Thursday, September 27, 2012

Abstractions From Nature ~ Photo Art Friday 9.28.12

The Little Flower That Could

I'm generally NOT one to photograph flowers... And yet earlier in September I was inspired by others' photos of flowers, their wondrous processing, the vivid colours, their scents... well, generally I was moved, so I decided to try my hand at it.

I was cleaning up after one storm and another. The "grass" outside the Wee Cottage was somewhat lawn-like, and here and there were flowers disguised as weeds. I'd never noticed some of them until I was hacking away and then, all of a sudden, like Alice, I was drawn into their little Universe.

Granted, I didn't really get brave enough that day to take this particular photo into PSE8, but I did have a good time of it in Picasa, and in the past 3 weeks have noticed it sitting in my September photos, wondering if I would ever take it to "the show."

So that's what I did, today. And here's HOW I fiddled with it in PSE8, layer by lovely layer...



1. Multiply 75% [the digitally fiddled with version]
2. Drips of Rainbow texture [pdpa] darken 80%
3. Sweet Thoughts texture [pdpa] screen 25%
4. posterize Normal 75%
5. photo filter underwater 100%
6. Soft Light Overlay texture [pdpa] difference 100%
7. Because I can text difference 88% wave-warped
8. curriesilver weecottagewonders screen 47%

I still can't REALLY explain the why or wherefore of the above "recipe," but I CAN say I am learning and I am way WAY less intimidated with PSE8 Now. Just one week of one photo a day and I don't even get anxious...

Thanks Bonnie and all of you playing along.

Photo Art Friday

27 comments:

A Creative Grace said...

Well done Currie, keep up the good work with the experimenting :) I love your creation, very inspiring!

Linda Richardson said...

great colours! wowie - look at the hot fuscia pink peeking through! :-)

Bonnie Zieman, M.Ed. said...

Hey Currie - Bravo! What a fabulous debut with PSE 8. This is a lovely piece that could pass for a painting. I like the subtle use of text too. Thank you for sharing your artwork with Photo Art Friday!

Rita said...

It's all Greek to me, but I like it. :)

A Garden of Threads said...

It looks fabulous, you did a great job. Love it.

libbyquilter said...

it's always good to discover things that have been there the whole time isn't it~!?
it's a wonderfully brilliant bit of work and it sounds as if you are well on your way to making many more.

:-)
libbyQ

Merike said...

Yes! Lovely fresh and sweet colors. Wonderful abstraction from nature art :)

Sueann said...

Your abstraction is fabulous!! Well done
Hugs
SueAnn

Stephanie said...

A very nice work of art - done like a pro!

Anonymous said...

This is really pretty! I love the colors.

Leovi said...


Really lovely colors, a great composition, I like it. Nice pictures.

Ida said...

Bravo! Wow you really did a lot of different steps to achieve your result. Way to go.

The end piece is wonderful, vibrant and has a lovely tropical feel to it.

ormbunke said...

Wonderful photo and colour. Ha de gott

Gardening in a Sandbox said...

This photo just screams Wow? I can see it as a piece of fabric. Valerie

Anonymous said...

it looks like a drawing! I really like how the blue flower pops out from the rest of it! great job, Currie!

NatureFootstep said...

I like it. I can actually picture it sitting enlarged on a wall somewhere. Maybe a library. :)

Linda Kittmer said...

Currie, I absolutely love this. Such an interesting altered image. It would be a great piece to thread paint! The colours, textures, etc. are just amazing.

The Artful Diva said...

this composition would look great printed on fabric!

Miriam said...

This is fabulous Currie, the colours are amazing and I can see it on a wall. Well done for playing, isn't it fun?

Anonymous said...

I love the colors too!

Linda Gibbons said...

This is a wonderful piece, Currie! So full of life and joy!

I've used PSE8 for three years now, and am still learning and discovering new things! Don't be intimidated. I swear, the button I click on most is the wonderful--UNDO!

Ahayes1225 said...

Wonderful colors! Thanks for the comments.

lorik said...

Like you, I rarely do flowers too - i am drawn to rocks instead! I too have been impressed with what others have done with flowers here - and I do love what you did! The colours are fantastic - really like the "unexpected" combination of orange and pink- and for some reason it reminds me of summer and the beach.I like the loose line work defining the shapes too and the repeated layer behind. And the way the flower just "pops" up out of it all.

I was interested to read what you did using Picasa - i have never actually used it - and am now inspired to try. Especially since at the moment I only have access to an old version of PS on someone else's computer.

Thanks for visiting and your comments too Currie:))

kareninkenai said...

I like this one a lot, Currie. Beautiful colors and excellent processing - often times we just don't know what is truly going to happen - it's just comes to fruition; rather like all art really. thanks for sharing. kareninkenai

Mariane said...

Oh That is beautiful your abstract picture... Thanks for visiting my site and the tutorials ;)(The EDIT your Photo site) always nice to help .. Thanks

Deborah said...

fantastic and thank you for sharing your workflow!

smiles, Sharon said...

I would love to see this printed as a piece of fabric...next as a glossy card....you have a winner here. Isn't it fun to start to gain some control over technical things that you want to be creative with?????? And to know you have flowers at your cottage.

Thank you for the visit to my blog.....someday I will work up the courage to post on this one.....smiles: sharon