Flowers

BEEN MAKING STUFF

Jane Milligan ArbeiterLeave a comment

I do have something to show for all the time I haven’t been blogging. It just isn’t easy for me to get on the computer and start writing. It looks like I left off with the Anne Brooke Tag Challenge a year ago, and at times, that certainly was a challenge. But I got a lot out of it and really enjoyed slow stitching. Since then, I’ve done other challenges for fun, travelled a bit, continued knitting and I’m always enjoying time with friends and my expanding family.

I think I’ll work backwards, beginning with the most recent pieces. I can’t seem to get enough of collaging, making little books, journals, tags and such. Too bad I’m not a writer for all the journals I’ve accumulated! These are some of the tags I’ve been making from old book pages, vintage bits of ephemera, images from old garden catalogues and books, photographs, sheet music, labels. Pretty much anything that has to do with paper I will glue down.

Tags-Victorian Ladies
Postcards
The little notebook on the left tucks into its own envelope

I’ll be back with more in the next few days.

Jane Milligan Arbeiter3 Comments

Yes, it’s been awhile…It has been such a busy and fun summer, but I’m finally getting back into the groove with some new work.

Out in the garden the other morning doing some pruning and dead-heading, I was inspired by the different dried seed pods to make these collage pieces.

DianthsPstcard

inncencecolor

LITTLE SPARROW

Jane Milligan Arbeiter2 Comments

Looking out my kitchen window, I saw a little sparrow in my forsythia hedge eating the flowers off the branches. I’ve been enjoying the birds in my yard for a long time now, but I had never noticed that’s what the sparrows were doing before! I couldn’t resist doing a quick little watercolor sketch of that little guy with a mouthful.

birdyblusky

PHOTO APPS

Jane Milligan ArbeiterLeave a comment

Since discovering some new photo apps, I’ve been spending (too much) time experimenting.  For years I have used Photoshop Elements and then last year I moved up to Photoshop CC. I still have a lot to learn about that latter one.

These pictures of the dahlia garden were taken last fall at the Bayard Cutting Arboretum in Great River, NY.  I edited the first photo a bit in Photoshop Elements-brightening it up and blurring the background, then on my Android, I manipulated it with the PhotoDirector app, using a grunge effect. Fun! 2016-03-07-12-44-44

In this second photo, the background was changed  to black and white in Elements and the colors of the flower and bud were saturated slightly.

PinkBW

The third photograph wasn’t touched up too much. I just cropped, brightened it a little, and blurred the background.  I like the blur tool!

Birdbath_ed

Some free photo apps that I use :

PHOTOSHOP EXPRESS – a camera and editing app

PICSART  – a photo editing app that I use for making grids with multiple photographs

SNAPSEED – for  photo editing on your mobile

VSCO – a camera, editing and photo sharing app. I just added this, but haven’t really checked it out yet.

I know some people who really like CAMERA+, a camera and editing app for iPhones.  I have an Android, so can’t say.

I do find I’m using my digital camera less and less and my “phone” more and more, especially now that I have all these apps to help make my photos look so good!

I know there are so many apps to choose from. Are there any others for photo editing that anyone would recommend?