Nature

Today was a beautiful spring day. I grabbed my camera as I headed out the door and snapped some shots of geese, deer, my blooming magnolia tree, a bartlett pear in full bloom, some daffodils, etc. The deer allowed me to get pretty close and she was sort of posing it up for the camera.

Quote of the day: "Faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see." Hebrews 11:1

'Icy Blue Branch'

When we had the ice storm about a month ago, I went outside and snapped some shots of the ice covered tree branches. The way the light hit the branches gave the illusion that a rainbow was trapped inside each tiny branch. I decided to take one of these pictures and create a night scape as if the moon were shining behind one of these icy tangles. I really liked the end result.

Quote of the day: "I do the very best I know how - the very best I can; and I mean to keep on doing it until the end." Abraham Lincoln, 1809-1865

Rusty Boat

Orange and Blue is always a favorite color combination of mine.

Quote of the day: "Action may not always bring happiness, but there is no happiness without action." - Benjamin Dasraeli 1804-1881

'Big Mac'

I snapped this shot while on our way to Mackenzie's soccer game. I decided to manipulate the original photo a few times to get different perspectives.

Quote of the day: "If a man who cannot count finds a four-leaf clover, is he lucky?" ~Stanislaw J. Lec

Lily

Eastern Lily - study in green.

Quote of the day: "Keep love in your heart. A life without it is like a sunless garden when the flowers are dead. The consciousness of loving and being loved brings a warmth and richness to life that nothing else can bring." Oscar Wilde, 1854-1900 - Irish dramatist, novelist and wit

The Athenaeum of Cincinnati

I went to the Athenaeum of Cincinnati to take some shots since it was such a beautiful evening. The architecture of this building is absolutely amazing! The wonderful thing about the Athenaeum is that it has so many beautiful faces. When taking pictures in the evening, reflections and light illuminates off the rows of windows. In the winter, around Christmas, there is a gorgeous star that hangs at the very top of the front entrance that dominates the entire scenery. In the Spring, the blooming trees add to the landscape and balance out the vast structure and grounds. There are so many beautiful angles and surfaces to snap wonderful shots of. I love coming here to pray in the chapel. It is peaceful and still.

Quote of the day: "Two stars keep not their motion in one sphere" - William Shakespeare (1564-1616)

'Underworld'

This piece was created by Seth, Mackenzie, Mark and Myself. Hunter was not feeling well this morning and did not want to participate. We each took turns adding a colorful image. It was fun.

Quote of the day: "Until you are willing to be confused about what you already know, what you know will never grow bigger, better, or more useful." Milton Erickson

A Simple Symphony

This piece started off as a sketch. I love ballerinas and their elegant frames. They seem to float with grace on stage. I wanted to include my step-by-step process until finished. After I added color, I realized I liked my charcoal sketches best.

Quote of the day: "Improvement makes straight roads; but the crooked roads without improvement are the roads of genius." William Blake

"Chaos'

This piece was created using Adobe Illustrator. I was Dr. Seuss inspired. Perhaps I should have titled this Ziggy Zaggy Zazzer. : )

Quote of the day: "One's real life is so often the life that one does not lead." Oscar Wilde

'Faces of Smoke'

Below is a piece I titled 'Faces of Smoke' due to me being able to see faces among the swirled lines. This is a digitally designed piece using Adobe Illustrator.

Quote of the day: "To confront a person with their own shadow is to show them their own light." Carl Jung

1959 Barbie

I did a series of Barbies that I manipulated in PhotoShop. These turned out pretty cool I think. I love old Barbies.

Quote of the day: "The most dangerous of our prejudices reign in ourselves against ourselves. To dissolve them is a creative act." Hugo von Hofmannsthal

Carousel Horse II

This is another manipulated photo from a picture I took at Coney Island of a carousel horse. I enjoy experimenting with these photos because I feel like I'm getting two pieces of art from one shot! The two products really turn out to be quite different and there is no end to the possibilities in the manipulation process. The first photo is my actual photograph and the second is the manipulated piece (as if I needed to explain that - haha). Anyway, I was pleased with both. The second actually looks like a colored pencil drawing. : )

Quote of the day: "Sit quietly doing nothing, spring comes, and the grass grows by itself." Zen Wisdom

Unknown World

I am currently experimenting with new applications Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Illustrator and Adobe InDesign which are requirements for the Digital Design major at The Art Institute. I did a series of 'Unknown Worlds' that you can also find in my gallery at http://www.imagekind.com/ if you would like to purchase a print.


Quote of the day: "Thou hast been... A man that Fortune's buffets and rewards has taken with equal thanks... Give me that man that is not passion's slave, and I will wear him in my heart's core, aye, in my heart of hearts as I do thee... Hamlet to his friend Horatio