Tuesday…In the Studio

At the first of the week I wrote about a new beginning for the new week…part of the plan was to begin new artwork in the studio. And on Monday I did! This photo of the bottom side of a flower that I photographed  in a garden a few weeks ago has intrigued me–the vibrant yellow, red, and green colors, as well as its line and shape.

Summer Flower, © 2011 Joni Beach
Summer Flower, © 2011 Joni Beach

In a college art class I experimented with Photoshop, editing a photo and making a resulting sketch from it, but I have not taken the time to do the same in making an art quilt. I have decided this is a perfect technique for a wall hanging using this photo as inspiration.

Since I do not have Photoshop on my computer, I tried its more simple Paint feature. After downloading the photo, the brush was used to outline the main lines in black.

Image Outlined

Dotted lines were used to remind me of shadows, variations, and underlying petals.

Yellow Flower Outlined


Image Printout

Image Printout

             

           

This image was then printed out onto several sheets of paper as large as I could get it using this software…                                                                                                                             

  Hopefully, I will be able to get a bigger image with the poster setting on my printer. While this is not a new technique, it is not one I have used with my equipment. As with any creative process and new art project, experimenting and improvising is necessary–of course this is also the fun part!

Laying out the sheets of paper, trimming, and taping them together will give me a pattern from which to copy pieces, cut out fabrics,  and construct the wall hanging. That will be phase 2 of this project!

Image Layout

But for now, I think it is time to go sit in the hammock and brainstorm some more…                                                                                                                                                             🙂                                                    

**What is your new beginning this week?

(I’d love for you to Leave a Comment below!)**

Summertime…

Summertime…

Summer Flower

I am still in vacation mode” after trips to visit family…

Summer Frog

This means a non-schedule schedule, late mornings, and not much actual work getting finished!

Motivation to begin projects is low…

Hopefully this will be a time for the incubation of new ideas and a renewal of energy that will later kick in and inspire me to accomplish great things…

well, one can always dream

Dragon Fly

                                         

         

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                  especially in the summer! 🙂                                                                               

DaylilyDaylilies

Tuesday…In The Studio

As new pieces of art are finished, an artist needs to document each work by photographing it.

Butterflies
Purple Wings. Fused appliqué, free-motion quilting on cotton, 9 x 10". © 2008 Joni Beach. Private collection.

When teaching university design courses, I always scheduled a photo shoot of the student’s original designs at the end of each semester. In the past, slides were required for a professional portfolio and any time an artist submitted an application for a juried exhibit. The slide film was expensive and there was a waiting time (of several days sometimes) while a shop developed your roll of film. Finally, most venues now have changed to digital submissions and the ease of shooting, editing, and developing good images of artwork has greatly improved.

Lighting Stands

I have been attempting to meet some new goals as an artist/designer in the studio. A current goal is to improve my photography skills and equipment. While I have a newer digital camera, a Sony DSC-H20, my ability to get the lighting needed for clear color and sharp images was lacking.

Yesterday my husband was kind enough to build some new light stands for me, which you can see here beside the camera tripod, using the instructions from Holly Knott of Finger Lakes Art (http://www.hollyknott.com). Holly’s suggestions for these light stands, light bulbs, and how to use them has given me better lighting conditions in my studio.

The next challenge?…To continue to improve my photography and to update my Portfolio and website with improved photos…

♦ Does anyone have more suggestions on what has helped you improve your photographs? I would love any further ideas to try!                                                        (Feel free to add your suggestions below by clicking on the small gray words, “Leave a Comment”.)

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