Feature-Fest Vol. 67: Unconventional with 3wyl

Feb 2, 201715 min read

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Published: Feb 2, 2017

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Another day, another feature. Today we're going with something not very daily, though. Unconventional photography and lots, and I mean lots of commenting! What this is all about? Keep reading!

Hey 3wyl, so nice of you to join me for this! Can you tell us a little about yourself?

I am an "unconventional" photographer who immigrated to the United States (from the United Kingdom) to be with my husbando. Although I have been on DeviantArt for a long time, and done many, many things in between, I am mostly on DeviantArt for my group, ProjectComment.

What is ProjectComment?

ProjectComment is a group I founded in 2009. More than 7 years later, we are still going strong (which is both a good and bad thing). Simply put, our group encourages people to give and get constructive comments. To do this, we have projects, managed by our awesome Project Managers, for our members to take part in whenever they have the time to give a constructive comment. Our group wouldn't still be here without this reciprocity of giving and getting, so I am very thankful to all of our members and admins for keeping the group alive. Heart

Our longest running project is Comment Tag, where a person receives a comment and a tag of a theme. They then go to the next person's gallery in search of a piece that fits the theme. Once found, they give a comment and tag that person with a new theme. The process repeats itself with new people and new themes until everyone has given and received a comment.

Other projects we have include feedback about our galleries, receiving many constructive comments on one piece, quick comments for burning questions, and a lot more, ranging from comment support and supporting commenters, to features and editorials, or overall projects and events that encourage people to give and get comments.

We're not called "ProjectComment" for no reason. I am a dummy!

Your photography style differs a lot from "normal", could you tell us about it, and how you got to doing this?

DeviantArt motivated me to go for "unconventional" photography, and not 100% in a good way. I started out as a "normal" photographer with your typical lenses (e.g. 50mm f/1.8) and your typical body, but I quickly realized that the photographs I captured weren't really any different compared to everyone else here. In a way, DeviantArt is the ultimate fighting pit for artists trying to be seen, trying to get their art recognized, because this community is filled with artists doing the exact same thing.

The breaking point for me was when I captured something new with a new lens. A month or so later, another artist posted a very similar piece that rocketed to the Popular section, while mine barely saw the light of day. It was then that I realized I couldn't continue. Capturing photographs the way millions of other people do lost its spark for me. I couldn't capture "art" that way when others could do the exact same thing - to me, that wasn't art any more, but a mimicry or a shadow.

My photography is not on the Popular section by any means, but that was not the point. I sold the new lens I had bought, bought an even wider version of that lens, bought the Lensbaby and invested in a new camera body, which was then converted to an infrared one.

These are just tools, but they reflect my way of approaching art now. Everything I did I did to open doors into lands that I hadn't discovered. Sure, plenty of people shoot in infrared and shoot with the Lensbaby, and I am one of them, but we've all discovered something new, something that we could experiment with, push the boundaries further and really go "unconventional" with it all.

Do you have some tips/advice for people learning photography?

I never took classes for my photography. I have gotten to the point I am now through practice, but, more importantly, experimentation. If I had one tip or advice for people learning photography, it's to not limit yourself. Don't just shoot what you see and call it a day. Photography is more than that. Anyone can capture a flower, a city, a sunset. The point is how you can show a flower, a city, a sunset that allows you to influence others to pause and stop and go, "huh" (unless you don't want people to pause and stop).

Do you have some tips/advice for people wanting to give/receive more comments?

Well, if you want to give more comments, there is no shortage on how you can do so. If you want to give more comments with confidence that the other will accept your comments, then only give comments in groups that encourage it, or on art where the artists state they're open to critique, etc. It's not full-proof (there are artists that say they're open to critique, but really they're not), but one can be more confident doing that than randomly giving a critique on a random artist's piece.

As for receiving more comments, I am a firm believer in getting what you give. A lot of the time, a person does not receive many comments because they don't give many comments, or they don't give comments to the right people or in the right places. However, most of the time, receiving comments takes a lot of work. A lucky few will get comments freely, but, for the rest of us, it means spending a lot of time, effort and more getting seen, putting ourselves out there, giving comments and more. That's why I believe in ProjectComment and other activities that encourage reciprocity. At least there, what you give is what you will get, minimum, rather than giving 10 comments and only receiving 1 in return.

Don't forget to check out 3wyl's gallery if you enjoyed these pieces of her!

3wyl: A 'classic infrared' piece with blue sky and white trees, this one also has variations of yellow and a beautiful reflection to complement the scenery.

3wyl: This panorama landscape features colours and tones that are different to the 'classic infrared', but nonetheless still magnificent. It testifies the variance achieved in infrared.

Yuukon: The unnatural colours in this photograph make it a real eye-catcher, I love the stark contrast between the blue and the pink.

3wyl: A photograph can be made more intense through black and white infrared. Here, there is almost a minimalist feel to the photograph as a result of infrared.

3wyl: A great feature of infrared is the variety of options you have in colour, tone, etc. which is conveyed effectively through this piece, where the atmosphere and mood set the tranquility of this scene.

Yuukon: Everything, all at once, in one shot.

3wyl: One of the greatest aspects of a lensbaby is used to powerful effect here as a person stands silhouetted against a landscape made surreal.

3wyl: A unique capture of fireworks from using the star aperture on the lensbaby to depict a shower of stars.

Yuukon: A very strong portrait created by a double exposure, it makes me feel "lightheaded".

3wyl: I gave a Daily Deviation to this piece with the following description that still holds true, The complementary colours work brilliantly together in Autumn by StefanyKK, who uses a lensbaby with great skill in ensuring that only one leaf is focused against the masses of other leaves.

3wyl: Also featured as a Daily Deviation, Basilica La Sagrada Familia Interior presents us with a new and unique perspective through how the straight columns curve and reach up to a central point. cupplesey creates a fantastically original photograph by choosing a place that works wonderfully with a fisheye lens.

Yuukon: Black and white and full of great movement, this is a photograph I can look at for hours.

3wyl: Fisheye works really well with straight lines, as shown here in how it has curved the building in the perspective of a 'fisheye'. The fact that this is a street shot only heightens the wonder!

3wyl: The width is suddenly intense as one uses a fisheye lens. Coupled with the classic curvature, one can really convey a sense of dynamism with natural landscapes.

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Comments5

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Greyguardian

Feb 4, 2017

thank you for including me : )

Feature-Fest Vol. 67: Unconventional with 3wyl

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