inspired by the beach

Recently, I was flipping through some photographs that I took at the Oregon coast last summer.  The photos were taken with a vintage camera that I picked up at an estate sale.  [Not bad for a metal box that is over 75 years old!]

I snapped a number of shots of the scenery around me.  Realizing a few of the photos went nicely together, I was inspired to create a set of mixed media works on cedar wood slices.  So, here's what I came up with yesterday.

And I just finished this new work, Beach Mountains. 

One of my photographs is layered in this work as well. 

Both of these items can now be found in my Etsy shop.  These may be the last pieces of the year, at least for my Etsy shop.  For the next few weeks, I'll be focusing on creating new work for Lilk Gallery in London.  They acquired a space on Broadway Market.  So, if you happen to be near there at the end of January, come see my art!

Oh, by the way, there's still time to snatch a free linocut with your order in my Etsy shop.  Last day of special promotion is Christmas Eve, or until the linocuts are all gone.  About a dozen left! 

in the little details

My brain is on constant overdrive.  Sometimes it thinks so loudly my husband tells me to turn it off.  Being out in nature is actually one of the few things that relaxes me.  There's something about the roar of the ocean or the sound of the wind in the trees that subdues my mind.

In His created beauty, God calls out to me to be still.  And I listen so that I can see.  I see all the wondrous ways He created this earth, and it's a reminder of how much He cares for me.  The tiniest pebble on a beach can have beautiful markings.  If He cares about these little details, I know that even the most insignificant things in my life matter to Him.   

new works on wood slices

I recently acquired beautiful round slices of cedar, and I've had fun the last couple of days creating small pieces of art.  The top piece is a photograph of the Oregon coast that I took over 15 years ago.  I really love the look of the cedar bark as a natural frame.  This particular piece will go above my art desk, but I'm thinking I'll make more with other pictures I took of scenic Oregon. 

Here are three mountain paintings on wood slices.  The top two pieces are for sale in my Etsy shop.

Also, not sure if you've heard, but Buy Some Damn Art is having a summer sale through July 9th.  All art is 20% off, which means you can save big on my last available painting on BSDA. 

shopping for inspiration

I try to avoid malls and big box discount stores as much as I can.  I easily get disheartened by modern society's insatiable appetite for consumption.  The mix of mass manufacturing and instant gratification has become a dangerous cocktail for today's consumers.  We fill our homes with things that lack handcrafted tradition or thoughtful production, and, by the end of the day, we still find ourselves longing for a connection to others and this world.

Only buy what you love.

This was the motto of our retail store that carried handmade goods by independent designers.  As shop owners we likened ourselves to storytellers who sought to connect our customers with the stories and the makers of our products.  I believe it is this connection that gives a product its true value.

When I shop, I'm always looking for the history of the product.  Many of the items that I purchase actually come from second-hand sellers.  Shown above are some of the used things I picked up this past weekend at estate sales.  In general, I try to only bring home items that inspire me to take action (draw, cook, garden, etc.). 

/// recent finds ///

classic books, including two Pearl Buck early editions

a vintage Kodak Retina in near perfect condition

linoleum cutter set in its original box

yarn remnants for a new zigzag blanket I started

vintage backpack for hiking// whoops! snipped the fabric when opening the package . . . 

mended by affixing triangle patches

things i'm fond of today

un cuadro by gabi piserchia

natural wonders.
left: annular solar eclipse by hiromitsu t.okra
right: eastern oregon by david ewald

handmade dolls by ryoko ishii

vintage bedspread hand-dyed by liane tyrell of enhabiten

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musical marriage proposal in portland:

my photography: people

When I take pictures of people, I try to be as inconspicuous as possible.  It's usually just my camera in hand (no fancy studio equipment),  and I keep instructions for posing to a minimum.  Unless, of course, I'm trying to get the attention of an infant.  In which case,  I'll break into babble talk to get the baby to look up. 

For me, portrait photography is more about documenting a moment in life than staging one.  This is one of the reasons why I enjoy taking photos of small children.  Kids can't really fake a mood.  If they are not happy, they are going to let you know.  Fortunately, kids are also easy to please.  And, usually, a tasty treat or talk of bunnies will do the trick. 

My favorite portraits are those that capture sheer human emotion, like joy, love, shyness, surprise, and even annoyance.  And, I always look for those subtle nuances between couples and siblings that make a photograph more memorable and genuine.  It helps that most of my clients are folks that I already know.  The mother shown in the photos above used to be my daughter's preschool teacher.  These photos of her family were taken just last weekend.

If I had the time, I would shoot in black and white film again.  Back in the day, I even developed the pictures in my darkroom.  Today, my equipment sits in a corner collecting dust.  I consider photography to be my hobby, however, and not my profession.  So, I'm okay with where things are at the moment, especially since I get to paint and draw throughout the week! Now if only I can squeeze printmaking into the mix, my creative life would seem perfect. 

spring break in Oregon

550 miles and 48 hours later . . .

headed west // on our way to whale watch at the oregon coast

short sands beach, aka smugglers cove

tillamook cheese factory

headed east // the cascade mountains

mt washington

suttle lake

things i'm fond of today

latest work by street artist tellas

left: beautiful piece on flickr by common elements;  right: graduation project by kirstie van noort, a student at design academy in eindhoven, netherlands

aunt by inca pan

this put a smile on my face today.  photo by artist sabine timm.

family photo shoot with lisa warninger

photos by lisa warninger: middle, right and bottom row

Our family had our first family photo shoot just a few weeks ago!  Urban Weeds photographer Lisa Warninger organized a family portrait marathon at The Cleaners in downtown Portland, and we were able to snatch one of the 30 minute sessions.

I have been following Urban Weeds since its start in 2009, so I am pretty familiar with Lisa's photographic style by now.  She captures people as they naturally are, which is what I love about her work.  I also love the sense of place in Lisa's portraiture work, particularly the Portland settings. 

When she's not shooting street photography, Lisa keeps busy shooting for clients like Elle, Chronicle Books, and Wrangler.  The family portrait marathon in November was a one time thing, but Lisa plans to continue her sassy Valentine's Day Mini Shoots.  This year, the mini photo shoots are scheduled for January 28 - 29.  Check her blog in upcoming weeks for more details or feel free to email Lisa at lisawarninger[at]mac.com.

How to recover deleted and lost digital photos

Technical glitches from time to time are expected for a regular computer user.  Unfortunately, I had my most serious tech calamity while in Ireland.  Within just a few short moments, thousands of images from the past five years were deleted. 

Staring at an empty photo library is an eerie and heart-sinking experience, especially knowing it's been several months since the files were backed up.  I actually thought about backing up my files before the trip, but the task kept getting pushed off.  (Lesson learned for next time!) 

I lost all the images on my camera's memory card as well as the photos in Aperture, my photo application.  And seeing that the computer failure happened in a tiny coastal town, my tech options were limited.  I did have access to the internet, however, so I was able to browse tech forums for some helpful tips.  I learned that a photo library can sometimes be recovered by holding down a couple of keys while restarting the photo application, but no such luck for me.  The only way I could salvage the deleted files would be to download data recovery software.   

Even though a file is accidentally deleted, it is not permanently gone until it is written over with new data.  As long as I kept my computer use to a minimum and didn't take any more pictures with my camera,  I knew that I could recover a lot of my erased files.  After some quick comparative shopping on the internet, I ended up going with CardRaider to recover lost images from my camera's memory card.  I was able to retrieve over 130 files, including the short video I took at the Cliffs of Moher!  About 15% of my photos were lost or damaged for good (like the two photos above), but, at $20, CardRaider proved to be well worth the purchase.  And it was a breeze to use.   
 
Since I didn't have an external hard drive with me, I waited to retrieve images from my erased Aperture library after returning home from our Ireland trip.  When I got home, the situation became even more dire when I realized a lot of our family photos from the last five years had been backed up on an external hard drive that I accidentally dropped and broke earlier in the year. Big sigh.

I downloaded the data recovery software Disk Drill in hopes that I could recover most of the photos, and I'm thrilled to say that I'm still weeding through thousands of salvaged images.  Like the recovered files on the memory card, there were a number of corrupt photos.  But I'm just happy to have again some memorable photos of the family. 

Hopefully, something like this won't ever happen to you, but just in case it does, I thought I'd pass some information along.  And, if you do decide to go with Disk Drill, watch this helpful video first- there's a 15% discount code at the end you can apply to your purchase. 

why i love the oregon coast

We were in the mountains last weekend, and this week we were at the sea.  Destination- Siletz Bay.  On our arrival we were greeted by a group of sea lions sun bathing on the sand.  Okay, "greet" may not be the right word.  There was a lot of staring and barking involved. 

The sunset was so beautiful that night.  Sea lions and people alike were entranced by the orange glare.  I love taking pictures at this time of the day.  The golden tones are always so flattering and the shadows are dramatic.

Whenever I'm at the Oregon coast, there are a few things that are routine-  partaking in fresh smoked fish and salt water taffy (not necessarily together), collecting a rock or shell from the beach, and visiting antique stores and used bookstores. 

I didn't pick up any used books this time around, but I did get another stereograph.  This 1873 photograph is of a canal in Mexico City.  It's amazing how a photograph intended for the curious nearly 140 years ago can still stir adventurous hearts today.