Here is my newest piece titled "Distant Drums". It portrays a Indian Brave far out on the plains with his ear to a newly installed telegraph pole. With the sounds clicking through the wire above his head you could just imagine the feelings of wonderment and aprehension he was having. I swear I saw a painting similar to this by either Russell or Remington but just can't track it down. Once it's painted it really should be an interesting and attractive scene.-
I added the birds on the wire for two reason...the first being as they will keep someone from poking their eye out should they get in close to examine some detail. The second was that it should make the scene much more appealing. Little critters always seem to do that. If you look at the bird on the left he seems to be looking directly at the pole. He is and in the finished piece there will be a little lady bug there. Might as well bring in an insect. Now if I can maybe put a Horney Toad on the ground I will have all the bases covered. The head of the lance is made from pounded brass and tied on. I could have carved this but it would have been just too fragile. In the detail photos in the gallery you will see the arm to body joins which are pretty evident due to the different color of the wood. I mention this as I want you to notice how I make the body flow into the arm. When you attach limbs you have to be careful to do this or the piece will just look like it's been glued on. Once the figure is painted that color variation will disappear as will the joint.
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So, now comes the fun part of applying paint. I have a feeling this project will take a lot of it.
Lots of photos in the Gallery.
Hi Lynn, once again another nice piece. What is the size of the piece? Ron
ReplyDeleteAlways a big thrill to log on and check out your latest. Wonderful detail Lynn. Hang in there with this blog, I sure enjoy it….Myron
ReplyDeleteAnother terrific carving Lynn, thanks! Geez, I haven't carved since before Christmas...I am getting behind!
ReplyDeleteLynn, I have got to make my next project Photography. I believe I have saved about everything you have shared with us on taking pictures of our carvings. The dark green backdrop that you used for “Distant Drums” is super. I just love this color. Is this a cloth material or paper? I guess you are still using the 150w photo bulb front right, 150w std bulb to the front left and a 150w std bulb to the rear left? All bulbs are the twisted fluorescent type? Are the diffusers just bed sheet type material? The object about 2 feet from the backdrop? The camera about 2 feet from the object? Then you use the zoom to come in on the object? I have my Sony 7mp camera set to take a 3 mega pixel picture. No flash is used? I intend to go photo supplies shopping Saturday and start getting a handle on this picture taking. Thanks Lynn for all the help…..Myron
ReplyDeleteDon Mertz ask me the same question just last week so here it is.
ReplyDeleteThe light stands are made from some 1' plywood squares, PVC pipe and a light reflector you can buy at Walmart. I did go to a Camera shop and buy some cloth diffusers (sp?) for each light to cut the shadows. Think they cost about $10.00 each. To keep the cloth away from the light I made a collar out of aluminum flashing about 4" wide. The bulbs are as follows.
Cool Light- Buy this one at the Camera shop. 200w flo-tube lasts forever and costs around $20.
Warm Light- Buy this flo-tube at Walmart. Think mine is 150w. Costs about $5.00. Get two. These bulbs are not like the old Photo-Flood blue bulbs..they don't get hot and they last forever!!!
I also bought a roll of gray photo backdrop paper for $36.00 but you can get buy with using the large sheets of colored posterboard you can find at Hobby Lobby. Get several different colors...dark for light carvings...light for dark carvings. I clamp the posterboad in a carpenters vise at the end of the workbench behind the carving. Keep about 2-3 feet between the carving and the board to keep the shadows down.
The light to the right is the cool one and the one on the left and behind the carving is warm. This give a pleasing effect. All cool would be too blue and all warm would lean to the yellowish side. Just move the lights around to get the best setup. If you're using a digital camera this is a snap as you can see what you're doing as you do it. DON'T USE THE FLASH ON THE CAMERA. IT will create a bunch of nasty looking shadows. Flash is not needed with the new digital cameras.
I put the carving on a little stand I made that has al 6 inch length of 1 1/2" dowell painted black between the bottom base and the top. This way I can edit that completely out on the computer making the carving "float". Looks great when printed.
USE A TRIPOD!!! You want that camera rock steady when you push the button. Take a few experimental shots and check them out on the computer to see how they look. Once you've got it right fire away.
Since I did this post on the WCI forum over a year ago here is what I'm presently doing which might save you some money.
I seldom use the rolled paper backdrop, relying on my collection of poster boards. I have the dark Forest Green one, a neutral light gray and a white one. For light carvings i.e., unpainted, I use the dark green and depending on the coloring of the piece might use the lighter color once the piece is painted.
The diffussers are a real necessity as they will eliminate the shadows from the lights. They look like a hairnet and really do the job. My wife made a couple out of some sheer curtain material she had which she doubled over and sewed a drawstring through. It works okay. The secret is to locate your piece about 2-3 feet from the backdrop and set your lights about 2-3 feet from the piece.
Hope this helps you out. Snowing here! Let me know how you come out on this project. TTYL Lynn
Your Indian listening to a telegraph picture, might be the one by Henry Farney, titled "Songs of the Talking Wire" 1904. Great Carving!!!! Todd in KC
ReplyDeleteIt is "SONG of the Talking Wire" not SONGS.
ReplyDelete