Post 790: Art thou Dougy…?

Take a bad photo and turn it into something else.

One of my favorite photos of Louie my late ginger cat started out as a very bad photo taken with a camera with a nearly dead battery that failed to flash. A New Zealand friend added the super hero cape, and there we go! You’ve seen it before, but here it is again: New Louies Cape_Complete

Today, when taking a photo of Dougy, the flash reflected off the hard surface of a binder in the foregound, wiping out pretty much everything. Here’s that photo:

Yet, there was something about the photo I liked. With a little imagination, tons of Photoshop, and the crop tool, this image came about: kitty art
I kind of like it. It’s Dougy art!

Post 708: Dougy poses nicely…

Dougy’s had little blog exposure, so today you get a Dougy extravaganza, a photo shoot taken to show you Andy didn’t tear all his fur off!

To help him feel better about having his photo taken — no one in my family likes to be photographed, even the critters… — I let him select the setting.

Yes, you can bet Dougy wanted to be on his ottoman for the photo shoot!!

“Say ‘kitty litter and mouse cheese!'”
Dougy smiles for the camera.

He seems…agitated! Why?

“Settle down, Dougy! We’ll be finished pretty soon.”

Oops! I’m losing my photo subject!

Oh! I foget about that dang camera strap! Once I hold it back, Dougy settles down a bit. Very little! "Stop moving your head, Douglas!"

Oh! I forget about that dang camera strap! Once I hold it back, Dougy settles down a little. Very little!
“Stop moving your head, Douglas!”

“That’s right! Hold that cheesy pose a second longer…! Good kitty!”

Yep, that’s Dougy in the yellow oval in the door way.
He’s had enough for one day!

=(^+^)=

Post 509: “You don’t have my permission…!”

Whew! Dougy does not like his photo taken! That makes him a true member of my family. I did, however sneak one of him at the back door, resting on the little red chair, a favorite of both boys.

“What!? I didn’t say you could do that!”

I pushed his button, but don’t think Dougy doesn’t know how to push one or two of mine back…!

“Nyah! Nyah!”

You wee fart! You know you aren’t supposed to use the furniture as a scratching post! I’m scandalized, Dougy, scandalized!

>CLICK!<

I got another shot of you, Dougy! And I’m bigger than you, too!

🙂 > < 🙁

On a more positive note, Andy and I had an uneventful time this morning. Continuing the no-scruffing rule, I had no problem picking Andy up and medicating him in short order. A few minutes later, when I was making my breakfast, we exchanged blinky-eyes with each other till our eyelids hurt.

Oh, yeah, and I rubbed his ears, scratched his chin, stroked his head and ran his fine tail through my hand, saying those words he likes to hear, “What a purrrdy tail, Andy! Purrrrdy! You’re the kitty with the purrrdy tail!” And he is.

Post 357: two views

Anyone with a black pet of any species knows how hard it is to get a decent photo of their baby. Andy and Dougy are no different, and the challenge of capturing the subtleties of their coats as well as a recognizable image is daunting.

Yesterday afternoon, when I took the photos in post 356, I wasn’t totally satisfied with Andy’s photo. Sure, it captures his quiet side, but I wasn’t satisfied with the color of his coat: Too dark!

So, I went back to work. Here’s a first effort, which apparently was in a darker spot because the flash triggered:

Umm. OK enough, if not an improvement over the one of Andy in yesterday’s Post 356.

I’d like to blame the point-and-shoot camera for any technical issues or lack of art, but knowing one’s tool, a simple pinhole camera can make fantastic, beautiful photos. The more technology one has behind a photo, the less one has to think about what one’s doing. Even so, that $3000 Nikon just takes snapshots if one doesn’t know the tool and trusts all the decisions to the camera.

My little Nikon Coolpix S100 is adequate technology for my amateur use, yet it, too, can create interesting and beautiful photos! Then again, many times the “best” shot with a point-and-shoot camera is more accidental than planned, and the effect achieved – if only one could duplicate it – transcends the simple technology used to make it. It approaches art!