Week 45: Horses in Winter and DIY Lightboxes
So this week I finally got to start on a project I have been wanting to do for a little while now. I needed to have several pictures before I could begin it, all from Rebecca's ranch. She has this picture she loves of 4 horses in snow. Well, she has 4 horses now. Now, I could wait for it to snow in Texas, and wait 5 years (sarcasm added), or I could test out my Photoshop skills. So last week and this week I took a bunch of shots of the horses and the area they graze in. I wanted to make a picture like she had on her desk but with her horses, a Texas style winter, and her ranch. I bit off quite a project!
So let me add a side note in here. At one time I had a fear of being around horses. And then Gretchen came along. Actually, Rebecca taught me how to talk to Gretchen, let her know what I was doing, and in the process we began to bond. She taught me what to look for, when Gretchen would look anxious or even when she was at peace. Soon enough I was doing my work around Gretchen and on more than one occasion Gretchen would nuzzle me. I could walk up to her and pet her, feed her, and soon there was no fear. Now I get in their grazing field and walk among the 4 horses. I approach them and take pictures of them, talking to them telling them, telling them what I am doing. Of course Ginger the goat (no lie, that is the name of the goat, courtesy of Rebecca's granddaughter!) and Abby follow me around. Speaking of Abby (the dog), she loves to crawl up into the 4 wheeler and ride with me!
So this Saturday I showed Rebecca the rough draft of what I was doing. I wanted her to see what I was doing first before everyone else. Plus I wanted to make sure she'd like it before I went hard core on it. With the thumbs up I sat down at the computer this afternoon to put it all together. With Ginger's input, my creative director, I was able to get everything the way I needed it. And the result is (drum roll please):
This is a compilation of 3 pictures. And then there is some Photoshop magic to not only put the mist in but to put snow on the ground and to make it snow. Plus, to get it into an 8x10 format I had to do a little working to get the canvas right. All together this week, I probably put 8 to 10 hours to put this together. I had to do a little research (thank goodness for Youtube!) but hey, I am self taught!
I had a LOT of fun working on this. I'd pull Ginger from her Hallmark movie and ask what this looked like or that. She is an essential part of my creative process.
So last week I mentioned my DIY light boxes. Okay, I have two.
The smaller one to the right I modified this week to support my Water Drop Valve:
Water drop Photography I will be working on this Holiday season. I have wanted to do it for a long time it just happens to be time intensive, so winter is a good time to do it.
As you can see, they are made out of PVC. I made them to be fully customizable. So as I needed another light, or flash, I was able to add that capability to it. The fun thing is I can have a white back ground, a black ground, or I have a lot of custom back grounds by going to Hobby Lobby and getting 12" x 12" paper prints. And they store nice and easy on the shelves I built around the room.
Enjoy the new creation and thank you everyone for your comments and encouragement! Ginger is happily watching Hallmark movies right now and looking forward to her birthday in a week! So now on to the next project!
Happy Photography!
Baa
So let me add a side note in here. At one time I had a fear of being around horses. And then Gretchen came along. Actually, Rebecca taught me how to talk to Gretchen, let her know what I was doing, and in the process we began to bond. She taught me what to look for, when Gretchen would look anxious or even when she was at peace. Soon enough I was doing my work around Gretchen and on more than one occasion Gretchen would nuzzle me. I could walk up to her and pet her, feed her, and soon there was no fear. Now I get in their grazing field and walk among the 4 horses. I approach them and take pictures of them, talking to them telling them, telling them what I am doing. Of course Ginger the goat (no lie, that is the name of the goat, courtesy of Rebecca's granddaughter!) and Abby follow me around. Speaking of Abby (the dog), she loves to crawl up into the 4 wheeler and ride with me!
So this Saturday I showed Rebecca the rough draft of what I was doing. I wanted her to see what I was doing first before everyone else. Plus I wanted to make sure she'd like it before I went hard core on it. With the thumbs up I sat down at the computer this afternoon to put it all together. With Ginger's input, my creative director, I was able to get everything the way I needed it. And the result is (drum roll please):
 |
| Rebecca's Ranch in Snow |
This is a compilation of 3 pictures. And then there is some Photoshop magic to not only put the mist in but to put snow on the ground and to make it snow. Plus, to get it into an 8x10 format I had to do a little working to get the canvas right. All together this week, I probably put 8 to 10 hours to put this together. I had to do a little research (thank goodness for Youtube!) but hey, I am self taught!
I had a LOT of fun working on this. I'd pull Ginger from her Hallmark movie and ask what this looked like or that. She is an essential part of my creative process.
So last week I mentioned my DIY light boxes. Okay, I have two.
The smaller one to the right I modified this week to support my Water Drop Valve:
Water drop Photography I will be working on this Holiday season. I have wanted to do it for a long time it just happens to be time intensive, so winter is a good time to do it.
As you can see, they are made out of PVC. I made them to be fully customizable. So as I needed another light, or flash, I was able to add that capability to it. The fun thing is I can have a white back ground, a black ground, or I have a lot of custom back grounds by going to Hobby Lobby and getting 12" x 12" paper prints. And they store nice and easy on the shelves I built around the room.
Enjoy the new creation and thank you everyone for your comments and encouragement! Ginger is happily watching Hallmark movies right now and looking forward to her birthday in a week! So now on to the next project!
Happy Photography!
Baa
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