While teaching last week in Maine, we went to the Olson House, the home made famous by Andrew Wyeth. It stands empty now, with just a few pieces of furniture, tattered wallpaper, old stove and such. But it’s in that emptiness that you often can find and photograph the spirit of place. I was teaching so I didn’t get to concentrate on my own images, but I did make this picture while leaning up against a doorjamb for support. Wanting a feeling of ‘old’ and ‘country’ and to try and capture the ambience, I processed the image first in Lightroom and then added a Flypaper Texture file from their new August Painterly collection just released two days ago. I also created a background layer of the image and upscaled it slightly and added a gaussian blur to create the dreamy effect, a process I like to use a lot. I’m still in Maine, but leaving today, after a week of visiting my sister’s bison farm in western Maine. We were so busy putting up beans, making sauces, feeding chickens, etc., that I haven’t been out to photograph around the area much. But after a week of teaching it’s nice to come to the ‘old homestead’ and relax by doing things that are not photography, actually. It’s so peaceful here.
The Old Homestead
by btharp | Aug 24, 2012 | Brenda Tharp's Photo Blog, general photography, Photo Blog, photography, Photoshop tips, Processing Techniques, Special Effects, The Blog, Thoughts on Creativity | 4 comments
Hi Lauren – thank you for the comment, and you are welcome! It was great to meet you and share a week of photography with you in Maine. This photo was lucky, since I was handholding the DSLR against the door jamb while walking around helping you all!
Lovely image, Brenda! It does indeed capture the sense of the Olson House. Thanks so much for taking us there!
Thank you LeftCoastKenny. I try to pair textures and processes with how I feel about an image that I’ve created. Appreciate your comments.
I love what you’ve done here. Thanks too for the description of how you achieved the look of this inviting scene.