More photography

The Scarlet Macaw Art Center has a monthly contest/exhibition for local artists. This month the subject is IMAGES OF HARBOR COUNTRY. In these exhibitions artists can enter a painting, photograph or sculpture that relates to the subject.


This is the photo that I entered, it's a scene at our beach in Sawyer.


I'm considering entering this photo, HORSE IN ROAD in the next exhibit as the subject will be about animals.


You can only enter one piece and I may decide to enter a photomontage RED SPHERES AND DOE instead.

Photo experiments

With the computer you can alter and transform photos to make them more interesting and also have fun during the process. Again, the only thing holding you back is your own imagination. This is also a great way to hone your computer skills.


A fairly mundane photo of my wife Jeanne. I had the idea of adding another image of her in the photo.


I made a duplicate image and transposed it over the original photo. Then I changed the opacity of that layer to about 45% creating a transparent image and also an odd but interesting one. This technique offers unlimited possibilities for unusual images.


In this photograph I cropped off the people's heads and added a lot of foreground creating a very interesting image. Try doing this type of image manipulation yourself and see what you can come up with.

Finished painting from computer sketch

Here is the sixth painting in the new series that I've been working on.


The two idea sketches which were created on the computer.


During the process of painting I decided to do a few changes which included keeping the color values lighter which works out much better.


A close up showing some of the interesting linear detail.

Digital sketches for a new painting

I'm working on a group of paintings based on sketches created on the computer. This is a fun project and this is the sixth in the new series.


My first version of the abstract figure.


In this second version the blue color was added which to me made the design more interesting.


I began the painting based on the second sketch.


The painting is not quite finished at this stage but I like the direction it's going in. I may keep it more subtle than the original sketches, it is more interesting to me at this stage. I've stopped painting for a couple of days to let this all sink in. When I am not sure about the direction a painting is taking I find that it's a good idea to get away from it for a spell before proceeding any further.

A great new camera from Olympus

The new Olympus Pen E-P1 is a new four thirds camera which is very unique. It's an interchangable lens camera and adapters enable you to use lenses such as M mount Leitz, Nikon, Canon, Minolta, Pentax, Zeiss as well as all of the new and older OM Zuiko lenses that you might have around. However, when using these lenses you must focus manually.


It's a 12.3 megapixel camera with a stainless steel and aluminum body, also available in white. Presently two lenses are made for the E-P1, a 17 mm f 2.8 and a 14-42 f 3.5 zoom, equivalent to a 34mm and a 28-64mm. I'm certain there will be more lenses offered by Olympus.


Here I have mounted an old Zuiko 55mm f1.2 lens using an adapter. I have a few older OM lenses that will be fun to use on this camera.


I also have some PK mount lenses which I can use with a Pentax adapter.


The camera has no viewfinder but does have a large 3" viewing screen. A special viewfinder is available for use with the 17mm lens.
For an in depth review of the E-P1 check out Digital Photography Review at dpreview.com.

Fun with photomontages

One can often turn bad or mundane photos into rather interesting photomontages. Here are a few examples.


I didn't hold the camera very steady while taking this photo.


Instead of discarding it I added little red spheres floating in the foreground. The spheres are actually my cat's ball which I frequently use in my photomontages.


A photo of the main hallway in my home.


The photo becomes much more interesting by adding red spheres that mimic the bubble lamps above.


Here I added a pelican to a photo of a toll road stop.


If you follow my blog you have seen this close up photo of my porch screen. Here I have added a photo of a spider.
All you need to do your own photomontage experiments is a film or digital camera and a simple program like Photshop Elements 2.0. It's a lot of fun and will help you develop your computer skills.

Unaltered photos 2

I enjoy experimenting with unusual compositions in photography. Often I can compose an interesting scene in the viewfinder and other times it's the way I decide to crop the final image.


An interesting shot of a French railroad station because of the lighting and the composition.


A mundane Chicago street scene made interesting through cropping.


A unique composition because of the interesting foreground.


A Sawyer beach scene that I captured just at the right moment.