I came upon a Chinese guardian lion statue which I originally thought was a gargoyle. I had never seen this before but it looked intriguing so I picked it up. On the same day, I found a zebra bust that someone had discarded. But, another man (or woman’s} garbage can be another woman’s treasure so I bought it too. I also found an animal print vase that spoke to me. I wanted to incorporate these three elements into a a fantasy still life using flowers and a candle. I arranged these items on a beige cloth and photographed the scene against a white backdrop. I then turned the white background into a texture befitting the image. I think I achieved my vision of creating a beautiful fantasy still life.
Baby Elephant
I was out looking for some inspiration for a still life when I came upon an adorable Lenox elephant. It was hard to believe that someone gave this away to Goodwill. But their loss was my find. I bought it because I thought it was just so cute and beautiful, not really knowing what in the world I was going to create. I had some old stones that I collected a while back sitting in a plastic bag. I thought that at some point I would think of something to do with them. I had a brainstorm and this is what I came up with. I used a texture to bring out the beauty and soft lighting of this lovely cozy scene.
Hubcap and Orange Lilies
I was out doing my walking last week when I came upon a hubcap, in good condition. I decided it might make an interesting picture. I tried to use travel as a loose theme, so I added an old New Jersey license plate, yellow sunglasses, and a wrench. In keeping with the colors of the flowers, I included a green apple. I added a candle and metallic candle holder to complete the image. I felt that a black backdrop would enhance the scene.
Mardi Gras Masks
I came upon these two Venetian masks in Goodwill. I was drawn to them and felt these beauties would make an unusual and vibrant image.These pair of Venetian-style masks are displayed prominently, one adorned with colorful details and the other in a stark black and white motif. A bouquet of red alstroemeria flowers and a single red rose add a vibrant touch to the composition, while a lit red candle provides a warm glow from the side. I placed the red candle atop an hourglass containing white sand. I photographed this arrangement against a white backdrop and added a lovely blue texture to create an etherial, otherworldly look.
All of these are somewhat similar, but different. Some have skulls, some have flowers or candles, yet all show the beauty of the masks displayed different forms.
White Daisies, Orange Lilies, and Ukulele
These lovely creations are my latest features in my Still Life repertoire. These are three very different Still Lifes using white daisies, orange lilies, limes, oranges and a ukulele. I found all of these vases in my favorite place, Goodwill. Each image uses a different vase. The orange lilies really spoke to me and I felt they would look beautiful against a black background with a green vase. The green ceramic vase spoke to me because it comes from Costa Rica and shows turtles as a design. White daisies added to the green vase really looked exquisite. For the last image I decided to add a ukulele to the picture with white flowers and green ceramic vase. Again, a black backdrop filled the bill. I love the varied colors and how I incorporated the contrasting colors to realize my vision.
