Photo Light-Box

I did it, I finally made a light photo-box. After himming & hawing for several weeks, I finally made myself a photo light-box. I looked at it as investment for my Esty shop. I picked up supplies from my local Staples: a box, poster board & packing tape. Once home I gathered all my supplies plus the several sets of instructions I acquired from Etsy's Storque & various blogs. I glanced over all the instructions once then I went to work.

There are some great instructions out there including my sources: http://www.etsy.com/storque/how-to/fortys-foto-tips-2-make-a-light-box-244/ and http://digital-photography-school.com/how-to-make-a-inexpensive-light-tent . I am not going to re-create the wheel here, but share my experience of making the box.

I chose the size box, 12"x18"x12" because I wanted a large field & the ability to change the background & be able to use my 13" Ott Lite table lamp. To allow the flexibility I wanted I made the windows large & completely cut off 2 sides. I made an accident right off the bat & completely cut off the wrong side; that's what happens when you are dyslexic! Besides being the wrong side, it left the box too unstable. I ended up resolving this by making a foam board window for that side & eventually L brackets on the outside. I made a total of 4 windows. The next step was to line the inside with white poster board. You could make the whole box out of white foam board & eliminate this step. I decided not to attach diffusing fabric to the windows for several reasons so I used a curtain draped over the box as a make-shift diffuser. I forgot to purchase fabric & I want to be able to have access through all the windows to change to layout. I think it turned out pretty nifty. Another feature that was necessary was that it had to be compact, I live in a studio apartment & shoot pictures in my very large window. My photo box allows me to take nice pictures & not depend on the weather or time of day & keeps my workspace relatively neat.

Labyrinths 101

Believe it or not, i just realized I have never blogged about labyrinths and that is a focus of my artwork... this deceased estrogen stuff is getting to me. What exactly is a labyrinth? Labyrinths are ancient, sacred, symbols, that have 1 path in and the same path out. They are one of the oldest contemplative and transformational tools known to human kind. Labyrinths have been used for centuries for prayer, ritual, initiation and personal and spiritual growth. It is a form of moving mediation that engages the the body, mind and spirit together. I have a difficult time staying still, so this concept worked well for me! Walking the calming circuitous path addresses many psycho-spiritual needs: it can be a path to healing and wholeness in the face of change, facilitates the flow of creativity, provides inspiration, acts as a mirror to our life - reflecting an image of ourselves or serve as a moving mediation or form of prayer. Labyrinths are identified by the number of circuits or concentric paths with the the most familiar being the 7-circuit Cretan and the 12-circuit Chartes Cathedral Labyrinths. A finger labyrinth is a portable version of the full sized walking labyrinth, providing all the same benefits of a labyrinth in an accessible package. One of my missions as a healer and an artist has been to create accessible labyrinths initially for my self, now for others. Creating with the image of the labyrinth has been a healing mediation for myself.

You Rock #1

YouRock#1
Originally uploaded by jmliss

Well this makes blogging very convenient. Over the past several weeks I have been posting my beach stones on my etsy site. I have been making my beach stones for 4 years now. The very first set I made were gifts to friends at my 39th birthday. I was caught up in "The Lord of the Rings" fever, so I followed the hobbit tradition of giving gifts away on your birthday. I also made up a bunch of labyrinth and word stones, something I had been wanting to try for a while. Several stores in Dover carry them & they have been quite a hit.

The beach stones range in size from 1"- 8". Each stone is hand picked from the NH, ME or MA seacoast. Most recently I have been making my beach stones out of stones collected at an incredible beach in Rockport, MA. Appropriately named Pebble Beach, it is loaded with tons of well worn beach stones. The colors of the stones are quite amazing, ranging from white, to butterscotch, to blue gray granite. The images I use transverse a variety of spiritual symbols including: labyrinths, Celtic motifs, Egyptian icons, Ohm & various uplifting & meaningful words. I have added some new words (words that were suggested by my tweeters) and images including animal totems and some new labyrinth shapes and will be posting them soon. I let each stone tell me what it want's to be decorated with. When finished it is then covered with 2 layers of environmentally friendly varnish to protect the image. The most minimal amount of varnish is put on the body of the stone to maintain its natural qualities.

I love making my beach stones. They are fun to create and people really just love them! I have me many individuals that have bought my stones and was always pleased to hear they went to good homes or locations. Anyway, I posted a slide show of what I have listed on etsy so far. I hope you enjoy it. More to come.

Goodbye to a Friend...

It's been some time since I updated my blog. I was all set to catch up this week and post some of my recent activities, but I was sidetracked. Wednesday morning I received an e-mail telling me one of my dearest childhood friends had suddenly died. Remember when you were in grade school and you made friends with someone you instantly felt in sync with that person, that was my connection with Robert. We met in 4th grade, I can remember the very moment, well at least one of our first interactions. Robert had seriously lacerated his hand the evening before, his entire palm was in stitches. I had vivid memories of him describing his injury, it was so intriguing... we were forever friends from that moment on. College takes you away from home and paths seem to drive people to various locations. We met up at our 20th High School Reunion in 2004 and spent some good time together. Robert had 2 children and a lovely wife. Several years earlier a very close friend was killed by a drunk driver, Robert named his son after Joe. He was a doctor and (as beautifully stated by a friend on FB today) a warrior. A very talented and successful man with a great sense of humor. We promised to visit each others homes and remain in contact but time seemed to take over again. Then 1 night, after returning from a Beatles's tribute show (1964 The Tribute, they are amazing) I returned home to a FB greeting from Robert. How wonderful... I had just come across some old photos of him the day before. We chatted and made promises to call... I posted the funny pictures and notified a bunch of friends that he was on FB. I knew we would have plenty of time to catch up... My deepest sympathy for Robert's wife Lisa and family. Always in our heart's and deeply etched in mine... from 4th grade and forever.

Blog Neglect...Guilty!

My poor neglected little blog... you have not been forgotten. Been busy working the day job (occupational therapy) & making a batch of beach stones for my etsy shop. Have hope, that over the weekend you will receive plenty of TLC from me! Until then, you must hold fast to hope!  

More Experimenting

 Its fun to play with the features that come with photo softwear.  Here I was playing around w/Picassa,  I took my Beatles Green-Love Collage- The Word & just went all crazy with the effects. I think it looks pretty cool. I will have to create something out of this...

Loneliness

Loneliness
Originally uploaded by old76/suezq

This is a great piece I saw on Flickr. This artist has some wonderful Beatles colleges I will probably blog about them in the near future. This one hit me hard because of my issues of loneliness. To think that somebody so loved by the public was so alone. I have been trying to figure out how to create a piece that would show feelings of loneliness & this one captures that emotion perfectly. Funny thing is that MM does not sad or in despair in this picture, & the information states it was one of her last soots. I think her pain is hidden deep in her eyes. Like John Lennon , deep in the soul, slipping out when they thought no one was looking that little child came peeking out. There are several songs I refer to as my theme songs due to the topic of loneliness & this line from the song "Candle in the Wind" has been one that hits deep in the heart. What a lovely tribute to a talented & sad person. You will never be alone again MM.

New Magnets of my OOAK Collages

Today I added to the repertoire of shop items on my etsy site today. I created magnets from images of several of my OOAK collages. The Horse Whisperer paper sculpture & the Green Beatles-Love Collage-The Word are now available as magnets.  I am a sucker for magnets, my fridge is covered w/them.  Some hold up notices or things I want to remember, but the rest are there to show off my interests (like a local Beatles Tribute Band), favorite take out places & inspirational words for the day. Now I have 2 replicas of my artwork staring at me whenever I get a glass of milk.  More to come including the 2nd Green Beatles-Love Collage-The End.