~Let's talk contrast~

Not every image is going to be a banger! Over the next little while, I am going to share more images I took while in #oldmontreal and take a little time to learn from my mistakes.

When it comes to Black & White photos, contrast is very important. Without the use of colour to make clear distinctions between shapes and subject matter, the intention is missed, and things get lost from view, like this poor guys head!

What I do like about this image and the first thing that caught my attention was how almost all the cars were dark, which broke up the lighter buildings and cobble stone street. So after putting a new roll of film in (right there in the street, which for me felt like quite the accomplishment), I thought about what I wanted and I waited for the perfect opportunity to take the shot!

As it turns out, this was not it! While his dark suit stands out quite nicely from the surroundings, I think had I waited, just a split second more, not only would he have been more centered in the frame, which I feel would have been more balanced, his dark hair covered head would have been in a more contrasted part of the building behind him. And would have been slightly more visible than it is now.

The thing is, with street photography, you don't always have the luxury of time to set up, and all the ingredients have to be perfect to get 'The' shot. Oftentimes, you have to work with what you get. So, while this image misses the mark for excellence, I still enjoy looking at it because I see potential.

Is there anything about B&W photography you would like to share

Tell me about it, I'd love to hear it.

#blackandwhitephotography #blackandwhitefilm

#blackandwhitefilmphotography #blackandwhitestreetphotography #blackandwhitefilmstreetphotography #filmphotography #streetphotography #contrastiskey #missedthemark #trytryagain #sharpdressedman #coblestonestreets

The Coming of Spring - Persephone's Return

One thing I am, is a stickler for a good story. And it is no secret that there are great stories to be found within the Greek Myths and Legends. In many cases there are multiple versions of many of the myths, and the story of Persephone and Hades is no different.

One thing that holds true in either of the tales is that Persephone was kidnapped by Hades, and Zeus was his accomplice. But the version that I drew from for the inspiration of this image was slightly different. For instance Persephone’s mother was present during the kidnapping. It is said that Demeter, Persephone’s mother and Goddess of the harvest and agriculture, went mad looking for her daughter. With the help of the deity of magic and witchcraft, Hekate and Helios the sun god, she learned of how Hades and Zeus planned and executed the kidnapping of her precious daughter.

Armed with this information, Demeter went to Hades to beg him to return Persephone to her and the world above ground. Hades consulted with his conspirator, and both he and Zeus decided to allow Persephone to live on earth for six months each year, while the rest of the time she would be at Hades’ side in the Underworld. But Hades being, well Hades, had to make sure that Persephone would indeed return to the Underworld. In ancient mythology it is said that to eat the fruit of ones captor means that the prisoner would have to return to their captor. So Persephone was persuaded to eat four seeds of a pomegranate, and as such she was condemned to return to the Underworld. But each year, she was allowed to return to her mother Demeter, for the remaining 2/3’s of the year.

This particular rendition of the Myth of Hades and Persephone tells of the coming of Spring and Winter. When Persephone returns to earth, it is springtime. When she makes her way back down to Hades in the Underworld, it is winter. And for my image, as the title would suggest, it depicts the resurgence of Persephone to the world above.

There is much to this story, like in many Greek Mythologies, that touch on off shoots of other myths. I have chosen to leave them out. So I encourage you to visit the site I gathered this information from (see mention below) to learn more about it.

Model for the image was provided by www.photomanipulation.com

Image is also comprised of 13 pieces from 8 different open sourced paintings, found online.

The source for the story of Hades and Persephone can be found @ www.greekmyths-greekythology.com

Hold It Together

On Thursday, I was fortunate to have my image (along with 4 other incredible images) chosen to be reviewed and reacted to as part of the Artist’s Forge May Photo Challenge. During the wonderfully kind and insightful feedback from all the moderators, host Nicole York asked if I could post the back story and inspiration for the image.

My inspiration came from numerous similarly styled images I had seen online that depicted a sense of hiding and covering up yourself…’hiding from the world’ as one viewer mentioned. My interpretation came from my feelings the last year of being an artist struggling to create a business, to be noticed, and taken seriously in the world of Conceptual Fine Art, and Book Cover Design.

The faces in the background (and yes Matt there are actually 3) are each symbolic of a part of the artistic process I find myself going through. On image left is a model that we collaborate with, this represents the business pressures…the commitments to others, meeting and exceeding their expectations while still holding down a full-time job. The image on the right is of me, indicative of the immense pressures we put upon ourselves…self doubt, feeling not as worthy, or in my case you are too old to be trying to start this now. Thirdly, but definitely the most important one, is in the middle and that is of Sharon...it is faint and small but that was done intentionally. She is my partner in life and in business, my biggest supporter, but often her words are overpowered and quieted by the other two. But no matter what, she is always there and has my back.

Okay on to the main image lol.

The hands on the head hold so many meanings, but Nicole’s analogy of it looks like her anxiety feels and Bekka’s see-no-evil were basically bang on! At times it feels like my head is going to explode and I struggle to hold it all inside. I just want to bury my head in my hands, and not wanting to look incase I see failure (evil)…there’s that damn acceptance and need for affirmation lurking again.

Bassam was very astute in noticing the posture and crossed arms and he mentioned it as defiant. This is arguably my greatest strength…I’M STUBBORN!…I have always lived by the motto “Failure is NOT an option…I will not quit, I will not give up, no matter what.

Thank you for taking the time to read this, please feel free to comment.

David

And so it begins

Over the last few days, I have allowed myself to be inundated with thoughts and ideas. Even found myself seeking these moments out. My mind has been a flutter with questions, then answers, then more questions still. Ultimately what I have discovered is, it is time! Time to take the next step. What is that you ask? Well put quite simply, to write a blog.

Do I know what I am doing? Not entirely

Do I know how to achieve it? Afraid not, and I chose that word intentionally

Do I know what 'it' will look like when it is all said and done? Nope again.

All I do know is if I don't start it will never get done. And besides it's not the destination or outcome I am concerning myself with right now. Nope, it's the journey (to coin a phrase). I love to learn and to discover, and this is what the next step is all about for me, to discover who I am as an artist, and who We (Mystic Pixels) are. And I would like to take you, our audience along for the ride :)

At the moment I can only watch as I put one foot in front of me, then the other and over and over again. All the while trusting that they, my feet, will get me to where I am supposed to be. My desire is to get our work seen! To create conversations around our work. And to one day inspire others to do the same. This will be the space to drop our new work. We will share some of the thoughts we had creating them. We will share new ideas and let you know of new things coming. And we will share, with you some of the people who inspire us and what we have learned from them.

Art, for the artist, is a way to express themselves, a way to share and discover all that intrigues and concerns us. It is, more personally, a way for me to work through some of my own thoughts and feelings. And as I have had so many of them lately I am eager to spill them out into the world. Art is also a way for the viewer to connect with the artist and to explore their own thoughts, and maybe to ask their own questions. And through that sharing maybe we can all grow.

Now I am left with one more question, won't you join us as we take this new step in our journey?

YOU WILL?!

Fantastic! Then Here… We… Go!

Sharon

Our Mission Statement

It just seems appropriate that when you start a business that it should have a mission statement. After all how else would you keep yourself focused and on track., right?!?

I saw a note that Sharon had written to herself in our Keep as a reminder of why she does what she loves so much, and well it hit home to me that this is exactly what we are about - so I have incorporated it as our mission statement…

“To get to the point where not only can we feel the flurry of emotion from taking images that move us, but to where we can invoke the same in others who choose to view them”

As artists we create for self fulfillment more than public approval - but when your creation moves someone else, that takes it to a whole new level