The first competition of the year

If I was competitive it will be all over now, for the year. Scores wise I bombed in the open themed competition. Photographer of the year in the club has galloped off into the sunset. I appreciate there may be problems with my images. I will take up points that the judge said for one of them but there was such little constructive feedback for the others. There even were some nice comments.

So why were my scores so low?

Poppies

I wanted to do a bit of plant photography this weekend but it was going to be a little bit difficult as it was so breezy, so I abandoned my plan to go to Wimpole's walled gardens. I have been drying some poppies in the kitchen and I decided to arrange them in a pot and photograph them instead. Then I just could not resist using the TTV camera.

polaroid

A chance few minutes today when I tried to get a different polaroid camera to work, meant that I looked at one I got in a charity shop a year ago but didn't have film for. As I examined it I realised it was alive, and there were still some pictures I could take so I did. As you can see the film is very expired and the chemistry did not cover the whole exposure which gives it a slightly dripped feeling. This is what I got I have scanned them and put them together in photoshop I have not enhanced them. I'm not sure if I can make more of what I have got in photoshop or by incorporating the actual pictures into a art thing but we shall see. Now I just need to source some film for a further play around but I think it will be expensive fun.

Sketchbook project

I have joined in with Gina's sketchbook project for the second year, this year it is all about colour and I went for blue. I also went for one of my photography obsessions Nigella that grows weed like and self seeding outside my front door. I love it when there is a little summer project like this as it pushes me into doing things, stretching my normal approach to things and its fun. I loved last years linguni drawing.


The potato printing was a bit of a disaster as I think that they look more like insects, I have decided to try again using a PVA glue plate and a foam plate. This also fits with the next suggestion from Gina of Mono-printing its all getting very exciting.


This is the page that I like the most so far

Uneven ink

I have tried to print this block twice recently. After the first attempt I decided the line was too thin and I would recut it. In the process I damaged the block so I trimmed it down. So on the second try I was disappointed that I couldn't get the ink on evenly. I think the ink was drying really quickly. Still you can see the design.

Further indulgence

I snuck a day away from work with some last minute annual leave and went to the curwens print study centre for a days workshop. It was an interesting day and the variety of work produced by the participants was amazing. We took inspiration from the landscape and the grounds around Chilford Hall. I was pleased with the transfer print I made of the greenhouse.

Life class

Some of my out put from my first life class in what I estimate must be 20yrs. It was good to draw again but I am definitely extremely rusty. It was a great way to spend a Saturday. I even did a pen and wash never tried that before.

storyboard competition

The practical joke

lino workshop

For many months now I have been looking forward to going to Cambridge Botanical Gardens for a weekend workshop of lino printing. The focus of the weekend was to be on the orchid flowers, and Yvonne Bartlett a local printer led the workshop. The aim was to produce a reduction print, the concept of which I have read about and had described to me.


It is not until you try to do it that really can understand the process, only now do I feel that I can tackle a reduction print at home. I had to revise my ideas at several points during both the preparation and the execution of my piece. I tried to keep things simple. I stuck to three colours. I think I finally understand how to register the prints.


It was great fun and the group produced some fabulous and very diverse work. I have learnt loads. Below is the final output.

mono

Tomorrow is the photo club's mono competition. With all that has been going on I am definitely not ready.The pictures I have chosen, have been worked with as much as I am ever likely to do. However the annoying thing is that they are printing they are ding so with a blue colour cast and I just don't have the time to sort it out. So I have decided to print and go with it.


I also need to pull together the bits for the art show and deliver them tomorrow.

Why is everything always such a mad last minute rush?

Festival of ideas

This is the best of my output from the experimental printmaking day I spent as part of the festival of ideas in cambridge and it was great fun.

The carborundum picture is not quite what I imagined, think it might have been better if I had used the fine carborundum. I definately want to try it again. It is supposed to be a love in the mist and was meant to be building on my sketch book efforts. I think it might be worth a repeat.

Collographs

I thought I would share some of the output from my short printing course. These are the collographs that I produced, to make the plates I used two different methods and they have created very different results.

The blue landscape was created using a variety of textures glued to a cardboard backing a sort of classic collograph. I put far to much ink on the first one but as it passed through a couple of times the effect of the surfaces appeared far more detailed.

The sort of dandelion looking plant was created using tape I love this method and want to do it again but that means getting access to a printing press, so that will be a tall order. I think it has a very unpredictable and loose feel that makes me want to explore this more.

New beginings?

I have decided to start a sort of sister blog.

I thought it might make some sense to separate out some of the art themes that have been appearing on the other blog. So what will I put on here then? I thought I might put some of the competition images for the photo club or the output from my printing course. I might blog about some of the craft projects or suggestions from the cyber world that I chose to be involved with. Or discuss some of the visits to galleries etc that I make.

I know that the posts are likely to be sporadic but I hope it will be fun.