Viking Knit Set, Gold with Amber and Pearl

Here is the last of the photos I took recently of older work (last fall) with my new tabletop photo studio.  I particularly like the contrast between the jewelry and the background, and that the black background does not have any hot-spots.  I am still amazed at how much my photographs have improved!

These pieces were hand-woven using 26 gauge 14 karat gold-fill wire.  I love the combination of amber and pearls!  Both the necklace and earrings are listed for sale on my website.

Turquoise Set

I made this set last week and used my new photo studio set-up for the photography. I must admit that I am thrilled, THRILLED, with the result. I think I am getting close to figuring out how to configure my lights in order to get this look. I have two more photos of older work ready to post, but I think I will spread it out over the next few days, so come back to see the pretties!!

This necklace is 5-stitch Viking knitting with the turquoise chips worked into the weave. I didn't make it long enough, and so had to add the links on the ends. I thought the result would be awful, but I find that I like the effect.

"Tabletop" Photography

I finally received my tabletop photo studio and have figured out, more or less, how to configure the lights in order to get decent photos. The entire studio consists of a white nylon fabric light tent and four lights with natural spectrum CFLs, purchased from Steve Kaeser Backgrounds on E-Bay. Overall, I am quite pleased with the quality, especially of the lights. The stands are sturdy and the lamp bases have nice on/off switches. The only thing I had to get (so far) was the appropriate surface and background. I went to a picture framing shop and bought a piece of non-glare glass (there IS a "right" side and "wrong" side) and used a large piece of black paper that I had under the glass. In the photo above, the surface looks grey, but that really is a piece of black paper under the non-glare glass!

After much repositioning of lights, I finally took some photos that are decent. I am still trying to figure out how to get rid of the uneven whitish reflections, but I will get there! And even though this is a "tabletop" studio, I don't have a table big enough for it! It currently sits on my basement floor, as you can see!

Here is one of my newer pieces, photographed in the new set-up. The center is 8-stitch Viking knitting with turquoise chips, and the side chains are 4-stitch Viking knitting and a strand of turquoise. This one came out a bit long. I may try it again with shorter segments.

Jury Photos

And this is what professional photography can do for you:




Photos I took of these two pieces were posted earlier this month. They were alright for a blog or website, but cannot compare to these! They don't even look like the same pieces! These photos were taken by Larry Sanders, of Sanders Visual Images. So much nicer!!

Capturing the Inaugural Moment

I did not travel to Washington D.C. for President Obama's (I just LOVE that phrase!) inauguration, and miss being a part of the energy, but my consolation is that you can take some very, very nice photographs from an HD TV! All of these photos are still shots of the live video feed broadcast by ABC. Here is a nice shot of the Obamas and Bushes on the South Capital steps, just before former-President Bush and Laura Bush leave in the Marine helicopter.



What a great looking couple! I watched the inaugural events ALL day (8AM to 5PM, CST) and after a while began to really love Michelle's outfit. The fabric of her dress and coat have a gorgeous texture and I love the warm color. It is very unlike me to comment on anything related to fashion, but her outfit really was quite striking, especially on her! And check out Sasha in the top photo. Her outfit is a bold combination of pink and orange that actually works; I wonder if she picked out her clothes.

I am so thrilled! President Obama!