lighting

Hazardous

Image PeepSideshow DarkwardLeave a comment

This title could describe blogging: since I began about a month ago, I’ve learned that blogging is hazardous to my free time. It’s not just the time I spend actually posting the blog – it’s the time I take to shoot the photographs, select them and process them for publication. It’s also hazardous to my friends; one of these days they’ll get sick of my blogs and hold an intervention!

But this title actually refers to the name of the sim where I took these photos. It’s another place I found on the Second Life Destination Guide. The description provided intrigued me, so I had to check it out.

“Dream infinitely, remain fearless, but always seek hazardous adventures.” Hazardous is a mysterious and intriguing place to take a few photographs, hang out, dance, or just spend some quiet time reflecting. Seek it out.

And they weren’t wrong. I did find it mysterious and intriguing, to say the least. From the landing point on a floating platform you plummeted gracefully from to the main sim, I was immediately captivated.

I’m just going to share a few photos I took there – no commentary from me, other than to say, besides the last photo, I did very little processing (for me, anyway). The stark beauty of the sim just needed to be shown as simply as possible. I changed the Windlight settings, but other than that, these are what you will find if you visit this beautiful place.

1 Hazardous_008

1 Hazardous_011

1 Hazardous_017

1 Hazardous_049

That Fiery Redhead

Image PeepSideshow DarkwardLeave a comment

Bright. Quietly outspoken. Loving and protective. Those are words to describe my Second Life sister, Kali. She doesn’t say a lot, so when she speaks, I – and others – listen.

Kali asked me to do profile pictures for her, and I have to admit, I was nervous about doing them. Kali works in graphics, so I was worried about living up to her standards and discerning eye.

In the end, I decided to focus on two things while I was doing her photos. First, choosing poses and lighting that reflected who Kali is to me. To show off her beauty and her style.

1 Kali_002 profile

But I also wanted to play with effects that helped me capture her style and personality. Her sensuality, mystery and that fiery redheaded nature she has. And they call her “Legs” for a reason 😉

1 Kali_024 profile A

1 Kali_138bw profile

1 Kali_057 profile

She’s a redhead. With a heart of gold.

Washing Away The Tears

Image PeepSideshow DarkwardLeave a comment

1 Letting The Sunshine Back In

I lost someone I love yesterday. If you follow my blog or scan down the page, you will see my post about tears. I’m still grieving, and I will be for a long time to come, but I need to move past my tears and try to accept that she is gone.

So, this morning, I took down my curtains and washed the windows in my apartment. Well, at least the inside of the windows; one of the perils of being an apartment-dweller is the inability to reach the outside. Regardless, the simple act of mixing the vinegar and water, washing and polishing helped me to bring back the sunshine. Both emotionally and in reality. As a metaphor, it describes what I am trying to do to recover from my loss.

The photo above is one I took a few weeks ago, but never shared publicly. The original intent was very different from what this version represents. I played with an overlay that was similar to the background to bring a bit more sunlight into the image. I’m looking back – at the memories and laughter she brought to my life. And there are still shadows. But the sunshine is spilling softly around me, brightening my life, lifting my mood.