Playing With Prints

For this project I wanted to take my photography a little bit further. I know how to add layers, textures, do double exposure and all the fun things in Photoshop - but I decided I wanted to be able to add to my images in a different way.  I decided to print the images out and then play around with the prints themselves as a way to "physically" edit the photo, then retake a picture of the manipulated print to create a whole new image.  It was a challenge on many levels.  I am not someone who usually thinks all the way through a self portrait.  I usually just go take pictures, and then see what fits with what my mood was or what I find appealing.  The process of printing and playing requires extra thought because I have to know how I want to change the print before I actually have it printed - there's no "undo" button in real life, especially once you poke a hole in your print.  I am currently living in Kosovo without a home printer - which means I have to go to the local print shop and spend quite a bit of money to have a print done or order one from the United States and wait for up to four weeks to get it in person.  There is not much room for error.  (The local print shop does not print the colors the way that I like - and they always change my saturation, so that also comes into play - but there isn't much I can do about that.) 
Each image that I have put together has been thought out and truly intentional, which has been challenging but fun to create.  Even with the extra planning, I do not always know what the outcome will be - as sometimes things work out better in our heads than in actual fact.  But so far it has been good to be able to play around and create in a more 3-D environment, and I am happy to see my visions take shape.  It is allowing me to be creative in my own way and in a new way, and it has been lovely.

"Turning Away - Letting Go - Searching - Reaching"
A mirror added after printing - I then positioned myself so that you could see my eyes and hand (but not the camera) in the reflection of the mirrors, shifted focus, and took the final shot. - background light gifted by Clare Gadsby

"You and Me and Coffee" - coffee textures added after printing, then shot with intentional blur.

"Wishful Thinking" - Embroidered flowers onto the print

"Stuck" - A frozen image.

"A Late Fall Forest" - Findings from the field

"Bubbles for us all" - Balloons added