NEW BUG PHOTO! EWWW!

Image Copyright Rebecca Bridges 2007

Throw on your golf apparel ladies, it's time to hit some balls.... er uh bugs. Yeah. Bugs. I found this praying mantis stuck to the side of my house this morning. I took a picture of it in the coffee can we put it in until we got the bug house all cleaned out. It looks like it's staring at me. Ewww. I like to photograph bugs though. They are interesting don't ya think? The kids are having a blast learning all these new things about bugs and their life cycles, and I am having a blast photographing it all!

DRAWING/PHOTOGRAPHY/DRAWING

My pen/brush and ink attempt from class the other day. I had to leave it there to let it dry. I didn't like the pen, as I am finding out I don't so much like the pencil either. I love the more abstract feeling of brushes and charcoal.

This one is a photograph of the still life I am working on. I am actually going to draw it from looking at the set up on a table, but I am using the photo to help my brain see the lights and darks that are created. That is the biggest thing I think I have trouble with, is seeing something in color, and not knowing how to make my brain see it as light variations, tones, and values. But I want to know how, and it just takes practice and patience my teacher says. So it's true that this can be taught to an old lady!

PHOTOSHOP JUNKIES

I wonder if they have addiction treatment programs for photoshop junkies? They lock you in a room with no computer... no digital anything. Just some crayons and a big blank wall. That actually sounds kind of cool. I think I could do that for at least a week before I got bored and screamed for some fingerpaints. Or some chalk. Or a can of air, just to pretend to dust and all.....

DIGITAL PAINTING - LOVE

I like to take my photos sometimes, and just play with them and see what I can do to make them a little more artsy. Softer. More powerful, more emotional....

STUDIO WORK - PREGNANCY

I got the opportunity today to photograph a wonderfully pregnant gal that I met last year at school. We were able to use the school's studio, and I think I got some really amazing photographs. I think that pregnant women are so beautiful, and when you can capture them on the verge of giving birth, they have such a glow all about them. Like the heavens are wrapped around them in a blanket of light.

SUNRISE PHOTO PINK SKY

I knew the day would be better, when I stepped outside to this. A beautiful pink sky sunrise. This is something shared between two friends in different countries. It seems like any time I am having a hard time, all I have to do is see the pink sky, and it reminds me of her friendship. Hubby and I keep trying to find ways to move closer to her, so the drive is not so horrid. We found some Scottsdale real estate but also found it was even further from where she is than what we are now. One of these days I say. Till then I have our pink sky.

PHOTO CONTEST RESULTS

Well, I didn't win a new car or any new home theater furniture with my photos, but I did win $40 and two pretty ribbons! I got third place for my Kansas Wheat Commission photo entry! I originally planned on entering two photos, but I had filled out the entry form wrong, and was only allowed the one. Now I will be keeping my eyes open all year long for some really good photo opps, in hopes of bringing home some blue next year! I am also going to see about entering any other local photo contests that come up this year. The best thing I think would be getting the experience from it and learning a thing or two!

BEFORE THE STORM....

There is wind and a changing of colors.
Once bright goes black,
taking the light away.
What used to bring peace
thrusts chaos
down all throats.

INSECT MACRO

Images Copyright Rebecca Bridges 2007
Hey Aunt Sissy!! What is this caterpillar? Will it grow up to be a butterfly? Would it help if I could put the photos up on a couple of projection televisions? You know - so it would be big!?

I wonder if that thorny thing on it's butt would sting? I found it on one of my tomato plants, and had to take a photograph of it. I don't think I have ever seen one like this before. It looks similar to some butterfly caterpillars, but last time I thought that, all I got were a bunch of moths. This isn't a true macro, only a close-up. I have a set of lenses that go on top of my regular lens that are supposed to take macro shots, but I haven't quite figured out how to use them so well yet. Mostly it is how to keep the subject in focus, when I am after a live insect. Any one got any tips?

ART IS COOL!!

Image Copyright 2007 Rebecca Bridges
This is my second attempt at a charcoal drawing. This time we got to use white charcoal pencils too. I want some. And some of this nifty brown paper! I am having a blast, though I am now spending some time getting covered in black dust, my poor jeans are ruined I think. But that's ok, I will still wear them. The black stains will be my badge of learning. The time goes by so fast in this class, I hardly realize I am in school.....

EXPERIMENTING WITH RAW

Hmmmm.....

FUN AT THE FAIR PHOTO!

Copyright Rebecca Bridges 2007
I thought this one was fun, mostly because people's legs are sticking straight up in the air! I would love to take an evening, and go all by myself to the fair just to take pictures. So so many things to see, and so very much to photograph!

LIGHTING IS EVERYTHING

Photo from Kichler Lighting

This is a subject that I do not yet fully understand. I know what my eyes see, but how to make the camera see what I do eludes me. I wish they offered a course here, specifically about lighting and how to use it. I understand the basics such as the sunny 16 rule, and the less available light, the more open the aperture, but when it comes to using flash and studio lights, I am lost lost lost! I don't understand how to measure it, especially since I don't own a meter. So much to learn, but I do know that the light can make or break a good photo.

GLOBE PHOTOS

Copyright 2007 Rebecca Bridges

Ben Frederick has started a revolution! Check out his Globe Photos, then make your own as I did here! It's so much fun, and makes for an interesting picture for sure! I didn't do a photo-stitch with this one, but I am one of those instant gratification people!
Visit DIGITAL TOOLBOX for complete step-by-step instructions to make your own!!

SENDING OUT ART PRINTS

I have finally received the prints I ordered as gifts for a few of my friends. I have to say I don't know exactly when they will reach ya'lls Mailboxes, as the postage money eludes me at the moment. But I will try to get them there as soon as I can! This print is going to a friend in Canada, and the box is rather large, thus expensive to mail. I hope you will forgive my tardiness!

FINAL CHOICES FAIR ENTRIES

Black and White Pictorial

Color Scenic

Black and White Portrait

Color Unclassified/Abstract

Nature Print

Here are some more of my final choices for the fair competition. I stew and stew over them for weeks, trying to make the right decisions, trying to make sure that they are in the right category. Then I put them in the show, leave, and want to vomit. I never think they are good enough. Then I find all kinds of photos lost in limbo on my computer that I think - damn - I should have used that one or this one! I am trying to keep in my mind that this is all a learning experience in photography. I can't help but hope for a ribbon though! Off to the lab for some digital photo printing!!

PHOTOGRAPHY CONTEST

One of two I have chosen to enter for the "Kansas Wheat" category, the other is a bit further down.

This one I chose for the "Special Effects" category. I think it makes a twisted kind of statement. I can't wait for the fair to start! I will go the first Saturday, after all the judging is finished. The only way to know if I won something is to just go and have a look. The last two years in a row, I have placed and won ribbons, and this year I am hoping for at least one big blue ribbon! We shall see. There are so many talented people out there. Maybe someday I will gain the confidence to enter bigger contests, but for now I am thrilled with our own state fair photo contest!

PHOTOGRAPHING KANSAS

Freelance photographers interested in contributing to the KANSAS! 2009 calendar or KANSAS! Magazine can obtain guidelines by calling (866) 526-7624 or (785) 296-8478, or visiting the Web site, www.kansasmag.com, and clicking on "Guidelines."
Photographers - amateur or professional - also can request to be added to the list of those receiving information about publications.
Feb. 15 is the deadline for calendar photo submissions.
"Generally, landscapes representing a variety of regions of the state are selected for the calendar," the Web site states.
Compensation for selected photos is $150 for the full-page photo, $50 for small photos and $300 for the calendar cover photo. ~ From The Hutchinson News

RANDOM PHOTO THOUGHTS

I think it would be fun to go around and start photographing all of the different and unusual vessel sinks that I run across. I got this photo from a website that sells them while looking for some good sinks to beg my landlord for. Fat chance but hey worth a try. SO then I got to looking at the actual beauty of them, and thought - wow - this would be a killer photo series! I could travel to all the bathrooms of the world and take pictures of sinks!

CONTEST ENTRIES - NARROWING DOWN

Photos Copyright 2007 Rebecca Bridges

Kansas and Wheat - what does it say to you?

Color Portrait - I like the unusual angle.

Black and White Pictorial - I wanted something different.

These are a few of the photos I am considering submitting to the fair photography contest. I have literally thousands of pictures, all digital, that I have taken over the last year, and I can't seem to make up my mind. Any opinions would be appreciated!