Thursday, May 03, 2007

Flower 2.0


I was messing around with an image I took the other day of a beautiful flower, trying to do something selective color. I wasn’t crazy about the rest of the elements in the photo except for the flower itself, though. So, I just created a black background and composed the flower where I wanted it. Nothing fancy, just something quick and easy.

There’s a quote that I wanted to share with all of you. I think everyone will relate to it, especially all you photographers and artists out there. It was at the bottom of an email I received from a business associate the other week.

"When you do the common things in life in an uncommon way, you will command the attention of the world."
- George Washington Carver (1864-1943)

When I read that quote, I first thought of photography and how a creatively composed image grabs the attention of others. I also thought of my favorite athletes, like Michael Jordan. He’s someone who revolutionized the game of Basketball with the way he played it.

Of course, this quote can be applied to any area of life. I just thought you would enjoy reading it and thinking of it in terms of photography as I did.

21 comments:

Joel Reynolds said...

Really cool treatment, Chad. Makes it "pop".
Nicely done.

Joel

Anonymous said...

I like this. I never thought about getting rid of a distracting background in this fashion. That is what is fun about this blogging thing, you learn new things or have that moment when you say "I knew that" but never put 2 and 2 together.

Chad Oneil Myers said...

Mike,
I'm glad I could inspire you.

Anna said...

I so agree with that quote in reference to life and photography. You knew I would! :) I love what you did with this and I love how you placed it going out of the frame! I tihnk it adds depth to it. Very nice.

Kerry-Anne said...

I love the quote, so true. And your treatment of the flower is really appealing - I'm not generally patient enough to play around with photos (I leave that up to Paul), but maybe I should try it some time.

Ash said...

Love the image and the quote!
Beautiful and inspiring....thanks for sharing!

photowannabe said...

Great shot Chad. I like your selective treatment. I must really learn to to photoshop so I can play too. the quote is so true, especially for photographers.

lv2scpbk said...

Nice photo and wonderful color.

afuntanilla said...

great quote. thanks for visiting my blog. GO WARRIORS.

JAM said...

I really like this photo and how you've presented it. I love looking at and appreciating other people's work. It's a little view of how they see the world and is endlessly entertaining to me.

The online photographers and photography bloggers are a great bunch of people, no snotty critiques, just blog friends appreciating each other's views on the world.

Michelle B said...

I do sometimes think that less is more, I like it and the "nothing fancy" about it is what I like the most.

K M F said...

cool photos

Bill said...

So many things to try, so little time! I am lucky if I simply do the 'I'm feeling lucky" adjustments in Picasa! Nice shot.

Olivier said...

tres belle photo, j'aime beaucoup la composition et le traitement


very beautiful photograph, I like much the composition and the treatment

culturally literate idiot said...

nice chad. i think im going to start messing around with digital photos more. i have no idea thought..

Gabriella said...

Well you know why I like this picture!!!! hehehehe.

Very nice Chad.

Coy Hill said...

Great job Chad. The black background really makes it pop.

Jill said...

Nice one. Thanks for sharing!

Ted said...

Hiya Chad,

First off: the image. There are those who hate pure black backgrounds. Apparently they think that black is a cheater’s way of making colors, intensities and shapes pop. Me, I think that they are the perfect way to do image minimalism. They allow you to klieg-light your star on stage and to attack ambiguity with the brio of Donald Trump going after Rosie O’Donnel. This is a sparkling photo-sketch of a feisty little guy who’s all dressed up… and you’ve given him this place to go. It’s good to smile, and he makes me do that.

Now, about the Carver quote: Some thoughts - We Photographers have been let into a grand new cavern called Post Processing. It’s got glimmering tunnels – so many of them – virtually all unexplored. In photo based image making I have never imagined so many places to go, things to do, wonders to try – and all of them virtually unexplored. It’s as if our carts are lined together at a starting point and someone fired a pistol so we can charge our horses to claim any treasure we discover. Never before in image making history have so many new tools become available to do things in an uncommon way. The very nature of two dimensional art is becoming changed as we take the time to learn. New tools for Painting/drawing/photography are blending together with video and audio and our imaginations can be expressed not just perfectly - but at the speed of light they can be expressed everywhere. We can light up the internet like a pinball machine with these glowing ideas and it can all be done simultaneously. That’s important, interactive visual, audio, data stuff can happen not only everywhere but in real time. As far as sight and sound are concerned, distance is dead.
Very soon, a photographer who rejected this learning curve will seem like one of the cavemen from the Geico commercials, unable to learn and grow from the secrets revealed within the glimmering tunnels of this vast new cavern. We have an uncommon new power to describe what we have accepted as common and to attack the ambiguities which veil a common acceptance of truth. Never before have so many had the power to do so much of what George Washington Carver advised.
Oh yea, we can also make some pretty cool images.

Thanks for sharing
Ted

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mark said...

chad that is really cool your photography is getting way good.

syafiqsuin photography said...

wow amazing image.. u re creative person.. i like Ur works..