Even hard financial troubles can't keep Annie L. from working. The brilliant mind that brought us a nude Whoopi Goldberg in a tub full of Milk is at it again.
With Lady Gaga as the witch in the woods, Leibovitz has recreated Hansel and Gretel with a Tim Burton sort of vibe. It's amazing. Everyone needs to go check it out.
http://origin.www.vogue.com/feature/2009_December_Hansel_And_Gretel/
It sort of reminds me of a project that's been clanking around the back of my head for a few months now....more on that later.
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Acrylic Transfer!
Wednesday, November 18, 2009
Finally, I have completed the first of what I hope will be a series of acrylic transfers. This process, while fun, turned out to be a bit more time consuming that I originally thought. Nonetheless, I really love the results! Take a look!!
For those unfamiliar with the whole procedure, it's actually fairly simple. I'll outline it below along with what I learned along the way in my little experiment.
1. Print out your image on some good quality inket paper.
What I learned: Photo Paper (Like the Epson super premium glossy photo paper) does NOT work for this process at all...it's too water proof. Also, you might consider printing your image out slightly bigger than you want your final piece to be. There will be a little shrinkage. A quarter of an inch should do the trick.
2. Let your prints dry overnight.
3. Apply four coats of Glossy Gel Acrylic Medium to the front of your print. Make sure to do change directions on each coat to ensure coverage and strength. Let this dry AT LEAST overnight.
4. Once dry, and I mean DRY, submerge your coated prints in a bath of warm water. I used a photo tray to do this so as not to make a HUGE mess. Let it soak for a few minutes. Remove the back of the print by scraping off the paper. Be gentle, but firm. The gel medium is actually fairly strong stuff. But it is prone to tearing so be careful!
5. When you have removed the paper backing, lay your transfer out onto a piece of wax paper and weight down overnight to flatten. You will squeeze water out during this first night, so replace the wax paper the next morning.
What I learned: Don't let this stuff sit out to terribly long, it will be come STUCK to the wax paper eventually and it becomes SUPER difficult to remove. Also the longer it sits out, the more brittle the transfer will become.
6. Finally, figure out what you want to tack your masterpiece onto. Apply a coat of gel medium to the surface you want your transfer to stick to, then simply slap the transfer on, remove bubbles (if you want!) and let dry. You can pull and stretch the transfer to a certain extent, but again, it's fairly brittle so be careful.
What I learned: Don't stress out about the bubbles and wrinkles...they actually look pretty bad ass!
7. Apply a couple of coats of Gel Medium to the top of your transfer once you have it on your new surface. This will seal it up and make it stand up better against the elements. I also layed on a couple layers of UV Gloss Varnish just to get a nice shine on my final piece.
So, now that you know how to do it (and if my instructions aren't clear, you might just google Acrylic Transfer Process and there are videos out there) I would love to see what you all come up with! Leave me comments with links to your work!
For those unfamiliar with the whole procedure, it's actually fairly simple. I'll outline it below along with what I learned along the way in my little experiment.
1. Print out your image on some good quality inket paper.
What I learned: Photo Paper (Like the Epson super premium glossy photo paper) does NOT work for this process at all...it's too water proof. Also, you might consider printing your image out slightly bigger than you want your final piece to be. There will be a little shrinkage. A quarter of an inch should do the trick.
2. Let your prints dry overnight.
3. Apply four coats of Glossy Gel Acrylic Medium to the front of your print. Make sure to do change directions on each coat to ensure coverage and strength. Let this dry AT LEAST overnight.
4. Once dry, and I mean DRY, submerge your coated prints in a bath of warm water. I used a photo tray to do this so as not to make a HUGE mess. Let it soak for a few minutes. Remove the back of the print by scraping off the paper. Be gentle, but firm. The gel medium is actually fairly strong stuff. But it is prone to tearing so be careful!
5. When you have removed the paper backing, lay your transfer out onto a piece of wax paper and weight down overnight to flatten. You will squeeze water out during this first night, so replace the wax paper the next morning.
What I learned: Don't let this stuff sit out to terribly long, it will be come STUCK to the wax paper eventually and it becomes SUPER difficult to remove. Also the longer it sits out, the more brittle the transfer will become.
6. Finally, figure out what you want to tack your masterpiece onto. Apply a coat of gel medium to the surface you want your transfer to stick to, then simply slap the transfer on, remove bubbles (if you want!) and let dry. You can pull and stretch the transfer to a certain extent, but again, it's fairly brittle so be careful.
What I learned: Don't stress out about the bubbles and wrinkles...they actually look pretty bad ass!
7. Apply a couple of coats of Gel Medium to the top of your transfer once you have it on your new surface. This will seal it up and make it stand up better against the elements. I also layed on a couple layers of UV Gloss Varnish just to get a nice shine on my final piece.
So, now that you know how to do it (and if my instructions aren't clear, you might just google Acrylic Transfer Process and there are videos out there) I would love to see what you all come up with! Leave me comments with links to your work!
Photo-Go-Round: My Choice
Monday, October 26, 2009
Today I present to you the final installment of my first series from the Photo-Go-Round assignment my roomate/friend/designer extraordinaire presented me with last year in her inspiration book. This final panorama is from sort of a rural setting near Helvetia, Oregon. Just off of the Sunset Highway (major Oregon throughfare between Portland and the Coast) there is a little tavern/cafe that is perported to have the best burgers in the metro area. No small feat I assure you...it's a big area.
I think my favorite thing in this photo, as with my urban location panorama, is how funny moving things can be in this sort of media. You'll notice a random floating golf cart in the center of the photo. It's actually being carried on a trailer behind a pickup truck. I was very curious what it would look like if I just caught random bits of the hauler as it passed by...now I know! I love it.
Even though this is the final installment of my first series, I will be persuing another series of Panos in the near future...very interesting things happen when you let photos collide. :)
So, without further ado...Photo-Go-Round installment three...my choice!
I think my favorite thing in this photo, as with my urban location panorama, is how funny moving things can be in this sort of media. You'll notice a random floating golf cart in the center of the photo. It's actually being carried on a trailer behind a pickup truck. I was very curious what it would look like if I just caught random bits of the hauler as it passed by...now I know! I love it.
Even though this is the final installment of my first series, I will be persuing another series of Panos in the near future...very interesting things happen when you let photos collide. :)
So, without further ado...Photo-Go-Round installment three...my choice!
Inspiration and General Coolness....
Thursday, October 22, 2009
As photographers, designers, painters...just artists in general, I think it's important that we keep appraised of all the coolness going on in the world outside of our own personal mediums. *Gets on soap box* In order to be artists, we need to be able to appreciate the great work of our peers all over the world. We should be able to look at others work, and take from it inspiration and discover new techniques. *gets off soap box*
One of my favorite places to surf around aimlessly on slow days at work or when i'm just generally bored is Notcot.org. The cool thing about notcot specifically is that users and viewers can submit the coolness that they find on the internet. It's an invaluable resource to share ideas and what you think looks amazing, and see what everyone else is creating and looking at as well.
The site tends to lean a bit towards the design end of life, but there are some great photographers whose work gets highlighted and some AMAZING furniture and illustration work as well.
Go forth my friends...see the work of others and take something from it!
One of my favorite places to surf around aimlessly on slow days at work or when i'm just generally bored is Notcot.org. The cool thing about notcot specifically is that users and viewers can submit the coolness that they find on the internet. It's an invaluable resource to share ideas and what you think looks amazing, and see what everyone else is creating and looking at as well.
The site tends to lean a bit towards the design end of life, but there are some great photographers whose work gets highlighted and some AMAZING furniture and illustration work as well.
Go forth my friends...see the work of others and take something from it!
Geek Hardware: The Antique Store Brownie Hawkeye
Wednesday, October 21, 2009
What is it about an old, rusted, ugly camera that I just adore? Is it the history? Is it the $20.00 price tag? Is it the fact that it uses film instead of a sensor? Is it the fact that I can tear that sucker apart and do just about anything to it and I won't feel bad if I break it?....well...it's a little of all of those things. :)
Over the course of the past couple of years I have found myself buying up every cool old camera I can lay my little hands on. I have amassed quite the collection. The cool thing is...all of these old cameras work! In my collection I have Kodak Box Brownies that are nearly 100 years old. I have a great old 8x10 view camera that I saved from extinction (and have lovingly named Ruby) and a few Polaroids that will probably never see use again! But y'never know!
Using my blog as a platform, I would like to introduce you to some of these vintage light catchers and show you how cool old technology can be!
First, let's talk Brownies.
So, my friends, next time you find yourself in an antique store, or at a yard sale and see a hawkeye, just know that it's an awesome camera that could use a good home! You CAN get film for it and use it! So get out there, and get shooting!
Over the course of the past couple of years I have found myself buying up every cool old camera I can lay my little hands on. I have amassed quite the collection. The cool thing is...all of these old cameras work! In my collection I have Kodak Box Brownies that are nearly 100 years old. I have a great old 8x10 view camera that I saved from extinction (and have lovingly named Ruby) and a few Polaroids that will probably never see use again! But y'never know!
Using my blog as a platform, I would like to introduce you to some of these vintage light catchers and show you how cool old technology can be!
First, let's talk Brownies.
This guy is a Brownie Hawkeye. They were made between 1949 and 1961. There are TONS of these little guys all over the place. They make 2 1/4" x 2 1/4" negatives (GET OUT OF YOUR RECTANGLES! Squares are where it's at!!!) on 620 film....wait...620?!?! Do they even make that anymore? Nope, not so much. BUT, fear not my friends, all it takes to magically transform a roll of 120 film into 620 is a nail file and a little bit of time. Just file down the edges of the spools on your roll of 120 until you are left with just a little bit of plastic above the top of the rolled film...and that's really all it takes. You can also procure old 620 spools and re-roll your film...but that's for the super involoved. Plus, my way saves you TONS of time and aggrevation.
Another great thing about this particular brand of Brownie is that the lens can be flipped around to create a very ethereal look for your photos. As soon as I get my hands on another one of these babies, I will mod it with the flipped lens so I can have one of each!
Many times you will find this camera with a flash..the kind we saw in movies from the 50's and 60's. Big bulb, loud pop, tons of fun, your friends will love it.
So, my friends, next time you find yourself in an antique store, or at a yard sale and see a hawkeye, just know that it's an awesome camera that could use a good home! You CAN get film for it and use it! So get out there, and get shooting!
New Hardware Alert: Canon EOS-1D Mark IV Digital SLR
Tuesday, October 20, 2009
So, Canon released it's newest addition to its Digital SLR line up...the 1D Mark IV. I'm super excited to see how well the extended ISO settings look. I'm sure it'll be phenomenal otherwise they wouldn't offer it...but still! Any excuse to get my paws on one or to see the results...I'm there! Check out the Canon Page linked below...
Canon EOS-1D Mark IV Digital Dreamboat
Super cool stuff, but now...it puts me one more step behind the times...methinks it's time to upgrade! YAY!
Canon EOS-1D Mark IV Digital Dreamboat
Super cool stuff, but now...it puts me one more step behind the times...methinks it's time to upgrade! YAY!
Photo-Go-Round: Rural
Monday, October 19, 2009
Hello All!
I promised a continuation of the Photo-Go-Round project from my little book of tricks. So now I give you...the Rural set.
Final installment of the first group (The "My Choice") location to come next week.
Till then, have a great week!
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