Welcome to wherever you are
It’s that time of year of course for reflection and anticipation. Reflection on the year that was and looking forward to the coming year with optimism and enthusiasm for the goals the achieve.
So what have I got?
Reflecting, I had a very erratic 2023 in photography. Periods of activity and more weeks of completely nothing than I would have liked. We got going with We Are Luminance, that was a big plus. The website moved from just launched into an expanding platform. A few outings in the city where I pulled together a nice little set that formed the basis of a non-light painting calendar for 2024. My infrared adventures grew as well as I found the time to be focused on some pursuits outside. Also upgraded the drone to something more modern and way easier to travel with that allowed some images from the holiday in Queensland.
Light painting was more of a challenge. Lacking inspiration for many weeks. Lacking the energy too with the step back up to full time work and an expanded role in the office which meant I was more tired at the optimal studio time to really get into my stride. I am a master procrastinator though, so this is hardly surprising, to me at least.
How about this then? This is a Refractograph. These are cool, something a little different too. I’ve probably described the setup before, but no harm in explaining a little again. First and most interestingly, there is no lens involved in creating these works. I almost exclusively use an SLR camera of some sort (the big ones with interchangeable lenses 😊). This technique means I remove the lens. So the sensor is basically exposed, but of course there is no glass in front to focus the light onto the recording plane. Next in the set up is the light source. So for this, I use just a regular tactical torch, but I have taped over the end, leaving just a small hole to give a very narrow beam of light. This is placed a good distance from the camera, maybe 4-5m or so. Next part, is…a wine glass! This is supported right in front of the camera. And I mean RIGHT in front. Literally a few cm from the cam, and clamped at an approx. 45 degree angle so that the light from the other side of the room, bounces off the base of the glass and into the sensor. Refracted light, as it bounces through the glass, give these incredible patterns. Lot of words…hope that makes sense.
Few colour gels in the beam of light and you get something like this!
In between the still failed experiments (I will get them!) I’ve been hitting a few Spiros again. I’ve got a very versatile torch from the US, (I’ll talk more on that one another time) so I’ve been experimenting with a few home made attachments for that to create some really cool effects.
And almost finally…look at this little gem.
We got her from Labrador Rescue (very much unplanned) – she was abandoned at the side of the road. Can you believe that?! She’s been with us three weeks now. Bit of a terror to be honest, very much a puppy and big old fella is taking a bit to adjust to this whirlwind being in his space.
Last but not least, we still have some calendars over on https://weareluminance.au, it’s not too late to help us out with a few extra dollars spending money on our photography pursuits.
I’ve done one from my home city of Melbourne. Exploring the city lights at night. Lotte has put together a fabulous collection of South Australian landscapes. Both are available as A4 wall calendars. All the details are here.
https://www.weareluminance.au/shop-2024-wal-calendars
We’d be delighted of course, if you would care to support our little venture. Be good.
S
