petaline

This is one of the first photos I took with my new camera (given to me by my wonderfully supportive boyfriend!), a Cannon Rebel XT. Perfect for advancing my interest in photography!

I took this photo because it was a pink rose. And if you recall, I love pink! But I was amazed during editing to notice the cute little bug hiding between the soft, curling petals. It seemed so cozy and at home, which gave me the inspiration to give this photo an antiqued, aged look. I think it turned out quite sweet.

love,
lisapink

childhood

How poignant is it that two young toddlers can both sit together in peace, and appreciate the beauty of a world they can't yet understand? I wanted my editing of this photo to reflect the sweet, bright charm that is childhood.

love,
lisapink

native

While visiting the Lost Colonies on Roanoke Island (NC), we walked around a grove of trees that you easily imagine the Native Americans walking through. I tried to capture the basic essence of nature in this photo.

love,
lisapink

impact

I caught a moment here that left me amazed. The foamy ocean sea rushing to meet the solid, sandy earth created a spectacular vision. Without a doubt, this sort of captured beauty (otherwise unrealized or forgotten) is the best part of photography.

love,
lisapink

sojourn

What is better or more beautiful than visiting the ocean?

love,
lisapink

laze

This photo makes me want to nap. Especially since I spent time doing just that in those chairs. I gave this photo a golden, shining effect to replicate the feeling of laying in the sun.

love,
lisapink

happy hour

I couldn't resist these colors. My family was staying at a beach house in NC and there was a super fun little wet bar next to the pool. Because of the bright festive colors already present, I decided to have even more fun with this and introduced a pixelated "dot" effect.

love,
lisapink

royalty

I have no idea what type of flowers these are, but they are so adorable! I wanted the bright purple to pop out of the green, and the film grain I added just seemed to enhance the regal feeling.

love,
lisapink

fuse

This photo was taken somewhere on a back road in Virginia. My family was heading to Washington D.C., and the GPS was NOT being very helpful. My dad pulled over to try to "recalibrate" it and get us pointed in the right direction. He happened to stop next to this adorable, mostly destroyed building covered in weeds and wild flowers. Of course, I jumped out to take some photos. The black-white wall would seem lonely without the greenery to accent it. I didn't want this photo to look too "pretty," so I used a "gritty" tool to darken it up a bit. I think it still has a romantic flair to it, though.

love,
lisapink

crime

Let's just say it now: I have a thing for graffiti. I thinks its facinating. Not only because its a very DIFFERENT form of art, but because it provides some of the most interesting shots. I worked hard to get the graffiti to really stand out here. One thing I wish I had done different was also maximize the apperance of the water flowing below, but perhaps that would have made it too busy anyway.

love,
lisapink

peace

So retro! I did that just because I could. :) The branches framing the trees turned out well; because of the difference of distance they look very similar in size. I like how natural and messy it feels. It went well with the retro look.

love,
lisapink

class

I played around with this photo for quite some time before settling on these colors. Its a nice scene, but I felt that the muted blue and green tones really changed it into something calming and classy. The vignette border was the perfect soft touch to finish it off.

love,
lisapink

hope

Angle was everything in this photo. I still remember laying in the grass to get the streching of the trees with just the right amount of sun peeking through. I love the sun. I think its a beautiful thing and (as you will see) is often a focul feature in my photos. I just think it makes everything more... powerful.

love,
lisapink

blade

Such simplicity in this. A blade of grass and a shining sun. You can practically see (or at least imagine) the cellular structure of the plant, which to me gives it a sort of mathematical beauty.

love,
lisapink

hidden hollow

Can't you just imagine cute little baby birds nestled up inside? Aww! I had so much fun coloring this one; the actual bird house was a sad-looking gray. But emphasizing the brown tones not only made the photo more pleasing, but it brought out the bright green leaves which really finished this one off.

love,
lisapink

smize

Maybe its cheesy to photoshop pictures of yourself, but I'm a cheesy person. Just ask my boyfriend. :)
And if you know what "smize" refers to, you are awesome. If not, I'm not going to tell you!

love,
lisapink

fresh

Different is so fun. I know I could have made this a much more traditional photo that still would have been beautiful, but tradition is terribly overrated. Thus the new perspective. The way the green and yellow tints come together here to almost-not-quite-sorta remind me of blue. What a pretty scene.

love,
lisapink

journey

I took this photo (along with several others I'm posting) on a Sunday afternoon last summer. I had headed to the park to enjoy a book in the sunshine. I took my camera along (back then a 8 megapixel Olympus that I had gotten mainly because it was pink) and couldn't resist snapping some photos. This one to me captures the feeling of that day. Golden and gorgeous.

love,
lisapink

deserted door

A decrepit, deserted door? Of course I had to make this black and white. I rarely do black and white, not because I don't love it (I actually think its gorgeous), but rather because usually I'm much too obsessed with color. However, sometimes you just can't resist the dramatic lure...

love,
lisapink

pride

Who knew weeds could have pride? But that's the first word that came to my head when I looked at the finished product of this photo. It stands tall and straight as the creek rushes by. The sparkling of the water was fun to play with and highlight, and I also felt it emphasized the vibrant green.

I also want to note (and will probably mention several times) that I made my logo too large towards the beginning. Ah well. Live and learn.

love,
lisapink

dirty water

This is one of the first photos that I really just had fun editing. It amazed me how I could enrich the water to a sparkling blue and bring out the details in the graffiti. Most of all I love the contrast between the two. It presents a sort of irony that is definitely a recurring theme in my photos.

love,
lisapink

something resembling photography

The first thing you need to know about me is that I hate "photography." At least, I hate that standardized term that is limited in its usage to weddings, babies, and the occasional sunset. Although all those things are wonderful (and many photographers of that genre far more talented than I even could dream of being), it has never appealed to me. It wasn't until I hit my twenties that I started my simple, uneducated experiments in what I like to refer to as, "creative photography." Using this interpretive title has given me a feeling of freedom; I don't have to stay inside a any notions of what photography should be. I can be creative (a.k.a. do whatever I want to do). I take photos of things that I find interesting, beautiful, odd, or different. And then I put that on the computer, and start digitally manipulating it until it becomes something more, something unexpectedly original, something I like to (a bit pretentiously) call art. When I begin my process, I never know what the results will be. I've never studied photography; I know little about the technical details of lighting, composition, and what not. All I do is follow my instincts until I have a completed work that I enjoy. And perhaps this comes down to the true meaning behind why I love what I do: I do it for myself. I'm not aiming to please anyone or make millions of dollars (although I would be delighted to accomplish either one), I am simply doing it because I enjoy it. So as I begin my journey of discovering the art of creative photography, I'd love for you to tag along, watch as I grow and learn from experiments, and most of all... I hope you enjoy it as much as I do.

love,
lisapink