Day 8 No pixels were harmed in the creation of this image. The smoky background was created with a black and white film preset in On1 Software. I used Photoshop to create a radial gradient layer with orange and purple colors to simulate the setting sun. Still trying to decide if I want the sun to be larger. Or smaller.

How would this look with any of the previous variations? Check back to see what else I come up with and what the final four will look like for the fotoMuses "Potpourri" exhibit that opens at Elmhurst Museum in February.

Day 7: Time for something completely different. Created in On1 software, this image uses overlapping rectangles in different colors + a layer with large bokeh effects + the multiple Blending Modes to invert the colors in selected areas. 

Because this variation is so different than the others (so far), I think it has a good chance of making it into the final four selected for the fotoMuses "Potpourri" exhibit at the Elmhurst Museum. I would love to hear your feedback on this or any of the previous day's posts.

Day 6: This is the half way point in the challenge of creating digitally manipulated derivatives from a single iPhone photo. For this variation, I combined rough pencil sketch effects and soft painterly strokes using Topaz Studio 2.  

Part of the fun is to see how the filters and effects interact with different images, or even different parts of the same image. In this case, it is the rough sketchy effect that catches on the branches and needles, and it is the painterly strokes that provide a soft counterpoint for the background. No masking was done to achieve this dual effect.

The final part of the challenge will be to select four of the images that will work together for the fotoMuses "Potpourri" exhibit opening in February at the Elmhurst Art Museum. Will this one make the cut? Time will tell. 

Day 3 of my Twelve Day Self-Challenge uses an impasto effect from Topaz Studio 2. Impasto is a painting technique where the paint is applied in thick layers, leaving a very textured look.

The idea of the challenge is to use software tools to create a variety of unique looks from a single iPhone photo. In the end, I will select four images to be included in the fotoMuses "Potpourri" exhibit that opens in February 2020 at the Elmhurst Art Museum.

My Twelve Day Self-challenge is to see what creative results I can get from a simple iPhone image. All digital manipulations are being done on a MacBook Pro. In the end, I will select four images to be included in the fotoMuses "Potpourri" exhibit that opens in February 2020 at the Elmhurst Art Museum.

For day 1, I'm keeping it simple with a soft but textured painterly effect.  First I did some cleanup in LightRoom and Photoshop to be used as the basis for all variations going forward. Day One was created using the stamped brush effect in Topaz Studio 2.

As a fitting end for 2019, and a new beginning for 2020, I have decided to challenge myself to a creative personal project: The Twelve Days of Bonsai.

Bonsai plants are among my favorite subjects, whether used singly or in photomontages. I love their elegant structures, their strength, and resilience. They are art forms in themselves. But what happens when digital wizardry meets natural wonder? Let's see what evolves over the next not-necessarily-consecutive twelve days...

The project starts with a simple iPhone shot of our newly acquired bonsai plant. From there, the creative juices kick in, with a little help from Lightroom, Photoshop, onOne Software, and Topaz Studio 2. Maybe something else, who knows what will happen?  In the end, there will be twelve digitally manipulated renditions of the lone bonsai. Out of those twelve, I will select four to be printed for the fotoMuses upcoming exhibit "Potpourri" at the Elmhurst Art Museum. Details will be coming soon.

Here is the starting image:

After and Before. Working from the homeowner's photo of their garden, I applied my own creative version to give a painterly effect. My vision was to focus in on three elements: the pond, the trellis, and the flowers to the right. Settled for two and a fraction out of three.

On July 13, I will be participating in the Tri-Village Garden walk, selling my garden themed art work in this very space. While I cannot divulge all the details of the garden walk at this time, this spot will be the second stop on the walk, which is a collaborative event between the Tri-Village Garden Club, Arts in Bartlett, and the Village of Bartlett. This is a fundraising event, and a portion of all sales will be donated to Arts in Bartlett.

I am looking forward to working with the homeowner as the garden blossoms in the next couple of months (this image is from last June, early in the morning as the sun was coming up). Hoping there's some koi in that pond!