While wandering through Point Defiance Park in Tacoma this summer past I caught these tree trunks. They are in a more hidden location and I'm still not sure if some wild child basket maker made off with the bark or the park folks did. They might have been test strips for research, who knows. Whatever the story, the results are interesting. Once home I started playing with the image in Photoshop Elements, something I do often to see if a lack luster image has a hidden personality. (No, I don't use full blown Photoshop)
With this image, transitioning it into black and white and pumping up the contrast was the starting point, followed by cropping to it's strongest aspects. Then the true playtime began. The resulting strip was duplicated, triplicated, reduced, regrouped, enlarged, butted, flipped, pinched and so on. Sounds painful I know but I didn't make up the terms. Truthfully, I can no longer remember what the end result is comprised of entirely. That's half the fun, a project to get lost in. Then awareness dawns and you realize a good portion of your Sunday morning is gone. And what have you got to show for it?
Something, which is hopefully more interesting than nothing at all. Where I will end up using this is an unknown. That is the other half of the fun, looking for the images that will translate into something unexpected, which later become part of another adventure. It's about the journey. Find a little time for your own journey. Do a little wandering so you can wonder too.
1 comment:
Beautiful photos! Bark fans unite!! When I am in Canada I'm always on the lookout for downed birch trees (mostly taken down by beavers) and I pack it in my suitcase to bring home to make baskets and other crafty things. So far it has passed airline security! A couple of my favorite books are, "Celebrating Birch" and "Plaited Basketry with Birch Bark", that I spend hours reading and looking at. I'm happy to have another sister of the bark!!
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