The Art of the Vignette

I think my very first digital darkroom infatuation was the ability to vignette my images. You know, the method of manipulating the edges of an image in order to really make your subjects pop? For me, it was darkening the edges and I couldn’t get enough of it. Although I was having fun with it, it got a tad predictable, I will admit. As I continued to experiment with processing techniques I found other fixations. Textures, tones, saturation, or whatever my processing flavor of the day happened to be. Even after a few of years in experiment mode, I still don’t know what all the potentials are in processing and am still having fun trying new things. I do know what I like when I see it and I know that I shoot in waves of my own personal preferences and trends of whim. Maybe we all do. It’s just a part of the creative process I suppose and part of the fun for sure!

Although my love of vignetting still remains, I am beginning to enjoy challenging myself to build those vignettes into the shooting process. Natural vignettes can be just as intoxicating as their fabricated cohorts but I find they can be a lot less predictable which for me is refreshing.

I’ve recently begun toying with using a shallow depth of field in the foreground of my images as opposed to using it only in the background. I am loving the results! I am addicted to using my trusty macro lens and getting down at ground level, right up to my subject makes it easier to get that soft and lovely blur in the foreground. As long as my focus is on my subject (in the case above, the flower) and there is enough information in front of the subject that will be thrown out of focus with a shallow depth of field you can achieve these results. In this case, the edges don’t go dark but the softness of the bottom edge does do the trick of pulling your eye right to the subject almost as if it were framed.

I would love to see your vignette success stories, whatever they may be. Show us an image of when it really worked just as you wanted it to.

The Details of Friendship

I was lucky enough to share some of my weekend with a handful of dear friends. This much needed girl time was like food for my soul; a time to slow down, to catch up, to unwind, to take in, to savor, to be present, to give and to receive. I rarely take my camera to these kinds of gatherings because I can get preoccupied with the photo part and I have learned to allow myself (and enjoy) being camera free. But lately, looking at endless photos of friends basking one another’s company, I have longed for my own visual treasures of my soul sister experiences. Needless to say, I took my camera this time around in anticipation of capturing the day in a way to help me relish and relive our time together.

I used the self-timer for a handful of gems (the kind of shots to go straight into a frame) and quickly clicked a couple more of things that caught my eye—pods I gathered from the patio, Lucy the dog and a few charming vignettes of my friend’s home. We were outside for while and although the light was harsh and somewhat uninspiring, I shot the photo above, just a quick click, with little thought in the midst of light and easy conversation.

When I got home and got the images up on the computer, I was delighted to discover this shot and how it made me feel. How can a just simple little detail of a friend stir up such rich feelings of gratitude? Is it her signature well-worn clogs and the playful way her toes point slightly inward? Or perhaps it’s the many layers of slightly ruffled fabric, skirt on skirt, and the textured hint of her brimming basket? Or maybe it’s her bare skin, being nourished and warmed by the vibrant sun of the perfect morning. It must be a little of all of these things and how they weave a story together, strand by beautiful strand, of our day, our friendship and how blessed I am to have women like this in my life.

Do you have a photo to share with us that stirs your soul, reminding you that life is good? You know we'd love to see it.

the gathering

Whether I am arranging the shelves in my living room or the pictures on my wall, I find that the casual grouping of items together is what makes my little vignettes aesthetically pleasing to me. As I move things around, I let my instincts guide me.

Oh, this color looks lovely against this color and this shape is wonderful next to this one.

A little higher… a little lower…wait, higher—there! That’s it!

I can’t always explain why I am doing what I’m doing, but I know what I like when I see it. I know this about myself-- that I enjoy pairing things up, gathering them just so and tenderly composing each arrangement. I guess it’s no wonder then that when it comes to my photographs I have these same kinds of tendencies. I’m not sure I’ve ever really thought about it until I really looked at this shot of our tulip tree buds and I was struck by how much it looks like a little family, affectionately gathered together.

It got me thinking about a number of other images I have captured that seem to have similar, almost human qualities; a loving gesture, a coupling, a birth, a family. As I race through one after the next, almost in disbelief, I see it again and again. I am delighted by my discovery.

I encourage you to look again at your photographs; really look. Set out to rediscover them. See them in a new light. Do you find any elements working together that speak to you of tenderness, nurturing, and love? Do they convey what is important to you in some abstract way that you may not have noticed before? Something tells me if you look close enough, they just might.