Love doing these radical poses
Radical Woodie
- Thread starter Wildthings
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Sensational! Yesterday on my walk, had a pair fly so close to me, I could feel the wind coming off their wings.
beautiful work
Your beautiful pics makes it hard for me to tell if it's a fabulous picture or a real taxidermy animal. Gorgeous regardless.
The diagonal layout on this splitting the rectangle into 2 triangles + coupled with a the “illusion” of this avifauna is coming forward like it is still living is so sublime. I don’t know if you remember the one painting I tagged you on at The Met which reminds me of your splendid work. Can the “illusion” extend further, meaning that this could look like a painting if you actually had the back drop with a stretched canvas (painted like that back ground color) with a frame surround?
Sure wish I could picture what you are trying to say here. Seems Arn may have explained this a long time ago, but then I forgotten since then.
@Karl_TN - I have to find the link here of that painting, but Barry posted another finished worked where it was successfully executed (foreground, middle ground and back ground)- IMHO.
I don’t know what the size of this piece is Barry @Wildthings, but I use to work for a company that framed and matted works of art and photo’s. I found this particular piece has an ideal of aspect ratio that you gracefully implemented- there is a hair on top that had to be trimmed (maybe 2-3 percent) to get that ideal aspect ratio without disturbing your bottom sig………I mean you masterfully figured out what the ideal length and width is proportionate. May I get permission from you to repost your photo with what I was talking about and convert this like a framed art/photograph with separate options? It might kindle and give you some ideas too. I did several and the way you have it and you had it printed and framed, it looks stunning and an added bonus to your client with the real thing!
Arn
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- #9
Thanks, and it is a real mounted bird. Here's the shop picture I used to create my "Glamour Shot". I call them that now because in years past a previous client's son was inquiring about a project, he wanted me to do, and I quoted him a price. He asked if that included the "Glamour Shot?" I responded confused "a what?" He said his dad call the picture I sent him a "Glamour Shot" and he had it framed and hung next to the mount in his home. Hence the name!
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- #10
As always, beautiful work!
Do you add the faded background in post production? Seems like a pretty board would not be the easiest thing to remove post production compared to using a solid background.
Thank your posting the pre-production stage as I was intrigued how you did the print shots. I had a feeling you either used a “digital wall paper” as a back ground or you had an actual canvas back drop that was painted (rolled down or a sliding panel). I wasn’t sure how you had the objects placed in position. I thought possibly with heavy duty nylon strings and they were suspended. Then it came to me after seeing the finish product that man, would it be cool if this was shot layered just like you have with pieces you posted (that I love) because you did a 3 way layering of the foreground (object), middle ground (natural wood) and the back ground. I kind of was thinking almost like a shadow box effect where you had those 3 layers, except you actually floated an actual frame with a profile and a finish, then shoot them like you do. You would have to suspend that frame though on a track, in the ceiling that can be movable with transparent cables (or metal cables and you edit them with a software). Then just like Li’l Mikey’s mind, I thought why not framed these beautiful things!
So I did a little exercise for you and open up an opportunity because what you already have in place. I don’t know if you would have any use for it- an added element to the real thing for your client and maybe you sell frame prints of the different avifauna that you have catalogued and photographed over the years. I did want to touch upon the aspect ratio as I wanted to show folks who does art, photography and print work how the proportional relationship of the width and height is important when you have the background and the object- but, the biggest element is that if you keep the standard aspect ratio, it will save you money when framing these if you stay with standard size (4 x 6, 5 x 7, 8 x 10, 11 x 14, etc.), it will save you money as oppose to going custom if your aspect ratio is off standard. The idea is that all the craftsman here, you can then buy a standard size archival matting and uv glass, then you can frame your work using whatever wood you want and do whatever custom profile (requiring profile cutters if they are complex).
The aspect ratio that worked with this specific size composition is a 14 x 20 and a 9 x 12 that did not affect the integrity of your photo Barry. Of course you can double that number and it will work. The idea is that you have to know the correct aspect ratio for standard sizes for framing so you don’t cut/trim a lot of the background and minimize it so it doesn’t affect the integrity of your composition.
The first one is the 14 x 20 and I wanted to show you the footprint of that aspect ratio and what gets trimmed out- of course you can move that size around the print and trim to whatever balances out the composition.
The second one is 9 x 12 with different matting and framing to give you an idea what size matting can change and effect the composition:
It is a tough choice to select which aspect ratio work’s best. But, one of them to me balance’s out better than the other. Thank you Barry for letting me have a little fun with your fabulous work as it keeps me from not buying and hoarding more wood when I am on this site…..
Arn
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- #14
Those are fantastic Arn. Thanks so much for taking the time to play with them. My photography skills are not that complex as you state in your post. I do the majority of it in post photography in Photoshop Elements 2019. All my birds come complete, mounted on a piece of "driftwood". The "driftwood" is actually a piece of juniper (cedar) found in the TX Hill Country. In PSE I remove the entire background leaving just the subject as a layer. Then I add digitized background layers that I created. In this case there are just 3 layers. Top layer is Black Clouds. Middle layer is the duck. Bottom layer is Wicked. Without any editing the duck would be completely covered by the BCs, so I erase all the BCs directly above the duck letting it show through. Then change my opacity setting on my eraser tool to slightly erase more BCs to let the bottom layer show through around the duck. Then I merge the 3 layers and add my logo and finally a frame to it. I can't claim this idea as I first saw this displayed from Birdman out of Colorado.
Wow, posts #13 & 14 just flew over my head at 10,000 feet. I would love to claim early morning or not enough coffee, but that is not the case. I can't believe I actually took 3 years of photo classes back in the day, and don't comprehend what you two guys just posted. .......... Nubs
Thank you for sharing the process as I was always intrigued by how you went about the presentation. You are so humble and your photo’s equal what you create with the avifauna- you seem to project what is needed for your captive audience get the essence of the subject in hand. I do like this one in particular because of the dynamic angular composition (2 split triangles and diagonal line direction of the subject as well as the margin spacing north, west and south), and its inferred energy in the way you photographed it and presented it. I really just wanted to show you how well you composed it with the aspect ratio and to highlight how effective it would also be as a framed and matted composition to be hung on the wall.
On a side note I do like what you do with the 3 layered composition- like that last one you composed with the natural wood! I like the 3:1 ratio of 1 artificial background and the 2 natural elements with the avifauna foreground and the natural wood element as the middle ground. That is a successful combo and having the 2 natural elements makes it more down to earth/closer to nature.
Thanks Barry and looking forward to your next installation of your artistic work here.
Arn
Just stopped at a job today with an in motion mount. Meant to take a picture of it but got sidetracked by work. Dang stuff keeps getting in the way of fun...