Artistic Endeavors Archives | Page 54 of 55

Artistic Endeavors

Running a Business

Sneak Peeks

The next ten days are going to be intense. I’m making my final push to finish the photography and projects for the book (as well as tweaking some of the tutorials.) I did have a very productive day, so I am feeling like I’m in a pretty good place, but I do have to squeeze as much as I can into every minute. I think I definitely will need a massage when it’s all done and maybe a full day in bed watching movies. I can’t show what I’m working on, but I can show a few sneak peeks… …and my house is a mess. Mini is helping to keep me straight, though. She even cleaned out my van today, since it was a disaster. Despite the stress and the hard work, I’m really enjoying this process and I’m learning so much about what I would

February 21, 2012 No Comments

buying & selling antiques

A Visit to Lucketts

Well, I finally crawled out of my writing-induced hermit shell yesterday and spent the day at Lucketts and running some errands. It was mostly book-related, but it was so nice to be out and about (and out of sweatpants.) I went to have my picture taken by the very talented Jody McKitrick. We had never met before, but we were providentially brought together last year by my Union Jack dresser and now she’s helping me out with a little photography for my book. I really needed a few professional shots of myself for promotional purposes, for the book jacket and some interior shots of me shopping, taking pictures, etc. Lucketts was the perfect backdrop. What’s so funny is that I ended up finding (and buying) an awesome primitive table in the process. I picked out the pictures I liked this morning and can’t wait to share some of them as well as

February 10, 2012 No Comments

blogging & writing

I’ve spent the last couple of weeks focused on the writing of my book and I’m finding it so difficult to write blog posts as well. I’ve been locked in my room in sweat pants, just writing. So, what am I going to share on my blog? Yeah…this is challenging. All of my writing and creative juices are going into the book, because I want it to be really good and fresh even to those who have read every post on my blog. I also have a super tight deadline, so I’m having to cram like a college student working on a last minute term paper. I’m enjoying the process, but this is an unexpected side effect. So, here’s the plan. I have another week or two of writing, so I’ll just post about this and that during that time. Once my writing is done, I’m going to start

February 6, 2012 No Comments

Photography

Growing Your Blog – Photography & Styling

  I kinda have to pinch myself today. I have four of my blogging icons here to share some words of wisdom on using quality photos to grow your blog and then I get to chime in on the subject as well. Kate from Centsational Girl brought us together to share a series on Growing Your Blog. I know I would’ve loved to read something like this when I first started, so I’m honored to be a part of this. The topic for today is photography and styling. I’ll give the floor to my guests and then share some additional thoughts with you… Y’all I should be arrested. I use a 4 year old Nikon D40 whose lens cap was lost a year or two ago. I have Photoshop but I don’t have time for the learning curve so if I do any editing it’s in iPhoto that came with

January 5, 2012 8 Comments

the art of styling

When I first started my business, I would paint a piece, pull out my camera and snap a picture of it…just right where it was. Usually the lighting was poor, so I used a flash. I would send the picture to my web designer and ask her to put it on my site. I didn’t realize what a poor representation of my work it was. I just didn’t think of the fact that I should take the time to stage the photo and light it properly. I really had no excuse, either. I had taken a photography class and knew how to take decent pictures, but I didn’t think I could achieve “magazine quality”, so I didn’t even try. Then, I stumbled upon the wonderful work of Shelter Blogs. There were girls just like me, taking really great pictures of their home and their work. I was immediately drawn to

October 16, 2011 109 Comments

one of the secrets to great photography

The clock ticked past 9:00 tonight and I still had no idea what I was going to post about. It was one of those days when I work on things that are very uninteresting. I primed the baseboard heaters in my family room and the under side of my kitchen cabinets. Bo-ring. I was about ready to get my camera out and snap a “before” picture of my heaters, but that seemed a little silly…even in the blog world. I have finished three pieces of furniture, but I have to lug them into the house for their “beauty shots” and that just wasn’t going to happen today. So, here I am…late into the evening and dry on material. I started looking through my old photographs for some inspiration. As I scrolled through some I took over a year ago, it hit me. I knew what I wanted to post about.

October 4, 2011 57 Comments

watermarks & actions

Last week I posted about my camera and lenses and this is the follow-up post about watermarks and actions that I promised. Let me preface this by saying I am not a PSE (Photoshop Elements) expert and there are a lot of other great programs out there, this is just what I use. If you use a free program or prefer another software, that’s totally OK. Just use what works for you. There are a couple of ways to watermark a photo. Before my designer made a graphic for me, I just used a text box and added text over the picture. This is a great homemade solution if you don’t know how to make a graphic (which I didn’t) or don’t have the money to hire someone to make one for you. Laura made four graphics for me to use for watermarking. The one above in white is what I

October 3, 2011 33 Comments

pumpkins

…because sometimes it’s fun to just take some pictures.

September 25, 2011 34 Comments

I’m Marian, a painter, writer, and lover of all things creative. From art and antiques to home projects and everyday life, I share my journey in hopes of inspiring you to embrace your own creativity and make beauty in the spaces you live.

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