Shadowy Abstracts

Photography is an art form that allows you to express yourself through the images you create.  While we tend to focus on light and how we use it to create images, we forget that the light is really nothing without the shadows.  The shadows are what define our subject.

The other day while cleaning up in my kitchen I noticed the shadows cast by a wine glass on the counter.  The bright sunlight pouring through the kitchen window created a shadowy abstract shape.

I decided to experiment with this observation by using different types of glasses and a white sheet of paper.  I found that by allowing the paper to curl upward toward the back, the shadows cast by the sunlight through the glasses created a series of distorted shadowy images, that seem to twist and turn depending on their placement.  The images presented here are examples of how light and shadows interact with each other within an image. 

All images shot using a Sony A7II camera using natural window light.                                       

 

Photographic Still Life Simplicity

 Still life photography is a genre that allows you to create and compose objects within a pleasing presentation.  The layout of the objects should be arranged in a simple composition that allows a viewers eye to focus on the main object in the arrangement.  The space required for this genre can be as simple as your kitchen table.  The lighting can be any combination of window light and a portable LED light.  The background used can be two pieces of black poster board on a tabletop setting.

The use of flowers can make for a colorful still life.  In this post I use a series of different flowers separately composed into simple arrangements using singular props to accent the arrangements.  I have kept the layout simple in order to have the color and shapes of the flowers be the main focus of the viewer’s eyes.  However, the composition can be as creative as your imagination.  

All images were photographed using a Sony A7II camera.  I can be contacted for comments or questions at nymacc@gmail.com