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Food Photography - back to basicsFood is a necessity for daily life and good health (the right kinds anyway), but food is also fast becoming something of an Art as well as many turn to their cameras once a mammoth baking session is over and capture the delightful dishes in attractive and alluring ways. Since the beginnings of Still Life Photography, food has been a subject and whilst the topic has remained the same - methods, equipment and ease have changed in varying degrees across the years. Food Photography is still a genre that is vastly overlooked and majorly underrated in the art world.
It all began with Still Life Paintings back in the 17th Century. They were as far from commercial as a style could get and certainly weren't created with selling in mind. However the skill and main aspects that realism painters took back in the 17th Century are kept close to the hearts of Food Photographers today as they grip onto Realism, effects of light, composition and arrangement. Props have always been an important part of

Vexel Art and Stock: Making The Most Of ResourcesMany vexel artists like to use stock images as a creative influence for their artwork. Most stock images on deviantART are generously provided free of charge for this very purpose, so why not use them?

There are several forms of stock images out there, but for the purpose of this article, we are going to be looking into portrait photography, as this is a very popular choice for vexel artists.

This is a small selection portrait stock, which all happens to be by our lovely Stock & Resources Community Volunteer, ^Elandria

As with most stock, ^Elandria’s photos come with some guidelines to follow, which you can find linked in the description of all her stock images. It is very important to follow a stockist’s guidelines! Remember – they are providing their artwork for free for you to enjoy resourcefully, so be respectful of that by following their set rules, and by always

Diary of Jane #6Hello there, this is my first entry from Slovakia, small town called Modra (in my language it means "Blue"). My studio is in my parent's house basement while my new apartment is late with being ready for me to move in. I have about 1 square meter of personal space, sharing room with my brother (oh lord), who watches horror movies behind my back as I write :/ I have to "suffer" these conditions for 3 more days before being able to paint.
It's December, isn't it wonderful? Probably the most peaceful month (or not?), when you drink warm punch, listen to carols, getting everything ready for Christmas Eve.. Still, trying to keep in mind that Christmas isn't about presents and not to waste this gracious spirit inside a shopping center

Best thing in the world is my parent's old piano, I haven't played in years!
Don't forget to send your loved ones a Christmas card & enjoy this feature

~selma-todorova SELMA TODOROVA / Bulgaria
Selma's portraits paint

9 reasons to appreciate ACRYLICS1. UNIVERSALITY - Acrylic are probably the most versatile of paints. You can thin them with water and use as watercolor (they will remain permanent upon drying, unlike watercolor), apply them in full strength, create textures.

2. COMBINABLE - This medium is very suitable to be combined with anything you wish - watercolor, ink, pencils, oils... Free your imagination and experiment!
3. NUMEROUS SUITABLE SURFACES - Acrylics can be used on paper, canvas, wood, metal and many more surfaces (this is true, even though they don't adhere towards some surfaces as promptly as oils). This is a great advantage, when you get used to this medium, you can paint at whatever material you've got available.
4. DON'T STINK - That's right, all of you that have experienced headaches caused by oil paint might just appreciate an acrylic vacation!
5. FAST DRYING TIME - Composition doesn't seem right after you put down your first layer? This is not a problem, wait half an hour

2012 Roundup!2012 has seen #projecteducate advance with the changing times here on deviantART and become an official group! That means that it has been a lot easier to bring you all the information, features, interviews and articles as part of various Project Educate weeks. So with the functions of groups at our fingertips, the articles shared are all in organised gallery folders for ease - all of which are linked in this article.
2012 also saw the Introduction of Community Weeks headed up by members of the community. They're now running monthly and are designed for members of the community to get involved by writing articles on whatever they want - educationally. `JamminJo and `lintu47 are your current community week leads and the people to note if you're interested in contributing! Our calendar for

10 Things a Photomanip Newbie Should KnowHi all,
I wanted to talk for a moment to our newbie photomanipulators or even older photomanipulators who are out of the fray. How are you? Welcome to the inner circle.
Here are some things that you (and all photomanipulators) need to know about dA and the photomanipulation community.
1. Stay in touch with the Photomanipulation CV (currently me, ^Aeirmid).
Watch me. No, that's not an ill-formed plea for pageviews, favorites, or watchers.

Actually, I rarely even post art anymore.

I am the Community Volunteer (CV) for photomanipulation, which means I regularly run contests, feature art, share news, post Daily Deviations (DDs), and do other things to support the community. It is in your best interest to watch my journal because I post every photomanipulation-related update there. This information is important to you so you can learn about upcoming events, changes in rules, new groups, and other news.
2. Watch :devcommunity

What is Digital Darkroom?What is Digital Darkroom?
Digital Darkroom is the evolution, converting chemical processes to digital ones, cellulose and silver to pixels and bytes. The first digital camera, weighing 8 pounds with a resolution of 0.01 megapixels, was built in 1975 and recorded black and white images to a cassette tape. The first camera which recorded images as computerised files was made by Fuji in 1988 and the first commercially available digital camera was created in 1990.

The Digital Darkroom gallery on dA is for photographs which have been digitally processed or edited with the use of computer software to emulate traditional and alternative film darkroom techniques. It's also a place for very modern processes like HDR photography, which involves creating images with a higher range of visible tones than regular photography.

Most of the functions available in digital editing software were created to mimic actual darkroom

History of Wedding PhotographyThe 1840s was the beginning of wedding photography. There was little commercial photography at the time for the wedding day itself. Instead, it was all about creating memories of the wedding day. As the photographic equipment was limited (i.e bulky and heavy), wedding photography remained in the studio for more than a century. In the 1800s, the only kind of wedding photography there was was a daguerreotype portrait on a tiny copper sheet.
With limited resources, photographers used glass plates, tin sheets, and copper sheets for their photographs. One of the very first couples were Queen Victoria and Prince Albert in 1840. Couples who were poorer did not hire a photographer to record the actual wedding, or to capture them in pose for formal wedding photos. Instead, photographers captured them before or after their wedding, out of formal wedding dress and into their best formal dress. These were always taken in a controlled environment, like a studio, and the photographer would position

Brief History of ClaymationClaymation is a method of animation where clay figures are filmed using stop-motion photography.
Claymation (clay animation) dates way back to 1897, when the material plasticine was introduced to the artistic world. In this article, we will briefly explore the history of Claymation!

(scene from Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas)
So.. where have you seen this method used before? Films such as Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas, Corpse Bride, and Chicken Run were all made using Claymation. TV shows such as Wallace and Gromit, Gumby, and Bob the Builder also use this method.
Sammy Squid: Turns The Other Tentacle by SuperDaddytv
In terms of notable clay animators, Jan Švankmajer is someone worth talking about. Švankmajer created his first film in 1964 and has impacted the film and animation world

Famous Photographers: Clyde Butcher+The EvergladesClyde Butcher is fondly, by locals, referred to as the Grizzly Adams of the Everglades. Butcher takes images of the Florida Everglades that he calls home, and blows them up to enormous proportions to create fascinating and in-depth wall art.
Source: Wikipedia
But his history, and the inspiration behind his Photography is perhaps what makes him such an interesting person. His story is modern, his son died during a collision with a drunk driver and it was this carelessness and disregard for human life that is said to have driven him to the Florida Everglades, seeking solitude and a different kind of peace.
Source: Clyde Butcher's Website
Butcher began his career in Photography using colour. Yet it's said that his transition into Black and White Photography is attributed to the death of his son. He entered a world devoid of colour, and it was perhaps fitt

Urbex #2Urban Exploration is the exploration of man-made structures. Usually these are abandoned ruins, or components that used to be part of everyday life but are no longer seen on a regular basis by the human eye. This series of articles aims to highlight exactly what Urban Exploration is, how it's achieved and the some of the best Urbex Photographers here on deviantART.
The internet has provided Urban explorers with many opportunities to garner news of new locations, the best places to go to 'urban explore' and what to avoid. Additionally social media means that we can share places that others will never see, and never hoped to see until the introduction of the internet and the ease with which we can communicate. So as this series goes on, we're going to look at some of the top Urban Exploration websites, at the current time, online. Contamination Zone is dedicated to Photographing Urban Decay across the United Kingdom. As far as urbex sites go, i

Art History: Art made with MS PaintIn today's Art History article, we are looking at YOUR art. Specifically, art made with Microsoft Paint.
"Paint (formerly Paintbrush for Windows) is a simple graphics painting program that has been included with all versions of Microsoft Windows. It is often referred to as MS Paint or Microsoft Paint. The program opens and saves files as Windows bitmap (24-bit, 256 color, 16 color, and monochrome, all with the .bmp extension), JPEG, GIF (without animation or transparency, although the Windows 98 version, a Windows 95 upgrade, and the Windows NT4 version did support the latter), PNG (without alpha channel), and TIFF (without multiple page support). The program can be in color mode or two-color black-and-white, but there is no grayscale mode. For its simplicity, it rapidly became one of the most used applications in the early versions of Windows—introducing many to painting on a computer for the first time—and still has strong associations with the immediate usability of th

November Daily Deviation RoundupsOnce again we've compiled a blog of all of our Daily Deviation Roundups so that you can browse the articles much easier! Enjoy

General Photography from 3wyl

General Photography from Kaz-D

Conceptual Photography

Cosplay

Darkroom Photography

Horror & Macabre Photography
:

Photography Troubleshooting: Winter WildlifeFor many parts of the world, Winter provides a beautiful backdrop for some of the best landscape and water scape Photography out there. Snowy hills, Frosty trees and more help to convert a world of vibrant Summer or Autumn into subdued yet awe-inspiring Winter. But what about the wildlife? Extreme weather conditions can make it more challenging to get out and about with the camera, but can also give you more opportunity to capture those elusive animals.

When I first started investigating Winter Wildlife Photography I thought that I would have to aim for things like Foxes, Deer and other wild and sometimes elusive animals. But actually, wildlife Photography and in particular in the Winter - can start right in the back garden.
Birds in particular get hungrier and needier during Winter months in England. I'm sure this is true for many parts of the world too. Depending on the kinds that frequent your garden, you could encourage them to linger pretty quickly or it might

Celebrating Diversity #13In this issue of Celebrating Diversity, I would like to remind you of an amazing feeling...when you see a piece of art created in a medium or genre that you have little or no experience of working in, and it feels like you're witnessing something magical, something beyond your comprehension.
It's wonderful to revel in the joy of How do they do that? and find inspiration in the creations of other artists. So I challenge you to take a step outside of the galleries that you regularly browse and immerse yourself in the experience of indulging in something new.

How do you celebrate diversity?

Do you regularly browse, comment on and collect art that's wildly different from what you create?

Do you watch artists who use mediums that you don't use in your own

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9 reasons to adore OIL PAINT

Journal Entry: Sat Feb 2, 2013, 4:14 PM

1. FORGIVING - Oil is, even today, still one of the easiest and most forgiving mediums you can work in. Creating an oil painting is in fact relatively easy compared to other mediums such as watercolor or pastels.

2. EASY TO CONTROL - Oil paints are easy to put onto a canvas or panel. You just put some paint on your brush and rub it on the canvas or panel. The paint will generally not run or move.

3. SMOOTH BLENDING - Oil paints are king of the ring when blending colors together and creating subtle blends. Wet-on-wet is the sure fire way to get a smooth transition in your painting.

4. COLOR STABILITY - One great property of oil paints is that they don't change color when they dry as opposed, for example, to acrylics or watercolor. Oils stay pretty-much the same for a long period of time (however, in a very long period of time, oil paintings have tendency to yellow).

5. EASY TO REMAKE - It's simple, just scrape the paint off with a paint knife and repaint whatever it was you scrapped off.

6. OPEN FOR EXPERIMENTS - Oils are also amenable to a whole series of techniques each of which yields a different look and feel. One example of such a technique is glazing. In this technique, several thin layers of transparent paint are put on top of each other. Each layer must be thoroughly dry before the next one is applied. Once done light is reflected off each layer resulting into an unusual luminosity and brightness.

7. LONGER WORKING / DRYING TIME - if you have plenty of time set aside for your painting, oils can be fantastic. It gives you the flexibility to start a painting and than come back to it the next day and continue straight where you left off. The paint on your palette will still be wet and pliable, the colors on your canvas can still be blended together.

8. VARIOUS SUPPORTS - Oils can be used on any number of grounds - canvas, panel canvas, wood, glass, paper, etc., when done correctly with excellent and durable results.

9. TESTED WITH TIME - Oil paints have been used for many centuries, their properties are very well known.

What is your experience with oil paints? Do you enjoy the medium for a specific reason or haven't tried it out yet?

Share your thoughts in the comments below

_________________________________________________________________________________

Oil paintings feature

Yet Another Droitural Study by ~thegryllus

Nude in the colours by ~renatadomagalska

from Machination of dementia series by ~lukaszwodynski

9 reasons to appreciate ACRYLICS

9 Reasons to LOVE YOUR INK

9 Reasons to PAINT WITH WATERCOLOR

PE: The Impact of Color

PE: The power of context

PE: 9 ways to overcome (artistic) Frustration.

PE: 5 reasons to believe in yourself

PE: Learning to paint with deviantArt

journal skin by ^SylwiaTelari

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9 reasons to adore OIL PAINTby =jane-beata

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9 reasons to adore OIL PAINTS written for #Sense-Create-lnspire and #Traditionalists

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~codexii Feb 14, 2013 Hobbyist General Artist

i am really interested with oil painting but have less info about this. thanks for sharing. ♥

`Angelles-LaVeau Feb 14, 2013 Professional Traditional Artist

I love oils. I should post more of them, make some tutorials. Thanks Jane!! You've lit a fire under my rear to get me moving. Just what I needed!!

great article!!

=jane-beata Feb 14, 2013 Professional Traditional Artist

SO damn happy to hear that, to inspire one person is enough to keep on writing these

`Angelles-LaVeau Feb 14, 2013 Professional Traditional Artist

Keep on writing!! If you need help, let me know. I'm a writer too.

I'm happy to do it. [link] one of the oils in my gallery here. They generally sell fast and I HAVE GOT to start remembering to take descent photos of everything before I let them walk out the door. In all these years you think I would know that by now.

I'll upload more oils.

I'm experimenting with a new textured look with gouche and palette knives. Suppose it would work with oils just as well (just on a smaller scale - $$$ - ouch!) I'll let you know how it turns out.

=jane-beata Feb 15, 2013 Professional Traditional Artist

I know what you mean, sometimes it gets crazy to document everything. Good luck on that texture experiment (:

`Angelles-LaVeau Feb 16, 2013 Professional Traditional Artist

Will keep you posted on it!!

`ArtByCher Feb 5, 2013 Traditional Artist

I love oil paints. The colors are so rich. And they really are very forgiving. I've worked very little with them because of the odor and expenses.

=Zalosta Feb 4, 2013

And I though oil painting was hard as hell to work with oO You just convince me to try this one day, this does not look so difficult after reading this. More, entertaining. Thanks !

`Hardrockangel Feb 3, 2013 Hobbyist Digital Artist

I wish I could adore oil paints, but as someone who's only just made her first painting, they still take some getting used to.
I'm sure I'll come to love them over time, though.

^pica-ae Feb 3, 2013 Professional Interface Designer

I love oil painting, I used to do it myself

It is a really nice medium, that doesn't let you screw up easily, as you said, it can be easily corrected

I always got frustrated with how quick acrylics dry and how rough the felt, oil is so much softer and it just feels more elegant

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