What-Iffing . . . sketches

Spending time wondering "what if" is time well spent. How else will you know what will work, what won't, what sorts of photos work best, and what techniques produce the best results.

Sure, you might create a LOT of really bad work, but so what?

If you don't experiment, you will be in the same artistic box, day after day.

Here are three of my latest experiments with turning photographs into sketches (sort of). I'm not 100% pleased with them, but there's something rather appealing (at least for me) about what I made.

I like how words and tiny details show up clearer in the sketch than they do in the original photograph. I like the outlines. And I like the transparent-ish colors.

The only way I know how I made these pictures would be to go back to my original photographs and take a look at all the layers -- which I leave intact. I have yet to develop a "recipe."

Yes, experimentation is time-consuming. No, this isn't for everyone. For me, however, it keeps my mind and my eyes active, and it keeps my art changing. I hope!

All text, photographs, and other media are ©Copyright Carol Leigh (or others when indicated) and are not in the public domain and may not be used on websites, blogs, or in other media without advance permission from Carol Leigh. Thank you for your understanding and kindness.

Simple versus fussy

Simple and severe versus light and fluffy. Two different bicycle photos and two different styles.

While walking around Old Town Albuquerque, I liked the starkness of a bicycle against a plain adobe wall. Although there's not much in the picture, there's a lot of movement via diagonal lines.

The base of the picture is a diagonal line leading our eye right to left and back, echoed by the slight diagonal line of the bike.

Then there's the top of the adobe wall that angles downward.

The parallel lines on the roof bit lead our eye one way and then another via diagonal lines.

And then there's the sign/signpost, the one vertical, solid element that holds everything together.

A deceptively simple composition that has a lot going on.

But not as much going on as the busy, colorful, floral-decorated bike in front of an antique shop in Port Gamble, Washington.

Here, too, are lots of diagonal lines, but because of the busy subject matter, we don't notice much movement in this shot. Our eyes become fixated with all the flowers on the bike, and we tend to just quickly glance around the frame and then come right back to the bike.

It's National Bicycle Month. A perfect month to find, ride, and photograph bikes.

All text, photographs, and other media are ©Copyright Carol Leigh (or others when indicated) and are not in the public domain and may not be used on websites, blogs, or in other media without advance permission from Carol Leigh. Thank you for your understanding and kindness.

First from Santa Fe . . .

This window, on some sort of innocuous governmental building on a side street in Santa Fe, caught my eye. It looked sort of funky, out of place on an austere, beige building.

It looked old on new. So I reversed the concept.

Now it looks new(ish) on old. Yet it's still rustic enough that it looks okay.

There are hundreds of photos for me to sift through, and it's going to take a long time to become comfortable with all the various little bits and pieces I photographed before I can begin bringing them together in new and different ways.

It's overwhelming at the moment. But this, too, shall pass. May we all have such small problems!

All text, photographs, and other media are ©Copyright Carol Leigh (or others when indicated) and are not in the public domain and may not be used on websites, blogs, or in other media without advance permission from Carol Leigh. Thank you for your understanding and kindness.

Live and in person . . .

A visit to Santa Fe, partly to see how my pictures look displayed in the new pavilion of Christus St. Vincent Regional Medical Center.

They purchased five pictures, but we could only see four of them; the fifth is temporarily hidden behind a construction panel (but you can see it below).

My pictures are just a small part of all the art that appears throughout the new pavilion, and I'm flattered to be in such fine company -- all the artwork is bold, colorful, and striking.

It was fun seeing the pictures all together and to see them so big! Having Chris, Rich, and CJ there, too, made it even better.

All text, photographs, and other media are ©Copyright Carol Leigh (or others when indicated) and are not in the public domain and may not be used on websites, blogs, or in other media without advance permission from Carol Leigh. Thank you for your understanding and kindness.

Recent work: "Ladder in Truchas, New Mexico"

It’s fun, isn’t it, to wander around little towns you’ve never visited, seeing new things with fresh eyes? So while in the small town of Truchas, I walked up and down the roads, just to see what I could find. 

 

This ladder was just the best! It leaned against a textured adobe wall, everything in the shade except for the ladder and a bit of the wall. 

 

I opted for a black and white rendition (with a bit of brown toning) of my original color photo. Why? The lightest elements are the wall and the ladder. I emphasized the contrast so that the ladder and wall stand out and the rest of the scene retreats into darkness. There wasn't nearly this much drama in the original shot.

 

Wandering without expectations and then finding a small, intimate scenario, well, it doesn’t get much better! 

 

I uploaded this image to Fine Art America the first day of this year. If you'd like to see it larger and with more detail, click this link and then hover your cursor over the picture to use the 100% enlarger feature.

 

©Carol Leigh 
All text, photographs, and other media are ©Copyright Carol Leigh (or others when indicated) and are not in the public domain and may not be used on websites, blogs, or in other media without advance permission from Carol Leigh.

Latest work: "Window de Santa Fe"

I created this photomontage using a variety of pictures I took in Santa Fe. I began it a year or so ago and it's been sitting in my computer, patiently waiting for me to come back to it. And now it's finished.

Love. It.

©Carol Leigh

Latest work: "New Mexico Winter"

We were traveling from North Carolina through New Mexico and camped for the night at Red Rock Canyon. The canyon walls rose up all around us so sunset was very quick, very fast, but I was able to take this photo of a tree isolated against the canyon wall. It was so cold that night! So cold that the inside windows of our Roadtrek were iced over! Ah, but the solitude, the quiet, and this tree made it all worthwhile. ©Carol Leigh

Daily Dose of Fall #17

Aspens in Santa Fe, New Mexico. The light wasn't great and the background behind the aspens was sort of messy. What's a photographer to do? I set my ISO to 100 and my aperture to f/29. With an exposure of 1/3 second, I moved my camera upward (or downward) during the exposure, causing the colors to streak together. The result is an impressionistic look at fall aspens. ©Carol Leigh

An interesting follow-up

On August 5th, I posted a photo I took in Santa Fe at their farmers' market. Although I rarely photograph people, I liked the look on the face of this man as he watched his wife arrange flowers.

Two days ago I received an e-mail from the man's son. His father passed away last December. He saw his father's photo on my blog, liked the colors, and wanted to purchase a print. The easiest and most cost-effective way for me to do this was to upload the photograph to Fine Art America. That way he can select the size/price/format he wants and will quickly receive the photos. And if other members of his family want prints, that's easily accomplished.

I don't mean for this to be an ad for Fine Art America. What I really want to say is that I'm pleased I created something that had meaning for someone else. And now, when I return to the Santa Fe Farmers' Market, it will no longer be just a fun place to photograph, but will have an especial poignance for me, remembering the look on the man's face, standing next to his wife, surrounded by flowers.

Here's the link to my blog post: http://carolleigh.blogspot.com/2012/08/national-farmers-market-week.html

And here's the link to FAA so you can see how it's presented to the customer: http://fineartamerica.com/featured/naranjo-carol-leigh.html

©Carol Leigh

National Farmers' Market Week, Day 5

Organic tomatoes in Santa Fe, New Mexico. ©Carol Leigh

National Farmers' Market Week!

August 5-11 is National Farmers' Market Week, so go out and get your fresh veggies! I'll post a farmers' market photo every day this week, beginning with this one, taken in Santa Fe. And the faux HDR effect? Because I can!

©Carol Leigh, glad she didn't know this past week was International Clown Week (shudder) . . .

Take a seat . . .

Benches and chairs, all photographed in Santa Fe. The top image is weird. Because of the bench's placement, I couldn't photograph the right side of it, so I just shot the left side. In Photoshop I copied and flipped it and added it to the scene. Great shot? Nah. Fun? Yes. ©Carol Leigh

Red, White, and Two

I like the stark simplicity of this shot, photographed in New Mexico during our Bart shakedown "cruise." ©Carol Leigh

Santa Fe, continued

 

El Gato de Jackalope ©Carol Leigh

Cerveza de Jackalope ©Carol Leigh

Las Ollas de Jackalope ©Carol Leigh

Buddha de Jackalope ©Carol Leigh

La Puerta de Jackalope ©Carol Leigh

More from Santa Fe

Great colors on the front of this store in Madrid, NM

I don't know much about art, but I know it when I see it!

St. Francis statue at Chimayo

Shadows at Ranchos de Taos

Two Ravens

I was hoping to find ravens in Santa Fe and I wasn't disappointed. ©Carol Leigh

Light and Shadow

It's been said so many times, and said so much better than I can say, but the quality of the light is what delights in Santa Fe. On an overcast day, colors glow, but on a bright sunny day, the shadows become the strong components in compositions.

In the first photo, a vertical striping appears, with bold shadows alternating with warm-colored adobe walls. In the shade of that same building, a silvery-metallic tree trunk contrasts beautifully with the golden wall behind it.

During a walk around town at sunset, strong shadows create a lovely glow.

Early morning light offers our photo group a brilliant blue sky that echoes the colors of the window and the post. The post stands out most bluefully against the dark shadow.

And finally, a weathered door gleams on the shady side of a little street.

We learned to pay more attention to the light. If the sun's too bright on something, look for other things in the shadows. If the shadows are big and bold, incorporate them in your image, making them an intrinsic part of the compositional design. Over and over and over again . . . ©Carol Leigh

Back from Santa Fe

It's quite a contrast, leaving an environment that's arid and brown and arriving to lushness and green. Each has its own beauty. Have begun transferring images from the laptop into the desktop to see what I really have to work with.

This one is dark, I realize, but it's supposed to be. When I make it any lighter, it loses its mystery. I may change it later, but for now, this is the way it stands. Much more to follow as I get back into my work routine. (Ha! Like I even have a routine!)

Happy birthday to me. Growing older and perhaps just a little wiser. Mortality looming large. Feverish rush to do as much as I can while I can yet simultaneously learning to slow down and savor the moment, like this quiet starry night in New Mexico. ©Carol Leigh

Route 66

This cross-country trip is a non-photographing trip, which is just killing me. But in Tucumcari, New Mexico the other day (was it yesterday? the day before? it's becoming a blur) I had to shoot this old motel sign. We're currently in Barstow, California, having left Gallup, New Mexico just this morning. The Roadtrek is running great. Looking forward to getting home, getting caught up with my business and with my life. P.S. Elena, I waved as we passed through the top part (the narrow) part of Texas, but you probably were too busy on your computer to see me. Wish we'd been able to go through Dallas so I could meet you! ©Carol Leigh