Self Portrait Week 36: Ooowieeeee

I've been stressed out over some extended family business, so my creative juices are not running high this week. On top of that, I got this giant blemish right on my brow line. Believe me, it's looking better today than a couple days ago! So what was I to do to create a beautiful self-portrait? Make the blemish the star!

Truly. I have no shame when acting the fool.

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Photo Tips I Learned:

• Seriously, go with the flow.
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• I like to watch home design shows. One of the best tips I ever learned was that if you have an ugly feature in your home that you don't have the time or budget to change, don't try to hide it. Turn it into a focal point. I did that in my bathroom. We have an old gold formica counter top. We didn't have the time to revamp the entire bathroom and tear it out. So I painted the walls a very pretty yellow in the same color family. Now the ugly feature looks like it belongs in the room and doesn't look as ugly any more. So I applied that principle here. Don't try to hide it; use the blemish as the focal point.
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• To look truly miserable, I frowned and tried to cross my eyes as if looking at the blemish. It helps that I look sweaty, too. Tilting my face down slightly, putting my forehead closer to the camera, accentuates the blemish and gives me the strangely proportioned face I wanted.
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• I cropped in very tight to make the photo long and to accentuate the strange proportion of my face. I wanted to cut out all light around my head and get my eyes right at the top third of the crop. I made sure to crop into my eyes and chin so no edge of my face was touching the edge of the photo. I kind of wish my wrinkles showed up more.
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• To take it to the next level, I removed other blemishes so they wouldn't compete with the main attraction. Then I added more dark circles under my eyes in editing!  What woman does that? I would not make a good spokesmodel for a cosmetic company!
  
  
  

Give a Little Thistle

Digging through my archives 

I found this tiny dancer last fall.

It's a Mystery

My summer Mystery Box Challenge is complete!

Take a look over on the art blog I share with my daughters, Aural Artists. 

Chihuly

From the Chihuly Garden in Seattle

Masked Man

Architectural detail

Sweet

My neighbors have the best gardens!

Down the Dank Alley

A bright spot of color

Self Portrait Week 35: Labor Day Weekend

The end of Barefoot Season

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Photo Lessons I Learned:

• This week my inspiration came from a photo by Laine Apine on Flickr. That photographer's photo was much darker and had a more shallow depth of field.
  
  
• I first tried this photo in afternoon light. It was too bright and left much to be desired. So I waited until the following morning when the light was prettier.
  
  
• I had to put a black backdrop behind the stool I was sitting on to block out some of the light and part of my back yard. I also cloned in some black in a few spots where the light was shining through the deck slats because it was distracting.
  
  
• In editing, I darkened the photo quite a bit and added more contrast. I like all the tones and texture that come out in the deck, even though my legs are slightly blown out.

Rim Light

Intense, that night ...

Candy Dish

I saw the reflection in the morning light ... grabbed my camera ... took some shots.

Then I noticed the strange color balance that turned everything into shades of blue.

Ooooo! I like!

Last Rose of Summer

In August, my daughter Jodie challenged me to complete one blog post per day. I did it! It felt good to be "back in the saddle."

So for September, I'm going to challenge myself to - at minimum - a blog post every-other-day. Who knows? I may be able to replicate my August habit and post daily again.

Now Autumn is sneaking up on us. It's quite likely this will be our last rose before the frost kicks in.

After the Rain

We've been shrouded in smoke for weeks. The forest fires in eastern Washington and all over Idaho turned the sky to grey, covered our lawn furniture with a layer of fine ash, and left our lungs hurting if we inhaled deeply. Every time the wind shifted, smoke blew into the Spokane valley and lay cozily in the bottom. Some days the smoke looked like fog hovering over the grass. Down by the Spokane River where I live, our beloved mountains to the north, south, and east were invisible.

Then came a wind storm, fierce for half an hour. We folded the patio umbrella to keep it from blowing away. Pine needles and pinecones flew. Small, dry branches rained down. Our summer furniture covered with new debris. The tall trees at the fenceline swayed in a menacing way. My fears of another crash through the roof were renewed.

Then it was quiet. A day later, rain. Blessed rain. The mountains shield us again, with just a hint of the earlier haze. The evening sun can break through the trees. And our sky - our glorious blue sky - became our roof once more.

Come Aside

Sit nearby

Take time to really see the iris.

Peaches and Nectarines

Breakfast of champions

Spokane Sunset

Dale and I took a ride in the convertible a couple weeks ago, west toward Spokane. 

We were greeted with this. 

Wowsa!

Self Portrait Week 34: Oh, Those Lucious, Lucious Lips

Candy Kisses

 
 Sexy McSassyfrass

 
Sweet Lips

 
  Just Plain Fun

 
But did you know that not all cultures like to kiss on the lips? Horrors!
I read this article -- and am glad I live in the USA.

Not Everybody Likes Kissing

Kissing is my favorite pastime! (I have a good partner).

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  Photo Lessons I Learned:
 

Sometimes you need to use the amenities of a bathroom for a photo shoot, so you must take photos there. But a yellow bathroom can be a nightmare for color balance. I had to fix and fuss with the color in editing.

 

This is how I set up my camera on the bathroom counter. I stood on the other side of the room and leaned over the counter to get in the frame and have a blank wall behind my head.

I used the tutorial below as my jumping off point to apply the candy. I learned that using a brush to apply the beads didn't work for me. So I wet my finger, dipped it into the beads, and applied. The water made the color bleed off the candy, so that didn't work either. Finally, I dipped my dry finger into the beads and applied them to the gloss on my lips. That worked like a charm. 

 

 

• It's best over-do putting the beads on your lips. Then use a make-up brush or toothpick to brush the extras away.

 
• A purple wig is sometimes the exact right accessory. As is a sense of fun.

 

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Inspiration from BeautifulYouTV

Unfurl

Bless its fuzzy little heart

 
  The last of the lupines

Whispers

The grape hyacinth buds are telling secrets.

I was trying for a watercolor effect.
I think it worked.

Tippy-Top

Lupine, Spring 2015

W-A-Y Coulee

Ceiling structure

Visitor's center

Grand Coulee Dam, Washington