Light and Shadow, Part 2

What would we do without light?  It is so basic to our way of life that I can't even imagine life without it.  Here are some more images that have inspired me--all have some relation to light and shadow.

This moth has a subtle pattern of light and dark brown on its wings:

This forest "tunnel" has a bright green meadow at the end of it:

This next "tunnel" is created by an arch of bright, sunlit leaves; can you see it?

Here is a mossy silhouette, framing the streambed beyond.  I see lots of texture here,as well!

Light cast obliquely on an object makes its texture show up dramatically.  The light and shadow on this tree's bark create interesting patterns:

These bejeweled flowers have varying shades of pink:

And, speaking of jewels, this cedar tree is encrusted with sparkling dew-diamonds, with the sun shining through them ( I am forever trying to capture the brightly-colored sparkles of dewdrops in photographs, and have thus far been highly unsuccessful;  does anyone have any tips for me?):

The different shades of green here are partly created by light and shadow, and partly by different pigments in the leaves of this evergreen shrub:

And finally, here are trees silhouetted against the luminous sunset sky:

Whether it is dark and light shades of the same color, or light shining through translucent substances like flower petals or colored glass, or the contrast of dark against light, I love the effects that light and shadow create.  In my next post, I hope to share some of my own creations using light and dark elements.

Light and Shadow, Part 1

I am still thinking about the things that inspire me.  Most of my inspiration seems to be visual--I see something and get an idea--a color combination, a shape or pattern, a texture, or just something beautiful that takes my breath away.

In addition to texture, I find myself greatly attracted to the interplay of light and shadow.  Whether it is dappled sunlight on a grassy lawn, creating lighter and darker shades of green, or translucent flower petals or leaves backlit by the sun, or the silhouette of trees against the sunset sky, I find the contrast of light and dark to be very satisfying.

Last year, I found these trees silhouetted against a backdrop of backlit ferns:

I love the way ordinary things glow when the sun hits them.  This is a front yard I photographed on one of our walks, spotlit by the sun.  Notice the mottled greens in the grass, and the bright green of the tree leaves:

How I love our walks on spring days!  Check out the translucent petals of these flowers against the blue of the sky!

Every Spring, I watch expectantly for our magnolia tree to bloom.  Whenever the sun touches these lovely flowers, it seems to make them light up as if they had votive candles inside.  They glow with vibrant color, and I love the gradation of the brighter pink at the base, shading up into lighter tints at the top!

What a difference lighting can make.  On a day trip to the beach, I captured the following four images within about an hour and a quarter.  The first is a storm over the ocean:

The next portrays the sunny beach, in between storms:

Then came another storm:

And finally, the sun set:

Four different light effects, within two hours on the same beach!!  Amazing, isn't it!

I have more images to share, but had better save them for Part 2.

The Tendency Towards Texture Part 2

Before I show some examples of my own explorations of texture, I have a few more inspiring textural images to share.  The first one is some kind of lichen (I think...?), that I found growing on a tree.  The tendrils remind me of some of the fuzzier yarns I have seen.

This next photo shows a decaying tree stump, with cracks and smooth, patterned depressions (carved out by some sort of bug...?).  It fascinated me.

I see texture in clusters of flowers, too.  Here is an example:

I enjoy the pebbles on the beach, or even just in a neighbor's yard.  I'm not sure if I'm more drawn to the texture or the color here!

Speaking of the beach, I found these shiny bubbles contrasted against the coarse, dark sand:

 And here is foam on the water, reminding me of a damask tablecloth:

Here is more texture on water--isn't it beautiful?

And of course, I must include some pictures of the ubiquitious glowing leaves--see the different sizes and shapes?

Of course, leaves don't have to glow to get my attention:

Even in the winter, they can distract me from my walk:

By now, I'm sure you thoroughly pity anyone who has ever had the unpleasant and tedious duty of taking me for a walk.  Kudos to my youngest, who has borne the brunt of the burden for a number of years, now, with patience and grace!

Meet My Model, or, The Pleasures of Photographing Product

The Lovely, if  Lopsided, Miss Fiberworks

As my human model wasn’t available today, I had to improvise. I do have a few head forms, as well as a dress form that I use in a pinch, but I don’t have a head to use with my dress form, and I wanted to photograph a hat and its matching scarf.

When you have an Etsy shop, you get used to eyeing everything in your house with photo props in mind. At least, I do.  So out came a folding slide projector table whose accompanying projector is long since deceased, a wooden stool, a head form, a blouse and a cardigan. And so, Miss Fiberworks was born.

I stacked the stool on top of the table, and clothed it with the blouse and cardigan. This looked like a stool with clothes draped over it; so I went looking for some towels to pad the shoulders, so that the form would at least somewhat resemble a human body. I placed a folded towel on the stool, to raise the head level a bit, as the head seemed oddly short when placed on top of the stool. I rolled the other towel, and curved it around the back of the head and out to the sides to create shoulders.

Head and Shoulders Ready for Clothes

It was necessary to thread my arm up through the sleeves of the garments, to pull the “shoulders” into the correct position, and even then they looked slightly askew.  She looked very odd from the side (Sorry, Miss F.!) but fortunately I didn’t plan to photograph the scarf from the side or back, so that was okay.

One nice thing about Miss F. is that she is very patient while I fiddle around with the product. Not a single fidget or complaint—I was very proud of her. Her expression can be a bit stiff at times, though.

Doesn’t she look jaunty? As long as I keep her legs out of the picture, I think she’ll work out okay.

If you want to see the finished result, check out these listings in my shop:

Indian Corn Striped Knitted Cap
Indian Corn Striped Knitted Scarf