A month of hearts: February 19

A purple heart doodle. Nothing more, nothing less.

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 kindness.

A month of hearts: February 6

Over in my Facebook Photomotivation group, this month's assignment is "hearts." And so far we've seen graffiti hearts, hearts carved in wood, close-ups of bleeding hearts flowers, padlocks in the shape of hearts, etc.

No one has posted a hand-drawn heart, however, so to encourage them, I posted this heart doodle did in a journal in 2009. Whatever it lacks in skill, it makes up for in color!

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.

A blade of grass . . .

This from my journal. And in case you can't read my writing, it's a quote from Henry Miller:

"The moment one gives attention to anything, even a blade of grass, it becomes a mysterious, awesome, indescribably magnificent world in itself."

And isn't that the beauty of photography, of all art, the magic of seeing?

©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.

Daily bit of creativity, #013: Journal bits

When in doubt, draw cats!

©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.

Daily bit of creativity, #007: Journal bits

©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.

Daily bit of creativity, #006: Journal Bits

Art journals are just places to play, to explore, not necessarily to create the perfect page ready for framing. On this page, all I was doing was making marks with Tombow markers, seeing how the colors looked on this particular kind of paper. Photographed it with my iPhone and then, just because I could, turned it into an orb. Ta da!

©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.

Daily bit of creativity, #005

The fun part about keeping a journal is that it reminds you of things that were going on in your life, or things you were creating, at a certain time.

In July of 2010, I was apparently quite chuffed at creating this image of pen nibs. So I made a small note of it and added a few colorful things.

Art journals, journals in general, don’t have to be fine masterpieces. A few words, a few colors, and a memory is honored.

©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.

A page from my journal . . .

I've seen this in a number of my students. There are some who flit from this to that, eager, excited, passionate about photography, but there's no direction.

And there are others who are so meticulous about their process that they are blinded to what they are trying to say with their work, leaving it cold and empty.

To combine the two concepts, ah, there's the goal. It all comes down, once again, to balance, doesn't it?

And in case you can't read my handwriting, which is cool but often illegible, it's a quote from Twyla Tharp, a dancer and choreographer:

"Without passion, all the skill in the world won't lift you above craft. Without skill, all the passion in the world will leave you eager but floundering. Combining the two is the essence of the creative life."

©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.

Idea to fruition

A number of years ago I had a vague idea for a photomontage and I scribbled it into what I call my "idea book." My memory isn't so good and it's nice to have a book like this to constantly refer back to.

Although I didn't act on the idea back then, it lodged somewhere in my brain, so that when I came across a picture I'd taken of a metal locker tag, I subconsciously remembered my idea from years past.

The result is this photomontage, which I really like. My original idea was to call it "Directional Forces," but it ended up being called "Celestial Spheres," and it's sold a number of times at Fine Art America. I also had it made into a tote bag, and it's great for groceries or for collecting driftwood on the beach.

So here you see my original concept in my "Idea Book," as well as the final piece.

You just never know . . .

©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.

Journal bits . . .

Rummaging through old photos and found this. Struck me funny when I made it. Struck me funny today!

©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.