Category Archives: Art

Any Art Related Post

Our Always Changing Office

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Our office for Bluebonnet Memories and DFW Fine Art Photography and Printing is always a work in progress. Here are some of our latest images.

Printing Your Images and Art Work are a Passion and Expertise for Us.

Let us refine and print your images for you. We are able to print up to 40″ plus on the short side. The long side is only limited to the length of our media. Rolls are usually 20 to 100 feet.

The size of work we can do for you depends in the resolution of your native image.

There are many ways to display your art work. Please come by our office to see ideas on how to show off your art.

Texas Color with Smart Phone

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This year Texas has a lot of color. Here is one I captured yesterday with my cell phone and a little help from a Adobe Photoshop Plug called Topaz. I had a good camera with me without a memory card. I blame the confusion on being 70! :-)

Our blessings in colors are all around Texas this year. I understand that Lost Plains State Park is a great place near Bastrop is a great place to catch Texas Color.

Creativity After the PhotoShoot

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Bird Houses

Here I have simply made a selection and inverted it to save the color of the Bird House and made the rest back and white. I suggest the use of inexpensive software from ADOBE called Photoshop Elements for the beginner.

Next is picture taken while moving in a car. Ok, my wife was driving! I snapped the pic as we drove by.

After I cropped the tractor, cloned the white container out and tweaked the colors here is the resulting image. Not a great picture but far better than the first

In the jar image we simply tweaked the colors added a border.

Software like Adobe Photoshop elements or freeware that you can download from the internet is amazing and easy to use. You may turn your masterpiece into a painting or sketch or a million other ideas.

These are just a few suggestions of how anyone can make an image more interesting by simply using a little ingenuity.

This little quip is not aimed at pros that know far more than me. However the overall theme is to visit doing what you have never done. It’s to experiment and play. In essence it to get out of the box and to use that amazing mind God has given you.

Best Wishes!

PS We might do a series on simple shooting techniques soon.

Images Natural or Manipulated

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Natural or Assisted Images have long been a topic of often heated discussion. Some enjoy images that relatively untouched. Others relish images that fit their taste for vibrant color and contrasts. Some want images that compliment their decor in office or home.

From my perspective their are no right or wrong answers. Just as we are diverse in natures, art form is expressed in many ways.

We do a lot or art shows. We have heard some say the they would like pictures just the way they were, just like Ansel would have taken. Those who are into photography know that a large part of Adam’s creativity was what he did in the darkroom after the shot. What we see appeals to our eye but not necessarily to the original view.

The big question is what images we enjoy most. What do we want in our homes or offices.

Lighting by Car Headlights

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When heading out from the “Barn” in Maize KS my headlights lit up their antique wagons. I couldn’t help pulling out my camera to see what kind of image I could get. Granted I did a little Dodge and Burn in Photoshop but the end result was a least fun.

You might give your headlights a try for lighting when you are out and about.

Mandolin Workshop Wichita KS

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Caterina Lichtenberg and Mike Marshall, Two of the Greatest Mandolinists in the world led our workshop.

Caterina holds the position of Mandolin Professor at the Music Conservatory in Cologne, Germany. Mike has created some of the most adventurous mandolin music of our time.

The students comprised were mainly of seasoned pros and one neophyte (me). While I couldn’t keep up with with anyone I was graciously accepted and came home with a greater understanding and appreciation of of mandolin music.

I did take my Camera. When overwhelmed with the music (which was often) I grabbed my camera and took pictures. Here are some pics for classmates. As those in charge give me names, I’ll post captions.

BTW Mike Marshall has a great school with personalized feedback on your Mandolin progress. http://www.academyofbluegrass.com/publicmandolin



New Lens and Macro Techniques

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Playing with new 1:1 Macro Lens and Zerene Software using Tripod and Focusing Rail. Light was a Floor Standing Ottlite we use for art projects.

The Zerene software takes all images taken with focus from near to far perspective then massages them into one image.

Each image comprised of about 15 or more shots each positioned about a millimeter and a half apart to give extended depth of field. I’m a novice at this but practice makes perfect, right?

 

I’ve included pics of the hardware used in the setup.

A remote shutter resease is essential! I achieve the results you desire you do not want to move the camera!

A focusing rail is also a must. The rail allows you to move the camera very short distances at a time with precision.

 

 

 

Of course a sturdy TriPod is a Key Element.

I use a 100mm Tokina 1:1 Macro lens. A good macro lens is expensive so you may find ways to do the job other ways. Extension Tubes and/or a close lens that attaches to your lens like a filter. This is often called a diopter.

 

 

 

I used a art light because when I was shooting I lacked enough natural day light.

In this case my subject was flowers but many objects around your house may become unique macro opportunities. Let you imagination run wild. You never know what you might create photographically.