Apr 22, 2016
About Life’s a Blur: A photography series that experiments with long exposures and motion blur. Every photo is a combination of movement mixed with a still subject. I’d like to think of each photo like a meditation: stillness in a sea of chaos.
These photos are also part of my Photo and 100 Words project. Since January 2014, I’ve been creating a new photo and writing about it every week. If you’re interested in finding out what prompted me to begin you can read the introduction over here.
(If you’re new to this photography series you might want to read how it all began in Part 1)
The Best Photography for the ‘Worst’ Conditions
This is going to be the briefest behind the scenes post ever, because I’ve already totally explained how to create photos similar to these back in part 2. So I’m posting this mostly so you can compare the before and after shots and see what kind of scenery has the most potential.
I will say that this is the perfect kind of photography to do at noon on a sunny day, which is probably my favorite part! Most kinds of subjects don’t look great at all in direct sunlight, especially harsh, mid-day light. In the case of these blurred scenes, though, the harsher the light, the better. You’ll never be able to use the “golden hour” excuse with this technique… although, as you’ll see below, the golden hour works just fine too.
The spring set of Life’s a Blur:
As is usual with these posts I’ve provided links to the original 100 words I wrote to go along with each photo, just in case you want to dig deeper into my world =)
Magnolia Petal in the Breeze
This photo is for sale… click on it for more details.
I don’t know what it was, maybe just the pink and blue, but this image sparked me to write about Baby Season.
A snapshot of the background scene before I blurred it in camera to create “Magnolia Petal in the Breeze” and “Shell of a Flower.”
I really encourage you to experiment with each scene! In petal shot above, I got a little more blue by keeping more of the sky in my frame, and I got more pinks and purples by filling my frame with the flowers in the photo below. Both images came from the same scene, though, and you can alter the positioning of colors and the angle of the streaks by moving your camera in a different direction or starting and ending in different areas of your scene. Experiment, experiment, experiment!
Shell of a Flower
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I posted this photo along with a brief account of what it was like to sit under this majestic magnolia tree, I was Afraid to Blink.
Magnolia Petal Swept Away
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I examined everything Bittersweet when I first published this photo.
A snapshot of the background scene before I blurred it in camera to create “Magnolia Petal Swept Away.”
This image was shot during the infamous golden hour, as the sun was going down, if you like warmer colors you might still shoot for this time of day. Personally, I’m usually unavailable during this time, so if you’re like me and your schedule is booked during the oh-so-precious golden hour light, just warm up your white balance bar in post. (That won’t work at all for typical landscape photography, but with these abstract scenes, no one will know the difference, promise!)
Sugar Maple Flowers Blow Away
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In Flying Solo I travel back to my teenage years into a memory that was sparked by this photo.
A snapshot of the background scene before I blurred it in camera to create “Sugar Maple Flowers Blow Away.”
Forsythia Flight
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I realize this every year, but spring is not always as sweet as it seems, read my thoughts in A Stinky Spring.
A snapshot of the background scene before I blurred it in camera to create “Forsythia Flight.”
When I moved my camera horizontally along this scene I ended up with ugly black stripes where the power lines were, but if I moved in any other direction they disappeared. Diagonally seemed to work best for my tastes with these colors!
Dogwood Petal’s Dream
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Sometimes I have A Sick Sense of Humor about the world…
A snapshot of the background scene before I blurred it in camera to create “Dogwood Petal’s Dream.”
Pink Petals Fly
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I suddenly realized that the entire theme behind the Life’s a Blur series is has gotten so far away from me! Isn’t it Ironic?
A snapshot of the background scene before I blurred it in camera to create “Pink Petals Fly.”
This scene was tricky. I had to get in really close to get enough of that pink and purple color I was aiming for. This redbud tree was pretty small and there weren’t that many flowers on it, especially at a distance.
Redbud Flower Flight
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Read Slowing Down in this Blur to experience one of my most memorable moments!
A snapshot of the background scene before I blurred it in camera to create “Redbud Flower Flight.”
This scene is similar to the last one, but the slight angle change mixed with a diagonal movement of the camera creates a whole new abstraction!
What’s Next?
Well that’s it for Life’s a Blur, but the good news is that you can now access all the behind the scenes content in the links listed below!
How it All Began – Life’s a Blur – Behind the Scenes – Part 1
Fall Scenes – Life’s a Blur – Behind the Scenes – Part 2
Water Flow and Flowers – Life’s a Blur – Behind the Scenes – Part 3
How to Photograph Snowflakes – Life’s a Blur – Behind the Scenes – Part 4
Creating Surreal Showers – Life’s a Blur – Behind the Scenes – Part 5
In the meantime I’m creating a whole new series right now! In honor of my business name, Reflective Photos, I’m going to be playing around with reflections and distortions to create some fun abstract art. This is partially because I’ve recently become fascinated with reflections, in both the literal and the figurative senses, but also because I know that “reflective photos” is a popular Google search term that finds this site. So why not give the Googlers what they want?
If you want to get my new photos, and more behind the scenes info, like this, delivered to you inbox, make sure to sign up below.
Feb 26, 2016
About Life’s a Blur: A photography series that experiments with long exposures and motion blur. Every photo is a combination of movement mixed with a still subject. I’d like to think of each photo like a meditation: stillness in a sea of chaos.
These photos are also part of my Photo and 100 Words project. Since January 2014, I’ve been creating a new photo and writing about it every week. If you’re interested in finding out what prompted me to begin you can read the introduction over here.
(If you’re new to this photography series you might want to read how it all began in Part 1)
This photo is for sale… click on it for more details OR read the original post I wrote about it: “Reaching for Dreams“
The concept seemed simple: make it rain. The execution was a bit more complicated, but that was mostly my own fault…
I started out with a bouquet of flowers, a purple backdrop, and a pile of homemade confetti made by sending some construction paper scraps through our paper shredder. Shout out to Nick for simplifying that process! I had intended to use scissors.
I planned on taking long exposures of the flowers and dropping the confetti in the background to create a streaky, rainy effect.
It was only as I was pulling my flashes out of my bag, that I realized I had already run into a problem! I forgot to bring home hot lights from the studio.
A Lesson in Lighting
For those of you who are new to off-camera lighting, there are generally two options: strobes and constant light. The main difference being that constant light stays on and strobes only flash when the camera takes a photo.
There are lots of reasons you might consider using one over another, but for the purposes of this example I needed constant light because I intended to capture long exposures. Flashes tend to freeze motion and would totally negate the soft effect I was going for.
I could’ve waited for the next weekend to come around… or maybe not, I don’t really remember what I had going on at the time, but I don’t have that kind of patience anyway! And so the problem-solving began…
I decided to use my living room lamp as a constant light source. It had three bulbs on it and they were semi-adjustable, so I turned all three of them on and pointed them in the same general direction to even out the lighting on my backdrop. More importantly, the lamp was also going to be lighting the confetti in the background.
The next problem was two-fold. I only had one lamp, so that meant I had to use at least one flash to light up the flower.
First of all, mixing light sources is generally not a good idea because every light has its own colorcast. The lamp was putting out yellowy light compared to the bluish light my flash puts out.
I fixed that issue by balancing the lights with gels, which are just colored sheets of transparent plastic. It just takes a bit of time and experimentation to get it right, but I ended up covering all of the lamp lights with blue gels to negate the yellow, and I did the opposite with my flash by covering it with a yellow gel.
The second problem with using a flash on the flower was that I was also blasting the confetti with the flash too. This created a simultaneously soft and frozen look; there were streaks of color from the confetti lit by the lamp, but there were also hard dots specked across the background that froze when the flash fired. Awesome effect, but it’s not what I wanted.
I had to experiment with some matte board to find the sweet spot where I would block the flash from hitting the confetti but still allow enough light onto the flower. Eventually I got it right!
Then I added in another matte board, covered in aluminum foil, to fill in the right side of the background and bounce more lamp light back into the confetti. I’m sure I had to tweak that angle too, in order to avoid bouncing any light from the flash into the confetti as well.
You might also see that I have a giant reflector above the whole set, and I can’t remember what that was for, but I’m going to assume it was further flash blockage, and lamp light bounceage, on the background area.
More Photos Made from this Setup:
Click the links below each image to read the original 100 words of reflection they inspired! Each image is also available in my art shop, so just click on the images if you are interested in purchasing any of these for you wall.
Warm Rain on a Cool Night
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This image came out alongside my 100-word perspective on why “Rain is Never Gray.”
Towering Twin Flowers
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I have a strong dislike of green backgrounds… and you can read why in “Naturally Unnatural.”
Surreal Showers on Flowers
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I’m constantly amazed at how much more I have yet to discover in my own back yard, that’s what I wrote about in “Spring Sprung New Flowers,” when this photo was first published.
Starfighter Lily Fights the Blues
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I hate when my fellow creative use lack of inspiration as an excuse not to create, and that’s what I wrote about Inspiration is for Lazy Artists.
Learn from My Mistakes!
If I had it to do over, I would NEVER do it this way! It’s a great example, though, of how anything is possible with a little creativity and what you already have.
This is also the last time you’ll see behind the scenes photos in my old studio – ahem – kitchen/living room. All future photos will show off my new studio space! I don’t know about you, but that gives me reason for celebration!
What’s Next?
You’ll get to see what my spring scenes looked like before and after I blurred them in my camera. The technique is the same one I used for parts 2 and 4 in this series, so check the links below if you want to learn more.
This will be the last behind the scenes post about the Life’s a Blur series. If you’re new here, though, you might’ve missed my previous posts on creating motion blur with long exposures!
How it All Began – Life’s a Blur – Behind the Scenes – Part 1
Fall Scenes – Life’s a Blur – Behind the Scenes – Part 2
Water Flow and Flowers – Life’s A Blur – Behind the Scenes – Part 3
How to Photograph Snowflakes – Life’s A Blur – Behind the Scenes – Part 4
Update: Part 6 is now available if you want to get a glimpse behind the spring set of Life’s a Blur!
Dec 24, 2015 |
About Life’s a Blur: A photography series that experiments with long exposures and motion blur. Every photo is a combination of movement mixed with a still subject. I’d like to think of each photo like a meditation: stillness in a sea of chaos.
These photos are also part of my Photo and 100 Words project. Since January 2014, I’ve been creating a new photo and writing about it every week. If you’re interested in finding out what prompted me to begin you can read the introduction over here.
(If you’re new to this photography series you might want to read how it all began in Part 1)
Why Snowflakes?
I really didn’t know what I was getting into when I decided that snowflakes were the subject I’d be approaching. The truth is, snowflakes were the only subject I could think of that would be flying across a winter scene, so I was determined to make it work.
It took me 2 snowfalls to get anything at all, and it wasn’t until my 3rd attempt that I actually got the images that were used in this series. It was not easy, and it certainly tried my patience… but it was worth it. I learned a lot and, in the end, I was really happy with my results!
How to Photograph Snowflakes
Patience and persistence… that’s the real answer, but if you’re really going to attempt to capture some snowflakes this winter, maybe I can help you to avoid some of the mistakes I made!
You’ll Need:
- Camera with macro lens – but you already knew that right?
- Clean, cold, and dry surface – I recommend plexiglass in order to backlight with an LED light, but for a simpler setup a piece of black fabric will give you the best contrast in natural light.
- Towel or paper towels – to wipe your surface clean so you can catch more fresh flakes.
- Toothpick – you don’t want to use even gloved hands to try and move snowflakes, they might break or melt.
- Index Cards – or something similar to transport the snowflakes
- Tripod
- A cooler (optional and only if you want to replicate my setup)
- LED light or other continuous light source (optional)
- Colored Gels (optional)
My Setup
The photo above is a recreation of what I set up last winter so that I can show you the general idea. I guess my brain was frozen when I shot these, because I totally forgot to take photos before I broke down my set and took my numb ass inside. Whoops!
I used a cooler because it was the perfect size to support the small piece of plexiglass I wanted to use. The white interior gave me some extra light too.
I was using an LED ring light that has the option to put out continuous light. I covered half of the light with a blue gel and the other half with a magenta gel.
I really loved the effect of the colored light, but I ended up altering the color later on because it didn’t fit right into my snowy scenes. Here is one of my snowflake captures before I processed it and removed the background.
Here are a few tips you might want to consider before you make an attempt at snowflake photography:
Tip #1 Get prepared now!
Even if there’s no snow in your forecast, you never know when the first flurries might start to appear, and if you wait until then, you’ll probably be too late.
You want to put all of your materials outside right now, preferably under cover. (All except your camera and lens, of course.) You have to remember that snowflakes are delicate and your materials will melt them if they haven’t had enough time to chill down from indoor temperatures.
Tip #2 Fresh snow is the only good snow
You really have to catch the snowflakes as soon as they fall out of the sky. You can’t use the snow on the ground because the crystals will clump together and all you’ll get are chunks of ice that aren’t too attractive.
Sometimes, even the fresh snow is ugly! Not all snowflakes have those beautiful six-sided designs you’re thinking of. I got only 1 recognizable snowflake after three hours of snowfall the first night I tried.
Tip #3 Get under cover
It may seem obvious, but you will want some protection from the elements. You don’t want fresh snow falling on top of the snow you’re trying to photograph, and you don’t want the wind blowing your snowflakes away. Plan ahead for a space that will protect your set without melting your snowflakes. A covered porch, a shed, a garage, a tent, or even the back of your car could work.
Tip #4 Move your snowflakes, not your camera
At first my set was completely different. I had a bigger piece of plexi, propped up at a 45 degree angle so that I could easily move my camera to the snowflakes without moving them. I don’t know why I thought this would be easier, or if I even thought, haha, but turns out moving the snowflakes is waaaaaaay easier.
Just make sure you have a toothpick and a few index cards pre-chilled so you don’t melt the flakes. Eventually I used another piece of plexi to collect and search for good snowflakes, and simply pushed them onto an index card and carefully transported, and slid them in front of the lens. Practice with a few damaged snowflakes before you go for the precious good ones.
Tip #5 Work at night
If the sun is your light, then obviously you can’t take this tip. Personally, I like to have full control over my light, so my setup photo is a little misleading because every one of these snowflakes was captured at night using only the one ring light. This brings me to…
Tip #6 Backlight your snowflakes… or don’t…
I personally found that shinning light through the snowflakes instead of at them brought out more detail and gave them a more translucent look. If you want a more opaque look that might not be for you. I suggest you experiment with your light to find a look you love.
Next time I do this I will probably use two lights… the possibilities are endless, play with them!
Please Note: I learned about snowflake photography from the genius behind snowcrystals.com – last time I went to share this website with a friend, however, I found that all of the content regarding snowflake photography was gone. I’m guessing this is probably because his new book includes all of his amazing tips… I feel lucky to have come across the info before he deleted it! Kenneth Libbrecht’s snowflake photos are far superior to mine, though, and if you want more detailed information on this topic I’m sure you can find it in his new book, The Snowflake, Winter’s Frozen Artistry… but even if you don’t want to buy it, you’ll certainly be able to see some gorgeous snowflake photography over there, so check it out anyway!
Blurred Scenery
As I’m sure you’ve guessed, the background images were shot separately from the snowflake images. Unlike my fall leaf photos, earlier in this series, the snowflakes didn’t come from the same snowy scenes I photographed. Unfortunately, this just wasn’t possible, especially because my favorite backgrounds were created on sunny days without a snowflake in sight. Finally, I’ve discovered a photography technique that thrives in sunny, mid-day light!
Here are all of my final winter scenes followed by a snapshot of the original scene. Keep in mind that all blurring was done in camera and no Photoshop was used to blur these backgrounds. If you want the details of exactly how I created the background images, you can get the nerdy photo details in part 2.
I also added links to the original story each photo was published with, just in case you’re interested in getting more!
Crystalline to Crusty
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Obviously, you can see that this snowflake isn’t exactly perfect… you can read about this OCD lady’s battle with accepting imperfection in Seeking Perfection.
A snapshot of the background scene before I blurred it in camera to create “Crystalline to Crusty.”
Beachy Snowfall Scenery
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I guess I just can’t keep my mind from seeing summer, even in a snowflake! Come on, you know that looks like a sand dollar… but no it actually is a snowflake, and that background actually is a snowy scene, see? Life’s a Beach was the original writing that went with this photo.
A snapshot of the background scene before I blurred it in camera to create “Life’s a Beach.”
Breezy Snowfall
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As I compared all of my finished photos, I noticed that they all had one thing in common, and it has to do with my favorite number, Six.
A snapshot of the background scene before I blurred it in camera to create “Breezy Snowfall.”
Swept Away Snowflake
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I think I somehow ended up making a feminist statement with Girls Who Cry Snowflakes. I got a little personal too…
A snapshot of the background scene before I blurred it in camera to create “Swept Away Snowflake.”
Hexagon Crystal
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In Simplicity I wrote about the difference in achieving minimalism in photography and in writing… they are actually total opposites when it comes to approach, at least my approach.
A snapshot of the background scene before I blurred it in camera to create “Hexagon Crystal” and “Icy Flames.”
Note: This image is the scene I used for both “Hexagon Crystal” and “Icy Flames” – I simply spent more time on the trees in the darker version and more time on the sky in the lighter version. I may have also reversed the direction that I blurred the image (from top to bottom and vice versa), but I’m not completely sure, my memory is shaky on that.
As I’m sure you can see I also added a blue tint by favoring the cold side of the white balance bar in my post processing. I did this to all of the images I shot on overcast days because everything was just so bleak and gray. I’ve come to find that the best days to do these blurred scenes are on sunny days with a few scattered clouds. These conditions make for the best contrast, which is ideal for visible blur lines.
Icy Flames
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Persistence pays off was me whining about all the hard work it took to get my first snowflake, like I said, it wasn’t easy… but you can check out what the original image looked like on my 1st ever snowflake!
A Fine Flurry
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A Glimmer of Hope is me trying to be positive when everything else seems to want me to go the other way.
A snapshot of the background scene before I blurred it in camera to create “A Fine Flurry.”
Once again, make sure you check out part 2 if you want the details on how to create abstract scenes with motion blur.
What’s Next?
In the next blog post I’ll be showing you how I made surreal rain for the colorful background of my latest flower photos… any idea what I used? This post is coming soon, if you don’t want to miss out, make sure you sign up below to be notified!
Happy shooting!
Update: Part 5 is now posted, find out how to create surreal rain for the backgrounds of your images.
Jul 3, 2015 |
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Under the magnolia tree, I sat on a gravestone to rest. It was a hot day for early spring and I was cooling off in the dappled shade, and getting mesmerized by the glistening sun spots that quivered with the breeze. Every breath of wind sent pink and white petals floating and flipping to the ground.
When you stick your face to the back of a camera, all of your energy is pointed at a single perspective. It’s surprisingly easy to miss everything that’s going on around you.
Relaxing against the cool stone, my gaze floated across the flowery floor. Jutting out between petals were these little brown bunny ear looking things. Once I saw one, I saw them everywhere.They were like little cocoons, I realized, that held in the flower until its beauty was ready to burst.
In a few weeks, I thought, there will be nothing left under this tree but dirt and grass. If you blink, it seems, the flowers have fallen, they melt back into the earth, and it’s like they never existed. Life is truly a blur.
What are these numbered posts all about? Read the introduction to my Photo & 100 Words project and find out!
Jun 12, 2015 |
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My world becomes a blur of yellow and green as I jog past the forsythia flowers blooming alongside the road. Every ounce of my willpower is pushing each foot forward as it pounds against the pavement.
On earlier, chillier days I focused my attention on breathing. Every few strides, I’d inhale deeply through my nose and exhale through my mouth. I’d sort of get into a meditative state, as much as was possible while fighting the constant urge to stop, the rhythmic whoosh of breath and thumping feet lulling me into a state of submission.
Now the sun is starting to cook the earth. When I breathe in I might be filled with the sweet scent of flowers, but more often I get a stinky surprise like burning charcoal, exhaust fumes, or fresh dog shit. I stop using my nose to breathe, and I’m panting like a dog.
I miss the desensitized nose I had when I used to smoke and I wonder how Gracie’s doggie nose can deal with it all.
What are these numbered posts all about? Read the introduction to my Photo & 100 Words project and find out!
Mar 18, 2015
About Life’s a Blur: A photography series that experiments with long exposures and motion blur. Every photo is a combination of movement mixed with a still subject. I’d like to think of each photo like a meditation: stillness in a sea of chaos.
These photos are also part of my Photo and 100 Words project. Since January 2014, I’ve been creating a new photo and writing about it every week. If you’re interested in finding out what prompted me to begin you can read the introduction over here.
(If you’re new to this photography series you might want to read how it all began in Part 1)
Hanging Out with the Dead
This set of photos is a bit like a series within a series. Determined to capture the beauty of fall (which I seem to miss most years), I set out to my favorite outdoor photography location: the cemetery. My idea was to pan the camera with the falling leaves and capture the motion in the background, but my lack of patience combined with my Photoshop skills guided me to an easier way to create what I was after.
Although each of these photos is made up of two separate photographs, they both came from the same scene. As I blurred the landscapes in my camera, I also collected leaves from each area to be photographed later on. That makes it real enough for me! =P
Collecting some pretty leaves, freshly fallen, from each scene I captured.
It was a brutal awakening, though, when it came time to silo the leaves. Have you ever gotten a close look at the serrated edges on a maple leaf?! Let’s just say I overestimated the “easy” factor.
The snapshot that follows each one of my final creations is to show you what each scene looked like before I blurred it into oblivion. I also include links to each original blog post in case you want to read the 100 words that go with it. Scroll down to the end if you want the nerdy technical details.
Fall Leaf Flight
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I reminisce about another cemetery shoot and show off my favorite mistake in the post that compliments this photo: In the Graveyard
A snapshot of the background scene before I blurred it in camera for “Fall Leaf Flight.”
Fall Spectrum
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A silly story about how I expected this shoot to go, and how it actually went.
A snapshot of the background scene before I blurred it in camera for “Fall Spectrum.”
Autumn in Orange and Blue
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A Leaf is Like a Pixel is a brief personal essay on the big picture and the small details of fall.
A snapshot of the background scene before I blurred it in camera for “Autumn in Orange and Blue.”
Autumn Leaf Flight
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The Life of a Hermit – an uncensored, and reoccurring, moment in my life.
A snapshot of the background scene before I blurred it in camera for “Autumn Leaf Flight.”
Wind Swept Leaf
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The Perfect Storm: go to the scene of the shoot with me in this post.
A snapshot of the background scene before I blurred it in camera for “Wind Swept Leaf.”
Red Zephyr
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I prove that seeing isn’t always a strong enough case for believing in this story about my dog and me. (Includes super cute photos of my pit bull in a monkey sweater, complete with monkey ears!)
A snapshot of the background scene before I blurred it in camera for “Red Zephyr.”
The Nerdy Photo Details
The background images were created with my 24-70 f/2.8 Nikkor lens set at 1 second and f/22. I shot through an adjustable neutral density filter that blocks anywhere from 1 to 4 stops of light, and I only adjusted this filter for the correct exposure in order to keep my shutter speed and aperture settings consistent.
Most of the leaf images were shot indoors with 1 flash in an umbrella up high on camera left. I might have had a white board on the right to bounce back some fill light, but I don’t remember for sure. The first leaf was actually shot outside, but dealing with the wind and cold convinced me to take the rest of the leaves into the studio to give me some more control.
What’s Next?
Well that’s all the juicy detail I thought you might enjoy about this set of photos. The Life’s a Blur series continues on with water motion blur techniques that create some magical looking backgrounds in Part 3.
Questions and comments are always welcome =)
Feb 6, 2015
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In the early morning darkness I felt my way into the living room, piled pillows into our giant bean bag chair, plopped myself down, and crossed my legs. I popped a couple of ear buds into my head and waited for the soothing Australian man to guide me into a more aware state of mind.
This was my daily practice for nearly two years before I became involved in rescue. Unexpected, full face, doggie kisses made it harder to breathe deeply. My open arms became an invitation for my guests to partake in lap dog practice. One foster kitten who stayed with us never hesitated to jolt me with simultaneous gnawing and clawing on my feet.
It wasn’t long before meditation transformed into longer morning walks and sleepy snuggles stretched through the last minute I had to give. I didn’t mind the change, and it was probably just as good, if not better, for my mental health.
The more I dive into this series, though, the more I want to bring meditation back into my everyday life. Thanks to my teacher, Joy Baum, I know to embrace the chaos now; just let it flow all around me.
What are these numbered posts all about? Read the introduction to my Photo & 100 Words project and find out!
Feb 2, 2015 |
About Life’s a Blur: A photography series that experiments with long exposures and motion blur. Every photo is a combination of movement mixed with a still subject. I’d like to think of each photo like a meditation: stillness in a sea of chaos.
These photos are also part of my Photo and 100 Words project. Since January 2014, I’ve been creating a new photo and writing about it every week. If you’re interested in finding out what prompted me to begin you can read the introduction over here.
How it Began
The evolution of this series has been interesting. The title and the technique came to me first. In the beginning, though, I was being too specific. I had this idea to express the chaos I felt surrounding certain concepts, like time and love.
The ideas for the first two photos came to me while I was brainstorming, and I sketched them out on a couple of Post-Its. I was happy with what I made, everything came out almost exactly as I imagined it would, but the thought of creating more photos with cliche symbols didn’t settle with me. It felt too much like I was forcing it.
My Post-It note sketch when I thought of the idea for this series.
This first photo, “The Pocket Watch Between Tick and Tock,” is composed of 7 different shots I merged together. I’m pretty sure this is the number one most time consuming piece of art I made all year. When this piece was first published, I wrote an acrostic poem to go with it. I called it “Desperately Seeking Time.”
The Pocket Watch Between Tick and Tock
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If you think it’s a creative process to come up with ideas, it’s nothing compared to the creative process of making the set work for you.
I used a mixture of books, a 2 1/2 gallon jug of water, and a paper towel holder with a brick on top, to hang the pocket watch at the exact height I wanted. I know there are more professional tools that would have worked, like a C-Stand, but this tog just doesn’t have the room for too much studio equipment at the moment. So I improvise, and it works!
The pocket watch and all the little watch and clock parts came from my dad, who has been obsessed with building steampunk lamps lately, and has an awesome collection of stuff I can borrow.
Behind the scenes of “The Pocket Watch Between Tick and Tock.”
The swirling discs in the background are actually makeup mirrors I found at Michael’s. I hot glued wooden skewers to the backside, and slipped straws over them. These were pushed into holes in my background board so I could spin them smoothly from the backside.
A look at how I made my props movable on the set.
A Sudden Realization
After creating “Steady Heart” I discovered what this series was really about. I have to admit something to you first, though, the background I was going for didn’t appear. I expected chaos; what I got was tranquility. It wasn’t what I wanted, but I fell in love with it. Sometimes you just gotta go with the flow… and the flow of that background swept me away from my original idea.
I was stunned that all the chaotic movements that made this photo appeared so peaceful. (you can read the story behind the photo here) That’s when I realized that this series was about meditation. Each background is like an awareness of the chaotic world and the subject is at peace there.
Steady Heart
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This a-clamp contraption was another creative process, and it wasn’t at all as steady as my title might lead you to believe. The heart is a glass coaster, and its weight made it difficult to balance and prop up. Even looking at this photo as a reference, I don’t think I could do this again, at least not easily!
A look behind the scenes of “Steady Heart.”
I had to put together another hot glue job to make my props work for me. The red glass was transparent, and I didn’t want the background to show through. To make it opaque, I traced it onto a paper plate, and cut out the shape to be used on the back side of the heart. I added some popsicle sticks and stuck the whole contraption together with double stick tape.
A look at another prop hack I came up with.
So that’s all the behind the scenes content I have for you in this post, but there’s more info about how I created the next set of photos in this series in Part 2. If you want to be sure to see my next post, make sure you sign up below. I send out emails only 1x per week; you’ll get my stories and links to other blog posts like this. Don’t miss out!
If you have any questions about what I did here, feel free to ask in the comments below. I’m very open about every aspect of my photography process.
