Mixing it up

I seem to have entered a blogapathetic state (made up word alert) and am simply unwilling to rewrite all the lovely details and insight about these images which I'm actually quite excited about. That's kinda weird. I've really been enjoying what I've been up to so if you would like to read more about it (and I hope you do) please go to my site and check out all the back story on these new images. Please accept my apology for being lazy.

Mental Margarita - Agua para ti!

I just want to dive right into these images.


It's probably a good thing that I like a lot of the work I do (duh) but these are the first in a while I really want to print on huge canvasses for my own house.


There is something so soothing and luscious for me about the play of light and color on water.


And I love the accidental contrast that got created when I posted the images from Seattle's waters on my site. (See fotos de karina - new to check it out.)


In looking at these Salish Sea water images, I have been struck by the patterns reminding me of the flow in the Native American art up here. I thought maybe I was imagining it but look!


Sigh. I love it here.

Oh, by the way... Need a 2010 wall calendar? I got 'em! Please support your friendly artist at fotos de karina calendar.
Enter the code CALENDAR25 for 25% off for one week only!

Mental Margarita - iPhone Pictures

I wouldn't say that my many many flower pictures mean I'm in a rut, but I do seem to be attracted to the same type of imagery in nature again and again. Not that there's anything wrong with that.

So I'm loving this app I got for my iPhone called Best Camera because it's giving me some new tools. Plus my iPhone has nowhere near the macro (close up) capacity of my camera, so I can't rely on my usual methods. I'm having to step back a bit.

I feel like some of the shots I've taken with the iPhone are very Photo 101 but that's ok. You start where you're at.

Here are some of my faves (the rest are on my site)...

Mental Margarita - Sweet Pea

Skip damn howdy, summer was simply immense this year. Blistering at times (for Seattle), long (also for Seattle -- it went from May to September) and so very full. We had a great staycation, visitors from AZ, fun, and lots of work. It left little time for photography, which was tragic.

But I'm delighted to be back in the game again, and sharing images with you. What I really like about this batch is that they all say "late summer" to me. Dahlias, sweet peas, and corn husks. Everything on my site's new page was growing within a stone's throw of the house.

So summer is most definitely over but these images celebrate it. Welcome, Fall!

Mental Margarita - Red Columbine

I'm really pleased I bought the light tent. My neighbor was highly suspicious when I asked if I could snip this bloom to bring it home to take picture of it, but I'm glad I overcame his weirdness to get it. This is one of those subjects that is so funky on its own, that to have any kind of distraction in the background would be, um, distracting.

This, by the way, is a columbine. My relationship with this flower was limited to the massacre. Until this year, I had no idea that a columbine was such a space-age, trippy looking bloom. So I'm glad I have a new association. (BTW, Wally Lamb's new book on the subject, The Hour I First Believed, is brutal but worth reading if you don't mind getting your a bit heart bruised.)

These are my two other favorites from the bunch:





Peonies are so riotous. I love their disorderliness.

Please check out my fotos site for the rest of the newbies.

Happy July!

Mental Margarita - White Dogwood

I heard this great thing about considering new avenues. If you feel really good about it, and it feels like the right thing, then do it. If you have no strong reaction, don't do it. If you resist it... do it. There's something for you there.

Last summer I saw a photographer's work who also does nature shots on canvas. But she shot them with a black background in her studio, taking them out of their natural element. They looked amazing. But I was jealous. She was cheating! It's much harder to get the light right, to get that great shot when you're outdoors.

But her images stuck with me, and I've been pondering ever since. My favorite images that I had made were the ones where there was very little background from the subject, like this calla lily which has become my signature shot. So I finally gave in to the nagging impulse to try it myself. To "cheat." Most of the new images on my site were taken in the studio (by which I mean a light box on my desk but it sounds much sexier to say "in my studio"). Please go to fotos de karina - new to see the latest images.

It's still a new avenue for me, and one in which I will continue to grow, but so far I'm really feeling it. It eliminates the challenge of rain, wind, or shifting light. I can do long exposures, allowing for deeper focus. I can backlight or toplight, really play with the formula for evoking all the beauty my subject is offering up. Oh, and it's fun.

Your feedback is very welcome and appreciated - thanks!

Mental Margarita - Grupo

Most often, something catches my eye because of its singularity, or its color or shape. But it's usually a single flower or leaf that jumps out at me. Here, it was the overall pattern of these little succulent stars that grabbed me. And I liked that even though there are numerous plants in this group (grupo, en Espanol), a few of them seemed to glow just a little brighter than the rest, giving the eye a resting spot, if you will.

Now regarding the singularity theme, I have been experimenting with isolating subjects in a light box. This does seem to allow their essence to be brought forward with no distractions in the background. And another benefit in creating studio shots is that I'm no longer limited by the weather, the light, etc. I create my own conditions, which on a blustery day like today (when a flower wouldn't be able to hold still for me to have its picture made) is the difference between getting the shot or not. But my preference is still to find that little piece of nature right where it is and to share it with you. I'll be creating and sharing more of these studio images soon. Stay tuned!