THE CREATIVE PROCESS #9 From Photo to Art II

"FIRE & ICE"

(Click on images for larger versions.)

       

 My series "The Creative Process" explains how a

particular piece of art or a group of works were created.

This post is, in part, a response to

CREATIVE EVERY DAY

Click on the link to add your own

creative endeavor, or see what others have posted.

The Photo

        Occasionally I submit photos to Sky Watch Fridays, so I have been paying attention to skies and taking photos of them for several months. One day when I was walking, my lower back was bothering me, so I stopped to lean back against a fence beside the walking trail.  In front of me were two trees with a beautiful sky between them. I snapped a few pictures.

        Now, when I walk on that trail, I always stop at that spot to take additional photos, planning to create a future post for Sky Watch Friday marking how the sky and the trees change through the seasons.

        One of the earlier photos I took was when the tree branches were still bare during the winter. 

The Process

        When I started to work with this photo, I wasn't sure where I was going with it. I just experimented a bit and ended up with something surprising. I had thought I might just enhance the blue sky and perhaps give it the look of a pastel drawing. 

        1. In Photoshop, I selected a branch with the magic wand, then chose "similar". In this way, I was able to select all of the branches and copy them to a separate layer.

        2. By selecting the branches and choosing "inverse" I was able to select everything except the branches (in this case, the sky) and put it on a separate layer.  I "turned off" the layer with the branches & allowed the white background layer to be visible in the holes where the branches would be.  I also played with the color balance and saturation on the sky.

        3. Simply to see how it would look, I inverted the color of the sky. It became an orange shade, which I again enhanced with more red and stronger saturation. By inverting the colors, the white of the clouds had also turned dark.  It reminded me of videos I have seen of massive fires, with the sly filled with billowing orange and black smoke.

            I liked this, the white tree branches looking like they were covered with snow or ice and the sky resembling fire. Immediately I thought of the title "Fire & Ice." At this point, the white branches were really still the white background layer showing through, but the plain white trees looked too flat to me.

        4. So I took the black tree outlines and made 2 more copies and changed one to white. I had three layers of black tree branches, plus one white.

     I placed a copy of the black tree branches on three separate layers over the orange sky and then placed the white tree branches on top.

            On each of the three layers with black branches, I nudged one slightly left, one slightly right and one slightly up, to make it look like black outlines around the white.

The image at the top of this post is my final completed "Fire & Ice"  Several years ago I created an abstract work called "Fire and Ice." Since I had used "and" in that one, I used an "&" in this one.

Variations

        As usual, I always have some other variations. These may have been steps along the way that I sort of liked, but rejected for the final product. However, because different people have different tastes, some may like these better than my final choice.

        Variation 1. I cloned parts of the trees to create a third tree in the middle. Also, I put the black over the white in this one.  My only objection to this is that most of the sky, which I think looks dramatic in my final pick, is hidden. I do like the black over the white, but because I liked the title "Fire & Ice" I thought the white over black worked better, creating more contrast between the hot orange and cold white.

        Variations 2 & 3: These are exactly like the one I chose except that I did not invert the sky colors. Instead, I enhanced the sky with some magenta (left) and cyan (right). 

        There are, of course, a zillion other possibilities of ways to modify, change, or enhance a digital photo with software.

(photos, art, and text ©2009, C.J. Peiffer)

SISTERS - Antique Photo Restoration

"Sis & Grace"

Original damaged photo.
I'm guessing this was taken in
1915 or 1916.

My mother gave me a sepia photo of her and her older sister and asked me if I could restore it for her. 

Her sister's name was Selma, but everyone called her Sis. My Aunt Sis was born in 1910 (died in 1998.) My mother was born in 1914, the second of four girls, and is now the only sister who is still living. Her youngest sister died about 2 years ago. 
The original photo had been hand-tinted to give the faces very faint cheek, lip and eye color.  

I took a course in digital photo retouching ten years ago. It was free training from a photography studio looking to hire 5 new people. I passed their course and final test and was told I'd be called within a week about beginning working there. I hadn't heard anything, so after 10 days I called and discovered the place had gone bankrupt and would be closing once everyone picked up the photos they had already ordered.   

This image was very dark and very badly damaged so it presented unique challenges. 

After scanning the original photo, I had to recreate parts that were missing. Of course, I don't know what was originally there, so I had to guess. You will not be able to see all of the flaws, even if you click on the images for enlarged versions, but there were black spots all over the faces and arms and lots of white spots on dark areas, thousands of small flaws, as well as the more obvious ones. When I enlarged the photo to repair the tiny flaws, I knew it would take forever to fix them. So I repaired the worst of them and left many of smallest ones ---but then, that may be the charm of this antique photograph. 

ADDENDUM: My mother died at age 95 a little more than 6 months after I posted this, on the day before Thanksgiving 2009. 

She had fallen at home. Her in-home help called and we took her to the hospital. After a few days there, she seemed to be doing well, then died in her sleep. She hated the thought of being placed in nursing care, which her doctor recommended after her fall, so I think she just gave up. 

I didn't know until I spoke to one of my cousins that my mother's grandfather and her youngest sister also died the day before Thanksgiving. If I were superstitious, I might worry each year, right before the holiday.

THE CREATIVE PROCESS #8 - Playing With Color

"RAINBOW TREES"

(click on any image for larger version)

This post is in response to a prompt at

CREATIVE EVERY DAY

Suggested theme COLOR.

Click on the link to add your own response to the

challenge or to view those submitted by others

This post is the eighth in a series explaining how a
particular work of art or a group of works was created.

        I created a drawing of trees with colored pencils. I used realistic colors, brown trunks, green leaves. It was okay but not particularly interesting. So I scanned the drawing and started to play with colors. (I no longer have the original drawing ---and in a computer glitch, I lost the original scan.)
        I selected the lightest shade on the original drawing with the magic wand in Photoshop and clicked on "similar" to choose everything that was that shade. I then changed it to a bright yellow. I continued to do this until I had changed the drawing to rainbow colors, and finally chose the darkest areas to change to black.
        I then created a border and used the gradient tool to create a gradual change through the colors of the rainbow. I then added more of a pastel look to the result by choosing the rough pastel filter.
       For the result, I chose the title "RAINBOW TREES."

       But, as usual, I always have to try something else.



       I chose to invert the colors. This changes the blacks to whites, the reds to blues, etc. Usually when I do this, the result looks too pale and washed out for me, mainly because it ends up with a lot of white space. So I selected the white and changed it back to black.

        I then chose the chalk and charcoal filter to make a black and white version.


        I also chose the solarize filter, which resulted in a very dark image, so I brightened it with the bright/contrast tool and chose to saturate the colors a bit.

        I still prefer the original "RAINBOW TREES" but others might like one or more of the other versions better.  Color is a matter of taste and choice.

        There are many other possibilities for playing with colors. For example, I could choose to change the color balance by increasing the cyan and lessening the red. Or I could adjust the hue/saturation to make the colors more or less intense. I could take one version and place it on top of another, then make it transparent so the colors underneath would show through, mixing with the ones on top.  By changing the opacity, the color mix would look more like the top image or more like the bottom one. I could also play with variations, curves or levels options or add filters. There are dozens of options and when one combines two or more of them, the possibilities are nearly endless.

        I love playing with images on the computer because in a few minutes, I can try twenty different variations and immediately throw them away if I don't like them. Although I usually create only a few versions (one to five, typically) I could create 25, 100, or 1000 different versions, if I had the time to do that.

(images and text ©2009, C.J. Peiffer)

REFLECTIONS - Think Green Thursday

"REFLECTIONS"

(click on image for larger version)

Digital Art

by

C.J. Peiffer

This image is in response to

THINK GREEN THURSDAY

and

CREATIVE EVERY DAY

Click on the links to post your own entry

or see what others have posted.

        This piece of digital art started as a simple photograph of trees, not reflected in water. After changing and manipulating the image many times in many ways, I came up with the above design.  

        For more than a decade, I have felt like an explorer in a new land. Switching from drawing and painting to computer design has been both formidable and thrilling. The transformation process I undertook to become a computer artist is much like the process I use to created much of my work.
        That is, I begin with a sketch, drawing, photograph or scanned object and utilize the computer to make it into something else, sometimes similar to the initial image and sometimes so different, the source material is unrecognizable. I turn earrings into metallic abstractions and fish into colorful patterns. Or I use the background from one image to place behind the foreground of another. Harvested parts of buildings become surrealistic floating sculptures and the Mona Lisa steps into the Twenty-first Century.
        The assumption that digital art is created by a computer with no human input is mistaken. A computer cannot create art any more than it can write a novel. Software can facilitate some steps, such as adding a texture, but the computer is merely a high-tech substitute for brush and paint.
        Mastering digital possibilities is time-consuming and arduous, as with any art form. Yet, no matter how demanding, the creative process is both fun and uplifting for me. As Salvador Dali once said, “There are some days when I think I am going to die from an overdose of satisfaction.”
        The computer allows me to create with incredible flexibility and freedom. I can save an image, retaining its lines, shapes and colors. Then, I can add, delete, or change any design element while playing with textures, transparencies, colors, and filters. These techniques permit experimentation that would be prohibitively time-consuming and expensive with paint and brush. Practicing digital art, I am free to take risks. Such exploration generates new ideas and further experimentation.
         While the technology of computer-assisted design continues to evolve, I have barely scratched the surface of this medium. I learn while creating each new project, thus expanding the scope of my future work.

        To see more of my art work, click HERE.

(art and text, ©2009, C.J. Peiffer)

THE CREATIVE PROCESS #7 - From Photo to Art

"CLASSIC CADDY"
('54 Coupe DeVille)
(©2006, C.J. Peiffer)

This image is, in part, a response to

RUBY TUESDAY

and

CREATIVE EVERY DAY

Click on the link(s) to post your own response

to the challenge or to see what others have posted.

This post is the seventh in a series explaining how a

particular work of art or a group of works was created.

        I love to enhance my photographs so they look like pieces of art rather than photographs.

        I took this photo many years ago at Gast Classic Motorcars Exhibit (apparently no longer in business) in Strasburg, PA in the middle of Pennsylvania Dutch country.

        After scanning the photo print (I took the photo way before digital cameras) the first thing I did was digitally remove any specs of dust or other flaws from the photograph.

        Next I intensified the colors and increased the contrast between light and dark.

        After trying several other filters, to make it shinier, give it texture, change the colors, I decided to use the "glowing edges filter" which gives the image a black background with neon-like edges.         

        While this results in an effect that is interesting in itself, I didn't want the red color of the original automobile to be hidden, so I removed the black from the car, leaving the glowing edges.  

        I left the black in the background, but it looked too plain and flat, so I added a texture to it. Finally, I added a copyright and my name to the lower right corner.

        See products (T-shirts, mouse pad, card, tie, etc.) featuring this "CLASSIC CADDY" image at my Pro Artz Zazzle pages.

(text ©2009, C.J. Peiffer)

THE CREATIVE PROCESS - #2 PARODY

"THE MAKEOVER"  is one of my favorite digital pieces and is also a crowd-pleaser when exhibited. 

This post is in response to a prompt at

CREATIVE EVERY DAY

Click on the link to add your own response to the

challenge or to view those submitted by others

        This post is the second in a series that features the CREATIVE PROCESS for a particular piece of art or a group of works. These posts will explain some or all of the following: how I conceived the idea, how I created the piece, how I decided on the title, and unique parts of the creative process for this particular piece.

Below, you will find the step-by-step process I used to create this image.

The Idea

        I found an old reproduction of the Mona Lisa and posted it near my computer where I was working on 50 pieces of digital art for an upcoming solo exhibit. Sometimes when my eyes were tired of the monitor, I would look at Mona wondering if she were considered beautiful in her time. One day, I thought she wouldn't look bad with a bit of makeup, some brighter clothes, and a new hairdo to replace her plastered-down do. Thus the idea to create a makeover was born, along with my apologies to Leonardo.

The Title

        "The Makeover" was the obvious title for Mona's drastic remake.

The Time
        People often ask how long it takes to create a work of art. The real answer is “all of my life” because creating art requires everything I've learned since I first held a crayon.
        “The Makeover” consumed approximately 40 hours. Much of my work isn’t visible because the layering process allowed me to experiment. New elements were added on layers, almost as if they had been painted on transparencies, one on top of another. I was able to add a new layer between layers or delete or change any layer without disturbing the others.
        When I scanned the reproduction, the result retained the textured appearance of the original paper and made it look rather old, qualities I didn't expect, but liked. Then I started to work on the 'After' portion of my piece.
        I created the initial image in about 25 hours. For several weeks, I returned to it every day, each time finding something to improve. Later, I enlarged it on the monitor to 300% of its actual size to add miniscule details and corrections, one tiny enlarged section at a time.

The Process - The Making of  "THE  MAKEOVER"

BEFORE

    1. & 2. Because my reproduction of the “Mona Lisa” was so large, I had to scan it in two parts.
    3. a. I joined the two scanned pieces together.
        b. I touched up the initial image so that the area where the two pieces met was no longer visible.
        c. The cream-colored border was eliminated.
        d. Colors were adjusted.
        e. The entire image was lightened.
        f. The “Before” text was added twice, once in yellow and once in black. The two were then overlapped.




AFTER
    4. a. I began the “makeover” portion by touching up facial flaws including adding “concealer” to hide the bags under the eyes.
        b. The neckline of the dress was lowered.
        c. Skin had to be painted in place of the dress when the neckline changed.

    5. Mona’s face and neck were lightened and smoothed and a transparent section of this lightened image was placed over image #4 to create the appearance of foundation makeup.
    6. Then, her hands were too dark for her face, so they were lightened similarly.

    7. The robe was selected, copied and the colors changed. These are the two darkest shades created for the appearance of folds and shadows.
    8. a. Lighter shades and highlights of her robe were created.
        b. I added a texture to the clothing to make it more like the original reproduction which had been printed on textured paper.
        c. Light shadows were added to emphasize her cleavage. Later, shadows were added to this same layer for her new hairdo.

    9. a. Mona received a pair of green contact lenses, painted on a transparent layer so that the characteristics of her real eyes would show through.
        b. Eye shadow was added on three different layers, then joined and blended.
        c. Three different shades of lipstick were applied in transparent layers.
        d. I added two shades of blush to her checks, the tips of her nose and chin, her forehead and her neck.
    10. To give her lips a fuller appearance, I added highlights to her lower lip.
    11. a. Unfortunately for Mona Lisa, the fashion of her day was to shave the eyebrows. I drew on eyebrows, one hair at a time, using several shades of brown.
          b. Similarly, she received eyelashes and eyeliner.
    12. a. Outlines of the irises were darkened.
          b. Whites of the eyes were lightened to eliminate their bloodshot appearance.
          c. White dots were added to the eyes for highlights.

    13. I gave Mona a manicure by adding two shades of pink in transparent layers.
    14. a. I searched magazines and catalogs, finally settling on several photographs from which I might harvest a hair style.
          b. I scanned a catalog image with the new hairdo, then eliminated the face and as much of the background from the catalog image as possible.
          c. I overlapped the hair over Mona’s face. It didn’t fit exactly, so I enlarged it, erased what hid her face, and “cloned” the curls to place more curls in areas that needed more hair.
          d. Finally, by enlarging the image on the monitor, the background from the catalog image could be eliminated from around and between the curls so that the image of DaVinci’s painted background could show through.

    15. a. The hair was highlighted by selecting the lightest strands from image #14, lightening it, making it slightly transparent, then pasting it over the previous image.
          b. Earrings were drawn in pink with white highlights.
          c. I made final touch-ups on all parts of the image.
          d. The “After” text was added in two layers (yellow and black) and overlapped.

    Finally the “Before” and “After” images were placed side-by-side.

(Art work and text ©2002 C.J. Peiffer)

Products featuring "The Makeover" image can be found HERE.