Reflections On A Hornet's Nest

This is a shot I took of a huge hornet's nest near my Dad's home. We took a walk the morning of December 26 (my Dad's wedding day!). He lives near a state park with lots of pretty areas to walk. This was hanging down over the lane we were walking down. I was a little nervous approaching it. But it was something you had to stare at. How in the world did they build it?

I've been thinking about this image ever since I took that photo. Actually, hubby took a better shot of it. This is a great example of why you should carry your camera when you're out walking. You never know what surprises await you! Here is the original image:

I'm definitely going to use it in some more of my art. I have a few ideas I'm playing with. I did quite a few digital manipulations in the top image. In this second one you can get a clearer view of just how cool this thing is!

So I did a little reading on them. Evidently the nest is made from chewed bark and hornet's saliva. It looks just like paper mache when you're standing under it. I am just amazed at how they did this. All the workers build the nest for the queen...( Ahh...what a life!) ;) It's hard to gauge by this photo, but this nest was huge. It hung way down off the branch. You couldn't reach it from the road because the tree is so tall. Evidently after the first freeze all the hornets die. So we didn't need to worry about getting swarmed when we came upon it in late December. Good thing because my Dad is allergic to bee stings.

Anyway, I've been wanting to do something with this image and you'll probably be seeing it again in some form or another. I have a lot of projects in the mix right now and will be talking about those soon. Stay tuned!

Fairy Castles and Palaces

Here is the before version of the cover to the book I am altering. Now, with a little embellishment, here is what I have done so far:

I'm pretty happy with it. There are always things I want to change after it's finished, and I may still do that. I do wish the fairy showed up a little better. I couldn't make her too big or she would be as tall as the door. That is not what I had in mind!

The first two pages are somewhat complete. On page one, I've used the old black and white photo that was included in the book. It needed a lot of help in order to stand out, but I think I've done it justice. Now I am on the hunt for some photos of the interior of a castle or palace. Once I can find something suitable, then I'll be able to place my own people and elements inside the photo.

Speaking of that, I found out the term used for the kind of art I am currently obsessed with. It's officially called altered photography. I found a very nice book by Angela Cartwright on various techniques for altering both digital and traditional photos processed from the lab. This will be a great resource in the future.

Page one will be posted tomorrow; the before and after versions. Stay tuned...