Photo Challenge #11: Abstracts & Textures

After playing along with Erin's 30 Word Thursday weekly challenge on her Treasures Found Blog for the past year I have finally taken the plunge and started taking photography more seriously.  Starting with my iPhone, I soon found that the limitations of that device were getting to me.  Upgrading to a Cannon Eos Digital Rebel SL1 camera, I've started experimenting more with technique.  I have also invested in Photoshop Elements 12 and most of my post-production on photos will be from that program.  As a way to force myself to try new things, I'm doing a weekly photo challenge--each week focusing on a different photography or editing technique.  Some of these may be simple and others more difficult.  I encourage any of my readers to take part in the challenge! 

Abstracts and Textures

This week the challenge is to get up close and personal with some textures.  With no formal art training, but growing up around a bunch of artists, I was always intrigued by different textures.  I had an aunt and an uncle who were potters, and I remember even as a child loving to hold and touch (carefully) their works.  Having now taken up the camera, I wanted to see how I could translate such a physical media into two dimensions.  I also wanted to get a different view on some familiar subjects!

Now, I realize that some of these following pictures are more Macro shots, but I think they all fulfill the idea of looking more up-close at textures and tactile appearance.

This was a tarnished iron sculpture at The Walker Sculpture Garden.  I enjoyed the pits and trails from the elements and oxidation.

This was a cool coiled rope from Fort Ligonier in PA.

Weathered wood from the Fort.  Light was fairly terrible that day, so I enhanced the contrast and light in Photoshop a bit on this one.

This was peeling paint from the garage of our B&B in Ligonier…proof that there is a photo wherever you look closely.

And last up is an old wooden park bench from the Arboretum.

So there you have it, some work on catching textures on film!  I'll be working on this more with the coming of spring and actually getting outside more to take pictures.  Some of these pictures would actually have worked well with my previous background texture challenge HERE.  As usual I have put a link below for folks to play along each week.


An InLinkz Link-up

For next week's challenge I'm going to mess around with Photoshop Elements Curves functions.  To some extent these may lead to High and Low Key effects.  We'll see how that goes!  I'll be posting that next Monday per normal.