April 2017 Blog Carnival - My Other Arts

It's blog carnival time at the Jewelry Artisans Community and the topic for April is other crafts and arts we pursue besides designing and creating jewelry.

I'm downright incompetent when it comes to things like sewing, knitting, crochet, pottery and sculpture and pretty much everything else I've tried.  But, I seem to have a knack for cooking.  My grandmother and mother were both wonderful cooks and I remember that when I was young, I liked to sit at the kitchen table and watch.  Sometimes they even let me help!

As a young, just married adult, I avidly pursued my interest in preparing beautiful meals, but as the years went on and my career became more and more demanding, cooking fell by the wayside.  It became more sustenance than any kind of creative endeavor.  When I retired nearly three years ago, I found my interest in food rekindled and now find myself really enjoying creating with food once again:

Scrambled eggs with mushrooms, peppers, onions, spinach, sausage and cheese

Chicken Salad on Lettuce Cups

Blackberry Fruit Leather

Frozen Fruit Pops - Clockwise from top - Peach, Blackberry/Yogurt, Blackberry, Yogurt and Strawberry, Blackberry and Cream Cheese, Watermelon, Mixed Fruit and Yogurt.

Grilled Red Onion, Kielbasa, Yellow Peppers and Green Apple Kabobs

Clover Rolls

Shrimp and Veggie Stir Fry

It was rather by accident that I discovered how much I enjoy taking photographs.  About the same time I retired, I bought a Canon Powershot for photographing the jewelry that I make.  It wasn't long before I started taking the camera with me pretty much every where I go in order to take photos of things I might want to paint later on.  You just never know when a photo opportunity will present itself.  I just love that little camera and the fact that it's red is a bonus!

I've learned and continue to learn that there is a lot more to photography than snapping a picture.  A good photographer can get fantastic photos with a little point and shoot camera while an unskilled photographer will take mediocre photos with the best and most expensive camera equipment available.  So much depends on the the photographer's eye for composition and lighting and what makes an interesting photograph as well as the editing that's done after the pictures have been taken.  Just the act of cropping a photo can make the difference between a boring photo and a great shot.

I feel that my skills have improved over time and have actually been thinking about listing some of my photos to test the waters.  I have no idea if anyone would actually be interested in purchasing any of them, but there is only one way to find out.

In no particular order, here are some of my efforts with the camera - be aware, this is very photo bloated:

I found it interesting that photographing the same subject from different angles created entirely different moods in the resulting photos:

I hope that you have enjoyed sharing my pursuits of food and photos with me.  To see what other members of the Jewelry Artisans Community has to say on the subject, please click on the links below:

Violetmoon's Corner

Cat's Wire