Check it out!

It may be quick and dirty, but it's all mine! (My website that is www.hodgepodgecreative.com).


Yes, it only took a few very long nights (not 9 months, thank goodness!) but I'm proud to announce the arrival of a website to call my very own. From conception to the painfully long uploading process, this site has been a project all my own.

I hope it will serve as an online portfolio to showcase my work while I try to drum up business as fundraising efforts for me & N's upcoming humanitarian trip to Swaziland, Africa. (Stay tuned...more to follow!)

But for now...I just can't believe I managed to conquer the techie frontiers and get this thing up and running (thank heavens for online tutorials!)

Me...

Sometimes, folks just need to lighten up. Don't get me wrong - I have just as much baggage, issues, challenges, and wacko ideas as the next person. But life is too short to take myself too seriously. So, when for this self-portrait assignment, it was time for some fun, dammit!
Now, I know what you're thinking, but yes! even self-professed "creative-nerds" like me know how to have a good time - especially if it's a good ol' fashioned bluegrass hoe-down (just throwin' that out to all my fellow Folk Fest hippies).

Digging deep into the be-costumed depths of my tickle trunk (or in one case, forgoing the clothing option all together) I decided to portray some of my fav musical genres. Besides...I need some 'art' for the walls of my music room, and this was a cheap option!

Fun with light

Creativity can be taxing...especially on the umpteenth outing to capture "light". Sure, it may be a necessary component of "writing with light" (ie - photo-graphy), but some days, there's just only so many ways to shoot an object! So, I found some new victims - er, models, and set out to play hometown tourist for new inspiration in capturing directions of natural light. Who knew I'd end up taking dozens of shots of Canada's most notorious rebel - Mr. Riel! At least this perspective allows him to tower over the Leg - appropriate, don't you think?

Dance Series

For a recent creative assignment, I decided to explore one of my other favourite hobbies: dance. It was a blast exploring the freedom of movement with my best friend, and the resulting images really captured that joyful, almost out-of-body feeling that the best kind of dance produces for a dancer. I only wish every dance rehearsal could feel like the emotions these images stir in me!

thought of the day...

Wish I was here:

on the highway, dogs & N next to me, tent in the back and canoe on the car.

In a season of white...

I thought I'd share some colour to cheer us all up! Here's a selection of some of my favourite 'colours of nature' shots that I've taken over the past few years. (l-r: Grand Canyon, AZ; North Cross Lake, MB; Cape Breton, NS)

Winter has arrived...

Friends, like wind-weary sailors kissed by frost
arrive at my doorstep
Tippy-toed penguins skating to the stoop
to enjoy steamy elixirs and trivial pursuit in darkened basements.
Waiting.
For eyelashes to unstick.

I'm gonna fry this sucka...

Do you feel sad for this potato?
Well you shouldn't...potatoes have no feelings, whereas ordinary humans like me go a little crazy after staring at a potato for a week straight. That's right: you should feel sad for me, because I had to come up with ways to make you feel emotions when look at pictures of a potato! Here's the final selection of 10 images (from over 200 actual potato shots!) I may have learned alot about portraying emotion and viewer reaction to my images, but I don't know if I can ever look at a french fry the same again.

Best of the Zoo

Were they eager to eat me, posing for the camera, or just waiting for feeding time? I guess we'll never know, but good conditions and good timing at the zoo made for some fun animals shots!

Thanks to K for the company while shooting this assignment. :)

Seeing something extraordinary

As we're finding out, a big part of good photography is good seeing. I think this Creative Studies assignment was supposed to help us do just that. We had an afternoon to shoot 100 different shots of a simple object of our choosing. I picked a glass jug I had at home, filled it with water and set it in a nice scene, surrounded by a bowl of fruit on a glass tabletop. Here's a few of my favourite shots for your viewing pleasure!

Epic Retreat

It's been awhile, but I wanted to share some photos and thoughts from our youth group, Epic's recent retreat at Cedarwood.

This is my first year as a youth group leader, and I have to say...it's awesome! Even tho this retreat fell right in the middle of starting school and moving to the new place, I came home so refreshed. These folks have some serious energy and it's contagious (just look at all the motion pics)!

The retreat was good for the soul and a great inspiration photographically. I can't wait for all the crazy costumes at our Halloween event!

Reflections

After a month of classes, I think it's safe to say that it's official. I'm a photography student.

Sure, I'm still trying to pick myself up off the floor after a whirlwind few weeks of getting back into the habitat of studying, writing tests, all-day classes and (ugh!) homework (not to mention that pesky moving into a new house thing)...but I definitely feel like I'm in the right place.

Sure, my pictures may have taken a turn for the worse - like the teach said, it's going to take awhile to get used to focusing on things like histograms, proper composition, and shutter speed instead of just pretty subjects - but I really do enjoy everything about it! I love tuning into untapped parts of my brain for creative assignments, walking around the exchange with camera in tow, talking to photo shop staff and understanding the lingo, and yes, I even love the smell of the darkroom. (just don't inhale too deeply!)

...although I may have pulled out a few hairs trying to come up with 100 different pictures of a water jug. Watch for "Glass Jug...the Slideshow" in a future post and be amazed.

I guess I'm pretty blessed to be where I am today, and excited for what the next month will bring. Thanks to all the family who made it possible and the many inspiring people who nudged me along the way. :)

Get outdoors!

I like to be outside. Yes, even during our frigid Winnipeg winters. So it's no surprise that a lot of the photos I take are outdoors, and that my most inspiring photographs are typically nature shots. That's why I like Outdoor Photographer's website. Much of their magazine content can be found online, including gear reviews from a landscape photographer's perspective. I also like to look here for inspiration - whether great photos or "assignment" suggestions.

Dance like no one (but the camera) is watching...

I've danced all my life. From tap, jazz and ballet as a kid to latin ballroom competitions as a teenager, and now onto professional salsa and fusion performances, it's always been a part of my life. But at the same time, I always wished I could arrange for better photos of these dance events than the standard blurry movement shots or posed post-performance cheesy smiles.

So, when this assignment came up, it was a great opportunity to learn more about the challenging art of dance photography. Similar to event photography, dance photo requires you to capture quick movement and often intense emotion, all in very low light situations. Another important aspect to dance photography is capturing the beauty and grace of the art in different situations (see examples below) as well as the behind-the-scenes drama and mystery of the dance world.

Not surprisingly, some of the best dance photographers were once dancers themselves.An insider's knowledge not only gives the photographer an understanding of dance conventions, it also helps them to "read" the dancers and the rhythm better than the untrained photographer, making it easier to capture those special moments. One example I found was Bruce Monk, who danced with our own Royal Winnipeg Ballet. His dance photography tutorial is very helpful.

Monk’s website as well as an essay at Luminious Landscape helped me learn that I need a fast lens, small aperture number, and high ISO in order to capture dancers. There were many other great techniques suggested too. I also enjoyed reading a photography blog featuring lindy hop dancers, if partially for my own interest as I do some swing dancing. I look forward to trying some of these techniques.

Photos:
(top) Carmen De Lavalade, by Lois Greenfield. I love the curving lines in this photo, and how the curve of the dress echoes the curve of her hand. Great timing that highlights a dancer's perfection.
(centre) Megan-Dumbo, by Dane Shitagi. I love how this photographer places ballerinas in classic poses but unusual places/situations. I also like his framing and the wonderful tones in his black & white photos.

Another photo that I found inspiring can be viewed here. I like the shallow depth in this shot, the the wonderful timing, and the crisp focus on the subject. An inspiring example of capturing the beauty of a live ballet performance.

The world according to XP2

They say that the world isn't just black and white. Well, they clearly aren't photography students!



Although this assignment tragically confirmed that Alphie, my canon AE-1 has seen better days (he's now in the shop for an apeture mechanism problem), I did manage to make some images I'm happy with!

As a bonus, the resulting overexposure created some interesting effects.

Thanks to N and J for being such great models.

Lines, lines, everywhere

At first blush this assignment scared me. Lines? But I like shooting nature, in all it's flowing and organic glory!

But after a few days of viewing the world through a "lines" filter, I began to see them everywhere, as evident in a lot of my shots. I guess lines are one of the most simple forms out there...if we know what we're looking for! It helped me see things in a new light - even in my usual type of shots...something I hope to keep in mind for future compositions.

A Hodgepodge of Dogs

I love dogs. Not only do they make good listeners, they also make great subjects. Here's a few of my favourite shots:

DT1 Slideshow

...and here's the second!

I must be addicted...so much to say, so little time.

As many of you know, my Dad gave me my first camera when I was young - something I totally forgot about until the interview for PrairieView! I think his encouragement and pride in my shots was what initially got my interested in photography. Then, it was just capturing the interesting world around me. I'm also a writer, so I love to share stories through words and visuals!

This year I'm looking forward to developing my skills, particularly in digital photo editing and in the darkroom. I also hope the challenge will take me creativity to new heights.

It will be a busy year indeed.

One thing you might not know about me...you may think my passion for getting muddy and sweaty while exploring the outdoors makes me a tomboy. But I'm secretly a dancing diva in disguise, and I even have a photo to prove it (just for all us photo geeks, see right). I dance professionally with Virage Dance Company (http://www.viragedanceco.com/about/performers) here in Winnipeg, a group that performs and teaches salsa dance, as well as latin, ballroom, jazz and other styles.

Looking forward to getting to know you all better!

Photo: Virage Dance Co. in Vegas in this summer, shot by Natasha P Kartika

My First...

...blog is underway! In the blink of an eye, I've jumped head first into life as a high-tech student. Now I just need a cell phone.

Although it's exciting to be spending my days exploring the Exchange with camera in tow, the back to school rush makes me even more thankful for the blissful summer days of the partially employed. The back-country canoe adventures I shared with hubby and friends this summer only confirmed my dream of capturing the wonders of nature through a camera lens.

I'm looking forward to a busy year of learning how to be a better photographer and exploring the different styles and genres of photography. Diversity can only expand my horizons as a landscape and nature photographer and writer...hopefully it will give me some ideas of how to make a bit of cash too. ;)

Photo Credit: Duncan McNairnay