Recently, I have been working on kaleidoscapes again. Yes, you read it correctly – kaleidoscapes as opposed to kaleidoscopes. Bob Cole (robertcolephotography.com) pointed out that a kaleidoscope is a viewing device rather than a graphic image. So, a change in nomenclature seemed like a good idea. After some thought, I settled on kaleidoscapes as most descriptive of what I create. These symmetrical designs are produced by rotating and reflecting a sample from a photograph throughout a full circle. It is possible to approach these images on several levels. They are pleasing to the eye and can be enjoyed simply as graphic designs. They can also evoke deeply spiritual responses in the viewer. Over the past several weeks, I’ve been enjoying working with ever increasing numbers of reflections and exploring new images to sample. I’ve revised the Kaleidoscapes gallery on my portfolio page, retiring some images and adding many new ones. To see these kaleidoscapes, click here.
I was inspired to get back into these images by Donna Bearden and her mandalas. Check out her work at www.donnabearden.com.
If you would like to try some kaleidoscapes yourself, go to www.lloydwphoto.com/downloads.htm. (This is an older page that still refers to the images as “kaleidoscopes.”) There you will find a link to a set of templates to download for free. There are instructions for using the templates on the Downloads page or you can view Mark Johnson’s Photoshop Workbench Number 288 for a video tutorial. Please note that the templates use Photoshop Smart Objects and will only work with versions of Photoshop that support Smart Objects. The templates do not work with Photoshop Elements.
August 2016 – Mark Johnson’s Photoshop Workbench is no longer available online.
This entry was posted on Saturday, March 23rd, 2013 and is filed under Uncategorized. Both comments and pings are currently closed.