Untitled Laundry Photo

This is one of several laundry photos that I have done as a Christmas gift for my mother. I was stressing out a bit because all the photos were originally taken by my father and they were taken at low resolution. Therefore the original idea I had of just picking one and blowing it up had become void.

So I had to make it work with what I had which was a fun challenge. The first decision I made was to make a series of them which would allow me to keep them at their original size. Another guideline I had was that the pictures be in black and white. Because of this, I made the laundry pop by layering them in bits of color.

Once this was done, I felt that the photos looked a little flat. They needed some sort of texture to seal it. I tried several textures that related to the laundry theme but they all looked too busy. In the end I found a texture that was listed under fabrics but looked more like Greek stone. Once the stone was in place I felt there was no more to be done. All the photos looked complete and I am quite happy with how they look.

The only concern I have now is what they will look like once they are printed. Even though I was well aware of the resolution issue, they could still look bad in small form. I hope this not to be the case because I put a lot of work into this project. I don't want to have to start from square one again.

Here's hoping...

Untitled Creative Block

More often then not, I feel creatively blocked. I always finish something with a certain fear that this project will be my last. Like I will never get this lucky again. But there is also this amazing sense of belief that it will all work out when it's supposed to. That after several failed starts, something will click. At this point, I feel like the project has a mind of its own.

In my best words I can say that this is where the piece becomes specific. I find most of my creative problems branch from is the trying to be specific from the get go. That's just a brick wall I'll never get through.

Tonight, I began first of many stubborn sessions. However this block was audience related. Everything I've ever done was done in complete ignorance that anyone would ever view them. Once I start thinking about my audience, I won't produce anything of value. I got a hint of this tonight. I know this piece will be viewed and I don't like it.

Untitled Street Photo

"To walk across the street is a risk"

And yet, I do it without hesitation.

Untitled Eye Spy Photo

EYE SPY

...something......something......something...

...something......something...

...something...

...something that you climb...

Untitled Morning Photo

"...the older I get the more joy I find in the morning."

I have never been a real morning person. When I think "morning person" I imagine a very perky person who pops right out of bed, no sweat. I'm certainly not that person. However, I do love the morning once I am awake. It is my favorite time that I spend with myself, hands down.

After hitting the snooze a couple times, I arise from my bed. This is the time of a wonderfully soothing shower. I turn on my shower radio and proceed to lather, rinse, repeat to the classics of the 1980's.

Thirty minutes later, I emerge in a cheerful mood. As I'm in no real rush to get going, I decide to watch something. During the week, this is usually an episode from one of my shows which aired the night before. I don't have cable so I must download everything. As my entertainment begins, I start my hair process. It is quite long and tedious but it makes me happy.

As a nice break between blow drying my hair and straightening it, I usually make some breakfast. I've never been a fan of this particular meal so I don't make a big deal of it. On an average morning I enjoy a bowl of cereal, some yogurt, and potassium in the form of a banana.

After this, I begin to straighten my hair. I am fully aware that this is an unnecessary thing to do but again, it makes me happy. It makes me feel pretty. I have an ugly duckling syndrome that still plagues me at times. But I do not want to dwell on that.

Once this stage is complete, it is time for the clothes and make up. I've never been a real fashionista so my outfits are never elaborate. A simple jeans, tank top, and sweater and I'm content. The top comes first and is on before anything else.

Now is the time for my face. Despite what many people say, there is a difference in what I look like with makeup as oppose to without. I rarely leave the house with a natural face. I spent a better portion of my life with a naked face and I just don't like it. But like my fashion, I don't go over the top. I usually stick with a face base which is just a light powder that evens out my skin tone. Next I apply my mascara. I switch the color depending on my mood. If I'm feeling particularly funky I will put on a blue or purple shade. And on those mellow days where I don't care, I go with black. I've never used brown and I never will. Brown is dull and just doesn't work for me. I don't feel it pops enough. But that's just me.

After this, is usually the time when I have to leave for work. So I pick out the rest of my clothes and take a glance in the full length mirror. With a sense of self approval I put on a little lip gloss and head out the door.

On my way to work I almost always stop at my local Tim Hortons (Canadian plug!) for a coffee and muffin. Lately I discovered their whole grain raspberry muffin and it is beyond delicious. I do my best to keep the muffin to coffee ratio even and make the muffin last as long as I can but sometimes I fail.

That, in a nut shell, is a typical morning in the life of Lauren. It has become a ritual that I enjoy very much and I am much happier having that. With the amount of possibilities that can occur throughout the day, it is nice to know that I always have this.

Time that is always mine.

Untitled Green Photo (Take Two)

While I was in the dollar store this evening, I came across something that intrigued me very much. I was in the toy section when I saw this mini Green Volkswagen Beetle. I'm not one to buy useless items but I couldn't help myself from making this purchase (after all it was only a dollar).

When I was in my early teens, these cars could be spotted anywhere and everywhere. They were very unique in style and always created a fun game of "Punch Buggy". If you are not familiar with this game, the rules are rather simple. When you spot one on the road, it is your duty to punch whomever is with you and simple say "Punch Buggy". It was a very annoying game when the cars were popular. Now it's not so bad though I do enjoy the sense of nostalgia when I get to do it.

Before I was able to drive, I wanted this car. It was bold and could be easily seen from far away. Green was my favorite color and I felt this particular shade expressed a quirkiness that best suited my personality. Somewhere along the way I forgot about how much I loved this car. When I see it now it reminds me of the great times I had just being a naive teenager. The days when I wanted to be a famous actress and live in Hollywood California.

Those days might be long gone but the dreamer in me isn't. She still pops up from time to time with new ideas for the future.

Untitled Family Photo (Take Two)

This is my second attempt at the Family Portraits category. The deadline for it is this Saturday and I think the best I can hope for is to submit two photos. You are given five in each category but I made an error and only have two (unless I have some good fortune between now and Saturday).

I kind of like this one. I really loved the idea of getting a family portrait from the cemetery. It was the first place that came to my mind when I thought of families. It seemed like the ideal site to get family members together. Some family members had their own headstone which made it difficult to photograph. The ones I took of these didn't give the effect I was going for. That is why there are two key elements to the way I did it in the photo you see here.

First was the fact that all the names are on the same stone. All you see is the name: Walker. I really get the sense of family from this. It's the saying "The family that lays together, stays together" that drives any emotion this photo has. It seems more touching to me that all of their names are so close. Having separate stones is just too much distance for this particular family.

The second element I think is important is the fact that I shot in using the fisheye lens. The tricky thing about this lens is using it correctly. Now I'm not sure if that's the case here but I certainly feel more satisfied with the photo having used it. I worry a lot when I use this lens because everything looks neat through it. I don't like this because I don't want the camera to do all the work. I still want my eye to come through.

This photo also had the help of photoshop (obviously!). Don't know if I pushed it too far but I like it.