Tag Archives: studio work

Back in the Studio

I am happy to be back in the studio, or at least a my temporary one till I move to another location. Reunited at last with my copy stand and all the rest of the photo toys I have accumulated over the years is a really good feeling. And also a ton of fun.

In the Studio

Working with the copy stand.

To get me jump started in the studio I am working on a series of still life photos that are shot in studio on a neutral gray background. Later in my digital darkroom I combine those images with different cool texture backgrounds.  Some of the textures I have created myself, but quite a few I have purchased from FlyPaper Textures. They are a great resource for interesting textures and edges.

I have been excited about this process and the results. Although, like all things photography there are several technical issues to work out along the way. Setting up the lights and synching to the camera came easily to me, once all cables and meters were found.  However, getting those flowers to look just right took some time. Photographing a living thing does require some speed, as it begins to deteriorate once it is removed from water and placed under lights. But, I love the process, being back in the studio and I am getting some great results.

daisy art print
“Pink Threesome”

I would be remiss if I didn’t give a shout out to Joel Grimes. Without his tutorials, I never would of started this project.

Thanks for looking and reading. Check out more of my still life texture images on my website. 

 

Hermine Inspired Abstract Images

The past few days hurricane Hermine inspired me to experiment with some abstract techniques in the studio. Hurricane Hermine was a huge rain event where I live and capturing a few droplets seemed the perfect way to illustrate some of its effects.

This is a shoot I researched to help get out of the box with my thinking and boost creativity. I was working in studio and here is the general set up. The image consists of a mixture of water and oil in a glass container. This container is situated on plexiglass, elevated around 12 inches with a multi- colored cloth beneath.  There are plenty of video tutorials on line demonstrating this technique.  Although the technique did have its challenges, some of the results I found to be very inspiring thus the name of this post Hermine inspired.

The biggest challenge was finding a fast enough shutter speed to freeze the moving water. To create the bubbles, the mixture had to agitated by either gentle moving the container or stirring the mixture of water and oil. However, the agitation created movement of the water and oil causing images to be blurred at lower shutter speeds. On the plus side, it forced me to really work with the Shutter/Aperature/ISO matrix to get some good shots. As with many shoots the more images you take the greater the probability of succeeding.

Thanks for reading and I hope the next time you have some crazy weather in your area, you let your creative juices flow and make some art!

Hermine Inspired Images

“Bubbled Over”

hermine inspired abstract art photograph

“Cellular Activity”

Hermine inspired blue abstract art photograph

Check out more of my work at susanmcanany.com.