I mentioned a few posts back that I’d attended a show opening and artist’s talk with Thomas Bartlett at Luz Gallery. All the images posted here are from the show. Bartlett talked a bit about how he creates his images, he uses a digital camera and long exposures and focuses on common objects often in his house or in motel rooms when he travels. He won’t tell what the original objects are as he prefers to let the viewer use their imagination. It all sounds simple. point the camera, set it for a long exposure and let fly or at least move the camera around a lot.
It sounded so simple I thought I’d fool around with the techniques mentioned over the weekend and create some ‘Bartletts”. The reality is that like most art, technique is more than camera settings. I tried a variety of settings and focused on a number of objects but just ended up with a series of rather ugly smears none of which I’ll bore you with. I’ll obviously have to keep practicing and experimenting if I want to start creating images as arresting and colourful as those Bartlett creates. It’s a good lesson that we should all remember.
