I absolutely love my Canon camera! My photographic equipment plays a big role in what I do, but it’s not the foundation of what I create. One of my greatest joys is spending time with my beautiful grandbaby, Hazel, who keeps me on my toes with her delightful energy. However, coordinating a formal session with my daughter’s busy family schedule proved to be a challenge. Photographing a lively sixteen-month-old without her parents’ involvement to help capture those fleeting expressions was no small feat!
With a clear vision for the final image and a beautiful template I purchased from Etsy, I guided my daughter and her husband on how to quickly capture a shot that could be transformed into an elegant holiday piece. Matching the lighting on the subject to the background is crucial for any successful composite, as is the skill to seamlessly blend the two in Photoshop. It’s not simply “photoshopped”—a term I strongly dislike. Every detail matters, from rendering realistic shadows to adjusting lighting for an authentic and cohesive result.
As a photographic artist, I love transforming existing images into unique works of art. In the final painting, my goal was to create loose, expressive brushstrokes using my Wacom Tablet and art pen. The warm tones of the composite images were my palette. This is not normally my style, but, inspired so many wonderful artists, I've tried to loosen up a bit. I've created a close-up cut-out of a portion of the painting to illustrate this.
There’s something incredibly rewarding about transforming even the simplest cell phone photo. I regularly challenge myself through personal projects to refine my skills and explore new creative possibilities.
That's my encouragement to all of you artistic, expressive and creative people: Step outside your comfort zone and delve into the realm of new endeavors. There are so many wonderful opportunities to learn this skill. It just requires time and practice.
Happy New Year!
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