by successfulbob | fine art photography, Lumix GH3, Lumix GX7, Lumix Lounge, photography, photography gear
Suddenly the wings of the Scarlett Macaw spread… which was rather bizarre because in my mind I had just said to myself, “I sure wish the bird would do something different.” (parking spaces seem to appear out of nowhere for me too) I took the RAW capture into Adobe Photoshop to see what I could see. Here are a couple versions with a twist on each.
Scarlett Macaw over fan palm. Version Three.
Version Ten.
Version Five
Images and textures captured with the Lumix GX7 and GH3. Macaw photographed using 35-100 f2.8 Vario lens. RAW 1/1250 sec; f/2.8; ISO 400 @42.0 mm (in 35mm: 84.0 mm)
Worked with Adobe Photoshop blend modes and other photographic texture images for effect.
by successfulbob | fine art photography, photography, photography education, success education
Poking around in other genres of art helps me find clarification for my art thoughts. This week it’s writing and John Steinbeck is the author of today’s Photo/Art quote… “In art the subject upon which you concentrate is unimportant; it is the quality of your concentration that counts.”
Think about it. What makes you go ‘WOW!’ when you see an image? Often it doesn’t even matter what the subject is. But the lighting or angle or treatment that makes us see the it in a new way. This was brought to light when I was speaking in Grand Rapids to a photo group and threw myself a challenge… Take a found object and turn it into a piece of art. I found a paper clip and informed the class of my objective and received looks that ranged from “He’s out of his mind!’ to “There ain’t no frickin’ way!”
About a third of the way into the exercise I was getting ready to believe the nay-sayers and give up. Perseverance won the day and the paper clip turned into what you see here in this link.
My challenge to you today is to take something simple, whether it be a scene, an object or a person and through your skills concentrate and work it until you have an image that makes people either see it in a new way or go “WOW!!” Good luck.
by successfulbob | fine art photography, photography education
An excerpt from Robert Genn’s newsletter… Find more here on the Painters Keys
“The creative memory is fickle and needs to be taken fresh. If you seize the day and go to work at the first flush of interest, you’ll find your work and your creative ideas freshen up too. Just as the love of a certain medium can have a “life,” so too can subject matter. Many artists report tiring of themes or subjects. Feeling they haven’t exploited them thoroughly enough, they guiltily resist moving on. Sometimes they get stuck for months, even years.
The popular use of digital cameras makes it easy to put stuff in the can–sometimes without even looking at it–for another time. This can be a mistake. The important thing is to be wired, enthusiastic and alive in the moment. You can learn a lot from your dog. Tail wagging is a bit much for some humans, and it can get on the nerves of fellow travelers, but it’s the straight route to creative joy.”
I’ve been told to take my happy butt and leave places on more than one occasion so I can relate to the Tail Wagging. I have been trying to bring that enthusiasm to my photography more lately and I think it’s showing up in new imagery.
Been playing a lot with the in camera panorama stitching in my Lumix GX7. Panoramas are a different way of viewing the world and the ease of working with this is great leading to some extra experimentation.
I often find ideas to use from artists outside the photography realm… If you’ve found inspiration like that how about sharing with me and I can pass it on? Add a comment or drop me an email. Cheers!
by successfulbob | architectural photography, black & white, fine art photography, Lumix GX7, Lumix Lounge, panorama, photography
The air had a tinge of exhaust. People were hustling up and down the street like they had somewhere to go. The street was gritty with the remnants of the millions of feet hat had passed this way and that over the years.
And to a small town guy like me, it was almost sensory overload. I guess that’s why I made a lot of my images in high contrast black and white. To capture the scene yet simplify. It just felt right…. Here are a few images. Let me now what you think.
Panoramic image of fellow Lumix Luminary Suzette Allen on the deck behind Javitts Convention Center New York City made with in camera stitching.. Images on this page created with the Lumix GX7.
Almost everywhere you turn there are great combinations of beautiful lines, forms and tones when simplified to Black and White
Traffic zooming by. You can almost feel the breeze of the taxis going by. Listen… Did she yell, “TAXI !!“??
by successfulbob | fine art photography, Lumix Lounge, marketing, photography, photography education, success education
Picture yourself sitting on a stage in a trade show booth in front of everyone. You have an earpiece reminiscent of an FBI agent and a microphone worthy of Madonna attached to the other ear. They start to count down… 4, 3, 2 and point a finger at your host Frederick Van Johnson. You are now live on a Google Plus Hangout.
Nervous?? “NAAH.” I used to be in radio and TV AND one of my best friends, Skip Cohen, is up on the platform with me. Better yet we are talking about two of my favorite subjects, photography and fine art. It was a great show and I learned a lot because there were three other Internet guests sharing their ideas.
I don’t want to tell you what Skip said because that would spoil the surprise but I gotta tell ya that guy can say some pretty funny things! Hear the interview for yourself.
Frederick Van Johnson host of This Week in Photo on Google hangouts, yours truly holding center spot and Skip Cohen of Skip Cohen University. Live interview broadcast during PhotoPlus Expo in New York.
You can hear the other Lumix Luminaries and their interviews from PhotoPlus Expo in New York in the Lumix Lounge.
by successfulbob | fine art photography, Lumix GH3, Lumix GX7, Lumix Lounge, photography, photography education, photography seminar
What a great group in Michigan. Friendly, fun and really important – attentive when class was in session. Shared my ‘Photo-Synthesis’ Fine Art Photography program with PPM. Spoke about 4 1/2 hours. In addition to the Photoshop techniques I shared how much I like the small size and nice files to work with from my LumixGX7 and GH3.
Below are a few testimonials from the students about the program and presentation style. It was fulfilling on many levels from garnering new friendships, learning from the older members who shared their stories and adventures in photography, and being able to give back to the industry that has given me so much. Kudos to Panasonic for sponsoring my sharing to other photographers…
Photo courtesy of Carol Fabrizio, M.Photog. Fabrizio Fine Art Photography Flushing, MI cfabriziophoto.com
“I’m Darcy current president of the professional photographers of Michigan and Bob Coates was at our annual convention and Bob was awesome. Let me tell you we learned everything and my brain is just fried right now. We learn a ton from Bob. From beginners to experts, all took something home to help with their art. I recommend Bob highly to any organization that wants to hire him.” Darcy Olson, CPP – Darcy Olson Photography
“Hi Bob;
Your presentation at PPM Fall Focus Monday afternoon was awesome. It is probably the type of program that should be enjoyed first thing in the day and not after lunch as you present so much material, that I reached brain overload well before you stopped….. Your passion and high energy is definitely infused in your presentation.”
Steve
