DOWN UNDER

Australia and New Zealand Issue 67 | october 2022 | digital ar tistr y

 04 E D I T O R ’ S R E P O R T 34 M I C K R O O N E Y
By Pam Henderson - Tr e e O f K n o w l e d g e

05 P H O T O S H O P A R T I S T RY 35 S H A R O N R A N K M O R E
By Sebastian Michaels - Reflect

06- K A R E N WA A LW Y K 36- S O M E P H O T O S H O P I N S P I R AT I O N
07 - S n o w L e o p a r d F a m i l y 37 B y A n d r e w H a y s o m

08 J U L I E P O W E L L 38 G I TA M A DAY
- Butter fly Queen - Creating Thermals For Flight

09 PA M H E N D E R S O N 39 LO U I S E S M I T H
- City Nights - Annabelle

10 S H A RY N WA L K E R 40- K E V I N S I M S
- Dance 4 And 5 41 - Tr e e

11 A L B A M A S S 42 S U E M A S T E R S O N
- Burnout - Boddington Bodcow - W h a t ’s I n T h e B o x ?

12- S O N I A P U S E Y 43 H E L E N M C L E O D
13 - C o m e A w a y W i t h M e - The Seed Collector

14 D E A N H O H N 44 R O S A P E R RY
- S w a m p H a r r i e r A r t 11 - Catnip
- W e d g e -Ta i l e d E a g l e I n T h e S u n s e t - Signora Gatta

15- A R T I S T S M O N T H LY 45 I N G R I D JA KO B S E N
24 AC H I E V E M E N T S - W a t c h i n g Yo u , W a t c h i n g M e

25 M A R G A R E T K A L M S 46- C O L I N K I L L I C K
- Broken Fenc e 47 - Z a s a r i

26- P R U E W R I G H T 48 LY N E T T E PAU L
27 - C h e e k y - Protea

28 T R AC E Y P E R R I N 49 B E V T E R R AW S K YJ
- Alone I Fly - A l o n e I A m . . . Fr e e - Fr a c t a l D a n c e r

29 A N N W E H N E R
- The Winter Queen

30 G E O R G E KO N C Z
- Love The Six ties

31 C H R I S T I N A B R U N T O N
- Tr u m p e t P l a y e r

32- A N D R E W H AYS O M
33 - A u t u m n L e a v e s

Julie Powell - Sunflowers

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50 C H I N E S E W H I S P E R S # 5 9 70 H E M A N T KO G E K A R
- By Maureen Maxwell - Moonlit - Behind The Fenc e

51- F E AT U R E D A R T I S T 71 J U L I A R A E
60 S A N D R A DA N N - Entering Wonder land
- Escape
- Childhood Dreams 72- I N T E R V I E W
- Ta k e M e A w a y To A n o t h e r W o r l d 77 C O L I N CA M P B E L L
- G iraf fe Family By Maureen Maxwell
- Loftus Balloon
78 K Y E T H O M P S O N
- Abandoned Car With Giraffe
- Water Car r ying Man
- Foggy Pond With House
- House On The Grasslands
79 M E AG H A N P RYO R
- Locked Down
- Countr y Lane
- T h e P a t h To M y H o m e
- Wonder f ul Fair y t ale 80 M A R K PA S S F I E L D
- The Sounds Of Silence - Librar y Abstract
- M e e t Yo u r A r t i s t
- Escape 81 K I M R I C C I
- One Step At A Time
61 M A RY K N AG G S
- Laneway Dining - City Hatters 82 G E R A R D W H E L A N
- W e d g e -Ta i l e d E a g l e - Kruger Sunset
62 P E N N Y D E J O N G
- L a u r a ’s W i s h 83- M O N T H LY A R T I S T I C P H O T O
92 C H A L L E N G E
63 I LO N A A B O U - Z O LO F
- Inner Secret 93- A R T I S T S B U S I N E S S
97 A DV E R T I S E M E N T S
64- E L E N O R G I L L
65 - B e f o r e B r e a k f a s t

66 J U D I L A P S L E Y M I L L E R
- G r a c e f u l S p l e n d o r ( Tu i )

67 M AU R E E N M A X W E L L
- A Sense Of Unease

68- D E N N I S R I C K A R D
69 - W e t W i n d s c r e e n

F R O N T C OV E R
by S A N D R A DA N N
- Floating House Ilona Abou-Zolof - Art Deco Portrait

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 a r t i s
DOWN UNDERt s
Australia and New Zealand

Hi everyone and welcome to our newest edition of Artists Down Under.

Rain, rain and more rain. As they say, if it doesn’t rain, it pours. Don’t know about you, but I am
over it, the flooding has just started and we still have two more wet months to come. Lucky our art-
ists are here to cheer your soggy days up.

We have an amazing interview with our own Proof Reader, Colin Campbell. It is always a pleasure
to learn more on our artists, how they tick, what motivates them, where their passion comes from
and I think in this interview Colin explains it all.

Another exciting tutorial from our Photoshop guru, on Precise Previews for 16-bit documents.

The girls from the Redlands Digital Artists Group are hard at it, sharing their latest image in their
Chinese Whispers series.

I would like to introduce you to this month’s Featured Artist, Sandra Dann. Sandra is one of our
newest members to the Artist Down Under family, but her experience is way beyond a newbie.
Sandra is an extremely talented lady as you will all agree.

Finally I set this month’s Artist Challenge with a Barnyard theme and our artists delivered once
again. I hope you all enjoy.

Well that’s it from me, until next month, stay safe & care for each other.

Pam Henderson

Al BaMass - Calypso
Backgrounds: Foxy Squirrell
Laitha’s Designs - Jai Johnson - White Lane
Studio
Copyright 2017 ©

Artists in this publication are responsible for any

rights appertaining to their work.
Ann Wehner - The Mystic Forest

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HTTPS://PROPHOTOSHOPARTISTRY.COM

Image by: Judi Lapsley Miller, Photoshop Artistry Student

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 ( AUSTRALIA )
KAREN WAALWYK

https://www.flickr.com/photos/88165766@N05

https://artistsdownunder.com.au/artist-3/karen-waalwyk/

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S N O W L E O PA R D FA M I LY

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 ( AUSTRALIA )
JULIE POWELL

B U T T E R FLY Q U E E N

https://www.juliepowellphoto.com/

https://artistsdownunder.com.au/artist-2/julie-powell/

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 ( AUSTRALIA )
PAM HENDERSON

CIT Y NIGHTS

https://www.facebook.com/snapnshootdesigns/

http://www.artistsdownunder.com.au/artist-4/pam-henderson/

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 ( AUSTRALIA )

DA N C E 4
SHARYN WALKER

DA N C E 5

https://www.changeoffocus.com.au

https://artistsdownunder.com.au/artist-4/sharyn-walker/

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 ( AUSTRALIA )
BURNOUT

AL BAMASS

BODINGTON BODCOW

https://artistsdownunder.com.au/artists-1/al-bamass/

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 ( AUSTRALIA )
SONIA PUSEY

https://www.instagram.com/soniapusey/?hl=en

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C O M E AWAY W I T H M E

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 ( australia )

S WA M P H A R R I E R A R T I I
DEAN HOHN

W E D G E -TA I L E D E AG L E I N T H E S U N S E T

https://www.facebook.com/Dean-Hohn-Photo-Artistry-247723325687722/

https://artistsdownunder.com.au/artist-2/dean-hohn/

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 artists
down under
monthly
Achievements
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 artists down under facebook page

Rosa Perry - The Window Penny De Jong - Egrets

The Artists Down Under Public Facebook page has been set up to allow the
artists in the group to showcase their work and to enable them to share
promotional information about themselves, e.g. exhbitions, awards etc...

You can find the Artists Down Under Public Facebook page at this address;
https://www.facebook.com/groups/ArtistsDownUnder/

So, if you are an artist in the group, don’t forget to regularly share your work and information here,
and to let your friends and family know about the page if they are interested in viewing the latest
art and news from the group.

If you are a reader of the magazine who does not have access to the page, please click the link
above and request to join. When you request to join you will be asked to answer three simple
questions that will allow us to determine if you are an eligible artist who may wish to join the group
and therefore be able to post on the page, or a member of the public who can view, comment and
like the work on the page. It’s a great place to see some great art from this vibrant group
every day!

Kaylene Helliwell - Williston Julie Powell - Morning Breaks Kaylene Helliwell - Horatio

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 Ilona Abou-Zolof - The Cat
Colin Campbell - Sunrise Vivisection

Three ADU members receive a special gift

Our very good Awake friends Teddi Rutschman of Foxey
Squirrel and Diane Stafford from WhiteLaneStudio continue
to give gifts as a reward for members of the Artists Down
Under group who contribute to the ADU Facebook page
by regularly posting their artworks and supporting other
members with their comments.

Teddi, from Virginia, USA, is well known for her fantastic

sets of digital designer backgrounds, masks and all kinds of
wonderful elements ready for designers to add to or build a
wondrous creation.

Teddi Rutshman can be found at

http://www.foxeysquirrel.com/ The OCTOBER lucky winners are
http://www.oscraps.com/shop/Foxeysquirrel
Teddi Rutschman (Foxy Squirrel) Gift Voucher of $10.00
Teddi has given a $10.00 voucher for one very lucky member - Al BaMass
to spend in her on-line shop.
Diane Stafford (WhiteLaneStudio) Texture & Overlay Kit
Diane Stafford from Chester, UK, designs Photoshop textures - Helen McLeod
- Sharyn Walker
and overlays for photo artists and photographers to use in
their digital artworks. Diane has created another special kit
just for Artists Down Under for the month of OCTOBER.

Two artists will receive a Diane kit each.

Diane Stafford can be found at
https://whitelanestudio.co.uk/biolinks

Andrew Haysom - Curly

Prue Wright - Gracie’s Adventure
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 LIVING THE PHOTO ARTISTIC LIFE
https://issuu.com/thephotoartisticlife/docs/issue91-final?fr=sZDBhMzI1ODEw
Congratulations to the
following artists for having
their images chosen to appear in the
International magazine
“Living The Photo Artistic Life”.

Christina Brunton
- Feathered Friends
Sonia Pusey
- The Hills Are Alive
Lynette Paul
- Flower Power Ilona Abou-Zolof - Peter Pan
Helen McLeod
- In The Clouds
- The Caretakers
Gitama Day
- Gone Fishing
Dean Hohn
- Wedge-Tailed Eagle In The Sunset
Ilona Abou-Zolof
- Tree Of Life
- Peter Pan
Maureen Maxwell
- An Apparition
Maureen Maxwell - An Apparition
Julie Powell
- Spring Bloom
Rosa Perry
- Rembrandt

Ilona Abou-Zolof - Tree Of Life

Sonia Pusey - The Hills Are Alive Helen McLeod - The Caretakers

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 LIVING THE PHOTO ARTISTIC LIFE

Rosa Perry - Rembrandt

Christina Brunton - Feathered Friends

Gitama Day - Gone Fishing

Julie Powell - Spring Bloom Lynette Paul - Flower Power

Helen McLeod - In The Clouds Dean Hohn - Wedge-Tailed Eagle In The Sunset

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 light space and time
“Landscapes”
https://lightspacetime.art/landscapes-art-exhibition-september-2022/

Congratulations to the following

artists for their special achievements in the
“Landscapes” Light Space & Time
competition.

Special Merit
Ilona Abou-Zolof - “Icy Scene”

Ilona Abou-Zolof - Icy Scene

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 shift art
September 2022
Theme
“Alice In Wonderland”
https://shiftart.com/shift-art-photoshop-challenge-results-september-2022/

Congratulations goes to

Honorable Mention Julie Powell, Andrew Haysom, Penny De Jong, Carolyn

Jenson and Karen Waalwyk

Noticed Margaret Kalms

Andrew Haysom - Falling Down The Rabbit Hole Karen Waalwyk - Wonderland

Julie Powell - Alice In Wonderland Penny De Jong - Imagine That Said Alice

Margaret Kalms - Alice Falling

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 grey cube gallery
blue online artshow
https://greycubegallery.com/shows/2022/september2022.html

Congratulations goes to

Margaret Kalms
For being a Finalist with her two images “Blue Fulcrum” and “Tower Bridge In A Storm”, in
the Grey Cube Gallery “Blue” Online Art Exhibition, which was held in September 2022.

Margaret Kalms - Blue Fulcrum Margaret Kalms - Tower Bridge In A Storm

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 fusion art
7th annual animal kingdom
online art exhibition
https://www.fusionartps.com/7th-annual-animal-kingdom-art-exhibition-september-2022/

Congratulations goes to

Ilona Abou-Zolof
For being awarded an Artist Excellence with her image “The Protector”, and for also being
accepted with her image “Walking The Puma”, in the 7th Annual Animal Kingdom’s Interna-
tional Online Juried Art Exhibition held in September 2022.

Ilona Abou-Zolof - Walking The Puma

Ilona Abou-Zolof - The Protector

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 34th sutherland shire
national exhibition of
photography 2022

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 ( AUSTRALIA )
MARGARET KALMS

BROKEN FENCE

https://artistsdownunder.com.au/artist-3/margaret-kalms/

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26
PRUE WRIGHT ( AUSTRALIA )
CHEEK Y
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 ( NEW ZEALAND )

A LO N E I F LY
TRACEY PERRIN

A LO N E I A M . . . F R E E

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 ( AUSTRALIA )
ANN WEHNER
THE WINTER QUEEN

https://artistsdownunder.com.au/artists-1/ann-wehner/

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 ( AUSTRALIA )
GEORGE KONCZ

LOV E T H E S I X T I E S

http://www.artistsdownunder.com.au/artist-2/george-koncz/

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 ( AUSTRALIA )
CHRISTINA BRUNTON

T R U M P E T P L AY E R

https://artistsdownunder.com.au/artists-1/christina-brunton/

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 ( AUSTRALIA )
ANDREW HAYSOM

https://andrewhaysom.myportfolio.com/

https://artistsdownunder.com.au/artists-1/andrew-haysom/

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AU T U M N L E AV E S

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 ( AUSTRALIA )
MICK ROONEY

TREE OF KNOWLEDGE

http://www.artistsdownunder.com.au/artist-3/mick-rooney/

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 ( AUSTRALIA )
SHARON RANKMORE
R E FL E C T

https://www.artistsdownunder.com.au/artist-4/sharon-rankmore/

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 a Dr t Oi sWt sN U N D E R
Australia and New Zealand

SOME PHOTOSHOP INSPIRATION

PRECISE PREVIEWS FOR 16-BIT

DOCUMENTS
By Andrew Haysom

One of the issues that has bugged Photoshop users for a long time is the issue of “fake band-
ing”.

Banding will often appear in areas of your images that contain smooth gradients (for example in
a sky). If you work in 8-bit mode, this banding will often be real because in 8-bit mode the num-
ber of different levels of luminosity is limited to 256, and real bands can appear when you make
adjustments like blending, sharpening or clarity/dehaze adjustments. Editing in 16-bit mode
should remove most instances of banding.

However, Photoshop (prior to version 23.5) will take some shortcuts when rendering your im-
ages that can often cause the appearance of “fake banding”. This is because one of the short-
cuts it takes when rendering your image is to use 8-bit renders of the different layers to speed up
processing and screen refreshes.

The fake banding will usually disappear if you make a stamp visible copy of your image, or if you
move to 100% size or greater.

The example shown in Figure 1 shows the fake banding easily created by blending two simple
gradients together and making a Levels adjustment.

[Figure 1 – Example fake banding]

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SOME PHOTOSHOP INSPIRATION (CONT....)

In Photoshop CC version 23.5 (released in August 2022) Adobe have introduced a new Prefer-
ence setting that will remove this “fake banding” phenomenon in most instances. The setting is
called “Precise Previews for 16-bit documents” and can be found on the Technology Previews
tab (meaning it is a preview of a feature still in development) – see Figure 2.

[Figure 2 - Technology Previews Preferences]

If you check this setting you will also need to restart Photoshop for it to take effect.

As you can see in Figure 1, with this setting enabled, the banding has disappeared.

I would imagine that this setting forces more processing from Photoshop and therefore if your
computer is not particularly fast it may cause a noticeable speed issue. On my M1 Macbook
Pro I really notice no difference in speed, so if you have a fairly fast processor then I would rec-
ommend giving it a try and get rid of that annoying fake banding.

Andrew

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 ( AUSTRALIA )
GITAMA DAY

C R E AT I N G T H E R M A L S FO R FL I G H T

https://artistsdownunder.com.au/artist-2/gitama-day/
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 ( AUSTRALIA )
LOUISE SMITH

ANNABELLE

https://www.facebook.com/lksmithphotography/

https://artistsdownunder.com.au/artist-3/louise-smith/

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 ( NEW ZEALAND )
KEVIN SIMS

www.kevinsims.co.nz

www.lightaviator.myportfolio.com

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TREE
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 ( AUSTRALIA )
SUE MASTERSON

W H AT ’ S I N T H E B OX?

https://www.facebook.com/Sue-Masterton-Digital-Artist-1662189864018110/

http://artistsdownunder.com.au/artist-4/sue-masterson/

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 ( NEW ZEALAND )
HELEN MCLEOD

THE SEED COLLECTOR

https://www.2-galleries.com/

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 ( AUSTRALIA )

CAT N I P
ROSA PERRY

S I G N O R A G AT TA

https://rosa-perry.myportfolio.com/artwork

https://artistsdownunder.com.au/artist-4/rosa-perry/

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 ( AUSTRALIA )
INGRID JACOBSEN

WATC H I N G YO U, WAT C H I N G M E

https://artistsdownunder.com.au/artist-2/ingrid-jakobsen/

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 ( AUSTRALIA )
COLIN KILLICK

www.behance.net/colinkillick

https://artistsdownunder.com.au/artists-1/colin-killick/

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Z ASARI

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48
LYNETTE PAUL ( NEW ZEALAND )

PROTE A
 ( AUSTRALIA )
BEV TERAWSKYJ

F R AC TA L DA N C E R

https://artistsdownunder.com.au/artists-1/bev-terawskyj/

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 artists
DOWN UNDER
Australia and New Zealand

DIGITAL ARTISTS GROUP

A COLLABORATIVE GROUP OF PHOTO ARTISTS

CHINESE WHISPERS #59

“THE RISING OF HALLOWEEN”

STAGE 1 STAGE 2

Pam Henderson Maureen Maxwell

BEWARE! IT’S TIME FOR MYSTERIES AND GHOSTS.

ENJOY!

Maureen

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 S A N D R A D A NN

E S CA P E

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 CHILDHOOD DREAMS

TA K E M E AWAY T O A N O T H E R W O R L D

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 G I R A F F E FA M I LY

LO F T U S B A L LO O N

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 A B A N D O N E D CA R W I T H G I R A F F E

FO G GY P O N D W I T H H O U S E

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HOUSE ON THE GR ASSL ANDS

LO C K E D D O W N

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 T H E PAT H T O M Y H O M E

W O N D E R F U L FA I RY TA L E

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THE SOUNDS OF SILENCE

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 Meet your artist
Sandra Dann
Sydney
New South Wales

Website: https://www.sandradimagery.com/

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1. Tell us a little about yourself and where you live?

I live in Sydney, Australia. As a child I loved colouring and painting, I did art at school, I cher-
ished my colouring pencils. I did my “mature age” experience in 2012 and I discovered photog-
raphy when I moved to Queenstown New Zealand on a working holiday, Returning back to Aus-
tralia photography opened another world for me. I started to see the world around me differently.
I started to see the colours in the landscape, the sky and clouds, trees, light and shade and so
much more. My creative journey began as my skills increased in post processing and I started to
realise I could create an image I had in mind. Along the way I have been fortunate to win Gold,
Silver and Bronze in Photographic competitions.

2. How did you become interested/get started in Photo Artistry?

I started as a Landscape Photographer and played with replacing skies, adding a tree or a build-
ing here and there, which looking back was the start of a basic form of composite imagery. I was
experimenting more and started to work with Fine Art Textures, then I started to photograph ele-
ments for the stock library for my composite images. The more I “played” I was finding my style
in post processing and what I liked. As the saying goes “the rest is history”. Now I love creating
images that are whimsical or tell a story or just to feed the creative soul.

3. What inspires you or gives you inspiration to create your art?

Finding inspiration in different forms works for me, it could be movies, songs, something that has
happened in the world, looking at different artforms - paintings, illustrative. To me it is about
broadening the mindset. One time it had to be all about using my own photos, now the “gloves
are off” it is about creating what is inside of me and what I see. Freedom!

4. Do you have a certain approach to creating your art?

Being a creative I have found the mood or desire to create an image can strike or go missing
any time. I’ve learnt to recognise the signs or go with the flow if I’m not feeling it. Sometimes
when the mood strikes an idea bubbles to the surface, it could be inspiration from an image I’ve
seen somewhere, it could be I choose one of my Fine Art Textures I create as the base image or
it could looking through my stock library or photos and an idea strikes or lately I created a se-
ries of images to the song “Sound of Silence”. It has been a journey to where I find myself now,
it’s been fun and frustrating. To me never lose the joy of creating an image for no other purpose
than to create an image from an idea or vision. I have also learnt it is about “showing up” and
finding ways to be creative. I’ve written a blog on this;
https://www.sandradimagery.com/stories-blog/are-you-showing-up-as-a-creative

5. What does your art mean to you?

Starting as a purist landscaper I was out and about photographing all the time, then I started to
get bored with landscapes and I found I was enjoying the post processing journey more
and more. Move forward to now I realise creating photo artistry is important for me, it feeds the
“soul”, allows me to express myself and vision. These past few years where the world changed,
I have found it has allowed me to be more creative and I have the time to play and experiment
and learn new skills. I still use my landscapes as backgrounds or elements for my creative work.
Creating with no rules for competitions, using what I call mixed medium a combination of photog-
raphy, artworks, digital elements has allowed me the freedom to create.

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 6. Do you think since starting in photo artistry it has changed you and if so, how ?

If I look back colouring and choosing colours, drawing, and other forms of creative expression
have been part of my life since a child, it just took a few life detours along the way. I am now
where I was meant to be.

7. Is there anyone that you draw inspiration from ?

When I’m not creating images I still keep my mind and eye in creative thinking to be inspired. I
look at platforms such as Pinterest, Instagram, Art websites and so on. I’m topping up the visual
bank and feeding the brain cells constantly. I draw inspiration from different artists such as Albert
Namatjira, Monet, Dutch Golden Age and so on for colour. I love the work of Maggie Taylor and
so many other creatives I follow.

8. Where do you see (or hope to see) your art taking you in the future ? What are your next
steps ?

For the past few years, I had to re-invent myself (in a previous life I was a Tour Guide travel-
ling Australia and New Zealand). I have been teaching Photoshop online, Creative and Concep-
tual Thinking. Now I want to develop my business SandraD Imagery further, which will be a place
for other creatives, I have a digital store with my Fine Art Textures and more. A personal project
is I want to put a book together with my images, I just have to give myself the push to start – I
have the title Imagination, so it’s a case of watch this space and remind myself to get started.

E S CA P E

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 ( AUSTRALIA )
L A N E WAY D I N I N G

MARY KNAGGS

C I T Y H AT T E R S

https://www.facebook.com/MaryK-Photographic-Art-145293185640662/

http://www.artistsdownunder.com.au/artist-3/mary-knaggs/

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 ( AUSTRALIA )
penny de jong

L AU R A’ S W I S H

http://www.artistsdownunder.com.au/artist-4/penny-de-jong/

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 ( AUSTRALIA )
ILONA ABOU-ZOLOF

INNER SECRET

https://www.zolof.net/

https://artistsdownunder.com.au/artist-2/ilona-abou-zolof/

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64
ELENOR GILL ( NEW ZEALAND )
B E FO R E B R E A K FA S T
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 ( NEW ZEALAND )
JUDI LAPSLEY MILLER

G R AC E F U L S P L E N D O R (t u i )

https://www.artbyjlm.com/

https://artistsdownunder.com.au/artist-2/judi-lapsley-miller/

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 ( AUSTRALIA )
MAUREEN MAXWELL

A SENSE OF UNEASE

http://www.artistsdownunder.com.au/artist-3/maureen-maxwell/

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 ( AUSTRALIA )
DENNIS RICkARD

https://artistsdownunder.com.au/artist-2/dennis-rickard/

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WET WINDSCREEN

69
 ( AUSTRALIA )

MOONLIT
HEMANT KOGEKAR

BEHIND THE FENCE

https://photos.kogekar.com/

https://artistsdownunder.com.au/artist-2/hemant-kogekar/

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 ( NEW ZEALAND )
JULIA RAE

ENTERING WONDERL AND

https://juliaraephotography.com/

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 a Dr t Oi sWt sN U N D E R
Australia and New Zealand

INTERVIEW

WITH

COLIN CAMPBELL
By Maureen Maxwell

Thank you, Colin, for participating in this interview

series.

You’ve been a member of Artists Down

Under from the beginning. Your art has been
published in all 65 issues. You have also been
the proofreader of the magazine each month
during those years. In addition to all this, we
have benefited from your regular contributions to
our Facebook pages. Such participation is not
only quite an achievement, but also a magnificent
contribution. I’m sure I speak for our members in
thanking you for your significant input to the suc-
cess of our group.

You create a lot of images according to a theme.

Many of these themes, and your artwork gener-
ally, are both unexpected and surprising. I think
our readers will enjoy reading about your art jour-
ney and approach.

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INTERVIEW - COLIN CAMPBELL (CONT....)

WHAT LED YOU TO BECOME INTERESTED IN PHOTOARTISTRY?

For years I had been disappointed with the Kodak prints I got back from the chemist, and even
whilst developing and printing my black and white shots I quite often could not get the image to
meet my expectations. I can’t recall now how I came across Sebastian Michaels’ Photoshop
Artistry courses, but I do remember realising that here was a way to get much closer to the artis-
tic effects I was after.

I also started going through Dave Cross’s Photoshop training courses and increased my techni-
cal skills and knowledge. This was not easy as I was a late comer to computers, but over time
Photoshop lost some of its daunting and arcane complexity and as I became more and more
familiar with its tools and features the process of constructing images has become more and
more satisfying and exciting.

I FIND YOUR ART TO BE BOTH UNUSUAL AND INTRIGUING. IT IS DIFFERENT TO WHAT

WE MOSTLY SEE IN ADU AND AWAKE.

a) IS THIS INTENTIONAL?

No. I have many times wondered if I should persist with posting in Facebook or the ADU maga-
zine as my images can seem out of place.

b) WHERE DOES YOUR INSPIRATION COME FROM?

All the people with ideas and passion I have met, all the books I have read and reread, all the
museums, galleries, temples and ruins I have visited, all the movies and TV I have watched,
all the music I have listened to, all the countries I have travelled through, all the objects that have
made me wonder why we exist.

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 INTERVIEW - COLIN CAMPBELL (CONT....)

HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE YOUR ARTISTIC STYLE?

As a prison that I continually try to escape from.

Sebastian Michaels recently used several of my images to support his Found Object Photoshop
Artistry course in the 4th Photoshop Virtual Summit organised by Dave Cross. Found Object
Photoshop Artistry is probably a way to describe my work.

A LOT OF YOUR ART IS BASED ON A THEME. A RECENT THEME BASED ON BOTANY

BAY, SYDNEY, HELD PARTICULAR APPEAL FOR ME. I GREW UP NEAR THE BAY AND
WAS ABLE TO SEE IT AFRESH THROUGH YOUR DIFFERENT EYES.

a) HOW DO YOU DECIDE ON A THEME?

I have often deliberately thought of themes but rarely managed to successfully bring them to
fruition. What happens is that whilst constructing an image I find variations and divergences in
content and effects that have potential and save them into new documents. The themes decide
themselves over time by persistence of common or evolving content. As a bonus those unfin-
ished documents often let me avoid the numbing terror of starting with a new blank file and for
that I am grateful.

With the Botany Bay series, the skyless trees came first and the Bay shots then seemed to work
as background.

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INTERVIEW - COLIN CAMPBELL (CONT....)
b) AND HOW DO YOU SOURCE YOUR PHOTOS AND TEXTURES?

Out of about 50 years’ worth of snapshots and slides still in my possession I have scanned a
manageable pool of digital images. Manageable in that I have a fairly good memory of what they
contain and where they are filed in Adobe Bridge. There are some regrettable gaps where I have
culled “less than worthy” prints or let albums go with a broken relationship.

I have a small collection of textures mostly downloaded from AWAKE and again curated and
limited by my memory of content and filing. What I have found is I tend to fall back on the same
handful of textures and vary them with blend modes and filters in Photoshop to suit my purpose;
this reflects my declining memory!

The Botany Bay images come from iPhone snaps taken a few years ago whilst doing weekly
early morning bike rides from Newtown to La Perouse or Kurnell. Age and traffic finally curtailed
my rides about a year ago.

CAN YOU DESCRIBE A FEW OF YOUR FAVOURITE TECHNIQUES USED TO CREATE

YOUR ART?

My most favourite technique for creating is getting into a state of “flow”. Concentration and a
manageable challenge are prime ingredients for “flow” and using the selection tools in Photo
shop (and definitely obsessing too much over making perfect selections) often enables me to
get into a state of “flow”, and so I persist with my folly.

One technique I have recently explored is using the Background Eraser Tool to remove particu-
lar colours from an image. This can quickly create an interesting randomness and intersection
with underlying layers, especially when used with various blend modes and filters. This tool how-
ever is destructive; always work on a copy!

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 INTERVIEW - COLIN CAMPBELL (CONT....)
A LOT OF YOUR ART CONTAINS INTERESTING OBJECTS. ARE YOU A COLLECTOR?

No, in fact I have always tended to the minimalist end of the scale of possessions. Having said
that, my wife tends to the other end of the scale, and I live in a house full of objects that are not
mine but are available to photograph!

PLEASE TELL US A LITTLE ABOUT YOURSELF, YOUR BACKGROUND AND YOUR OTH-
ER INTERESTS?

I am 70 years old with too much or too little of a background to recount here!

I have struggled with depression and social anxiety since my late teens and look back at a trail
of missed career opportunities, broken relationships and friendships, unfinished projects, alco-
holism, and drug abuse, and yet somehow, with the help of “flow” experiences and honesty
along the way, I have managed to survive, to value sobriety, to now be married, and be comfort-
ably retired!

I started out doing a metallurgy degree but ended up with an arts degree in English literature. I
drove taxis (a big mistake!), drove around Australia, lived in a remote village in Greece for a
year, and then worked in the Public Service in Sydney until I retired. I became a technical train-
ing officer, wrote user manuals, and managed to get involved in putting business rules into an
automated system (lots of exacting grammar and proofreading). But in the end my social anxiety
took over and thankfully I was allowed to finish my career by working online from home. And that
was the beginning of staying at home and becoming an almost complete agoraphobic or hermit

Now, as well as reading, listening to music and constructing images, I try to get my head around
quantum physics and relativity. I have the rest of my life to learn.

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INTERVIEW - COLIN CAMPBELL (CONT....)

CLOSING COMMENTS

I’m delighted you agreed to this interview Colin. Thank you for allowing us to read the insights
to your life and your art.

I know our readers will find this interview to be both interesting and motivating. Also, many of
us will be able to relate to your comments about Photoshop. But this technology does give us a
fun journey and many learning opportunities – even if it is frustrating at times in its complexity.

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kye thompson

WAT E R CA R RY I N G M A N

https://artistsdownunder.com.au/artist-3/kye-thompson/

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C O U N T RY L A N E

https://www.theartinspires.com/

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L I B R A RY A B S T R AC T

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O N E S T E P AT A T I M E

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GERARD WHELAN

KRUGER SUNSET

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FOREST & BIRD Online Store

Bird Art by Judi Lapsley Miller

From Whence Cometh Evil At What Cost Forever

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9696
 Helping Women with Art
Endometriosis by Margaret Kalms
50% of profit donated to endometriosis research

26 women with endometriosis have told

When I first heard about endometriosis I felt a Share ‘EndoWomanArt’ with your
me about their experiences. They spoke to
deep compassion and need to do what I could friends on social media to raise
me about their concerns and collaborated
to help. Women with endometriosis suffer awareness and money for women’s
during the photo session. We explored
debilitating pain, disruptive symptoms and often health!
meanings of body, ideas of self and impacts
endure multiple operations simply to function
of illness together, agreeing which ideas
normally. Few people are patient when listening We all need clothes & household
we would explore photographically. My
to descriptions of pain, symptoms or illness. This goods. Buy yourself a treat or buy
photos are often carefully arranged, but that
can have the effect of silencing people who are a special gift for your friends. Make
doesn’t mean they are fake. They represent
ill. your shopping count!
the personal truth and experiences of 26
Remember 50% of profit goes to
women with endometriosis. These women
My compassion inspires my photoart which I endometriosis research!
are remembering and acting out their
show in presentations to raise awareness. I https://www.redbubble.com/
OWN experiences. They choose their own
joined Awake to teach me advanced Photoshop people/EndoWomanArt/shop
stance and facial expression. Women with
skills, specifically to expand my photoartistic
endometriosis are the only people who truly
skills to create imaginative and dramatic images.
know what endometriosis FEELS like. Follow ‘Life with Endometriosis’:
My photoart opens dialogue enabling freer https://www.facebook.com/
Unfortunately endometriosis is relatively LifeWithEndometriosis
expression of hidden feelings, experiences too
common; an estimated 1 in 10 women living
private to mention in ordinary conversation.
with endometriosis, being over 175,000,000 See Margaret Kalms photoart, ‘Life
I create photoart inspired by the concerns of
women worldwide! And an estimated 500,000 with Endometriosis’:
women with endometriosis. Several women have
women in Australia! Their experiences
said that the process of imaging their suffering http://www.endowomanart.com
are heart-breaking. Regular illness and
has helped them to face their pain and illness.
debilitating pain result in missed education
There is immense strength in being heard. I want
and poor career opportunities leaving them
my photoart to become visual screams!! Margaret
women vulnerable to poverty.
Kalms
Women with endometriosis need real
medical progress to reduce their suffering.
I passionately desire to raise money for
endometriosis research so that faster
diagnoses are made and more effective
treatments are found. To raise money for
endometriosis research, I host events
and sell products on Redbubble.
Recently I gave $3,000 to Canberra
Endometriosis Centre!

Bunch Of Butterflies On Grevillea Sweatshirt Butterflies False Colour Grey Stripes

Bunch Of Butterflies On Grevillea Pencil Case

97
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http://tinyurl.com/artisitsdownunderpublic