I can remember watching “The Joy of Painting” by Bob Ross on PBS with rapt fascination as he painted really amazing landscapes. No, he wasn’t a Van Gogh or a Rembrandt, but his calm joy in creating and teaching was infectious. I have never lifted brush to canvas myself, but it was the lessons that I learned from listening to him speak as he painted that were his gift to me.

One of those gifts was the joy of the “happy accident”. I found a clip of one of the times he used that phrase on youtube and it made me smile, once again. It is a short clip, really just of that quote, but it was exactly as I remember him speaking as he taught. You can click on the link if you want to see for yourself.

When I take photographs, I set up my subject, find my camera angle and then start playing around with Windlight settings. This is the same process I go through whether I am shooting myself, a landscape or a client. I may end up with 20 or more shots of the same image under different lighting conditions.

I do this for several reasons. What I see in my viewer doesn’t always translate to the still photograph. The shadows that look so wonderful in Second Life may end up looking like ugly blotches in the final picture. I also like to have different versions so I can play around in processing and a photo that may not be the best view in SL may end up giving me more freedom to experiment when working in Photoshop or PicMonkey. Plus, I like variety…depending on my mood, I might prefer a cooler or warmer tone when it is time to select a final version.

But mainly, I am looking for those happy accidents – when something pops out at me when I am reviewing my raw shots that I might have missed while shooting. And that is how I chose this photo.

I didn’t see the reflection in the sails while I was shooting. I was concentrating more on the lighting on my avatar and in the wider shot. But when I scrolled to this picture in review, I literally gasped. It didn’t have the dramatic lighting of some of the others, but when I saw the silhouette on the sails, the decision was easy. This was the happy accident that I love and so rarely find.

I processed this photo, but I didn’t touch that sail. How you see it is how I did when I first viewed the picture. I think I know what Windlight setting I was using (it is one of two of Jackson Redstar’s) but I doubt I could reproduce this.

And you know what? I’m OK with that. A happy accident should be appreciated for that moment that makes you smile, gives you wonder and takes your breath away.

Pretty stuff I’m wearing:

Dress: coldLogic dress – reynolds.may by coldLogic
Shoes: _CandyDoll_ Newell Heels for Slink High Feet by rebeca Dembo
Necklace: Cae :: Promise :: Necklace by Caelan Hancroft
Earrings: Cae :: Promise :: Earrings by Caelan Hancroft
Ring: Cae :: Promise :: Ring by Caelan Hancroft
Hair: Hair: Analog Dog – AD – yeah – dark reds by Queue Marlowe
Skin: [PXL] Creations – [PXL] JADE SK Please Me Lips MEB C2 by Hart Larsson
Eye Makeup: [PXL] Creations – [PXL] JADE SK Smokey Eyes by Hart Larsson
Hands: Slink Mesh Hands (av) Casual by Siddean Munro
Feet: Slink Mesh Feet (Av) High by Siddean Munro
Hand & Feet appliers:[PXL] Creations – [ PXL ] Slink Hand & Feet Appliers SK by Hart Larsson
Eyes: Amacci Gaze Eyes – Ocean Blue by Carina Larsen
Lashes: Mon Cheri *MC* “Falsies” Eyelash by Freya Oliveri

Pose: *PosESioN* Secret 10 by Dahriel (available at Kustom9)