MISSION IMPOSSIBLE

That perfect show has arrived and the prospectus is easy to understand, it wants what you do; there’s just one obstacle to overcome…making a submission disc.

Why are so many artists completely baffled by making a computer disc? Every time you pick up a brush you are doing something so much more complex and difficult. A single stroke requires more practice than making a dozen computer discs, but this simple task seems to frighten folks who would calmly paint a street scene with a clutch of citizens, a dozen cars, two birds, storefronts and a bike. How can that be?

It is true. Just today I had to talented artists say “no way” when told they’d have to have a disc made for submission. Is it the photography or the computer? The jury is out; half of the intimidated say computer, the other half firmly believes it’s the photography.

First things first which is the way they should go because if you did second things first you’d get very confused and this is all about not making the process confusing.

Photography.

You can just pay a photographer to take the pictures and let him worry about loading it on a disc, but for an artist that’s money which will not be spent on creating art, which is kind of a shame so why not take the pictures yourself? No camera? You’re kidding, everyone has a camera and most of them are perfectly capable of taking a static piece of art. You have an easel, I know you do, you couldn’t paint a canvas without one, so get it out. Put the painting on the easel and find two similar portable lights. No they do not have to be precision, filtered, diffused, bounced graphic lights, two of almost any sort will do. They should have the same size bulb and be the same sort of lamp. Now set them one hundred and eighty degrees apart and start moving them around until you get nice, even light on the picture. It’s easier than it sounds. Now grab the camera and take the picture. Once you have a picture you can move on to the next painting until you have all of your entries in the camera. Now download them to the computer, just like you do when it’s the cat and take a look. If you need to reshoot one or two do it. Once you are satisfied, you can burn your disc.

“No I Can’t!”

Computer

It’s not a four letter word, but it should be. Yes you can burn a disc, you can and Windows has made it almost fool proof. Open the folder where the pictures lurk and click on the ones you want. Then take a look at the menu on the left and select the Copy All Items To CD command. Put in a new CD, close the drawer and in less than a minute you have a clean, fresh submission disc. And you said you couldn’t do it.

Okay, if you are a sculpture or a potter move the lights to the center and slant their beams across the art so that you get cross lighting. You’ll know what that means the minute you see it. It creates deep shadows which fill the contours of your piece and make it look three dimensional even in a two dimensional media.

And remember if you need to adjust the photographs, Faststone Image Viewer is your friend. You did keep the link, right? Okay, one more time, this is the link www.faststone.org/FSViewerDownload.htm
and I expect you to use it.

Now go and make those discs and don’t ever let me hear you say “I’ll just have to pass that show, I can’t make a disc.”