We are not random - "Beauty"

Romans 1:20 - "Ever since the creation of the world, His invisible attributes of eternal power and divinity have been able to be understood and preceived in what He has made. As a result, they have no excuse. "

The theory of beauty and nature - Phi is a mathematical number of approximately 1.618 whose mathematical formula appears in structures of nature and also mapped in the defining maths of beauty (The Golden Rule).  The tail of a seahorse is a mathematical formula as are seashells and all flowers, plants and snail shells.  1.618 shows that our universe was intelligently designed, not a cosmic co-incidence.  Science or something else ?? I am not questioning it's ultimate origin, rather, I am interested in that we not are random.

The question then extends to Beauty, an age old obsession, what is beauty?  Does it manifest? is it inherent? how do we describe the beauty within that is not tangible? 

When I was thinking about making this image, I was asking myself all these questions and chose the snail to represent Phi, it has significance to me and regularly occurs as an item in my dreams, is it my subconscious? and representation of something important to me or is it a manifest?

All I can say is that in reality, snails gross me out, deeply !!! I went hunting for snails for this shoot one day after the rain, I only managed to find one, I kept him captive in a plastic container, regularly feeding him and cleaning out his poop, it was gross enough, but it also gave me more to think about in the meantime. 

This song - The Reason by Hoobanstank was also inspiration to the making of this theme - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fV4DiAyExN0

When I first starting talking to Anne (the model) about this shoot, I was a bit hesitant to mention the snail bit, I didn't want to scare her off, worst case scenario I photoshop the snails in, however, I was keen to keep it all in camera as much as possible, keep it real - beauty and the slug..... ewwwwww it still grosses me out.  Well I'm pleased to say Anne was all for it, she even collected the props - wooohooooo Anne!! 

We had so much fun shooting this theme, we decided to set it up on the floor so we had a better chance of the snails actually staying in some sort of position, although I did have a setup in mind and knew where I wanted them to be, it was a matter of firing off a number of shots, you would think that snails are usually described as slowwwwwww, well on this day, they were like little "road runners" sliming all over the place.  As for Anne's skin, well, she finished up with an extra "gleaming" complexion by the end of it :) 

PS : No snails were harmed in the making of this image :) 

My dog Buddy, found the snails fascinating, almost tempted to eat one - he's so gross ewwwwwwww!!! 

The team that brings the image to life ... Anne Duffy my courageous and skillful model (keeping a straight face with slimy creatures all over your face is a SKILLand as far as I am concerned, COURAGEOUS!!) and Lauren Cataldo my talented friend - whose makeup skills were kept very clean and simple in this particular shoot :)

Thew finished image ........ "Beauty"

A screen shot from my computer - in post production.

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Props and wardrobe underway

My sewing machine has kicked the bucket, dammit !!! Looks like hand stitching till I get a replacement one.  The wardrobe is becoming more and more intricate, I really shouldn't go out on my own, I tend to spend too much time thinking about stuff and ofter wonder how I got from A to B as I'm sure I've blacked out into lala land.   

I drove out to the fabric warehouse this morning, I really should get myself out to Cabramatta (put that one on the list) - Dubai would be nice too :)  anyhow, I always seem to walk out of Spotlight with arm fulls more than what I intended to purchase, but I can't help being distracted by all the ideas that float into my head when I pick up a roll of fabric - yeah OK I'm a little nutts :) 

On the way back, I went to check on a couple of locations I had found a few weeks back, just to look at what it was like mid morning, looks like I am going to have to shoot there early morning to get the best light. Best remember to not wear my good boots when I go there again, besides the mud the sheep poo poo was a little hard to avoid, man that stuff stinks :) 

Finally finished the props for tomorrow's shoot, pig skulls stink too !! 

The invitation to the series "Slumber Awakening"

Coming together of "Slumber Awakening"

With over 30 themes, and growing, my new series is starting to take shape.  When researching my ideas I realised that I was really looking for my identity, my presence, my past and some insight perhaps into my future.  It is an expression of where I am today, a journey of life unravelling the truth through my dreams.  I often think about dreams, and question if they reflect my inner thoughts, beliefs, and/or feelings?  How do they translate in real life, do they predict? or do they tell us something about ourselves? How do we fit in the space in which we exist? Does the space influence our existence??

I recently watched a documentary on landscape photography which also made me realise that if we destroy nature we destroy ourselves.  Undoubtably, in my mind, the landscape defines who we are and how we relate to the universe we exist in.   I wanted to photograph something with conviction, not just about beauty, it needed to appeal to my personal style.  

Over the 12months I have experimented through ideas in portraiture and fashion, I pushed myself in directions I felt totally outside of my comfort zone and discovered attributes of my work that I have begun to thoroughly enjoy.  There is no doubt I'm a bit of a control freak, always thinking of plan A as well as plan B, sometimes option C, carefully and meticulously planning out the theme, right down to set design, costume and props.  My stories need to be believable yet still with the element of surrealism, mystery and fantasy.  Music plays an integral part in my processing, both in concept and in post.  It influences the mood and the direction.

What is my style ?? I had to ask myself the question, then I needed to ask my peers, people around me who follow my work.  In the past 12 months I was on a discovery of what that style might be.  I started with landscapes in my earlier days, like many who are attracted to the art of photography, I wanted to capture what I saw with my eyes, but not necessarily in a literal sense.  I am drawn to architecture as much as I am to nature, but it is the beauty within the geometry of the architecture within the landscape that appeals to me most.  It is the symmetry of shape and the mystery of stillness combined.   I call this symmetry and mystery - beauty, how we see it is a response to the environment it is surrounded by.  

So what is my style ? I would describe it as dark, fantasy, mystical, surreal and often with a touch of ethereal goth.  It is a play on fantasy verses reality finding beauty in darkness.

I thought the best way to express the series is with a cover image, something that would give off a vibe to the story, yet still maintain the mystery of what is to come ....... here is the invitation to my "Slumber Awakening" 

Once upon a time .......... starting a new body of work

As the weeks pass I fill myself with anxiety, so many ideas floating in my head and a tight deadline to meet.  With the opportunity to exhibit my work in a prominent location I need to decide where to focus my attention, time is running out arghhhhhhhhh. I have commenced a new body of work which looks at reality vs fantasy.  It's an intricate journey through life from a woman's point of view, I envisage this series to continue for some time into 2014.

I’ll be heading out to a one of my all time favourite places in Australia in a couple of weeks for a 3 day shoot.  If you know me well enough you will know where this special location is ;)

I haven’t been there for almost a year and am really looking forward to it.  This time I’m bringing along 2 models, both of which are also amazing makeup artists and stylists in their own rights.  Oh man, this is going to be one huge creative weekend, I can’t wait to begin - oh!!! I forgot there will also be a special guest joining us on location, he’s going to add so much fun to the shoot I can just see it already :)  

My visual diary is beaming with drawings and plans for each of the images I plan to create whilst out that weekend.   Today I collected another prop and really need to get into some sewing el pronto!!!  I will be posting some behind the scenes pics, and some sneak peeks of the props as I prepare them in the next few weeks leading up to the shoot - so stay tuned  :)