Lately I’ve had this thing for diptychs, most likely influenced by the Olympus Pen shots of both Jamie and Joanna. I seem to be unconsciously taking photos in a sequence that work well together and I combine them in photoshop. This particular pairing is odd but somehow it works. Hopefully Christopher’s expression won’t give you nightmares…
As mentioned previously, I currently have two of my metal prints in the Divine Feminie show at Radha Yoga & Eatery (pictured here.) I thought I’d explain a bit about how I made them.
The prints are made from metal flashing, a material used in roof repairs and can be found at most hardware stores. The image is first printed upon a heat sensitive image transfer paper that is meant for photocopiers, and then transfered upon the metal using a heat press. Each piece of metal is pre-heated for ten seconds and then I had to carefully place and centre the images. The press is set to about 400 degrees, and each was left in for about thirty seconds. The image transfer paper has to be removed immediately, otherwise there is a risk of bits and pieces of the image peeling off as it cools. (Many fingers were burned in the process…)
This type of paper can be transfered onto many different surfaces as long as they’re flat. I’ve experimented with glass, wood and fabric, but I like the look of metal the best.
Are you searching for your soul?
Then come out of your prison.
Leave the stream and join the river
that flows into the ocean.
Absorbed in this world
you’ve made it your burden.
Rise above this world
There is another vision…
~ Rumi
I was feeling self-portraity tonight. A little red pashmina here, a few dried leaves there, and voila! My creative urge has been satisfied.
Taken in the bathroom under ambient light with a black black cloth pinned up in the background.
This might be the creepiest image I have ever created. It was inspired in part by the work of Dave McKean.
The person in silhouette is my friend Zoe. The textured glass was one of the boardroom windows where I was working at the time, and I would pass them every day thinking of ways to use them in a photograph. I shot a small series in black & white of Zoe in different poses, and added the colour overlay in photoshop. It’s good to have friends who are willing to do silly things in the spirit of creativity, even at work.
Remember what I said about taking your camera everywhere?
To my surprise, over the course of the past year self portraiture has become part of my artistic practice. What began as a very tentative and conservative foray into taking pictures of myself is now an endlessly creative outlet for exploring ideas and personal expression.
My most recent foray into self portraiture builds upon a series of shots taken in the summer called “Burning” where I created the illusion of fire by playing around with sari fabric and in-camera blur. I’ve since decided to turn this into a larger series exploring the four elements, with water as the natural succession to fire.
The idea for the water images was inspired by the underwater portraits of Howard Schatz.I specifically had in mind his beautifully published book “Waterdance” which is now out of print but I was lucky enough to come across in a used bookstore. With “Floating” I sought to simulate the murkiness and lighting quality of underwater using textured fabric in front of the lens and a wavy lighting pattern falling on the black background.
I am fairly happy with the results from this shoot, but feel they could be stonger with a further exploration on the same theme. Stay tuned for the next attempt.
When deciding upon a photographer to pay homage for last weekend’s Utata project I chose Man Ray. Members were asked to produce a photo that was a direct imitation of one made by a master photographer or one which was made to copy the style of a particular photographer. I selected the above image for a photoshop treatment to emulate the solarization technique Ray used in some of his work, an effect which is normally created in the darkroom. Solarization or “sabattier” involves taking a partially developed paper print and fogging it with light before developing is complete, yielding an effect in which some areas are positive and others negative.
The Utata Pays Homage project is worth checking out for lots of information on a wide range of photographers, from historical to current, and the members creative interpretations of their work.
If you’re looking for something new to try with your photography I highly recommend experimenting with some of the alternative photographic processes that are available. Years ago I took a workshop on Polaroid Transfer that I quite enjoyed, and was very happy with the results from the session:
About these prints: the top photo is an emulsion transfer and the bottom is a dye transfer, both from polaroids. The technique is one in which the image of a “peel-apart” polaroid negative is transferred onto a non-photographic surface, such as paper, fabric, vellum, or wood.
“Polaroid transfer begins with the exposure of the color film, either in camera or through an enlarger. Instead of allowing the full development time, the film halves are separated before the dyes can migrate from the negative portion. The negative is placed face down on a damp receptor, most commonly a sheet of watercolor paper, and pressed firmly with a roller. After a short period, one to twenty minutes, depending on the artist’s particular technique, the negative is carefully peeled back. If all went well, the fully formed and developed image is now present on the receptor surface.”
A good place to start for further information on techniques for this process and a listing of the appropriate types of films can be found on the Polaroid website. There is also a good description of the difference between emulsion and dye transfer here.
An interesting item on the scanner photography project of Mike Golembewski was brought to my attention today via Utata. He’s spent the last several years experimenting with homemade digital cameras created from combining a flatbed scanner and a large format film camera.
“Instead of building a camera that mimicked the functionality of a traditional photographic camera, I had stumbled across a new tool for examining the relationships between time, motion, and image. What I thought would be a two week art project has turned into one that has lasted for almost three years, and shows little sign of stopping.”
The image gallery of his website contains a selection of the best results from his experiments. There are some good stock photos but the main focus of the website is on the more abstract pieces. The work is very surreal with a similar look in some respects to pinhole photography or toy camera shots, and with bizarre distortion to moving objects.