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Another Floating Lady

Another floating illusion...pre-Photoshop. This is what you would see if you were sitting next to the lens.

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Cory Smith 1 year ago

I just had a look through your photos here. Magnificent work I must say, very creative and technically perfect. Keep up the great work!

I love doing these floating pictures as well :)

King Douglas Thanks, Cory...I'm honored by the praise of a professional such as yourself. Where can I see one of your "floating pictures"?

Cory Smith Anytime man. Drawing inspiration from your port already.

I've only recently started taking them so just a few fun ones. I have it planned for my next model shoot though.

Pierre Pageau 1 year ago

félicitations .

King Douglas Thanks, Pierre.

Henrik Just 2 years ago

Amazing job, Kirk !
I`m very, very impressed with the fact that you did this the "natural way" !
Compliments !

Regards

Henrik

King Douglas Thanks very much, Henrik. There were not so many options over 25 years ago when I created this image. However, magicians have used such illusions forever. This is just a magic trick, where I played the role of magician, caught on film.

Ian Munro 2 years ago

Awesome.

King Douglas A very belated thank you, Ian.

Catalin Parau 3 years ago

This is my last comment on your images for tonight but I'm bound to come back for many more.

Thank you for sharing and for the wonderful journey!

Best wishes,

Catalin

King Douglas Thanks so much, Catalin. Your comment is one year old...I wonder how I overlooked it.

Igor Sljivancanin 3 years ago

cool

King Douglas A very belated thank you, Igor.

Kaveh H. Steppenwolf 3 years ago

Wished it was mine. Oh man...

King Douglas Coming from you, that's a very high compliment. Thank you! You know this is a straight photo...pre-Photoshop.

I find your work to be compelling. I've been wanting to review and comment on some of your images. Your appreciation of this image tells me that you might be open to a bit of dialog about your work. Yes?

Kaveh H. Steppenwolf And thank you for YOUR compliment :)

Well, I always want to make such pictures -levitating, folating etc- , but I never have the right place and the right model and enough skill. Neither photografic nor photoshopic :) and I have no clue how you made this as a straight photo. I adore the king's work very much...

I am always open for dialogs as far as they are good ;-)

Boris UNTEREINER 4 years ago

Beautiful work ;)

King Douglas Thank you, Bors. I think your work is beautiful, and you have a great sense of humor.
K.

Jure Kravanja 4 years ago

amazing

King Douglas Thanks, Jure.
King

Mae Lim Harrison 4 years ago

Although the photo may be an "illusion"...the excellent quality of your photograph has a haunting and beautiful reality! I love this one! Well done!!

King Douglas Mae Lim,
Thank you for the high praise! Your Disney Hall photo is magnificent.

K.

flo 4 years ago

magical and poetic dream.. I admire it a lot..

King Douglas Thank you, flo.
K.

Lars Raun 4 years ago

Amazing work. I've seen others with the same theme, but they were all photoshopped. I have no idea how you did it :-)

King Douglas Lars, I have a theater background and have always enjoyed watching magicians. My only talent with "magic" is to create a photo that might have been a magician's trick. I was doing that before Photoshop, but these days a photo like this is automatically assumed to be done in the computer, rather than in the camera, so it is less impressive.

Of course, you can read and see exactly how I did it on my web site at the bottom of this page:

http://www.kingdouglas.com/Journal05.htm

Thank you very much.
K.

Angela Vicedomini 4 years ago

Great work.... I am just admiring..

King Douglas Thank you, Angela.
K.

Laurence Garçon 4 years ago

I read your photo journal regarding this series.
It shows at which point it is important to think and prepare its photography before accomplishing it...

King Douglas Thank you, Laurence. I admire your work. You live in Paris? One of my favorite cities.

Andrew Stewart 4 years ago

King, I'm just going to sit back and enjoy the ride with the photos you are presenting. Thoroughly stunning.

King Douglas Andrew,
I'm delighted with my new scanner. Now I can play in my archival sandbox and "develop" images I've never seen enlarged. At the same time, I'm being inspired to create new images in emulation of the great artists on display here. The possibilities are, as they say, limitless.

Thank you!

K.

Jeremy Russell 4 years ago

Glad to see this one here King, it's such a fabulous and magical image and a good example to all those youngsters, that pre Photoshop, such things where possible.

Bravo !

King Douglas Jeremy,
What a great community this is. To be in such good company is inspirational.
I find it amusing when people are impressed when something such as this is *not* created in Photoshop. Back then, it was just what separated the men from the boys (to use a figure of speech--sorry ladies).

Thanks very much.

K.

Nicole Goggins 4 years ago

OMG - this is beyond awesome! I've just read how you did it and am in complete awe! pure brilliance! so much thought and time has gone into this image and all worth it - it feels so peaceful and relaxing...

King Douglas Hi, Nicole, glad you like this, and thanks!
K.

Liviu Burlea 4 years ago

Interesting! I like it a lot!

BR, Liviu

King Douglas Thank you, Liviu.

Elisabeth Gustafson 4 years ago

Amazin work.. Kind of freaky, but after watching it for a while it's kind of peaceful and friendly.. Like a vivid dream..
/
Elisabeth

King Douglas Thank you, Elisabeth.

Michael Jakesz 4 years ago

I believe I used the "magician" analogy in one of your other shots as well!
But I feel like sitting in a theatre and watch an illusionist on stage.
Fantastic shot! And thanks very much for showing us again how you did it!
all the best
Michael

King Douglas Michael,

In the 70's and 80's, when I was working as a studio photographer, transparency retouching was very expensive and a bit frowned upon. By being able to fulfill an art director's fantasies by creating something in camera (or in darkroom) that didn't have to be retouched, I had them lining up at the door.

Thanks again,

K.

Andrew Parker 4 years ago

It good to see all the oldies getting an airing....and the photos too...

King Douglas Hello, Andrew. Thanks for the comment and the gentle poke in the ribs. I always liked you, you know.

Thomas Ljungberg 4 years ago

Great reading the background story on this image. Lot of work, and you did it "just for fun". Wish I had those resources and the time...
Looking forward to see more of your old and new work!
/Thomas

King Douglas Thomas,

You've hit the nail on the head...the resources and the time. Now that I have a day job, I can only look back wistfully on the good old days.

Thanks,

King

Thomas Ljungberg This is a good example in the debate on of "Real or fake". You know, does it matter if a picture is real or edited/created in photoshop. Same picture/image but created with different techniques. Creating/editing in photoshop takes very much skills, but in some way I am more impressed by people that can create this kind of images "in the camera".
/Thomas

http://www.onexposure.net/forum.php?action=viewtopic&tid=82&real-or-fake-does-it-matter

King Douglas Thomas,
I think one reason I'm so interested in mastering Photoshop and so open to layered images composed in Photoshop is that I like this kind of stuff. Before Photoshop, this type of thing was very difficult and challenging. One didn't dabble at this because of the expense (this was shot on 8x10 transparency film in addition to medium format) and the time it takes to solve all the problems before clicking the shutter.

Now, looking at the work of Angela Bacon-Kidwell and Daria (among others), I'm inspired to go back to this type of thing, but using Photoshop and sitting at my desk rather than lugging around cinder blocks, working with lumber, getting splinters, and manipulating costly lighting equipment.

So, bottom line, does the image move me in some way? Yes? Then I don't care if it is "real" or "fake." If I like it, it is real to me.

Thanks for thinking about this and expressing your thoughts here.

Thomas Ljungberg I totally agree with you. The image itself does not become better just because it is done "the old fashion way". But I do get impressed when people put so much effort into a picture, following an idea through and going through so much trouble to make it happen. And Angela's and Daria's work are increadible as well. I am in awe in how they master the digital media. I guess it's just another form of "hardship" to get to the image...
/Thomas

lucian olteanu 4 years ago

what to say.......I am laughing all by myself...good job!lucian

King Douglas It is good to laugh.

Thanks!

K.

Angela Bacon-Kidwell 4 years ago

Beautiful, okay so she was lying on a board suspending from the ceiling with clear wire- something like that. lol. Just awesome and I so connect to this image. My most favorite of yours - so far. :)

King Douglas Angela,
As I said to Daria below, I thought you might like this, and posted this especially for you to see.

There is a series of working Polaroids and a description of how this was created on my web site at

http://www.kingdouglas.com/Journal05.htm

Thanks very much,

K.

Angela Bacon-Kidwell I just checked it out and oh my that it wonderful. I can't wait to explore your site futher. Thanks for sharing.

Judy W 4 years ago

Imaginative and so artful. GREAT editing. Loved it in screening. ;~)

King Douglas Thanks, Judy,

There is a series of working Polaroids and a description of how this was created on my web site at

http://www.kingdouglas.com/Journal05.htm

Daria Endresen 4 years ago

Oh my.. this is truly fantastic!
I'd give everything to know how you managed to do it in pre-photoshop era ;)
I've seen a lot of images with the same idea and all of them of course edited in PS.. yours by far is definitely the best.

King Douglas Thanks, Daria, I thought you might like this.

There is a series of working Polaroids and a description of how this was created on my web site at

http://www.kingdouglas.com/Journal05.htm

Daria Endresen You're so amazingly creative!
Roaming around your site is a real pleasure :)
Thanks for sharing.

Jacek Stefan 4 years ago

What a levitation!
J.

King Douglas Thank you, Jacek.

K.

Fulvio Pellegrini 4 years ago

incredible...a MASTERPIECE
F.

King Douglas Thanks, Fulvio. I shot this as an exercise, just for fun. Later, I was paid a large sum of money to create more "magic" because this image was in my portfolio.

Koen Pieters 4 years ago

very beautiful work.

King Douglas Thanks, Koen,

K.

Ralf Stelander 4 years ago

I remember this from your homepage when I checked it out when I first heard from you in the forum, it's one of the coolest photos I've seen! I don't know how you did it either!

King Douglas Ralf,

Thanks very much.

What I'm trying to do (and getting some flack for from some of my friends who've seen this image before) is to establish in the OE community where I am coming from and the kind of work I like (because it's what I do), early in the process.

I'm totally inspired by what I am seeing here, and any new work that I create is bound to be influenced by the work of other OE photographers. This image, of course, was not influenced by OE, because it pre-dates OE by some years.

There is a series of working Polaroids and a description of how this was created on my web site at

http://www.kingdouglas.com/Journal05.htm

All the best,

K.

Ralf Stelander I think that's a great idea, I very much enjoy all of your work old and new! I'm excited to finally see some of it here and I hope you will continue and upload your entire collection! ;)

Thomas Ljungberg 4 years ago

What an image. I can almost see her dreams flying by... So soft expression in here eyes. Love the way the blowing curtains and clouds add to the feeling and mood. It would not be the same without them!
/Thomas

King Douglas Thank you, Thomas.

In screening, someone suggested that this might be better if her arm was hanging down. Well, there are two things that this person appears not to know: 1) that suggestion would ruin the line of the image and draw the gaze downward, instead of upward, where it should go. The little model is a ballet dancer, who was adept at holding her arm just so, as if it were resting gently on the coverlet; and
2) This is an invisible King-Sized bed, and the model is lying in the middle.

K.

Emily Bem 4 years ago

I'm speechless....LITERALLY.

King Douglas Then I have to be pleased, don't you think?

Thanks!

Kking

Ralf Stelander, Ben Goossens, Kaveh Hosseini (Steppenwolf) and 38 more people added this to favorites

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