Find your style in photography - 8 - The right place and the right time

Hi friends!, here we are with "Find your style in photography" again, this time with an important tip that is: to be at the right moment at the right place.

As we have already talked about, there are too many photography styles and they all have their relevance. In this case, I imagine that usually happens to us of being specially looking for something that we have in mind and then we suddenly meet a different scene that captures our attention. No matters what we wanted, the composition we tried to work with or the previous idea we had, never let that new an unexpected capture go. We have (and need) to be really open minded with our camera, we never know when we're going to find something that could even be better than what we were looking for. An unexpected rain, a sudden flight of a bird or the feeling shown in a child's eyes.

We are surrounded by surprises and we just have to pay attention and be ready to shoot what comes to us. A good eye is the one that transforms a simple fact of life in an artwork, so don't wait for amazing things since simple ones make the difference sometimes. 

As an example of this, I want to show you Michael Hills' work that higlights for the spontaneity it reflects as if he always knew how to be at the right place at right time. Click on the images to enlarge them and know more about this artist whose works cover a wider variety than the ones shown here below.

Simply amazing collages

Today I want to tell you about Alexei Gural and his artworks who says about himself  "I make digital collages using images I take from famous paintings, mix them up into scenes that are a little surrealist ...", but that isn't so simple as he thinks. 

Let's start saying that collage is a very widespread method in contemporary art and this, sometimes, makes the difference in what we can call "new art". Artists often use different materials, from clippings of magazines, photographs, or other less conventional as in the case of conceptual art. However, Alexei Gural's case is not conventional. I bet that if most of us tried to do the same thing like that we wouldn't get such an amazing result. 

To make the type of work of this artist, obviously, one has to know the classic works in depth and have a clear idea of what we need. In addition, we need an expert use of digital tools to show the aggregated elements as a whole in the set. Gural makes us fell that what we see is what was painting in fact, he has a delicate and sophisticated use of these tools which leads to convince us that it can only be an original work.

But the most important, in addition to the incredible skill with the digital tools and the softness that leads us to believe that we are really in front of a museum work, is his amazing creativity. Yes, it is "just" amazing. Alexei Gural's arworks are surrealist and are loaded with stories and emotions of what the artist wants to tell. The degree of symbolism of his works converts a conventional theme (from which he chooses his collages) into a complete and personal work that leads us to think and to ask ourselves as the best surrealistic artist can do. 

So, we come back with the question of what it is to be an artist. An artist, I have to insist, is who creates and transmits through his/her work what can not be seen with the naked eye, transmits emotions or makes us think, regardless of the method used. And now I invite you to click on the images to enlarge them and know more about Alexei, you'll be surprised by sure as I was. You can also visit his blog: https://alexeiguralblog.wordpress.com

Find your style in photography - 1 - As gentle as a cool breeze in summer

We all know that there are so many styles of photographies as photographers, but the matter is: did you find your own style? as in painting, it will make you stand out from the others. 

Art often reflects not only what we see but what we are, not only by the elements that we show but how we do it. Through our camera we can get the same scene transmit different sensations depending on how we capture the image. Besides, we have post production tools which help us to get what we really want. But it isn't so easy as we think. Some say that if they had a good camera and photopshop they could get anything they want, but that's wrong..., we can't get it if we have no talent. You can spend endless hours in front of your computer without achieving what you want as it's not just a matter of working with technology but, as usual in art, to know how to do it and what we exactly want to get.

I want to show you Leif Sohlman's artworks as an example of this, he is a photographer mainly working with nature photography such as birds, animals and landscapes. He has a personal style, not only because he's mostly focused on nature but on the way he captures it. Sometimes it's difficult to know if his works are photographs or paintings since he adds his personal touch which brings us to an emotion that goes beyond the image itself. It's like a cool and gentle breeze in a special universe of nature where a peaceful environment takes us to pleasant sensations, even when it's sometimes broken by some details as a dramatic sky it simply reinforces the peaceful scene below.

His special mood on pictures makes us distinguish his ones among others. Leif is a perfect combination between great eye and great hand, he subsumes the right place and the perfect smooth that increases reality making it become magic. I invite you to click on the images below to enlarge them and know more about the fantastic work of this great artist.

When Art Makes Magic Come True

There are some artists who just tell us about real world, others tell us about their feeling and there others that show us their inner magical world.

In a way, all artists show their inner world even if they paint a landscape since they show us the way they see it. But it's not that simple. As humans we have a personal world that goes beyond other people understanding, no matter how much we try to explain it we can't do that with words, it's really difficult at least. It gets harder if that inner world is full of magic, as Michele Avanti's one, whose creativity seems to come from the depths of her soul. She works with traditional mediums as acrylic but also with photographs and digital art.

Seeing her work we can't help but notice the details, each of them is important for the interpretation and each element is placed to tell us something. Her wise use of color added to the subject and the composition as a whole takes us to a magical world of fantasy, a world that the artist make us possible to almost touch it with our own hands.

Here below you can find some examples of the magic work of this magic artist. Click on the images to enlarge them and visit her gallery where you can find her wonderful art.

Colours and emotions

Colours are complex and subjective, each of us reacts differently to one or another colour, even when supposedly there are some generalities about them (i.e red: passion, green: relax ...) there are no strict rules, depends on our experiences and memories.

Our life is surrounded by colours that relax us, excite us, depres us, make us angry, bore us, give us joy, etc. Our range of emotions is so wide as the color chart. But, when colours are in a painting they are something more since they show the artist's emotions. Some things can't be told with shapes but we can do that with colours.

That's why it's so difficult to choose the right one, it's not just because it matches or not but to exactly reflect what we have inside ourselves.

Even if realism is our style, a simple sky could change the whole composition if we don't choose the right colour. It seems obvious, if we talk about sky it has to be light blue, for example, but it's not just like that. The best pieces are those that are able to transmit a feeling or a state through small details, a pale face tell us something different about the character than a rose one as well as a purple sky is not as a light blue one. We are talking about a condition (health, social, frame of mind), a past, a life or/and an expectation.

If this detail has much relevance in realism much more will be on other styles, as abstract.

According to my experience, you should not think too much when using colors, at least not until you get to obsess, but simply have a very clear idea of what you want to express and try to immerse yourself in the sense that it conveys. If you get your work out of your inside and not just your head then the colors will speak for themselves.

I want to show you Cathleen Edick's artworks as an example of this, she has a great use of colours and developed a style in which they are protagonists in all ranges. Click on the images to enlarge them and to know more about her varied work.

And as my father used to say: "there is nothing written about tastes and colours", so let your creativity.

 

 

When photografic art speaks of our inner world

Today I want to show you the work of an artist that exceeds normal expectations regarding photography. She is Juli Scalzi and it's difficult to define her. She is not just a photographer, she goes far beyond giving the images the ability to transmit more than a simple figure or a landscape in the composition.

She takes some elements, as does a painter, and she gathers them to express a very precise idea or feeling. The first time I saw her artworks I thought that they were paintings, and I was not so far from reality since she uses the images taken with her camera in the same way. Such works can only be done with great creativity and talent, they make you think and it's unavoidable to feel emotions at watching them. Her works also have a certain innocence, the ability to take normal elements and convert them into compositions full of symbolism.

No matter what type of photography that is, a landscape, an animal or a composition, she always manages to make it a work of art.  I leave some of her work below, you can click on the picture to see the details and enlarge, I invite you to do so you can also see more variety of her beautiful work and know more about Juli Scalzi, an artist that makes you think and feel.

When a photograph captures the soul

Let's go back to photographs, this incredible new way of art since the last century. We can talk a lot about it, but this time I want to focus on creativity & soul. 

There are some photographers that trap the spirit of the person or situations that they are shooting, people that are able to show the inner mood of anything that comes in front of them. They see what others don't. Let's imagine a portrait, we can make a piece of art of it or just a simple photo and that depends no only about the light, contrasts or other features. They just have talent and that's not something that anyone can study in any University.

I personally love photographs that go beyond being simple pictures.

Today, I want to show you Sotiris Filippou's work, who is one of the best examples about what I'm telling above.  He catches the 'spirit'. As he says in his biography "Photography is a way to express the secrets people don't see", and that's true.

In invite you to visit his complete gallery, just click on the images or visit his wonderful site: www.shot-iris.com . If you want to follow him you can do it here:  https://www.facebook.com/SotirisFilippouPhotographer/

What we see and what we get

Many people who want to devote themselves to photography or just enjoy making photos don't know that what we see is not always what we get as a result. Some have the ability to see something simple and make it extraordinary while others sometimes fail to capture the best picture of what their eyes see.

We must transform our eyes on lens, we need to understand what will be the vision of our camera.

I will show you some simple tips that some may consider obvious:

- We have a beautiful landscape in front of us, but it can be rebutted if we take it completely. Which is the most attractive frame of all we see with our own eyes? So, pay attention to the capture that has the best composition of elements.

- We may have found the shot that best represents what we want to show, but has this the proper light? Maybe there's another shot that doesn't have such a good composition but whose light causes a more attractive effect.

- When it's about moving objects, that's one of the most difficult kind of photographs. The shot can't be before or after what we need, besides that it must be a clear and accurate capture and not a blur one.

- Be focused... (yourself, not just the camera).

We find many beautiful pictures that actually  could have been wonderful if the photograper had taken into account a few details.

Today, I want to show you Chandra Nyleen's work. This artist shows us how to take the details into account for a perfect picture. She has many photographs in movement that excellently capture the scene, as well as different landscapes which she has managed to make the most.

Click on the images to know more about Chandra Nyleen. You can also see her works at : http://1-chandra-nyleen.pixels.com/index.html

An amazing way of expression

Every good artist has something to say, which can be done in different ways and sometimes amazingly. This is Andy Young's case, he expresses himself through the digital arts in an unconventional way and style. Most artists start with a blank canvas, but he begins with a black one highlighting shapes and colors on it. 

It is really interesting, because the first time I saw his work at first glance it seemed to be very attractive by the forms, lights and contrasts, but there was something else. His artworks, that we could call "abstract" (but not only "abstract"), are characterized not only by creating textures digitally (what is extremely difficult), attractive figures, contrasts and striking lights, but it is distinguished by a deep content that whoever sees it can't ignore. The viewer is trapped by the image and can only get into it to discover the subtle details that make it unique. Subtle symbolic details can be discovered only after abstracting ourselves in the image more than once surprising us every time we return to look with a new discovery of what the artist has captured in his work. Andy Young's works are not simply abstract, they go even beyond.

I let you some of his wonderful works here, which I never get tired to see. I suggest you to click on the images to see his complete gallery and visit his personal website: http://www.strangecarrots.com/art-gallery.html

When delicacy, softness and femininity are summarized in a photograph

There are as many types of pictures as photographers, even one photographer can develop different styles, but there are some who leave their mark on their work with a style that highlights them and makes them recognizable. This is the case of Anna Sheradon, her photographs reflect delicacy, softness and femininity in an exquisite way. No matter whether it is landscapes, flowers, buildings or nature, she portrays them with supreme harmony and balance.

Her art also includes digital paintings created from her own photographs and abstract images using a variety of creative techniques. 

I invite you to see Anna Sheradon's photograph and click on them to know more about her.

What a digital painter and photograph can do

As I mentioned in other posts there are many forms of contemporary art. Following with photography and digital art, we can work with post production and photographs or create our own works through digital tools. 

Lines, spots and constrasts are the determining elements of this style when we try to make it modern and not a simple recreation of a traditional painting. Some may say that digital art is simple to perform, the question is: Do we all have the imagination, creativity and skill to do it? Of course, not.

Regarding this, I want to show you Maciej Mackiewicz's artworks, he is a digital painter and photographer and shows us how to create a great work from a photograph or just with our creativity.

You can see more of his work in his gallery (just click on the pic).

What about digital art?

What about digital art?

One of the most representative contemporary artworks are digital arts, more than what we can assume. Since the technology on which it's based is really new we can only talk about this style from the recent decades. 

One of the most important details of digital art is to highlight contours, contrasts and spots, becoming some kind of abstracts at times. Personally I would say that we should create a new category for this type of creations. Moreover, the world is divided in two, between those who are fans of this technique and those who reject by not considering it traditional. Like all new things, it will require time to take their own personal space.

Regarding this style, today I want to show you  Keshava Shukla's artworks. He is an artist that offers us in his digital works a recreation of shapes and contrasts, similar as we could get with acrylic. Simple and complex shapes that transmit the idea of the figure without any noise that could disturb the main concept.

Here below we have some examples or his digital artworks. On the other hand, Keshava Shukla works with traditional techniques as well and I could not resist to share with you one of his artworks made with pastels, which has a symbolic style that seems to me, personally, extraordinary.

You can visit Keshava's gallery clicking on the image.