Magical Land Art By Andy Goldsworthy

I have been a huge fan of Andy Golsdworthy for many years and have a number of his books. He is a sculptor who creates such ephemeral works that only photography can capture them before they dissolve, melt, blow away or sink back into the waters. Here are some of his works but you can see more on Bored Panda

Andy Goldsworthy is a British sculptor, renowned in his field, that creates temporary installations out of sticks and stones, and anything and everything else that he finds outside. The son of a mathematician, Goldsworthy grew up working on farms before eventually getting his BA from what is now the University of Central Lancashire. “A lot of my work is like picking potatoes,” he told the Guardian. “You have to get into the rhythm of it.”

Much of Goldsworthy’s work is transient and ephemeral, leading many to view it as a comment on the Earth’s fragility. But for Goldsworthy, the picture is more complex.

“When I make something, in a field or street, it may vanish but it’s part of the history of those places,” he says in another interview. “In the early days my work was about collapse and decay. Now some of the changes that occur are too beautiful to be described as simply decay. At Folkestone I got up early one morning ahead of an incoming tide and covered a boulder in poppy petals. It was calm and the sea slowly and gently washed away the petals, stripping the boulder and creating splashes of red in the sea. The harbour from which many troops left for war was in the background.”

see more here

Andy Goldsworthy

Melt

Andy Goldsworthy – Land Art video

 

John Wilhelm creative, wild, crazy, surreal pictures to smile about

From Bored Panda

John Wilhelm is a 44-year-old IT Director at a Swiss university with a passion for photography and digital art.  Some of his most wonderfully creative photo manipulations are of his girlfriend Judith and their three young daughters – Lou (5.5 years), Mila (2.8 years) and Yuna (6 months). John agreed to share his awesome work with Bored Panda and give us an interview.

John‘s photos are surreal and eclectic. “I guess I watched just a little too much TV and played too many videogames when I was a kid,” he said, explaining his many sources of inspiration.

Although the photographs look like much fun, we all know that getting children to work with a photographer can sometimes be difficult. “I guess if you have a healthy emotional connection to your kids they can feel if something is really important for you and then they cooperate (and if they don’t there are still sweets and candies),” John told Bored Panda.

“Most of my images are heavily manipulated but not all of them are compositions. If an image works straight out of the camera I just improve it (beauty retouching, cleanup, level corrections, sharpening, colors and tones, emphasize light, etc.). What I really love is to bring different images together to create something completely new,” John said, explaining his manipulation techniques.

Be sure to read between the photos for more of John’s interview with Bored Panda! And if you like his work, check out these photos by creative dad Jason Lee.

see more and learn how here

Benjamin Von Wong, a Montreal photographer – underwater fashion

From Bored Panada

Benjamin Von Wong, a Montreal-based photographer known for his complicated productions and fantastic images bristling with power, has completed an extraordinarily difficult underwater photoshoot with absolutely stunning results. He and a hand-picked crew of experienced divers, underwater photographers and freedivers set up an entire photoshoot 25m under the sea in a sunken shipwreck off the coast of Bali.

The images are enchanting in their own right, before you even get into the incredible technical details of the photoshoot. The models, who also had to be experienced freedivers (divers known for diving without oxygen tanks), posed on-site in and around the shipwreck with beautiful flowing dresses provided by international Bali-based designer Ali Charisma. Their flowing dresses transform them into the wonderfully beautifully mermaids or nymphs of mythology, who threatened to drag sailors bewitched by their beauty to the cold, dark depths.

To make the shoot possible, Von Wong had to find just the right people to support the photoshoot. Instead of photo assistants, he had experienced safety divers who provided the freediver models with breaths of air from their oxygen tanks. The underwater setting prohibited the use of studio luxuries like lighting – they had to rely on camera strobes and on natural lighting. For some of the shots, the models were actually tied down to the shipwreck – a miscommunication could have spelled disaster for their project.

see more here

To see the full extent of Benjamin’s work go to his website here

Andy Lee photographer Iceland landscapes

From Bored Panada

As amazing as Iceland’s natural sights are, the sheer amount of photographers that visit there means that a lot of their photos end up looking fairly similar. UK-based photographer Andy Lee, however, has used an interesting technique to ensure that his photographs of Iceland’s stark and proud landscape are especially dramatic and atmospheric.

Lee’s stunning photos, which are from “Blue Iceland” and several other Iceland-focused series, resemble Romantic-era paintings because of their moody atmosphere and dramatic lighting. They were created by shooting with a camera that can pick up infrared light and/or a filter that filters out some or all visible light (emphasizing infrared wavelengths). Digital SLR cameras react to IR light, but many have blockers installed to minimize it. This means that one would either have to remove the blocker or use a darkening IR filter (for more tips on how to use this technique, check outthis article).

This technique can produce very interesting effects, blocking light from some visible wavelengths, emphasizing light from others, and picking up light from some wavelengths invisible to the naked eye. The natural features in Lee’s painting-like photographs stand under a black sky and are eerily illuminated by a seemingly faint and distant sun.

Iceland, a country rich with roaring volcanoes, monolithic glaciers, icy mountains and deep fjords, has become a mecca for photographers looking to capture the raw, mystical power of its natural northern beauty. The ruggedness of and stark contrasts present in Iceland’s landscapes makes them irresistible to photographers like Lee.

If you like Andy’s landscapes go to his 500px site here, you will not be disappointed

Russian photographer Maria Ionova-Gribina

From Bored Panda

Russian photographer Maria Ionova-Gribina’s unique but morbid Natura Morta project lets us look into the saddest part of nature’s cycle – death. In these beautiful photographs, the animals look like they’re sleeping peacefully, with birds dreaming of flight and rabbits of running. The photographer reveals how this idea of honoring dead animals came to her:

“When me and my brother found a dead mole, bird or bug we buried them on the border of a forest. And we decorated the grave with flowers and stones.” She decided to continue the tradition while also taking beautiful photographs of animals that died naturally or after accidents with cars. The flowers used in these photos were gathered near the animals and in the photographer’s  garden.

fascinating stuff, see the whole collection here or here for a bit more

Margarita Kareva – fantasy art photography

From Bored Panada

Margarita Kareva is a Russia-based photographer who specializes in fantasy art photography. Her photographs beautifully portray women that have been transformed into fairytale princesses and witches. She adds surreal elements to her shots that make the photographs really stand out, combining Photoshop manipulation with real props. In an interview with Rosphoto, she explained that she finds inspiration for all her photoshoots in fantasy books.

Kareva’s work is constantly evolving and growing because she took up photography just three years ago. Her portfolio is already full of vibrant, magical and creative images. Kareva’s story proves that it is never too late to take up a new hobby – you just need to “learn every day, all your life”.

See more of Margarita’s pictures here

See Margarita’s website here

Iran’s Mosques by Mohammad Domiri

I am thinking of a trip to Iran next year, I am fascinated by the history and architecture and what I hear are the most hospitable people. These pictures just make me want to go more

Mohammad Domiri, a talented architectural photographer from northern Iran, takes stunning photos of grandiose mosque architecture throughout the Middle East.

Middle Eastern architecture is often recognized by its elegantly curved arches and spiraling columns, which feature heavily throughout Domiri’s photos. Many of the historic sites Domiri shoots are decorated with colorful stained-glass windows, geometric decorations and painstakingly detailed mosaics, so he shoots with special wide-angle lenses to make sure that he captures all of these details. Because they are historic structures, many of these mosques also impose heavy restrictions on photography – making photos like Domiri’s very rare. From Bored Panda

There are 22 of these stunning images so if you want t o see them all go here now

see the rest here

or go here to see Mohammad Domiri site (highly recommended)

 

 

 

Oleg Oprisco

This comes from Bored Panda

Oleg Oprisco is a brilliantly talented photographer from Lviv, Ukraine, who creates stunning surreal images of elegant women in fairy-tale or dream-like settings. There’s one significant difference, however, that sets him apart from other artists who create similar work – Oprisco shoots using old-school film photography.

The fact that he shoots with film means that everything you see in these photos had to be created that way – it couldn’t be done digitally. “I’ve found it ideal to do everything myself. I come up with a concept, create the clothing, choose the location and direct the hair and makeup,” Oprisco explained in an interview with Bored Panda. “Before shooting, I plan the overall color scheme. According to the chosen palette, I select clothes, props, location, etc, making sure that all of it plays within a single color range.” He uses Kiev 6C and Kiev 88 cameras with medium-format film and a variety of lenses.

It’s clear that Oprisco is deeply passionate about his work. “Each of my photos is a scene from real life. That is the perfect source of inspiration for me as there is so much beauty to it.” Oprisco offered some inspiring advice for aspiring young photographers mixed in with some tough love as well. “Drop your job and shoot … if you feel that’s what you want,” he said. “Freedom, happiness, money… all will come after you let go and just shoot.”

It does beg the question whether Photoshop has been used even if the original was shot on film, still nice pictures

What is it with Russian women photographers and animals?

From Bored Panda

These wonderful photographs by Elena Shumilova plunge the viewer into a beautiful world that revolves around two boys and their adorable dog, cat, duckling and rabbit friends. Taking advantage of natural colors, weather conditions and her enchanting surroundings, the gifted Russian artist creates cozy and heartwarming photography that will leave you amazed.

The boys in the photographs are the photographer’s sons and the animals belong to the farm she runs. “I largely trust my intuition and inspiration when I compose photos. I get inspired mainly by my desire to express something I feel, though I usually cannot tell exactly what that is” Shumilova explained to BoredPanda.

Rural settings, natural phenomena and the changing seasons seem to be the greatest stimuli in her works. “When shooting I prefer to use natural light – both inside and outside. I love all sorts of light conditions – street lights, candle light, fog, smoke, rain and snow – everything that gives visual and emotional depth to the image,” the photographer said.

Shumilova told us her passion for photography manifested in early 2012 when she got her first camera. Her most recent equipment includes the Canon EOS 5D Mark II camera and a 135mm lens. As a mother who doesn’t want to miss out on her growing children, she says she shoots every day and processes the images at night See them all here