Kat Eye Studio

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Smartphone Art Workshop in two weeks!

I’m getting excited… my “Smartphone Art Weekend” is just two weeks away! I’ve added a second day of material to the Smartphone Art workshop, going deeper into advanced editing and blending techniques. You know, the ones where you say, “How did you DO that, Kat?” All my secrets will be revealed! It’s going to be a good time.

Smartphone Art 1 & 2
October 11 & 12, 2014
Sequoia Gallery + Studios
Hillsboro, OR
Cost is $95+apps per day, register through Sequoia

New students can register for both days or the first day, Smartphone Art 1, only. Returning Smartphone Art students can register for the second day, Smartphone Art 2. The classes build on each other, so Smartphone Art 1 (the original one-day class) is a prerequisite for Smartphone Art 2.

Oregon Pear Autumn Harvest Kat Sloma Mobile Photography

You will be amazed at what you can create, just with an iOS device. Come join me for some mobile photography fun!

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An Artful Arrangement

I am musing on “still life” over at Mortal Muses today, head over to see a companion photo to this one. This theme encouraged me to photograph two of my favorite foods of Italy – Parmigiano Reggiano cheese and Amarone della Valpolicella wine. Yum. Both of these items will be much harder to find and quite a bit more expensive when we return home, so I am enjoying them as much as possible now.

Not only that, but I was able to capture this still life in our beautiful kitchen. Aren’t those marble countertops nice? The apartment we’re living in here has much nicer finishes than our home in Oregon, and we’ve gotten a little spoiled.

It’s nice to capture these little memories in an artful and intentional way. I’m on a quest to photograph “what I’ll miss” in the next few months before we move back to the US. I’m going to be a blubbering mess as we get closer to actually moving – we have just over four months left!

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Real Life Still Life

Everyday, we walk by countless places that people live in, work in, shop in, play in. We don’t even see these places most of the time, they are just part of the background noise of our every day lives. The good thing about travel is that it makes you more aware of what’s around you, you are open, receptive and seeking. You are actively seeing what is someone else’s background noise, what they don’t even notice anymore. The little details of real life that are fantastic still life compositions, if we just notice them.

This real life still life was found in a back alley in Murten, Switzerland. My son and I were wandering around the town on our guidebook walking tour, and I caught this flash of blue in the corner of my eye. Not one to miss out on a possible color photo opportunity, we headed down the alley to investigate and found this wonderful little place, where someone had clearly set this scene up with artistic intent. I loved taking pictures here, but this is my favorite of them all, because it just shows the whole scene as created by the artist.

How many people do you think see this, being tucked into a back alley? How many of those people don’t even notice it anymore, as part of the background noise in their everday life? It’s a good thought to ponder as we go through our everyday. See if you can find a real life still life, accidental or intentional, in your background noise. You don’t have to take a picture, just notice it. It takes active looking, an awareness that requires to you be in the moment. You can’t be thinking about where you are going, what tasks you need to get done next.

I think you might find it a refreshing, positive experience. And you may find you enjoy the places you go, the things you see every day, just a little bit more. Let me know how it goes.

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So excited, today is my first post over at Mortal Muses! We are currently musing on Reflections. You all know that’s a favorite subject of mine. 🙂  And come back tomorrow for a new Exploring with a Camera –  I can’t wait to share it with you! It’s a good week, all around.

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