Monday, October 11, 2010

Monday Inspiration Celebration: Polaroids

artpostcards029


Another Monday! What has been inspiring you this past week?

I succumbed to the siren song of the Polaroid camera and treated myself to an early birthday present - a ivory and chocolate SX-70 Land Camera. Oh, she is a pretty little thing! I purchased film from The Impossible Project - their First Flush film which means their first attempt to duplicate the magic recipe of original Polaroid film. It is very quirky; you have to shield it immediately from the light when it pops out of the camera and it can take days for the image to fully materialize. It is both frustrating and magical. I first tried the film in a borrowed Polaroid One Step camera with poor results. I just had no control over focus or exposure. That said, these first few images were taken with that camera:


polaroids003




polaroids011



On the second shot, I had tried to create a shield which catches the film when it shoots out. Well, you can see its shadow in the image! I had better luck just lunging for the picture with my hand.

The second batch of film I had some problems and my first shot had two pictures popping out at once:


polaroids008



What you are seeing is my living room shot from the balcony above. You can just make out the coin patterned carpet and Moose sleeping on the rug. My third (or second?) attempt at the shot was just pure murkiness.

Indoors is proving challenging, although I like this image of the paper lanterns hanging from our dining room chandelier:



polaroids001



I am finding outdoor shots in slightly overcast conditions are offering better results:




polaroids005





polaroids004




And my all time favorite shot so far:




clarablake




I am banking on the people over at Impossible improving the film. They have offered great customer service, including sending me a coupon when it appeared there was a slight problem with 2 of my boxes of film.




artpostcards030



Meanwhile, if I want rich color, I can find that in my bin of paints! I am having fun creating Art Postcards for 21 Secrets and am organizing an art mail swap. Come over and join us!


And it is an extra special Monday as I just found out a piece I submitted to Wishstudio Blog is featured there today! Do pop over for a look. As so many of my favorite bloggers have had guest columns there, I feel like I am being allowed to eat at the grown up's table. I hope I showed good manners. Be sure to leave a comment there and maybe Mindy will let me join the big girls again some time.

Now's the time to share what has been inspiring you this past week. What gifts did Creativity sprinkle upon your page? Let's keep the fairy dust flying!



Don't be shy ... you know you want to link ...

8 comments:

  1. I recently stumbled across your blog and am glad I did. it is a joy to read~

    Kelly

    ReplyDelete
  2. The one with your daughter in the pumpkin patch looks great. I left a message over at your post on wish studio, I loved your post.
    I would love to be in on the art sway!

    xo
    Karen

    ReplyDelete
  3. I think what is magical about working with the polaroids&their unpredictability is you start to look at the world a little differently.I carried my camera around Memphis many days with polaroid eyes :) I too have been super inspired this past week by taking photos-with my iphone.Today I took 44!I haven't felt well physically&this has kept my spirit buoyed-being able to play with the pictures in various apps to create something beautiful. Thank you for always inspiring me!!Blessings-
    Angela

    ReplyDelete
  4. have fun with your new camera!!

    ReplyDelete
  5. I really like the pics with your "new" camera Lis-they look magical and dream-like!
    Creativity this week has been dormant I'm afraid!! I have been reading a few books I just picked up-really great info on collage, journals, techniques, developing your visual voice. Great stuff that is rich food for when I get back to the studio.
    And oh yes!! Godiva truffles are the BEST!!!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Hello! i love your colourful postcards...they make me smile!

    and those photos are actually pretty cool! so enchanting!

    swing on over for a visit sometime! I'd love to share my artful living with another fellow bloggy artist!

    ciao bella

    CREATIVE CARMELINA

    ReplyDelete
  7. I'm now a follower of your blog....hope to see you soon!

    ciao bella!

    CREATIVE CARMELINA

    ReplyDelete
  8. Congratulations on your new Pola! I adore my SX-70 :)Just wanted to stop by and say that I love your blog and am so sad that we didn't get to meet at Squam... (or did I meet you and not realize it was you, cuz I've been know to be a bit oblivious)!

    BTW thanks for the sweet comment on my blog. I really hope to see you at Squam next year!

    ReplyDelete