Saturday, March 5, 2011

working outside my comfort zone


OK, I'll admit it, when I first realized that our new theme was going to be still life, I was a little nervous.  If you've ever seen my work, you know it's not really my style.  I like to shoot on the go, react to what's in front of me and let my creativity flow with each moment.

I figured if I was going to get through this photography challenge, I should look to something I know to use as my subject.  So I turned to my other passion, fiber arts.  I didn't want to over think it so I quickly grabbed my pitcher full of knitting needles and my drop spindle and put it on the kitchen table while the morning light was soft.  For a little extra something, I threw in a ball of yarn to add some more texture and color.  Click, click, click.  Done.  I can't say I was too impressed with my photos SOOC, but a little cropping and some textures by cat hair studios saved me.  I like the final image--I don't love it, but it will do, and I tried something new.

In keeping with the crafty theme, I went searching in our flickr pool and was drawn to photo below by trisha brink design.  I love the colors, the pop of orange and the way the ribbons are curling off the spool....and (unlike me) I don't think she needed to add any textures to save her image.

~christy of urban muser

Vintage Ribbon Stack
vintage ribbon stack by trisha brink design

7 comments:

Gilly said...

I think both of these work really well. In the second one, I love the curl of that ribbon going to the left, and the way the scissors are pointing you over there as well - it balances out the space beautifully. In the first one, even though it was done very spontaneously, the colours really pull it together - the blue of the yarn echoes the blue of the small flowers on the vase, which then leads you to the blue of the knitting needles. Moving in the other direction, the yellow/brown of a few of the needles links with the same colours in the vase and makes you notice that there's a small amount of yellowish green in the yarn. For someone who's out of their comfort zone, I think you've done well!

Unknown said...

: ) Way to go. Challenging yourself and achieving. I love the ribbon curling. So pretty!

Anika said...

Christy your shot is BEAUTIFUL! A lovely still life.

April said...

You did such a great job :) I love all the colors and the textures!

Anonymous said...

I think you did marvelously! I'm always attracted to vibrant colors and your composition is simple yet works so nicely. And Trisha's is also simplistic with that punch of color. Two very nice still lives!

Kirstin said...

You did so very well and what a wonderful pairing! Love the colours in both.

Anonymous said...

the first picture is breathtaking. I don't know why... maybe because of that texture... or maybe because of it's simplicity... As for somebody who was working outside her comfort zone you did sooo well... you should be doing it more often! :-)

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