Shane's broken glass

[Mike Buckley]

Shane kindly sent me a broken vase all the way from Hawaii to my home in Virginia. I actually struggled with coming up with anything that I liked. That was until today, when my creative juices simply started working with her glass when they had not in the past. The two compositions shown below are very different from any that I have made, so I especially thank Shane for helping make that possible.

I will continue to work with her glass from time to time, but for now I've got just these two images that I consider keepers.

[Brownbear]

Stunning and creative as always....

Chairs with people in them (I like how the middle guy is leaning towards the other) , and one of these persons admiring their reflection in the mirror... incredible!

I do have a glass that I should break just to send to you but I just can't bring myself to do it, yet... One day I will surprise you.

[mknittle]

WOW those are good. One of the Bonsai masters the does classes and demo for our bonsai club says
"Sometimes it takes it awhile to speak to you"

[IzzieK]

Superb as always coming from Mike. The first one reminds me of the top of a baby piano....

[ShaneS]

I see that the vase made it to you in the appropriate number of pieces Mike So sorry for the creative challenge but I do love the quote from Mark's bonsai master and am going to use it in the future myself!

The concept that you came up with in the second image has quite a few possibilities and I can imagine all sorts of items on the other side of the 'looking glass'...

I am really amazed at what you came up with given the poor 'drug store' quality of the vase that I broke. For those who are interested, the vase was the container for a centerpiece that I was given to take home from a wedding and while nice it certainly wasn't from Tiffany! I am truly surprised at the clarity that you achieved in these shots and hope that you didn't have to spend hours with the heal/clone tool to remove all the imperfections in the glass.

You are hereby released from making any additional photos on the pieces, that is, unless they speak to you again

[Mike Buckley]

Thank you, everyone! I too especially like the quote from Mark's bonsai master.

I do have to mention that I am the world's worst at seeing likenesses in the stars and clouds. Now that you understand that, you won't be surprised that I have no idea in the first photo how Christina is seeing chairs with people and that Isabel is seeing a baby piano.

As for Shane's comment about drug store quality glass, she was surprised to learn just last week that I can document very few pieces of crystal in the glass that I have photographed. So, it really doesn't matter that the glass that she sent to me isn't the highest quality of crystal. Even when there are imperfections in the glass subjects that I photograph, the dust in my makeshift studio is far more of a problem; it's constantly settling on the subjects and the tabletop and has to be dealt with during post-processing. It's a fact of life that I've come to accept.

Shane: For this first time at it, I wanted to use your glass and only your glass out of appreciation for you taking the trouble to send it. I do like your idea of using the concept in the second photo to include other glass objects placed behind your "looking glass" and will definitely keep that in mind.

[Brownbear]

The larger upright pieces of glass are the backs of the chairs, the reflections form the base of the chairs. The people are the smaller upright pieces of glass ( a child's drawing of people (without legs and feet, and faces))

Anyway another chance to let you know that I think these are wonderful!

[flashback]

Mike,
Once again you've kicked glass with your images!
I do see chairs. And I see a little pigeon-toed 'flame' character in the second image.

[Mike Buckley]

kicked glass

I love that, Jack! Perhaps that should be the title of the section of broken glass at my web site.

[flashback]

kicked glass ™

[Kaye Leggett]

Mike - superb as ever. I admire your talent and humility in its exhibition