Aswirly

FEATURED PHOTOGRAPHER: Aswirly
Mountain road

-- from aswirly - (?)
I am always drawn to road shots, especially in beautiful places. To me they just feel like an adventure!! This picture is special to me becuase I took it while on a photo trip to the mountains with my Dad this Summer.

Read My Lips

-- from aswirly - (?)
Photography and photoshop is an outlet for me to express myself. This image is a little bit of self-expression that I'm rather pleased with :)

1: How long have you been involved in photography?

Well for the last 8 years I've been hooked on my point and shoot camera. I took it everywhere. But about a year ago, when I joined Flickr, I started to get serious. Now I am able to do more since finally purchasing my DSLR last March.

2: Equipment you use?

Nikon D50 with Nikkor 18-55 lens and Nikkor 55-200VR lens. For post processing I use Photoshop and Photomatix.

3: Mac or PC?

Definitely a PC. lol.

4: What inspires you?

A day full of clouds, interesting light and shadows, anything pretty, and my mood ;) Everything churns my imagination.

5: Preferred subject matter?

Ooh I don't know. It really depends on my mood. I love city, land, and seascapes. Flowers are always wonderful...HDR is quite fun and addictive. How can I choose? Everyday I see something that triggers an idea. Then I work and work on that idea until I make something I like. Sometimes it is nothing like the original idea that came to me.
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6: Name one thing you haven't caught with the camera that you REALLY want to capture.

Lightening!!! That might not happen for awhile though since we rarely get good storms here. But another thing I'd like to get is a really nice night shot of San Francisco.

7: When in doubt about your art, who do you confide in?

My friend Brian, aka Funky Slug, has been a great help. We both love trying new things in our work and he always tells me honestly if a piece I'm working on is any good.

8: Qualifications/training in anything? ie: Photoshop

I haven’t had any formal training but I’ve been playing with photoshop for about 6 years. For about a minute I even had my own little business doing photo-retouching. lol.

9: Plans for the future?

Well, recently I've acquired some work doing portraiture and commercial photography. It has been a blast and very rewarding too. My hope and plan is to make a little living doing what I love.

10: In one word, describe your photography.
Diverse

*Melissa*

FEATURED PHOTOGRAPHER: *Melissa*


-- from ...*melissa*... - (?)
I took this on one of my lunchtime photo strolls, just before noon. I love it for two reasons: 1. the light cutting in at the corner and illuminating the texture on the wall; 2. the plant busting out of the open window as if looking for life outside


-- from ...*melissa*... - (?)
While this shot doesn't necessarily represent my usual "style" (if I have a usual style), it does represent Tucson, and Tucson is where I take virtually all of my shots. It's a city bursting with life, color, and texture, and I am constantly inspired by what I find simply walking out and about.

1: How long have you been involved in photography?
When I was eight, my grandma gave me a point and shoot camera for Christmas. I took it with me everywhere. My bedroom walls were covered with cut-out photos of my friends from elementary through high school. I bought a second-hand Canon T70 and took a black + white photography class my senior year of high school to learn how to process and print my own shots. I was so hooked that I took more black + white classes in college (the only two available), and found myself lost in the darkroom on more than one occasion. I took only black and white for a few years, but when I moved to Tucson in ’01, I started getting inspired by the color around me. I didn’t do much about it until the winter of ’07, though, when I finally picked up a DSLR, discovered Flickr, and the rest is history.

2: Equipment you use?
I resisted digital for some time, but am now lucky enough to own a Canon 5D, a Canon 30D, and a few pretty decent lenses. I owned the very first digital Rebel Canon put out, but sold it to a friend so I could upgrade. I am in love with the 5D.

3: Mac or PC?
PC, and a pretty crappy one at that, though I’ve always wanted to transition. I think Mac’s are much “cooler,” though maybe I’m just easily influenced by advertising. 

4: What inspires you?
I can find inspiration almost anywhere – it’s all in how you look at things. Walls, windows, doors…the light hitting a saguaro just right…some rust on a dumpster…peeling paint…

5: Preferred subject matter?
Anything with color and texture for the most part. Urban abstracts are really appealing to me, and I’m particularly drawn to clean lines and bold colors. It also makes me really happy to photograph children.

6: Name one thing you haven't caught with the camera that you REALLY want to capture.
My future husband and kids? Is that not edgy enough?  Okay, how about – landscapes, in general. I have a lot of respect for people who can shoot landscapes well because, truthfully, I just don’t have the patience. I own a tripod, and a pretty good one at that, but I NEVER use it. And I can’t stand still long enough to really capture the sense of a place, especially a place that is, in itself, extremely beautiful.

7: When in doubt about your art, who do you confide in?
God. I am always wondering if my photography is purely selfish (because I enjoy is so much) or if there is the possibility of a larger purpose to my work – if there is the possibility of good coming from it. When I’m in doubt, I pray about it. Cheesy, but true.

8: Qualifications/training in anything? ie: Photoshop
Though I was able to learn about film processing and working in a darkroom, I’ve never had any formal photography training – not with the camera itself, photography in general, or other technologies (Photoshop). I use Photoshop, but I’m pretty bad at it and kind of learning as I go. I only recently discovered how to use actions, and am hoping to soon start shooting RAW.

9: Plans for the future?
Though most of my photostream is “object” focused, I’ve been offered several jobs recently shooting people (weddings, engagement photos, and family sessions) and even done some commercial work. It’s been a kick, and I feel privileged to have had the opportunities I’ve had. Human subjects (in natural settings) were my first photography love, and I’d like to get back to it if possible – I’m just not sure I can make a living doing it. 

10: In one word, describe your photography.
Me.

Buddha's Ghost

FEATURED PHOTOGRAPHER: Buddha's Ghost

1- I don't like to completely explain an image to others, as it disallows their own imagination to define what they're seeing. However, I'll make an exception here. This was a shot taken in heavy rain at twilight. There was a girl who couldn't have been more than 19 or 20 hunched over the steering wheel while gripping it to the point of white knuckles. She maintained a steady 50 miles per hour with her eyes glued to the four lanes of freeway ahead as cars and big rigs roared by her throwing up plumes of blinding water.
She had Alaska license plates and was headed north towards Seattle, WA. Looking in the fogged back window as I passed her, it appeared as if she had all her worldly belongings wedged into the back seat. I've often thought about what her story might have been. I still remember the dim fading light of her headlamps as they dwindled in my rearview mirror.

-- from Buddha's Ghost - (?)

2- This is an image I made in an old veterans' cemetery near Orting, Washington. There's such a strange feeling I get from this place. I've always been interested in cemeteries and the obvious statements they bring to mind about our own mortality, but this one throws off an unusual vibe. It's quite sad and touching. Like some strange garden from a faerie tale. Where instead of poppies and roses, so many unselfish souls lie like tulip bulbs. With the stone markers informing the casual gardener of their types and how much to water them.

-- from Buddha's Ghost - (?)

1: How long have you been involved in photography?

I've had a fascination with photography since probably the age of seven or eight. I would take photos with my mother's Brownie Hawkeye. As an adult, I grew away from the camera, but eventually came back to it in the early nineties. With the advent of affordable digital cameras my full love of photography sprang to life.

2: Equipment you use?

At the moment I use a Canon 40D and Canon 30D as my digital bodies. For film I have two aged Canon TLb's from the 70's and a Minolta X-370 from the 80's.

3: Mac or PC?

I do my photo editing on a home built PC.

4: What inspires you?

The eternal dance of shadow and light.
A beautiful curve
A bold line
A mood, a feeling
A sense of despair.
Anything that makes my hands reach for the camera.



5: Preferred subject matter?

Looking at my photo stream, you might be inclined to conclude it's nature ( in particular: birds/crows) . And while nature photography is very fulfilling, it's not my preferred subject matter. I love shooting candid shots of "out of the ordinary" people; especially with interesting surroundings. This includes my Native American series.
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6: Name one thing you haven't caught with the camera that you REALLY want to capture.

The face of God. Don't really think that one's going to happen though. :^D



7: When in doubt about your art, who do you confide in?

I leave it to speak for itself. Art is, after all, quite subjective and completely at the whim of personal preference. What works as a pleasing image to one individual may look like so much rubbish to another. The photos I take are a type of self-therapy. If others enjoy what I've produced from my mind's eye, then that's an added bonus.

8: Qualifications/training in anything? ie: Photoshop

I actually spent much of the first half of my life immersed in traditional arts (e.g. , painting, pencil, pen and ink, et al.) I went to college for a degree in graphic design, but lost my focus somewhere along the way.


9: Plans for the future?

I'm always looking to get more exposure for my work and wish to continue honing my camera skills.


10: In one word, describe your photography.

Epiphanous

Joojo

FEATURED PHOTOGRAPHER: Joojo

Here are two of my favorite images that I've done this year:
This is my lovely granddaughter sitting on her pregnant mother's lap, touching her belly. My son's hand is caressing her chin. I love it because it is such a tender moment between them all. She is the first born, as as a 2 1/2 year old, really has no idea what it means to share her parents with another sibling. The other thing I like is that it resembles the silverpoint drawing technique used in ages past, which an astute Flickr member and artist noted in the comment section.

-- from joojo - (?)

This is an image that just happened to come together in a very magical way. When shooting two people underwater, there is a very small probability that the image of both models will work out and I often make composite images. I also needed to rebuild the upper models right arm, which I did using her left arm. I really had no idea how to do it, and I started experimenting with lassoing pieces and parts, and transforming them, and I was able to make it! The image was then pasted on some clouds that I shot outside my house during a spring storm. It reflects the mood I was feeling at the time I made it. I was reaching out to a friend who was in distress and very confused.

-- from joojo - (?)


1: How long have you been involved in photography?
I've used film for years for documentary purposes with my family until 1998 when I bought my first digital camera, an Olympus 2020z. Digital made it easier to learn the mechanics of photography, although I only used automatic functions. I began getting serious about the artistic aspect of photography and photoshop in 2005 when I started the underwater project.

2: Equipment you use?
I currently use a Canon 40D and 20D I have Ikelite underwater housings for both cameras. I am going to make the 20D a dedicated infrared camera soon. Can't wait to see infrared underwater photography! Might not work tho... come to think of it, since water clips off so much of the red spectrum, but I'll have fun playing.

3: Mac or PC?
Mac

4: What inspires you?
Everything = Life Light! Other artists, many of whom I've come to admire, respect and learn from on Flickr, literature, my animals, my garden, music, dancing, painting.... clouds, water... on and on!

5: Preferred subject matter?
I love portraiture, but I also love landscapes and still life's.
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6: Name one thing you haven't caught with the camera that you REALLY want to capture.
Too many to number! I am currently trying to do the alphabet exercise, which I've failed at miserably so far. In the span of an hour or two, walking around a park, or where ever you want, but restrict it to a couple acres, only using a 50 mm lens, one tries to find all the shapes of the letters of the alphabet (you can't photograph any actual letters!) in your viewfinder. It's an amazing exercise! It really strengthens the discernment ability of the eye.

7: When in doubt about your art, who do you confide in?
My creativity has always gone in cycles, and if I'm in a latent mode, I don't worry about it too much, there will be a groundswell soon!

8: Qualifications/training in anything? ie: Photoshop
I learned photoshop using the tutorials John Arnold has at www.photowalkthrough.com Lately I've been taking several tutorials by different Photoshop, Lightroom and Painter whizzes on www.kelbytraining.com/ It's a fantastic investment and bargain. I seem to learn best via tutorials vs. books.


9: Plans for the future?
Just to keep growing, learning, and being open to new ways of expressing what's alive inside.


10: In one word, describe your photography.
Archetypal