Artists Down Under - Australia and New Zealand - February 2019

DOWN UNDER Australia and New Zealand

issue 23 - feb 2019 | digital artistry

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06 E D I T O R ’ S M E S S A G E

by Pam Henderson

40- I L O N A A B O U - Z O L O F 41 - A b a n d o n e d H o u s e G h o s t

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C LY D E S C O R G I E - Tu r n e d To S t o n e

- Sorcery

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PHOTOSHOP ARTISTRY

by Sebastian Michaels

08- N E W S / W H AT ’ S O N 11 b y A D U M e m b e r s - Care For Africa Raf fle

- Care For Africa Foundation and WorldPix.org - Water From Ar t - Helping Women with Endometriosis - T he Summer Show E xhibition

12- A R T I S T S A C H I E V E M E N T S 27 - F a c e b o o k P a g e - Light Space & Time

- Living The Photo Ar tistic Life - Shif tar t Challenge

42- M A R I S A L I B E R AT O 43 - S o m e o n e I s A l w a y s W a t c h i n g

- Australian Photographic Society

44 D E N N I S R I C K A R D - Intent

45- A R T I C L E 51 b y J u d i L a p s l e y

72- A R T I C L E 75 S O M E P H O T O S H O P

- 2019 Wildlife and Native Photography Challenge

52- A L I O P P Y 53 - A w a k e n i n g

- Gothic Queen

54- S O N I A P U S E Y 55 - G l i s s a n d o

INSP IR AT ION

by Andrew Haysom

Miller

56- S H A R O N R A N K M O R E 57 - F a m i l y

- Harmony

- Sunflower

- Coona

29 P E N N Y D E J O N G

- Man K ind Rules T he Univer se - T he Future Is On T he Way

30- PA M H E N D E R S O N 31 - D e c i s i o n s - Spring time Visitor

32- A N T H E A S C O T T E 33 - C i r c u s G i r l - Urban Cool

76- A N N W E H N E R 77 - S u l t r y E y e s

- Tr u e B e a u t y L i e s W i t h i n

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MARGARET K ALMS

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A N D R E W H AY S O M

- Dancing In The Castle

- Autumn Ascension

- Cheetah

- One Life

59- F E AT U R E D A R T I S T SUE JOY 65 - Lady In Waiting - Chive Flowers

- 2018 Wildlife and Native Photography Challenge

38- D E N I S E M c D E R M O T T 39 - M i r r o r , M i r r o r - T ime Is An Illusion

- Przewalski Horse - Draught Horses I

82- T R I S H H O S K I N 83 - M a r k e t P r e c i n c t - Rialto Bridge

84- A R T I C L E 86 2 L I L’ O W L S

- Lady Pods - In The Beginning

- On T he Hunt - Tw in s - As T he Crow Flies - Bio

66 J U L I A H A R W O O D - Sea Eagle

IN T ERVIE W

b y Tr i s h H o s k i n

- Fancy Feathers

- Day Of T he Sunflowers Miller

80- K A R E N WA A L W Y K 81 - P r z e w a l s k i F o a l

58 G E R A R D W H E L A N

- Queen Of T he Forest

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- Sunset Voyage

- Networks

28 D I E P T R A N

34- A R T I C L E 37 b y J u d i L a p s l e y

70- B A R B A R A D U D Z I N S K A 71 - S u n s e t D r e a m s

- Ambling

- Star Gazing

- Ar t Sold

- High Priestess

- Esme And T he Lost Budgie

- ACS Magazine - Manhattan Ar ts

68- C H R I S T I N A B R U N T O N 69 - S t e a m p u n k V i o l i n i s t

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MICK ROONEY - Cyber face - Inter flora

88- D E A N H O H N 89 - A w a i t i n g M y T i m e - I ’m N e x t

90- M A R Y K N A G G S 91 - A R o s e I s A R o s e

- Sunset Couple - Seminyak Bali

92 H E L E N A K E R S T R O M - Gigi

114- K E V I N S I M S 115 - S h i p S h a n t y

128- M A U R E E N M A X W E L L 129 - J a p a n e s e To u r i s t R o u t e

116- K AY E V I S O N 117 - E l o i s e

130 C O L I N K I L L I C K

118- R O C H E L L E M A R S H A L L 119 - F u r i a n

131 P H I L L I PA F R E D E R I K S E N

120 E D W I N L E U N G

132- A N N A L C O C K 133 - B r o w n C u c k o o D o v e

- T h o u g h t ’s M e l a n g e

- Cheetah B&W

93- F E AT U R E D A R T I S T THYSJE ARTHUR 99 - Contemplation

- A Place Called Home - Scarecrow - T he Cot tage In T he Woods - W i n d o w Tr e a t m e n t

- T he Furies

- Dragonfly

- Fully Charged

- T i m e To F i n d A B e t t e r R e e f

- Obsidian

- Iris

- Sunrise At Snapper Rocks - Emerging From T he Mist

- Time And Tide - Door Of Time - Here Sits A Bear

- Going Home

- L ady In Red

- Moon Rising

- Bio

- Canadian Goose

134- M I K E K A N E 135 - M o r n i n g L i g h t

121- F E AT U R E D A R T I S T JULIE POWELL 127

100- D A L E B O T H A 101 - D o n ’ t L o o k B a c k

- Sanctuar y

- Wisteria

- Floating

- Cleopatra I

102- C O L I N C A M P B E L L 103 - I n t r o v e r t ’s O a s i s

- From T he Folio Of Skies

- Cleopatra II - Hamlet - W hen Dr a g on s W hi s per In Your Ear

136- G E O R G E K O N C Z 137 - A s h l e y I n C o l o u r e d

Background

- Kati With The Golden Hair

- Fair y tales

104- A L B A M A S S 105 - T i n h e a d C h a r m

- T he Night Protector

- Rock y Mountain Road

- Siren - Goldilocks - Just Resting

106- V I K I M U R R AY 107 - E n c h a n t m e n t I I

138- A N N L AV I N 139 - B l a c k A n d W h i t e - Monocle

- Bio

- Wish Upon A Breeze

108- A R T I C L E 109 C H I N E S E W H I S P E R S

#15

by Maureen Max well

FRONT COVER

by ROCHELLE MARSHALL - Sapphire Blues

110 LY N N J E N K I N - Montemor - Jota

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LY N D A R L I N G T O N - Lit tle Cutie - T he L ion Deno te s P o wer, Aggression And ...

112- J U D I L A P S L E Y M I L L E R 113 - P r o f e s s o r P o l l y - The Big Idea

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Viki Murray - Sanctuary

Penny De Jong - Bicycle

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Dale Botha - A Bed Of Roses

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aD rOt W i s tNs U N D E R Australia and New Zealand

EDITOR’S MESSAGE Welcome to the February edition of Artists Down Under, proudly put together to showcase our very talented artists from all over Australia and New Zealand.

Well summer has finally hit with a vengence in Australia as we sit and swelter under 46 degree heat, we walk our paddocks and they sound like walking over a floor of Rice Bubbles and our swimming pools feel more like spa baths on high heat, but we wouldn’t change it for the world. We surely are the lucky country ...

We have another jam packed edition for you, so I hope you all enjoy it.

Judi Lapsley Miller ends her 2018 Art Of Birding Wildlife and Nature Photography Challenge, and kicks of the 2019 season with more enjoyable self paced challenges for all you budding photographers wanting to join in.

Dean Hohn’s “The Summer Show” exhibition nears an end so if you are in the area, pop in and see his talented works before it’s too late.

Our ever favourite Andrew Haysom shares with us another of his easy to follow Photoshop tutorials. This month is part 1 of a two part series as he explains to us all about the Path and the Pen Tools.

Trish Hoskins interviews the ever popular Denise Love from 2 Lil’ Owls, an interview I personally found very inspirational.

The Redlands Digital Artists are back in full force and share with us a new image in their Chinese Whispers series called “Tick Tock.”

For anyone that is interested in Still Life Photography, our very own artist Julie Powell is now offering two easy to follow on-line classes. Be sure to visit her website for further information.

Well my time has come to say goodbye until this time next month, in the meantime, stay cool and most important make sure you all stay safe.

Pam Henderson

I am delighted to introduce our Feature Artists this month - Sue Joy, Thysje Arthur and Julie Powell. Three very talented artists that I am sure you will all agree with.

Lastly I would like to congratulate all of our artists and their achievements for the past month. Make sure you click on the links to view full interviews and awards.

Mike Kane - Joan Of Arc Backgrounds: Foxy Squirrell Laitha’s Designs - Jai Johnson - White Lane Studio Copyright 2017 ©

Colin Killick - Hounds Tor

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Artists in this publication are responsible for any rights appertaining to their work.

HTTPS://PROPHOTOSHOPARTISTRY.COM

Image by: Gail Edwards, Photoshop Artistry Student (Canada) Portfolio at: https://artboja.com/art/gvw704/

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aD rOt W i s tNs U N D E R Australia and New Zealand

NEWS

Care for Africa The raffle image has been kindly printed and donated by Print 2 Metal in Melbourne in support of the Care For Africa Foundation. A huge thank you to Marie and Frank for their ongoing support.

The raffle image is titled “Water Is Life ll”. The image is a Unique State image and a collaboration between Nigel Lazenby and myself. The image is 20”x30” printed on ultra gloss white coated aluminium with a floating frame.

The raffle will be drawn on a date TBA. Raffle tickets are available 1 for $5, 3 for $10. Tickets are available by emailing Dean at dean.hohn@bigpond.com.

You can also purchase tickets online direct from Care For Africa.

Direct deposit into: Care for Africa: BSB: 037608 Acc: 387249 or Email: jennysaunders122@gmail.com Will ship to anywhere in Australia.

Digital Art links the Care For Africa Foundation with WorldPix.org!

Never think for a minute people don’t take notice of your art and what you’re doing. Especially if it’s for a good cause!

I got noticed by Mike Goldner, at ArtisanHD, from my ArtBoja page, who in turn told Paul Lynch, the founder of WorldPix.org about the work I was doing with the Care For Africa Foundation, raising funds for drilling fresh water wells. Thank you Mike Goldner for passing my information on to Paul Lynch.

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It is coming up 12 months ago that Paul first contacted me to see if I would be interested in joining their group, who are doing similar work to what I’m doing for the Care For Africa Foundation, in various locations around the world.

I said yes and filled out the application form, but I didn’t really meet the requirements of their organization because I have never been to Tanzania and therefore couldn’t provide images of the people or animals from the villages we are supporting.

Dean L Hohn My dream is to visit the Tarime District of Tanzania and spend time with the villagers and attempt to capture their stories and include them in my gallery.

The Care For Africa Foundation, that I am raising funds for is based in Launceston, Tasmania. As a result of not having been to Tanzania, the board of WorldPix has been gracious enough to allow me to use my digital art images from around Tasmania, until such time as I’m able to actually visit Tanzania. I thank them for this privilege.

Combine that with the fact I did digital art instead of straight photography and it took a bit for the board You can see my gallery of images at https:// to work out how I could fit into their organization. worldpix.org/galleries-2/ In the end, we have overcome the hurdles and I am delighted to be a member of WorldPix.org.

Dean Hohn

Care for Africa Cont ...

WATER FROM ART As many of you will know, my “WHY”, is using my art to support the Care for Africa Foundation to drill fresh water wells in the 6 villages it supports in the Tarime District of Tanzania. These villages are off the tourist route and therefore received no form of aid until the Care For Africa Foundation heard about their plight and decided to do something to help.

It was the middle of June 2016 when a friend and fellow photographer posted some of her designs on Facebook that the idea of using my art for designs on clothing and scarves hit me. I asked her if she would mind if I copied the idea, of using my art on clothing and she said no.

The end of June 2016 I launched my Nuna Collection, with designs originating from my rock art that dated back to the Nuna Era. As a designer I receive a commission of 10% for each piece that is sold and I in turn donate all proceeds to the Care For Africa Foundation.

My designs have evolved over time and my latest designs are more contemporary and varied. You can view the collection at

https://tinyurl.com/yc5ar9gw

I also do custom designs and if you would like something created especially for you, you can contact me at dean.hohn@bigpond.com and I will be glad to discuss it with you.

The scarves are available in Modal, Cashmere Modal, Cashmere Silk and 100% Cashmere. If you find a design you would like in a fabric other than shown, please contact me and I’ll add it and let you know when it’s available to order.

I’m truly grateful for the support I’ve received to date and would appreciate any support you can give me in the future.

Dean L Hohn Below are samples of some of my latest designs.

Crossing The T - Sheer Wrap

Coral - Colour Of 2019 Statement Bag

Coral - Colour Of 2019 Sheer Wrap

Coral Gladioli CSS

Coral - Colour Of 2019 - 6

Coral - Colour Of 2019 - 5

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Helping Women with Endometriosis 50% of profit donated to endometriosis research

My compassion inspires my photoart which I show in presentations to raise awareness. I joined Awake to teach me advanced Photoshop skills, specifically to expand my photoartistic skills to create imaginative and dramatic images.

26 women with endometriosis have told me about their experiences. They spoke to me about their concerns and collaborated during the photo session. We explored meanings of body, ideas of self and impacts of illness together, agreeing which ideas we would explore photographically.

My photos are often carefully arranged, but that doesn’t mean they are fake. They represent the personal truth and experiences of 26 women with endometriosis. These women are remembering and acting out their OWN experiences. They choose their own stance and facial expression.

Women with endometriosis are the only people who truly know what endometriosis FEELS like.

My photoart opens dialogue enabling freer expression of hidden feelings, experiences too private to mention in ordinary conversation. I create photoart inspired by the concerns of women with endometriosis. Several women have said that the process of imaging their suffering has helped them to face their pain and illness. There is immense strength in being heard. I want my photoart to become visual screams!!

Unfortunately endometriosis is relatively common; an estimated 1 in 10 women living with endometriosis, being over 175,000,000 women worldwide! And an estimated 500,000 women in Australia! Their experiences are heartbreaking. Regular illness and debilitating pain result in missed education and poor career opportunities leaving them women vulnerable to poverty.

When I first heard about endometriosis I felt a deep compassion and need to do what I could to help.

Women with endometriosis suffer debilitating pain, disruptive symptoms and often endure multiple operations simply to function normally. Few people are patient when listening to descriptions of pain, symptoms or illness. This can have the effect of silencing people who are ill.

Share ‘EndoWomanArt’ with your friends on social media to raise awareness and money for women’s health!

We all need clothes & household goods. Buy yourself a treat or buy a special gift for your friends. Make your shopping count!

Remember 50% of profit goes to endometriosis research!

https://w w w.redbubble.com/ people/EndoWomanArt/shop Follow ‘Life with Endometriosis’:

ht t p s : / / w w w. f a c e b o o k . c o m / LifeWithEndometriosis See Margaret Kalms photoart, ‘Life with Endometriosis’:

http://www.endowomanart.com Margaret Kalms

Women with endometriosis need real medical progress to reduce their suffering. I passionately desire to raise money for endometriosis research so that faster diagnoses are made and more effective treatments are found. To raise money for endometriosis research, I host events and sell products on Redbubble. Recently I gave $3,000 to Canberra Endometriosis Centre!

Bunch Of Butterflies On Grevillea Sweatshirt

Butterflies False Colour Grey Stripes

Bunch Of Butterflies On Grevillea Pencil Case

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WHAT’S ON Dean Hohn The Summer Show Gallery Pejean

10 December 2018 - 2 February 2019 9 Pelican Street, Tewantin, QLD 4565 http://www.noosaregionalgallery.com.au/coming-soon

“THE SUMMER SHOW” EXHIBITION The “Summer Show” Group Exhibition of 13 artists has been hung in Gallery Pejean in Launceston, Tasmania.

My piece, “Enlightenment” is the blue/purple abstract, second from the right in this photo. The piece was created on my iPad Pro using Procreate and iColorama. I then took it into Photoshop to finish it off and used On1 Resize to increase the size so it could be printed at 42” x 42” (107 cm x 107 cm) on canvas.

The exhibition runs from 10 December to 2 February.

“Enlightenment” 42”X42” (107cm X107cm) digital Mixed Media printed on canvas. $1500

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Andrew Haysom - Sunset Flight

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artists down under monthly Achievements

Leanne M Williams - Beautiful Crimson Rosella

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artists down under facebook

Dale Botha - Tempus Fugit

page

Denise McDermott - Believe In Your Dreams

The Artists Down Under Public Facebook page has been set up to allow the artists in the group to showcase their work and to enable them to share promotional information about themselves, e.g. exhbitions, awards etc...

You can find the Artists Down Under Public Facebook page at this address; https://www.facebook.com/groups/ArtistsDownUnder/ So, if you are an artist in the group, don’t forget to regularly share your work and information here, and to let your friends and family know about the page if they are interested in viewing the latest art and news from the group.

If you are a reader of the magazine who does not have access to the page, please click the link above and request to join.

When you request to join you will be asked to answer three simple questions that will allow us to determine if you are an eligible artist who may wish to join the group and therefore be able to post on the page, or a member of the public who can view, comment and like the work on the page.

It’s a great place to see some great art from this vibrant group every day!

Margo Zerbes - High Tide Ann Wehner - I’m Waiting For The Day

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Louise Smith - Bloom Viki Murray - Paris End Of Melbourne

Colin Campbell - Etude

Three ADU members receive a special gift Our very good Awake friends Teddi Rutschman of Foxey Squirrel and Diane Stafford from WhiteLaneStudio continue to give gifts as a reward for members of the Artists Down Under group who contribute to the ADU Facebook page by regularly posting their artworks and supporting other members with their comments.

Teddi, from Virginia, USA, is well known for her fantastic sets of digital designer backgrounds, masks and all kinds of wonderful elements ready for designers to add to or build a wondrous creation.

Teddi Rutshman can be found at

http://www.foxeysquirrel.com/ http://www.oscraps.com/shop/Foxeysquirrel

The February lucky winners are Teddi Rutschman (Foxy Squirrel) Gift Voucher of $10.00 - Anthea Scotte Dianne Stafford (WhiteLaneStudio) texture & Overlay Kit - Robyn Garnett - Viki Murray

Teddi has given a $10.00 voucher for one very lucky member to spend in her on-line shop.

Diane Stafford from Chester, UK, designs Photoshop textures and overlays for photo artists and photographers to use in their digital artworks. Diane has created another special kit just for Artists Down Under for the month of February.

Two artists will receive a Diane kit each.

Diane Stafford can be found at

https://www.etsy.com/shop/whitelanestudio

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Light Space and Time

“All Women” Art Exhibition

Julie Powell - Cleopatra

Overall Winning Artist Category 9th Place - Julie Powell - “Cleopatra”

Photography and Digital Media Category 5th Place - Julie Powell - “Cleopatra” 6th Place - Ilona Abou-Zolof - “Giraffe Paradise”

Christina Brunton - Steampunk Scientist

Honorable Mention Category Christina Brunton - “Steampunk Scientist” Rochelle Marshall - “Arethusa”

Special Recognition Ilona Abou-Zolof - “System 46” Christina Brunton - “Posh” Julie Powell - “Siren” Julie Powell - Siren

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Light Space and Time (cont ...)

“All Women” Art Exhibition

Christina Brunton - Posh

Ilona Abou-Zolof - Giraffe Paradise

Ilona Abou-Zolof - System 46

Rochelle Marshall - Arethusa

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LIVING THE PHOTO ARTISTIC LIFE https://issuu.com/thephotoartisticlife/docs/issue47-final?e=15580327/67086946 Dale Botha - Tempus Fugit Denise McDermott - Sky Train - Mirror Mirror Ann Lavin - A Story Comes To Life - Stormy Night Julie Powell - Surrender Louise Smith - The Lonely Road Viki Murray - Upon A Hill - Enchantment Rochelle Marshall - Obsidian - Raven Ali Oppy - Siofra Sonia Pusey - Listen To Your Heart Christina Brunton - Steampunk Skirt Tossing Trish Hoskin - Everything Old Is New Again - The Coolie’s Hat Sue Masterson - Magic And Mystery Diep Tran - Harmony - Sunflower

Ann Lavin - A Story Comes To Life

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Christina Brunton - Steampunk Skirt Tossing

Ali Oppy - Siofra

Denise McDermott - Sky Train

Denise McDermott - Mirror, Mirror

Viki Murray - Enchantment

Sonia Pusey - Listen To Your Heart

LIVING THE PHOTO ARTISTIC LIFE (cont ...)

Rochelle Marshall - Obsidian Viki Murray - Upon A Hill

Diep Tran - Sunflower

Julie Powell - Surrender

Rochelle Marshall - Raven

Louise Smith - The Lonely Road Diep Tran - Harmony Dale Botha - Tempus Fugit

Trish Hoskin - Everything Old Is New Again

Trish Hoskin - The Coolie’s Hat

Ann Lavin - Stormy Night

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shift art challenge january 2019 Congratulations to the following artists for their placings in the January 2019 Shiftart Challenge.

“Visions Of The Future” Honourable Mention - Colin Killick - “Buying A Used Spaceship” - Rochelle Marshall - “Event Horizon” - Ali Oppy - “Future Fashion” Being Noticed - Ann Lavin - “Future Thoughts - Penny De Jong - Lost In Space

Colin Killick - Buying A Used Spaceship

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shift art challenge

Penny De Jong - Lost In Space

Ann Lavin - Future Thoughts

Ali Oppy - Future Fashion

Rochelle Marshall - Event Horizon

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ACS Magazine Interview with Christina Brunton https://www.acs-mag.com/?fbclid=IwAR25qdo5vcpksp254FZRV2kB31sDXN0dKh3HOeSgHiIwBAal-nlcYGgY9nU

Congratulations Christina on your Interview in the ACS magazine.

Be sure to click on the link and see Christina’s interview and her amazing images in more detail.

Steampunk Scientist

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Steampunk Violinist

ACS magazine (Cont ...)

Coming In For Landing

Exhibition - Birds

Penny Farthing Ride

High Priestess

Wolf Whisperer

Drink Up Little One

Dusk n Tusks

Speckled Black Cockatoo

Male Red-Tailed Black Cockatoo

Female Red-Tailed Black cockatoo

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manhattan arts new york Margaret Kalms Congratulations goes to Margaret Kalms for having a photo accepted in “The Healing Power Of Art’, an international exhibition by Manhattan Arts in New York.

The Healing Power of Art recognises the potential of art as a healing medium and showcases a wide variety of techniques. This is a curated international exhibition with a limited selection of 60 artists.

Exhibition runs until 10 March 2019.

https://manhattanarts.com/the-healing-power-of-art-2019-art-exhibition/

Lots Of Blood

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australian photographic society Marisa Liberato Congratulations to Marisa Liberato, Marisa won the “Gold Medal” for her image “Osprey Mother Feeding Her Three Chicks” in the 5th Australian Photographic Society’s Nature 2018 competition, and a Merit for her image “Orchard Swallowtail Butterfly”. Marisa also won two merits in the Australian Photographic Society National 2018 competition for her images “Osprey Mother Feeding Her Three Chicks” and “Decisions, Decisions”.

Osprey Mother Feeding Her Three Chicks Orchard Swallowtail Butterfly

Decisions, Decisions

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art sold Congratulations to Dean Hohn for the successful sale of four of his prints at the Waubs Bay Gallery in Bicheno, Tasmania.

The prints are 12”x 18” (30cm x 45cm) in size.(16”x 24” including matt) They were printed using an Epson 7880 Series Inkjet Printer with Ultra Chrome K3 archival inks on museum grade Willian Turner Hahnemuhle paper. All prints are limited editions.

Bay Of Fires 2 1/5

Bicheno Blowhole 1/5

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art sold

BB 1/5

On The Rocks

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HARMONY

SUNFLOWER

by DIEP TR AN

Australia

https://www.facebook.com/tranphotography/ https://www.instagram.com/trandiep1234/

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MAN KIND RULES THE UNIVERSE

T H E F U T U R E I S O N T H E WAY

by PENNY DE JONG

Australia

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DECISIONS

by PA M HENDERSON

Australia

https://www.facebook.com/snapnshootdesigns/ https://artboja.com/art/dmfi9d

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SPRINGTIME VISITOR

by PA M HENDERSON

Australia

https://www.facebook.com/snapnshootdesigns/ https://artboja.com/art/dmfi9d

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CIRCUS GIRL

by ANTHE A SCOT TE

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Australia

URBAN COOL

by ANTHE A SCOT TE

Australia

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Art of Birding 2018 Wildlife & Nature Photography Challenge

Join Judi on a year-long weekly photography challenge, designed especially for nature and wildlife photographers. Storytelling, wildlife advocacy, and creative/artistic photography is where her heart is, and she hopes to encourage more photographers and photo-artists to not just stop at the perfect wild life picture but to take it further. These weekly challenges will encourage you to think about how your images can be composed and used to advocate for our precious wildlife (story), to hook the viewer in with compelling, creative images (creative), and to increase your technical skills and development (technical).

She has created each challenge so that most people can participate, regardless of skill level or where you live in the world (though you will notice a New Zealand bias!). Most challenges can be achieved with just a camera phone. Don’t worry about catching up, just jump in at the current week.

From amateurs with just a cellphone to professionals with the latest gear, the participants in the AoB photo challenge bring many and varied perspectives to the weekly challenges. The challenges are designed to develop skills for wildlife and nature advocacy through visual storytelling, creativity and learning new photographic techniques. If you want to start using your photography for good causes, do join us.

Details at https://www.artbyjlm.com/art-of-birding-2018.html

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I would just like to congratulate everyone who stayed with the challenge for the entire year, I was overwhelmed with the wonderful photos everyone posted.

And now we are off into 2019 and it’s even bigger and better.

Judi Lapsley Miller

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Art of Birding 2018 Wildlife & Nature Photography Challenge Photographers’ Photos from Prior Weeks

The next generation Variable Oyster Catchers, torea, guarding their chick at Opoutere.

Week 49: (The Next Generation)

Kaylene Helliwell (Hamilton, NZ)

Native hanging orchid - Dendrobium cunninghamii

Week 50: Focus Stacking (technical)

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Paul Jenare (Nelson, NZ)

Art of Birding 2018 Wildlife & Nature Photography Challenge Photographers’ Photos from Prior Weeks

Roseate Spoonbill family

Week 51: Family (Story)

David Hattori (Apex, North Carolina, USA)

From bud to flower and pollination by a honey bee a new seed head will form, new plants will grow and the cycle of the swan plant will begin again. Growing and feeding the beautiful monarch butterflies that visit to lay their eggs and feed their caterpillars.

Week 52: New Beginnings (Your Interpretation)

Catherine Thompson (Manawatu, NZ)

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MIRROR, MIRROR

by DENISE McDERMOT T

Australia

https://www.imagesbydenise.net

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TIME IS AN ILLUSION

by DENISE McDERMOT T

Australia

https://www.imagesbydenise.net

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ABANDONED HOUSE GHOST

by ILONA ABOU -ZOLOF

Australia

https://www.zolof.net/ https://artboja.com/art/4zzu8q/

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SORCERY

by ILONA ABOU -ZOLOF

Australia

https://www.zolof.net/ https://artboja.com/art/4zzu8q/

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R E S I S T I N G T E M P TAT I O N

S O M E O N E I S A L WAY S WAT C H I N G b y M A R I S A L I B E R AT O

Australia

https://www.marisalphotography.com

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ESME AND THE LOST BUDGIE b y M A R I S A L I B E R AT O

Australia

https://www.marisalphotography.com

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AMBLING

INTENT

by DENNIS RICK ARD

Australia

https://ink361.com/app/users/ig-3279276017/dennisrickard/photos

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Art of Birding 2019

Wildlife & Nature Photography Challenge 45

For the second year, join us on a year-long weekly photography challenge, designed especially for nature and wildlife photographers.

Storytelling, wildlife advocacy and creative/artistic photography is where my heart is and I hope to encourage more photographers to not just stop at taking gorgeous wildlife photos, but to take them further.

These weekly challenges encourage you to think about how your images can be composed and used to advocate for our precious wildlife (story), to hook the viewer in with compelling creative images (creative), and to increase your technical skills and development (technical).

I have created each challenge so that most people can participate, regardless of skill level or where you live in the world (though you will notice a New Zealand bias!). Most challenges can be achieved with just a camera phone. Be warned - you will (hopefully!) be pushed outside your comfort zone, and you will likely need to do some Googling to learn more about new techniques, but that’s also the point:) This is your challenge - do as much or as little as you want and in your own timeframe - it’s up to you to decide what works best for you. I do encourage you to take photos for the challenges, rather than digging through your archives. You can take photos in advance and “bank” them and you can do them out of order. All I ask is that you try to take the photos intentionally with the challenges in mind, rather than retrofitting an image to fit the theme.

With an emphasis on storytelling and advocacy, I encourage you to post your images to social media (especially Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Flickr) and to your blog if you have one. Use hashtags to enable us to find and share your images. Challenge hashtags: #artofbirding, #artofbirding2019, #aob2019week1 through to #abo2019week52. Find the hashtags used by the conservation projects you are photographing, e.g. #sharemesealandia, #orokonui, so they can pick up and share your photos too. Use the hashtags commonly used for your critter: e.g., #kaka, #takahe, along with #conservation, #wildlife, and many more general terms.

Join our Facebook group and post your potos, discuss the challenges, and get and give help:

https://www.facebook.com/groups/aobphotochallenge/ Download an iCal (*.ics) calendar or link to the public Google calendar.

© Concept and Challenges by Judi Lapsley Miller

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www.artbyjlm.com

MANUAL MODE (TECHNICAL) Week 06: 04 Feb 2019 Once upon a time there was only manual mode, yet people still took photos. Conquering manual mode is liberating for many photographers - some times it makes photography (especially bird photography) easier, would you believe! Even if you decide to continue using the other modes, having an understanding of the “exposure triangle” and how manual mode works will improve your photography no end and your confidence even more. Deep breath, turn the dial to M. Find out where to set your shutter speed, aperture, and ISO (yes you might need to look in your user manual), and take your time to experiment with what effects they produce. There are loads of excellent tutorials on the internet to help you. After a bit of experimentation, the specific challenge is to shoot a scene on Auto-everything mode and then see if you can improve on the image by using Manual mode. Advanced challenge: go fully manual and use manual focus and manual white balance mode too - take advantage of this by shooting a subject which would be hard to do automatically, e.g. a white or black bird sitting behind twigs.

HABITAT (STORY) Week 07: 11 Feb 2019 Take a photo (or photos) that describes the habitat of a specific organism, i.e. its natural home or environment.

BLACK AND WHITE (CREATIVE) Week 08: 18 Feb 2019 Shoot in black and white mode. To find interesting subjects, look for contrasts and textures.

See if your camera can show you a black and white view through the viewfinder to aid in composition. Advanced challenge: using B&W software to add film effects and borders, such as NIK.

LANDSCAPE (TECHNICAL) Week 09: 25 Feb 2019 A luscious landscape instantly transports the viewer. But there are technical things to consider like which lens, aperture, and focal point to use. There’s no one right decision, but whatever you choose to do, do so intentionally. Advanced challenge: shoot a landscape using a technique the requires multiple images, e.g. panorama, focus stacking, HDR, or if you’re brave - all three!

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FRAME WITHIN A FRAME (CREATIVE) Week 10: 04 Mar 2019 Frame your subject creatively, by looking for natural (or manmade) frames such as branches, leaves, or other elements.

LITTER (STORY) Week 11: 11 Mar 2019 Take a compelling photo of how litter is impacting a natural environment. And perhaps take a bag with you to pick some of it up! Advanced challenge: can you use creative and compositional techniques to create a juxtaposition by making the litter look beautiful and ugly at the same time?

PAINTING (CREATIVE) Week 12: 18 Mar 2019 Take a photo then turn it into a painting. How? You can use painterly effect filters in Photoshop, Topaz Impression, or various apps (many are free or have free trials), or print out your photo and embellish it, or perhaps pull out those paints and brushes and create a painting based on the photo - it’s totally up to you!

SPLIT TONE (TECHNICAL) Week 13: 25 Mar 2019 Split toning adds a colour cast to the highlights and shadows of your photo. It can be subtle or dramatic. Split toning is particularly lovely with black and white images but it can work for any image and can be a nice way to integrate a series of photos. Advanced challenge: split tone a set of related photos.

CLOUDS (CREATIVE) Week 14: 01 Apr 2019 Clouds make for the most beautiful patterns. You can choose whether you keep the horizon and foreground in your photo or whether you shoot just the clouds themselves. Advanced challenge: add a bit of post-processing magic to add a dark-and-moody look. Hint: try increasing the contrast or clarity setting; try decreasing the saturation and level of the blue channel to darken a blue sky.

SERENITY (STORY) Week 15: 08 Apr 2019 Counter the bad news cycle by taking a serene image and share it with the world so we can all experience a moment’s peace.

BOUNCE (TECHNICAL) Week 16: 15 Apr 2019 You don’t need expensive lighting rigs to improve the lighting on your subject. All you need is something white or reflective, e.g. a piece of white cardboard or tinfoil. Find a subject - a flower perhaps - and take a photo. Now without changing anything, use your reflector to bounce light back onto your subject. The light may come from the sun or a lamp. Try moving the reflector around and look closely at how the light changes. Now see if you can improve on your original photo. Hint: use a tripod if you have one so that you have a hand free for the reflector.

HAIKU (CREATIVE) Week 17: 22 Apr 2019 Go out into nature and sit awhile. Soak in your surroundings and use all your senses. Don’t rush to take a photo. When you’re ready, contemplate a photo that might capture some of what you’re feeling, then take it. Now compose a haiku, or if that’s not your thing, a limerick, an ode, a lyric. Share it so we can experience that moment too.

RIVERS (STORY) Week 18: 29 Apr 2019 So many of our rivers are dying. Tell a story about a local river or stream - a good news or a bad news story - you choose.

BLUE HOUR (TECHNICAL) Week 19: 06 May 2019 That magical moment just before dawn or just after sunset lasts only a few minutes but makes for some beautiful light. Use a tripod or support as your shutter speeds will be slow. Advanced challenge: take a photo of a crepuscular critter, which are most active at this time of day.

CLIMATE CHANGE (STORY) Week 20: 13 May 2019 How is climate change affecting where you live? If you haven’t been noticeably impacted yet, document something that is predicted to be impacted within the next few years.

© Concept and Challenges by Judi Lapsley Miller

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www.artbyjlm.com

WATERFOWL AND OTHER WATER BIRDS (CREATIVE) Week 21: 20 May 2019 Can you find a creative way to photograph a bird on the water so that it looks dynamic rather than a passive rubber duck?

OUTSIDE YOUR COMFORT ZONE (TECHNICAL) Week 22: 27 May 2019 Do something that scares you a bit - feel the fear and do it anyway. Will it be a close-up photo of something with too many legs? Trying flash photography? Photographing a person? Spinning the dial on your camera to Manual mode? Take the plunge and let us know how you fare.

MY FAVOURITE CRITTER (STORY) Week 23: 03 Jun 2019 This year “My favourite critter” is a “Story” challenge - and specifically a story about a challenge your favourite critter faces in its survival.

VIDEO (TECHNICAL) Week 24: 10 Jun 2019 Virtually all cameras these days come with video capability, but have you truly explored how it works? (I haven’t!) If you’re like me and just press the red button and hope for the best, this week’s challenge is designed to give us a push. Take the next step and find out how to do something more with video such as changing the focus mode to better suit the subject, use slow-motion or fast-motion capture, or similar. Advanced challenge: create an Instagram IGTV or Story video with overlaid text or effects.

MUCKING IN (STORY) Week 25: 17 Jun 2019 Tell a story about a local group who are mucking in and making a difference. You can either shoot the results of their labour or the people themselves in action. Be sure to get permission from any people you photograph, especially if you post the photo online.

MOTION BLUR (CREATIVE) Week 26: 24 Jun 2019 Rather than aiming for that tack-sharp image, use a slow-shutter speed to blur motion of an animal or plant in a creative way. Advanced challenge: use panning and a slow-shutter to capture the sense of movement of a bird in flight.

ENVIRONMENTAL PORTRAIT (TECHNICAL) Week 27: 01 Jul 2019 Hold on to your hats - this may push you well out of your comfort zone (it does for me!). Part of telling stories about wildlife advocacy is highlighting the incredible people doing conservation work. An environmental portrait is a fabulous way to tell a story with a picture of the subject in their environment. Rather than trying to isolate your subject, you’re looking to show them in a setting that describes who they are. Be sure to ask the person permission to use their photo if you intend to post it online. Advanced challenge: use your photo to blog about the amazing work your subject is doing and why it’s important.

SYMBIOSIS (STORY) Week 28: 08 Jul 2019 Show an example of symbiosis, where two organisms have a close, biological interaction.

BACKGROUND (TECHNICAL) Week 29: 15 Jul 2019 Controlling a messy background can make or break your photo but there are some hacks you can use if just moving your feet isn’t enough. This technique works well when photographing flowers and fungi. Use a piece of dark card or fabric - matt not shiny - and position it behind your subject, far enough away that it blurs. Advanced challenge: use a textured background that enhances but doesn’t compete with your subject - some photo-artists even print out textures onto boards so that they don’t have to composite in a background afterwards.

BOKEH (CREATIVE) Week 30: 22 Jul 2019 Last year bokeh was a technical challenge. This year it’s creative. Open up your aperture to its widest setting and look for sparkles. Look at how the size of the bokeh changes depending on how close your subject is to the lens and how far the background is from the subject. Advanced challenge: use an aperture template for your lens to create shaped bokeh - or experiment with attaching a card with a shape cut in it over your lens.

© Concept and Challenges by Judi Lapsley Miller

www.artbyjlm.com

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WINGS (STORY) Week 31: 29 Jul 2019 Tell a story of flight.

RAINBOWS (CREATIVE) Week 32: 05 Aug 2019 Either take a photo of a rainbow or, if nature doesn’t cooperate, light refracting through a bubble or dewdrop, etc.

STARBURST (TECHNICAL) Week 33: 12 Aug 2019 Learn how to take a photo with a starburst effect by setting your aperture to be very narrow and pointing it at a point light source (fairy lights, street lights, the sun). DON’T LOOK THROUGH THE LENS if you use the sun! This technique works well with low sun through twigs. You’ll likely find a tripod handy as the shutter speed might be quite long.

SPIRALS (CREATIVE) Week 34: 19 Aug 2019 Nature is filled with spirals - from sunflower seeds to snail shells and more. Show a natural spiral in a creative, compelling way.

LET YOUR PHOTO FLY FREE (TECHNICAL) Week 35: 26 Aug 2019 Give a gift to the world and donate a photo to Wikimedia Commons for anyone to use. We all use Wikipedia so I believe we should all give a little back too. You can choose what level licence to give (I use CC-BY-4.0: free to use including commercially, but with attribution). Think about a subject that is special to where you live or an exotic place you have travelled. Do you have photos of rare species? A sexy slime mold? A rare lichen? The more esoteric the better - just be sure it’s correctly identified!

BUSY BEES (STORY) Week 36: 02 Sep 2019 Bees are vital to many ecosystems but are imperilled by human activity. Tell a story about either your native or introduced bees.

DOUBLE EXPOSURE (CREATIVE) Week 37: 09 Sep 2019 Somewhere in your camera menu will be a function that allows you to take multiple exposures and overlay them. Use it creatively to superimpose a second picture on top of your main photos. Advanced/Alternative: using Photoshop, blend multiple photos together using blend modes and masking.

CARBON (STORY) Week 38: 16 Sep 2019 Carbon footprint, carbon sequestering, carbon sink, ... carbon is the story of our time. Find an angle and help us understand the role carbon plays in our environment. Advanced: carbon dioxide and methane are both invisible gases - can you find a clever way to illustrate them or their effects visually?

COMPLEMENTARY COLOURS (TECHNICAL) Week 39: 23 Sep 2019 Check out the colour wheel and choose two complementary colours (think red–green, yellow–purple, and blue–orange) and take a photo where those two colours dominate. Don’t get too hung up on exactly which colour model to use - just choose one :). Advanced challenge: go for three colours that are split complementary where one complementary colour is split into two nearby analogous colours.

A CALL TO ACTION (STORY) Week 40: 30 Sep 2019 Cover a local event that has the environment at its heart - perhaps a protest, an art exhibition, a bioblitz, ... Advanced challenge: blog about the event.

INTENTIONAL CAMERA MOVEMENT (CREATIVE) Week 41: 07 Oct 2019 Spin your camera round and round or up and down to get an image with intentional camera movement. Aim to do so in a way that adds to the subject you’re shooting (e.g., up and down movement to capture the majesty of a grove of tall trees). Advanced challenge: use the Path Blur filter in Photoshop to add movement in post-processing.

FOOD CHAIN (STORY) Week 42: 14 Oct 2019 Illustrate the concept of the food chain in a photograph. Advanced challenge: how many different lifeforms in the same food chain can you get in one photograph?

© Concept and Challenges by Judi Lapsley Miller

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SELECTIVE BLUR (TECHNICAL) Week 43: 21 Oct 2019 If you have a lens baby or wide-aperture art lens, you will love this challenge! This technique is also easy if you have a tiny macro lens for your cell phone camera. If you don’t have any of these lenses, fear not, you might have to more carefully choose an appropriate subject but it’s still doable. Using a wide aperture, focus on only one small but important part of the subject, letting the rest fall off into blur. This technique works well for flowers: consider the form of the flower in question and see what first draws your eye - is it a curl of a petal, the curve of the stem, the pop of a stamen? Focus only on that. Think carefully about your composition and where that sweet spot of focus will fall. Hint: you can also use Photoshop or apps to selectively blur in post-processing. Advanced challenge: add a painterly texture.

CREEPY (CREATIVE) Week 44: 28 Oct 2019 Just in time for Halloween, tell a creepy story. It could be about a creepy-crawly, or wherever your imagination takes you.

FOR A FRIEND (TECHNICAL) Week 45: 04 Nov 2019 By now you will have some stunning photos, so let’s do something with them that you can give as a gift and bring joy into someone’s life. Ideas: design a calendar, print greeting cards, print and frame your favourite photos, make a blurb book, make a handbound book - the sky is the limit! You’ll be surprised at the difference it makes getting your images off your computer and into the world.

MY HAPPY PLACE (STORY) Week 46: 11 Nov 2019 Show us your happy place and make us happy too.

REFLECTIONS (CREATIVE) Week 47: 18 Nov 2019 Double the impact with a reflection. Advanced challenge: show only the reflection in a creative way or add a fake reflection using Photoshop (or similar) and see if we can tell :) ONE SHOT WONDER (TECHNICAL) Week 48: 25 Nov 2019 You get one shot - so triple-check all your settings and think long and hard about your composition before pressing the shutter. It’s so easy these days to pray and spray, hoping to get the perfect shot while consigning yourself to an afternoon of deleting a thousand identical photos.

TILL LIFE (CREATIVE) Week 49: 02 Dec 2019 Arrange a still life scene and photograph it compellingly. Try to tell a visual story that links each element - though it doesn’t have to be an obvious one.

Don’t be satisfied with your first photo, try different angles and settings and explore the scene. Advanced challenge: include memento mori to represent the transience of life and feel free to use Photoshop compositing and photo-artistry techniques to turn your still life into a work of art.

EXPOSURE BRACKETING (TECHNICAL) Week 50: 09 Dec 2019 Do you get frustrated with photos that are either overblown in the highlights or have no details in the shadows? Extend the dynamic range of your photos by exposure bracketing to take multiple photos with different exposures, then combining them in-camera (if your camera does that) or externally in Lightroom or Photoshop either manually or by using the inbuilt features. Most cameras will have an exposure bracketing setting that will automatically take the set of photos at each exposure value. A tripod will also come in handy.

ON THE EDGE (STORY) Week 51: 16 Dec 2019 Find a region where two ecosystems overlap and meet the locals, e.g. the littoral zone at the beach, an estuary, wetlands ...

PHOTO ESSAY (EVERYTHING) Week 52: 23 Dec 2019 This is when we bring it all together. Think of the skills you’ve developed this year and create a photo essay of 5-10 photos, related by theme or topic, and use it to advocate for something you care about. Feel free to use photos you’ve taken this year or take new ones. Aim for a consistent look-and-feel across the photoset, while ensuring each picture contributes uniquely to the story. How to present your essay? Possibilities include designing an Adobe Spark presentation, Instagram story, YouTube slideshow with sound track. Make sure to tell the world about your essay through social media posts etc.

Advanced challenge: arrange to print and exhibit your photo essay.

BONUS WEEK FOR PHOTO ESSAY (EVERYTHING) Week 53, 2020: 30 Dec 2019 © Concept and Challenges by Judi Lapsley Miller

www.artbyjlm.com

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AWA K E N I N G

by ALI OPPY

New Zealand

https://www.facebook.com/Mysticsparrows https://artboja.com/art/lzqpfy/

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GOTHIC QUEEN

by ALI OPPY

New Zealand

https://www.facebook.com/Mysticsparrows https://artboja.com/art/lzqpfy/

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GLISSANDO

by SONIA PUSE Y

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Australia

S TA R G A Z I N G

by SONIA PUSE Y

Australia

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FA M I LY

by SHARON R ANK MORE

Australia

https://artboja.com/art/0719aj/

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COONA

by SHARON R ANK MORE

Australia

https://artboja.com/art/0719aj/

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C H E E TA H

ONE LIFE

by GER ARD WHEL AN

Australia

https://artboja.com/art/abf48i/

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S UE J OY

L A D Y I N WA I T I N G 59

CHIVE FLOWERS

by SUE JOY

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Australia

FA N C Y F E AT H E R S

L ADY PODS 61

IN THE BEGINNING

QUEEN OF THE FOREST

by SUE JOY

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Australia

D AY O F T H E S U N F L O W E R S

ON THE HUNT 63

TWINS

by SUE JOY

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Australia

AS THE CROW FLIES

I bought my first DSLR 8 years ago and from that moment on photography became a huge part of my life. I could never get enough of it. It was my last thought at night and my first thought in the morning, though these days I am not as consumed, but the enthusiasm is still there as strong as ever. I am always amazed at how differently I see the world now that I am looking at it through a lens and such an interesting world it is.

I am basically self taught, although I have done a few workshops over the last 8 years and met some amazing friends along the way. I don’t have a particular genre with my photography as I enjoy photographing most things so I would say that I have an eclectic collection of images.

I joined my local camera club a few years ago and absolutely love it, both for the learning and social experience. I have always been of the mindset that one of the best ways to learn skills is to associate yourself with like minded people and bounce techniques and ideas off each other, and camera clubs are a great way to achieve that. I have entered a few national and international competitions in the last two years and been very pleased to come away with a few gold and silver medals, honourable mentions and a lot of acceptances.

I wish that I had started my photography experience when I was at a much younger age, and by not doing so, it would have to be one of my biggest regrets with my photography, but I guess it doesn’t really matter because I am sure making up for lost time now.

Sue Joy

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SE A E AGLE

by JULIA HARWOOD

Australia

https://www.juliaharwood.com/ ht tp:// artboja.com/art/s6w7af/

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TURNED TO STONE b y C LY D E S C O R G I E

Australia

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STE AMPUNK VIOLINIST

by CHRIS TINA BRUNTON

Australia

https://artboja.com/art/1pa52q/

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HIGH PRIESTESS

by CHRIS TINA BRUNTON

Australia

https://artboja.com/art/1pa52q/

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SUNSE T DRE AMS

by BARBAR A DUDZINSK A

Australia

ht tps:// www.SmartArtPlace.com ht tps:// artboja.com/art/7qn7s6

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S U N S E T V O YA G E

by BARBAR A DUDZINSK A

Australia

ht tps:// www.SmartArtPlace.com ht tps:// artboja.com/art/7qn7s6

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aD rOt W i s tNs U N D E R Australia and New Zealand

SOME PHOTOSHOP INSPIRATION PATHS AND THE PEN TOOL

By Andrew Haysom

Introduction A path in Photoshop is a vector-based object made up of anchor points and line segments. The line segments can be straight or curved.

A path can be “closed” like a square or a circle, or can be “open” with two obvious ends, like a curved line.

Paths can be converted into selections, and this is certainly my most common use, but they can also be used to create shapes and vector masks.

It is possible to make much more precise selections with the Pen tool than with the other selection tools. It is particularly valuable when the object you are selecting closely matches the background in tone and colour, making the other selection tools difficult to use.

The Elements of a Path Figure 1 shows the different elements of a path. An anchor point is where the path changes direction. An active or selected anchor point is shown as a solid square, those that are not selected are shown as hollow squares.

[Figure 1 - The elements of a Photoshop path] For anchor points at the end of curved segments you will see one or two direction lines, with direction points at the end – these are used to define the shape of the curve. Some people also refer to these as direction handles or Bezier handles. To change the shape of a curve, drag the direction points around.

[Figure 2 – Smooth vs Corner points] Figure 2 shows the different sorts of corner points. By default when you create a curved segment you will get a smooth point. When you drag a direction handle on a smooth point, both sides of the curve (either side of the anchor point) are affected identically. For a corner point you can affect either side of the curve separately, the direction lines/handles are independent of each other.

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SOME PHOTOSHOP INSPIRATION (Cont ...)

The Pen Tools You can use the Pen tools (shortcut key P) to create a path. Figure 3 shows the tools that are available.

[Figure 3 – Pen tools] The basic Pen tool gives you full control and precision and allows you to create straight or curved segments. The Freeform Pen tool operates very similarly to the Lasso tool except that it lays down a path instead of a selection. It does have a “magnetic” mode available too, via an option in the option bar. The Curvature Pen tool is a fairly recent feature addition, it lays down only curves as it’s name implies.

[Figure 4 – Pen Tool option bar] Figure 4 shows the Pen tool option bar, we will discuss some of these options later.

If you are wishing to create a path, ensure that the first drop down in the Pen tool options bar is set to Path.

To use the Pen tool to create a path, simply click or click and drag to add points to your path. A simple click will add a corner point (straight line segment), a click and drag will add a smooth corner point (curved segment). As with some of the selection tools, if you hover the cursor over the first point you will see the circle appear in the pen cursor, and a click will close the path.

As with the Brush tool and other tools, with the Pen tool you can hold down the [Shift] key to draw lines that are perfectly horizontal, vertical or at 45 degree angles.

When using the click-drag method to place curved segments it is easy to not quite put the anchor point in the exact right position.

If you are yet to release the mouse button from the click-drag operation you can hold down the [Spacebar] to move the anchor point just placed.

The Add Anchor Point and Delete Anchor Point tools do exactly what their name implies either adding or deleting a new anchor point into an existing path. However, if you have the Auto Add/Delete option checked in the option bar you don’t need them. With this option checked, if you hover the Pen tool over an existing anchor point you’ll notice the minus sign appear in the Pen tool cursor, and clicking the anchor point will delete it. Also, with this option checked, if you hover the Pen tool over a path segment you’ll see the plus sign appear in the Pen tool cursor, and clicking the anchor point will add a new anchor point.

Checking the Auto Add/Delete option is much easier than having to change tools, so I would recommend it.

The Convert Point tool is used to convert a smooth point to a corner point and vice versa. However when using the Pen tool, if you hold down the [Option/Alt] key, the Pen tool function changes to that of the Convert Point tool, which again is easier than changing tools via the toolbar.

To convert an existing anchor point that has no direction lines/handles to a smooth point, with the Pen tool active, hold down [Option/Alt], hover the Pen tool over the anchor point (the cursor will change to the Convert Point tool), now drag the anchor point to create the smooth curve.

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SOME PHOTOSHOP INSPIRATION (Cont ...)

To convert a smooth anchor point to a sharp point (no direction lines/handles) with the Pen tool active, hold down [Option/Alt], hover the Pen tool over the anchor point (the cursor will change to the Convert Point tool), now click the anchor point to convert it to a sharp corner anchor point.

To split the direction lines/handles on a smooth anchor point with the Pen tool active, hold down [Option/Alt], hover the Pen tool over one of the direction handles (the cursor will change to the Convert Point tool), now drag the direction handle to split the direction handles so each can be moved independently. Continue using the Convert Point tool to drag the now independent direction handles.

The Path Selection Tools The other tools that are used with paths are the Path Selection tool and the Direct Selection tool (shortcut key A). Again, you can work more efficiently by using key modifiers with the Pen tool, rather than changing tools via the toolbar.

[Figure 5 – Path selection tools]

The Path Selection tool is used to select an entire path, the Direct Selection tool is used to select parts of a path (e.g. anchor points, line segments etc.).

Holding the [Command] key on Mac or the [Control] key on PC while using the Pen tool will change the function to the Direct Selection tool.

Holding the [Command+Option] keys on Mac or the [Control+Alt] keys on PC while using the Pen tool will change the function to the Path Selection tool.

To select an entire path, simply click the path using the Path Selection tool (or Pen tool while holding the [Command+Option] keys on Mac or the [Control+Alt] keys on PC).

To select a single element of a path simply click the path element using the Direct Selection tool (or Pen tool while holding the [Command] key on Mac or the [Control] key on PC).

To select multiple elements of a path use the Direct Selection tool while also holding the [Shift] key.

Once you have the required part of the path selected (or the whole path selected if that is what you want), move the selected elements around with the Direct Selection tool.

Pen Tool Options Clicking the cog/gear on the Pen tool options bar will display the Path Options dialog box, shown in Figure 6.

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SOME PHOTOSHOP INSPIRATION (Cont ...)

[Figure 6 – Path Options dialog box]

Here you can change the colour and the thickness of the lines used to display a path.

You can also choose to enable the Rubber Band option. This causes a predictor line to be drawn showing the likely path that will be created when you click. This can be useful when learning to use the Pen tool.

Creating Selections from a Path To create a selection from the current path click the Selection button in the Pen tool option bar. This will cause the Make Selection dialog box shown in Figure 7 to display where you can choose options for the selection. Press OK to create the selection

[Figure 7 – Make Selection dialog]

Summary The Pen tool is a difficult tool to use, it takes a lot of getting used to. But that effort is well worth it. Only practise will get you there!

Stay tuned for part two of this article in the next magazine where we will explore some other aspects and options for Photoshop paths.

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S U LT R Y E Y E S

by ANN WEHNER

Australia

https://www.annwehnerdigitalartistry.com https://www.flickr.com/photos/annwehnerdigitalartistry/

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TRUE BE AUT Y LIES WITHIN

by ANN WEHNER

Australia

https://www.annwehnerdigitalartistry.com https://www.flickr.com/photos/annwehnerdigitalartistry/

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DANCING IN THE CASTLE

by MARGARE T K ALMS

Australia

https://artboja.com/art/zg47s6/ http://ecospiritlife.com.au/

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AUTUMN ASCENSION

NE T WORKS b y A N D R E W H AY S O M

Australia

https://www.flickr.com/ajhaysom/ https://andrewhaysom.myportfolio.com/

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P R Z E WA L S K I F O A L

P R Z E WA L S K I H O R S E b y K A R E N WA A L W Y K

Australia

https://www.flickr.com/photos/88165766@N05 https://artboja.com/art/i1sahn/

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DR AUGHT HORSES I b y K A R E N WA A L W Y K

Australia

https://www.flickr.com/photos/88165766@N05 https://artboja.com/art/i1sahn/

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MARKE T PRECINCT

by TRISH HOSK IN

Australia

https://www.trishphotography.com https://artboja.com/art/726rzm/

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R I A LT O B R I D G E

by TRISH HOSK IN

Australia

https://www.trishphotography.com https://artboja.com/art/726rzm/

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aD rOt W i s tNs U N D E R Australia and New Zealand

DENISE LOVE 2 LIL’ OWLS STUDIO Trish Hoskin

I have come to know Denise and her fantastic company 2 Lil’ Owls Studio via our Awake Group and our Kaizen group.

Denise creates a wonderful plethora of textures and backgrounds, so I asked Denise to tell us a little about herself and how she got started.

Denise, how did 2 Lil’ Owls Studio come about?

2 Lil’ Owls Studio started from a need to change directions in life (can we say mid-life crisis? maybe). After working long hours in very stressful jobs for most of my working life, I began to think there had to be more out there for me than high blood pressure and the everyday grind.

I took stock of all my hobbies and skills and started looking to see if there was another direction I could go. I settled on photography since that was the hobby I loved most and spent the greatest amount of time on outside of work. It started out as a side gig while still working my full time job. That gave me the time to start building an audience and making my mistakes. I realized I didn’t like taking photos for people so I pivoted into digital products for photographers.

A year into building my business both my parents got cancer, so I closed up my house, quit my job after my family leave ran out, and went to take care of them for a year while working 2 Lil’ Owls on the side to pay my bills. My mother was afraid it would ruin my life to stop climbing the work ladder for a year, but it was the best thing I could have done. I might not have gotten up the courage to quit if I hadn’t had such a traumatic event happen (unfortunately my mother didn’t make it so that time is more precious to me than I could have imagined). It is very hard to give up the known for the unknown but you’ll never know how much better things will be if you don’t get up the courage to give it a try.

Where did the name for the company come from it is so cute and catchy?

I collect interesting owls - usually in pairs - so I used that collection to inspire the name of my brand. I have a few made from old car parts, a couple of owl necklaces from the ‘60s from each grandmother, a pair made from old horseshoes and many more.

When I was starting out I didn’t want to just use my name and go with “Denise Love Photography” - I wasn’t offering photography services - I was targeting photographers for what I was offering. If I were to go back today and choose a name I would go with a more photography related term/theme instead to better define the brand - but I’ve been around for so many years now that I’d hate to even try to rebrand and confuse people.

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DENISE LOVE - 2 LIL’ OWLS STUDIO (Cont ...)

How do you come up with ideas for your collections?

I am inspired by surfaces. Most of the textures I create begin as a tangible item such as an old plaster wall in an abandoned house, rust from old cars at the junkyard, old beat up cookie sheets you bake on, something I paint, etc. I’ll be out photographing things and come across interesting surfaces and start taking macro shots for textures. I don’t ever really have a set idea in my mind for a collection - I let inspiration guide me when I am out. Luckily I am inspired by a lot of different things!

Do things like the seasons or holidays provide good ideas for another?

From a business standpoint, I look at holidays as selling opportunities more so than inspiration for collections. I use that time to create holiday-related images and marketing. I may use holidays later to provide inspiration for workshops possibly - but as of yet, I haven’t had a perfect idea hit that I can run with.

Do you find having an online website/store a lot easier to manage than a “High Street Store” and have you ever had one previously and found that online is much easier etc?

I worked in big box store management for many years when I was younger and that experience taught me how to run million dollar businesses within the bracket of a larger business. Later I worked in design and project management for the home industry since I have a degree in Interior Design. Both of those experiences taught me how to run a successful business more so I believe than if I had gone to business school.

I find that running your own online business and working from home isn’t for everyone and you have to be very self-driven. If you can’t get all the moving parts figured out then you’ll never be successful. Not to mention that working by yourself is a challenge.

Everyone thinks they’d love to work from home - but it really is a lonely existence and if you are someone who loves being around people all the time it will drive you a bit bonkers. Luckily, I’m a bit of a hermit most of the time and I have 2 puppies who are great company.

Having an online art business isn’t really about the art, for the most part, it is about the marketing. You’d think you’d be spending all your time making art but that isn’t the case. I spend maybe 25% of my time making product and the rest on all the other parts of the business to sell what I make. A big part is building up your brand and finding your customers. If you haven’t built up a customer base then you have no one to sell to. That will be the biggest frustration for most people. They have a good idea, get it all put together and maybe have a website built, then they expect the sales to be rolling in. When that doesn’t happen they figure they are a failure and give up. The problem is that they never built up an audience to sell to and that could take years. No one is an overnight success. The businesses and artists that make it are ones that took years building up an audience. It takes perseverance and consistency. Working it every single day no matter how discouraged you get. Believing day in and day out in your dream.

I started my business as a side hustle and still had my regular day job to pay the bills. That is what I recommend to anyone trying to start an online art business. Start small, put yourself out there, build it as you go and keep that day job until you are making enough money in your business to quit.

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DENISE LOVE - 2 LIL’ OWLS STUDIO (Cont ...)

You’ve also ventured into some Photography training – how has that come about and for those that haven’t spent time looking at your site can you give us a bit of a background into that.

My passion is photography so my entire business came about from that hobby. My target market has always been photographers.

I love to teach them how to create art from their photos. In that respect, it just made sense to expand into teaching people how to capture better photos, to begin with. I am not an artist who spends hours editing and using stock photos for my art. I want to create the most amazing photos out of the camera as I can get and then use the editing and textures to enhance that original idea I was shooting for.

I absolutely love creating the workshops. From coming up with the ideas, filming the segments, shooting the photos, editing videos, building web pages, etc. It is the perfect excuse to treat each topic as my own personal passion project for a few months. I learn and grow as much from the deep dive into a subject as you do from taking the workshop I came up with. I think you should always be learning and online workshops make it so much easier for people all over the world to connect with you whereas in-person workshops just wouldn’t be possible for most to attend. I am a workshop junkie myself so I figure others love them too. It has definitely been the perfect avenue for expanding my business the last couple of years and a focus I will continue to add to.

BIO: Denise Love has been creating Fine Art Textures, Lightroom/ACR Presets, Creative Photography Workshops since 2012. She is the founder of 2 Lil’ Owls Studio and has become known for her passion in providing top quality digital art tools and photography workshops. https://2lilowls.com/

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Baker

Apparition

Lockhart

Baylor

Beaufort

Bennett Yard

C Y B E R FA C E

INTERFLOR A

by MICK ROONE Y

Australia

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AWA I T I N G M Y T I M E

by DE AN HOHN

Australia

ht tps:// www.facebook.com/Dean-Hohn-Photo-Artistry-247723325687722/ ht tp:// artboja.com/art/yw8ic8/

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I’M NE X T

by DE AN HOHN

Australia

ht tps:// www.facebook.com/Dean-Hohn-Photo-Artistry-247723325687722/ ht tp:// artboja.com/art/yw8ic8/

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A ROSE IS A ROSE

by MARY KNAGGS

Australia

https://artboja.com/art/oc091r/ https://www.facebook.com/MaryK-Photographic-Art-145293185640662/

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S U N S E T C O U P L E - S E M I N YA K B A L I

by MARY KNAGGS

Australia

https://artboja.com/art/oc091r/ https://www.facebook.com/MaryK-Photographic-Art-145293185640662/

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GIGI

C H E E TA H B & W

by HELEN AK ERSTROM

Australia

https://www.facebook.com/helen.akerstrom https://www.instagram.com/ha2260/

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TH YS J E A R TH UR

C O N T E M P L AT I O N 93

A PL ACE CALLED HOME

SCARECROW

by THYS JE ARTHUR

New Zealand

http://www.tgagraphics.co.nz/ https://artboja.com/art/wpqa4m/

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T H E C O T TA G E I N T H E W O O D S 95

W I N D O W T R E AT M E N T

IRIS

by THYS JE ARTHUR

New Zealand

http://www.tgagraphics.co.nz/ https://artboja.com/art/wpqa4m/

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TIME AND TIDE

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DOOR OF TIME

HERE SITS A BE AR

by THYS JE ARTHUR

New Zealand

http://www.tgagraphics.co.nz/ https://artboja.com/art/wpqa4m/

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L ADY IN RED

I am a passionate photographer having been one for many decades, but I came to photo art relatively recently (in the last 4 yrs or so). The art has broadened my horizons as far as post processing goes and I’m loving it. I still feel I have so much to learn although when I look back on my early work, I realise I have come a long way already! I continue to gain so much inspiration from my fellow artists and I love perusing the magazine. On the photography side, I was delighted to be chosen to be the feature artist in the new Awake Photography magazine just out. My life, for a woman well into her sixties, is exciting and rewarding.

Thysje Arthur

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DON’T LOOK BACK

by DALE BOTHA

Australia

https://artboja.com/art/x1el96/

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F L O AT I N G

by DALE BOTHA

Australia

https://artboja.com/art/x1el96/

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INTROVERT’S OASIS

by COLIN CAMPBEL L

Australia

ht tps://colincampbell.mypor t folio.com https://artboja.com/art6bq9cj/

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FROM THE FOLIO OF SKIES

by COLIN CAMPBEL L

Australia

ht tps://colincampbell.mypor t folio.com https://artboja.com/art6bq9cj/

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TINHE AD CHARM

by AL BAMASS

Australia

https://artboja.com/art/nsthnn/

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R O C K Y M O U N TA I N R O A D

by AL BAMASS

Australia

https://artboja.com/art/nsthnn/

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ENCHANTMENT III b y V I K I M U R R AY

Australia

https://www.vikimages.com.au https://www.instagram.com/viki_murray/

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WISH UPON A BREEZE b y V I K I M U R R AY

Australia

https://www.vikimages.com.au https://www.instagram.com/viki_murray/

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aD rOt W i s tNs U N D E R Australia and New Zealand

REDLANDS DIGITAL ARTISTS GROUP A COLLABORATIVE GROUP OF PHOTO ARTISTS

By Maureen Maxwell

CHINESE WHISPERS #15 “TICK TOCK”

STAGE 1

STAGE 2

Gerard Whelan

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Maureen Maxwell

WE’RE BACK! The three of us are ready to expand our skills as we move together into 2019.

We find by collaborating we venture into types of photo artistry imagery that we wouldn’t necessarily do on our own.

Frequently we discover new ideas and techniques from each other that we possibly hadn’t thought of before. The final work is often not what the first, or second, person in the collaborative round would have thought possible. Frequently it is a significant surprise!

Is it easy? ... No, it isn’t! ... But it is fun!

Gerard Whelan started this round with a major challenge. I came second and, after much thought, changed it quite a lot, and then Pam Henderson did the final work and took it in yet another direction.

We hope you enjoy our collaborative efforts as we move through 2019.

FINAL STAGE

Pam Henderson

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MONTEMOR

J O TA

b y LY N N J E N K I N

Australia

www.jenkinphotography.com.au/

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LIT TLE CUTIE

THE LION DENOTES POWER, AGGRESSION AND ... b y LY N D A R L I N G T O N

Australia

http://www.sabvaningphotoart.com

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P R O F E S S O R P O L LY

by JUDI L AP SL E Y MIL L ER

https://www.artbyjlm.com

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New Zealand

THE BIG IDE A

by JUDI L AP SL E Y MIL L ER

New Zealand

https://www.artbyjlm.com

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SHIP SHANT Y

by K E VIN SIMS

New Zealand

http://www.kevinsims.co.nz https://www.artboja.com/art/fx6wd6/

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THOUGHTS MEL ANGE

by K E VIN SIMS

New Zealand

http://www.kevinsims.co.nz https://www.artboja.com/art/fx6wd6/

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ELOISE b y K AY E V I S O N

New Zealand

https://www.facebook.com/artist.kay.evison/

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F U L LY C H A R G E D b y K AY E V I S O N

New Zealand

https://www.facebook.com/artist.kay.evison/

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FURIAN

by ROCHELLE MARSHALL

New Zealand

https://www.darksapphirephotography.com

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OBSIDIAN

by ROCHELLE MARSHALL

New Zealand

https://www.darksapphirephotography.com

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GOING HOME

MOON RISING

by EDWIN L EUNG

New Zealand

https://500px.com/elkynz https://artboja.com/art/ola8i6/

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J UL I E P O W EL L

WISTERIA 121

C L E O PAT R A I

C L E O PAT R A I I

by JULIE P OWEL L

Australia

ht tps:// www.juliepowellphoto.com/ ht tps:// artboja.com/art/glul6i/

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HAMLE T 123

WHEN DR AGONS WHISPER IN YOUR E AR

FA I R Y TA L E S

by JULIE P OWEL L

Australia

ht tps:// www.juliepowellphoto.com/ ht tps:// artboja.com/art/glul6i/

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THE NIGHT PROTECTOR 125

SIREN

GOLDILOCKS

by JULIE P OWEL L

Australia

ht tps:// www.juliepowellphoto.com/ ht tps:// artboja.com/art/glul6i/

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JUST RESTING Over the few years, I have really been working on my craft, exploring my vision, my creativity and I believe my style and my voice have truly taken on a unique and exciting form. My Artistic vision for both my Still Life Photography and my Creative Conceptual Portraits portrays me as a Storyteller, each piece I create has a story behind it. Some simple and some elaborate.

I am so lucky I fell back in love with photography in the digital age, as this is the age of Photoshop and Lightroom and some many amazing products which have allowed me the creativity to explore a side of photography and my art, that I would never have been able to so many years ago.

I am still heavily inspired by many painters, more so than photographers, even though I do follow so many amazing photographers online. I love colour and texture and working with natural light, learning the light, the shadow, the forms it creates and how to manipulate that as well. I really like to depict strong women in my art I have a fondness for Myth and Fairy-tales, often changing the stories to fit my needs. Still considered Dark and Moody, but now with a rich colour palette and a softness to my work that I believe was missing in my art before.

After many years of trying so many different genres and styles, I believe my true voice is emerging, I will continue to learn, I feel as creatives we must always evolve, but now I feel I have found my niche, where I belong. I am now also finding a passion in mentoring and educating other creatives as well, that brings me no greater joy than the smiles I see when I have helped someone on the way to create their vision as well.

Julie Powell

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J A PA N E S E T O U R I S T R O U T E

by MAUREEN MA XWELL

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Australia

THE FURIES

by MAUREEN MA XWELL

Australia

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D R A G O N F LY

TIME TO FIND A BE T TER REEF

by COLIN K IL LICK

Australia

https://driftingleaves.net

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S U N R I S E AT S N A P P E R R O C K S

EMERGING FROM THE MIST

by P HIL L IPA F R EDERIKSEN

Australia

https://artboja.com/art/33o0hk/ http://phillfoto.smugmug.com

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BROWN CUCKOO DOVE

by ANN ALCOCK

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Australia

CANADIAN GOOSE

by ANN ALCOCK

Australia

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MORNING LIGHT

by MIK E K ANE

Australia

https://www.mikekanephotography.com.au/

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SANCTUARY

by MIK E K ANE

Australia

https://www.mikekanephotography.com.au/

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ASHLEY IN COLOURED BACKGROUND

by GEORGE KONCZ

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Australia

K AT I W I T H T H E G O L D E N H A I R

by GEORGE KONCZ

Australia

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BL ACK AND WHITE b y A N N L AV I N

Australia

https://artboja.com/art/d6au4o/

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MONOCLE b y A N N L AV I N

Australia

https://artboja.com/art/d6au4o/

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http://tinyurl.com/artisitsdownunderpublic

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