film-noir sense of style, beauty and depth.



As I think I've mentioned before, I love photographers who can so easily straddle multiple styles. The Eye is another one of those people who make it look like it's easy. The creativity and technical skill that went into this are great, and I love how it's just sitting there amidst the butterflies and flowers like it was cleverly camouflaged and just waiting for lunchtime :-)



I've always had a penchant for pictures that tell a story. It's something I've been playing with a bit in my own work. This one, A Valentine Story, I love for the concept:



I'm not sure I'm so keen on the technical execution. The third image with the flames seems to be a little muted for what it is symbolising (love being devoured by flames) and I think the image would be stronger with simply the first and the last picture. But I absolutely love the concept and I think the multi-panel layout is a great idea. There should be more of this kind of experimental print making in the photographic community, not just landscapes and kittens.

Honestly, I could go on about this girl's work all day. I'll just simply say you should go here: The Eye! to check out the rest of the images. I <3 you The Eye!

The Wednesday Heart - QuietDarling

I had it all planned out, the way I was going to describe this photographers wonderfully dreamy, child-like, nostalgic and slightly disturbing style, but she's gone and said it all in her profile:

"chapped lips and skinned knees
blanket forts and paper cranes
hiding behind the magnolia treedreams of whales and the milky way
memories and grandma
freckle summer and bubble tea
someone to read withold ghostssecret treasures and whispering secrets
sad ghosts
lace and grandfather elk
run-away dollies and pippi
sailing a wooden shoe and peter piper
honey cakes and pear piea garden of my own
these magical mountain forests."

That's what her photography is like. Take a look:

I love how a lot of her work is about what's not seen. And that each of her images is a one of a kind (OOAK for those in the biz) polaroid that comes to you framed and signed. Her style is so distinctive and I love the feel of her work, like the feel in the few minutes where a normal film suddenly becomes a horror film that both entrances and disquiets.

Quietdarling, I heart you!

The Wednesday Heart - Mystique Island

I love etsy, and there are so many fantastic photographers on there. I'm going to review one photographer I love per week. This week is American-based photographer Mystique Island.

One of the things I love to see most in a photographer is variety, and Mystique Island certainly has that. I've chosen three photos here, and all are, I think, really good examples of different aspects of photography. This first one is just beautiful. I love the colours especially. The burnt orange leaves with the dark stamen contrast really well against the bright yellow of the background flowers and the high green of the grass.

It's also a great example of macro photography. The detail of the foreground works really well with the blurred background. On a slightly more symbolic note, this makes me think of how we tend to remember tragedy in so much detail, whereas the bright, happy times are more of a warm, fuzzy blur in the background. Therefore, this photograph symbolises the process of living, and you can't get much bigger than that :-)

This next one is simply stunning.

The wonderfully vivid colours combine well with the framing to give the overall image an eerie sense of a life floating under the ocean in complete silence. Awesome.

And this one is in just because it is such a cute elephant picture

I heart you Mystique Island!

How to make patterns with your photos

Recently I've really enjoyed making patterns out of my photographs. I especially love how the high detail photos can turn into really awesome patterns that have a lot of texture to them.  Of course, it's really easy to do. 

First pick a photo that you find really interesting. Lots of detail and lots of colour I find tend to produce the best results.

If you're using Corel Paint Shop Pro X2 just click on "Effects" and then "Reflection Effects" and have a play around with the Kaleidoscope or Pattern functions. 

There should be a dice located on the effect screen when you've gone into one of the above and when you click that it will randomise the settings and create a new image. I always make sure my preview screen shows the whole picture because that can definitely make a

 difference.

The other thing I would recommend is playing around with your colours and so forth after you're happy with the pattern you've chosen. Especially go to "Adjust" - "Brightness and Contrast" - "Brightness/Contrast" and play around with those settings. You can give your piece a muted, ancient feel or perhaps a highly vibrant psychadelic vibe!

The one at the top of the screen is made from a picture of the water from a waterfall at the local Bontanical Gardens hitting the pool below. This one is from one of the fireworks pictures I took at Skyfire a few weekends ago:

Skyfire XXI

Skyfire is a Canberra tradition, held by the banks of Lake Burley Griffin. The local radio station, 104.7, holds this excellent fireworks display once a year. I love going, but normally the weather is drizzly and you have to sit around for hours if you want to get there early enough to get a good spot. This year the weather was perfect! I took my camera (naturally) and was very excited about the prospect of photographing fireworks. Here are the results of my attempts :-)