P&P (Photography and Painting)

New Illustration

michelevaldezphoto — Fri, 24 Feb 2012 12:47:03 +0000

I’ve been working with Illustrator a lot lately, trying to get better at using the tools, especially the dreaded pen tool. I really love it, it’s a great way to get the feel of a painting which is where I’ve been trying to go with my photographs.

Cold Flower by Michele Valdez

Candy Warehouses (Brooklyn) by Michele Valdez

Paper Curls Photos

michelevaldezphoto — Tue, 10 Jan 2012 04:01:54 +0000

I’ve been working on some photos of curled paper and experimenting with the lighting and processing. There’s so much to explore when you focus on simple things.

White Curls 3

White Curls 1 (photo edited in Illustrator)

White Curls 4

Limited Edition Prints

michelevaldezphoto — Tue, 03 Jan 2012 22:12:10 +0000

I’m excited to announce that I’m now working with oorbi, to offer a few limited edition prints of some of my flower images. Oorbi is a French online gallery, and they will be selling editions of these three photos from my Garden Party and Garden series:

Red Lily

Pom

Wild Garden

Brooklyn

michelevaldezphoto — Tue, 10 May 2011 11:53:12 +0000

I’m revisiting some of the stuff I shot in Brooklyn and listing some new images in my Etsy shop.

Sugar Factory Windows by Michele Valdez

Brooklyn Brick Houses by Michele Valdez

Over the Rooftops by Michele Valdez

Widgets

michelevaldezphoto — Sat, 09 Apr 2011 16:20:54 +0000

I’m continuing to photograph my daughter’s toys and things. Right now, I’m focusing on some translucent plastic objects. I love the way the light interacts with the plastic, and the layered effect I’m getting when I lay objects on top of each other. I’m doing a lot of post processing on some of the images, others I’m pretty much just adjusting the color a bit. I’m not sure where I’m going to wind up with these, but I’m enjoying the work.

Widgets 1 by Michele Valdez

Widgets 7 by Michele Valdez

Widgets 5 by Michele Valdez

Blue Zen Photography

michelevaldezphoto — Mon, 21 Mar 2011 17:53:13 +0000

Some serenely lovely beach scenes by Blue Zen Photography on Etsy:

The Bench by Blue Zen Photography

Beach Chairs by Blue Zen Photography

Volleyball by Blue Zen Photography

VOLTA NY 2011 – Referencing Photography in Painting and Drawing

michelevaldezphoto — Mon, 07 Mar 2011 18:02:15 +0000

Time’s been tight lately, but I wanted to make sure I got out to see at least one of the fairs during this past Armory Week, so I decided on VOLTANY, the smaller sister fair to the larger Armory show. Each gallery at VOLTA limits their showing to only one artist, which for me, makes for a more interesting show. The format provides a nice snapshot of an artists’ work, and the smaller venue is much more manageable than the beast that is the large Armory show. I saw a lot of great stuff, but I was most fascinated by the exhibitions featuring two artists whose work had strong photo like elements. I’m always interested in the relationship between photography and other media, and I liked the way these two artists used the idea of photography in their painting and drawings, rather than incorporating photographs in a more literal, direct way.

Dil Hildebrand at Pierre-Francois Ouelette Art Contemporain, included a series of ethereal paintings that fairly ooze with brilliant color, neon oranges and pinks painted in strips over a grainy background which on first glance appear to be photographs of rooms. When viewed closeup, it becomes clear that the blurred background images are not photos, but paintings. The blurry background contrasted with the bright foreground gave these work a sort of tension, a sense of trance like calm in the blur, which is disrupted abruptly by the bright strips of paint in the foreground. The balance between the different areas of the paintings was strong, and my eyes easily moved from one plane to another. The choice of such vibrant colors in the strips really enhanced the sense of depth and movement in the works. The photo here doesn’t really tell the story, these gorgeous paintings really need to be viewed in person.

Dil Hildebrand, Studio D, 2010, oil on canvas, 84 x 72 inch

Paul Chiappe’s exhibit presented by Madder139 included some graphite drawings which more directly referenced photography, again in an abstract, blurred image. His Yearbook 1 drawing was my favorite, a beautifully rendered image, with soft, rich marks that again, are hard to reproduce photographically. The effect didn’t so much mimic photography in a photo-realism kind of way, as capture the way photographs exist as pieces of memory. The blurriness heightened the sense of these people existing for the viewer as fuzzy memories, ghostlike and barely recalled remnants of the past.

Paul Chiappe, Yearbook 1

Shoot the toys

michelevaldezphoto — Thu, 24 Feb 2011 02:47:03 +0000

I’ve barely been able to find the time to bathe, let alone do any shooting since my awesome daughter came into my life, but I’ve started to squeeze short mini shoots in during her nap time. I’m photographing the one thing around me that I can’t not see – her toys. They are bright, colorful and everywhere. All of these images are shot using natural light in the middle of the afternoon.

Back of bead maze toy

Rings

Doll Stroller

Marco Suarez

michelevaldezphoto — Wed, 26 Jan 2011 03:30:05 +0000

Great looking prints by Marco Suarez on Etsy:

Electric Pole by Marco Suarez

Recycle by Marco Suarez

Stephanie Bracciano

michelevaldezphoto — Mon, 27 Dec 2010 19:29:43 +0000

Some beautiful images by Stephanie Bracciano:

Down the Rabbit Hole by Stephanie Bracciano

Going Away by Stephanie Bracciano

Stephanie sells prints of these and other images in her Etsy shop, Deep Within the Armoire. You can also see more of her work on her website, Stephanie Bracciano Photography.