A Lensbaby Still

Next week I start an online Lensbaby class through Clickin Moms with Caroline Jensen! I’m beyond excited to learn from this Lensbaby guru (and also from some of the amazing photographers taking the class- Holy Cow!).  I’m taking it “study-along”, meaning I won’t get any feedback except from my classmates, but I will have access to all the class materials and can read the feedback Caroline gives the other students.  We’ve already been given “pre-assignments” well in advance of the class starting, so I already have started learning.

Because I’ll be so involved with the class, it is possible that I’ll be pretty behind in my still life assignments, unless I combine the two (which I may in fact).  But since I often use a lensbaby for my stills, I’m going to try to step outside of my comfort zone and practice outside and with people.

So here is a lensbaby still life of PEONIES (surprise, surprise!) and my chair.

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Melinda3 Comments

Potting Bench?

Monday night I was inspired by a prompt in Kim Klassen’s Studio to create a still life potting bench . . . of sorts. . . inside. . . in my entry way.  I long ago let go of the idea that all still life photographers just come upon these beautiful vignettes in their houses- well, some do- but most often they are created or styled for the camera.  Since I was avoiding making dinner, I quickly gathered some pots and garden-y props to create a still life. I enjoyed it so much that I kept it up and took even more the next day.

Here is my first photo. If you’ve been to my house, you might recognize the antique dental cabinet.  I had to remove some of the liqueur glasses and little dishes in the cabinets, but missed a few (thank goodness for Photoshop!).  I also added some texture to rough it up a bit.

20150504-MMA_4640_melinda_anderson-EditAnd here are a few other shots from the next morning.  I took more time with these, using a tripod so I could slow my shutter to add more light (it has been dismal and rainy here). I used my lensbaby for the first one and edited them all with one of Kim’s presets for a dark and earthy look.

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Melinda5 Comments

Unique Vessel

When my friend, Debbie, texted me a photo of the old boots she had just bought, I knew I had to photograph them before they became part of one of her art pieces.  I had so much fun playing around with them for some still life and macro shots.  As I mentioned last week, one of our challenges for BeStill 52 was to use a unique vessel in a still life; I think the boots were up to the challenge!

20150504-MMA_4523_melinda_anderson 20150504-MMA_4547_melinda_anderson 20150504-MMA_4631_melinda_andersonThe first and third photos were edited using Kim Klassen’s darklight preset; the middle is almost straight out of camera.

Linking up with Texture Tuesday today.

Melinda11 Comments

The Merry Month of May!

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It’s May! When I was teaching, May was a big CRUNCH month: testing, Open House, Authors’ Party, Mother’s Day presents to make, field trip, parent helper gifts, student gifts, end of the year party, report cards, room pack-up, etc. etc.  It makes me tired just to think of it! Now, May is SPRING, for sure, and summer isn’t far behind. And in Arizona, I know monsoon season is only 6 weeks or so away!

Our latest lesson for BeStill 52 asked us to find an unique vessel for flowers or whatever to use in our stills- so I thought of this new teapot I bought this week to replace the cracked one, which didn’t make the cut when we moved.  Turquoise is becoming one of the colors I love to use in our Arizona house, although my husband thinks it doesn’t match our multicolored walls.  So far, I’ve acquired Mason jars, a bowl, a lantern, and now this teapot in shades of turquiose.  I just really love the color and am so glad that it’s popular again!

Teapot1 Teapot2In my life, a teapot isn’t an unusual vessel for flowers, but I do have an idea for another take on this challenge. Stay tuned!

Linking up with Kim’s Friday Finds today.

Melinda7 Comments

Tumbling

One of the new experiences we’ve had since we’ve moved to Arizona is tumbleweeds in our yard.  Last week we discovered a new one, and before my husband could capture it for yard waste, I picked it up with gloved hands to take into my garage studio for some macro and still life shots.

tumble_duoThe first photo above was edited with Kim Klassen’s kk_moody-ish preset; the second just converted to a high contrast black and white.

The photos below (showing how sharp and prickly these guys are!) were taken with the Lensbaby Sweet 35 with macro converters.  All have Kim’s kk_organic preset applied.

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Melinda2 Comments

Tea for Me

I was in the mood for still life yesterday, but wasn’t inspired by the current prompt (music). Ideas were swirling around in my head, but just swirling, not yet in focus. I decided to look to my Flickr Daily Challenge group (which is becoming a monthly challenge for me these days. . .) for ideas, and found that one of the topics is Tea Time- a perfect still life topic.  I have many tea cups inherited from my grandmother which I am aways intending to photograph, and I had a single rose- so the still life easily came together.

Here are two of the images- I’ll probably post a couple more later in the week. The top photo was edited with one of Kim Klassen’s Lightroom presets (kk_today), and the second was without a preset.

20150427-MMA_4398_melinda_anderson 20150427-MMA_4422_melinda_anderson-EditThe teacup is Royal Chelsea (made in England), the sugar and creamer say Venice on the bottom, and the little dish with the teabag and rose on it is Limoges.

Linking up today with Texture Tuesday.

Melinda11 Comments

Elusive Butterfly

20150421-MMA_3408_melinda_anderson-EditWhen we visited Butterfly Wonderfland, we were immediately captivated by the big beautiful blue butterflies that flew all around us, seeming to never land- except for on the sidewalk! We would come upon one here and there lying motionless on the walkway, seeming to soak up the warmth before speeding away.  The sidewalk didn’t appeal to me as a very natural background, but I did finally snap a few photos of them this way.  As I took the 800 plus photos of the thousands of butterflies among the flowers and leaves, I was so frustrated because of not being able to find any blue ones on the leaves and flowers.  I tried to capture them in flight, and all I was able to get were little blue blurs in my photos.

20150421-MMA_3380_melinda_andersonAmong the butterflies I photographed was this beauty above with its richly patterned wings.  I mostly saw them feeding on fruit set out in dishes on the ground. It took almost an hour before I realized that these were the blue butterflies I had been looking for; their wings are blue on top and brown below! Named Blue Morpho, their contrasting wing colors make them seem to appear and disappear as they fly, confusing predators (and photographers!).

20150421-MMA_4111_melinda_andersonLinking up with Friday Finds today.

Melinda7 Comments