:a slight return:

Peeking back in here for a brief update, as sometimes I can't resist some sort of year in review, or in this case, the later half of 2017, as I went on a blog hiatus mid-year. Why, if you've forgotten? To try to concentrate on the website redesign. Has it happened? Um, no but I'm closer than I was before. 

Taking stock of what I've done aside from that, it appears to me that I've been not as productive as I'd like to be, but never for longer than a week or two at the most. I still always have some sort of camera with me at all times. Instagram still gets a fair amount of those images, but I plan to return to more "real" cameras in the new year. I am hopeful to get a new smartphone as well, based on the camera that it has, of course.

Speaking of real cameras, I realized that my frustration with Polaroid film had to do with the model camera that I was using. Changing to another one produced somewhat better results. As another photographer pointed out to me, how much can you expect from a plastic lens?

I didn't do any more model shoots, alas. Sad to say I was somewhat affected by the lack of use of my  photos by the models, but I need to get over that. It's just one of the curses of social media when you can see the images that they do use instead, despite them saying that they liked mine. I want to get back to more surreal imagery in the new year. The indoor shoots were good practice and I certainly want to do more of those as well, but I need what I do to stand out more.

I still do more photography than illustration, but I did exercise the drawing muscles a few times. I made this to recognize the 30th(!) anniversary of the movie "The Lost Boys." Also saw it shown again in a movie theater, at the Boston Museum of Fine Arts, of all places. I drew the lines in ink and colored it on the computer. I'm pleased with it but again I don't like how long it takes me to create just one illustration now.

Opposite of that was participating in Inktober, an ink drawing every day in October. Some hits and misses, of course. I chose not to sketch out beforehand, just straight ink, and I think my mistake ratio was quite low. You can see all of them on the sponge Instagram page. It was good practice, and I really should be sketching every day anyway.

Made more attempts to sell this artwork to people...twice I participated in the now-weekly markets at Mill No. 5 in Lowell, MA. I made enough to pay off the table fees, basically, but I still find that most people are more window-shoppers than art buyers. I tend to feel that way about gallery shows now too. I see that more as a way to get it out to more eyeballs at this point.

I also finally added a lot of artwork for sale to my Etsy page, timing it for "Cyber Monday" in November. But aside from a few initial sales, it's gone cold again. Etsy is not what it used to be. It seems to be anything goes, and not necessarily arts or crafts. Glue a gear onto something and it's somehow instantly Steampunk. I've joined an online community to hopefully get better insight into the selling part of this.

I can't promise that this is a return to the weekly blogging, but once that damn website is finished, I intend to!