photography – Deanne Dements Photography

Looking back series Framing Challenge.

Looking back at my work this last few days and realizing how much the 52 week challenge allowed me to grow…. Actually forced me to grow. I learned how to process the photos and actually use my processing program to make them shine. I learned how to run with an idea that maybe one of the other photographers suggested. I learned how to be a bit more patient
I admit this subject originally didn’t inspire me in 2022, and I had a hard time getting into framing.

So I went for the easy classic find a subject and frame it with some trees. I took the photos and moved on to something else. I didn’t do anything special with them I just posted them. I didn’t organize them in files other than the date I photographed them on. I hadn’t made friends in the group yet and at this point there were about 20 active photographers out of 100 who signed up. So the little sideline comments that spark creativity were not happening…. “There was Great Photo… Do you live near there?” It took a while for things to click with everybody. Trying to go back to that years challenge is hard I actually had to figure approximately what date /week the framing challenge was on and pick a couple photos that I thought I might have posted. They were terrible. I wasn’t using my processing program to clean them up with a nice sharper image. I didn’t remove or crop anything. for this post I did run them through the processing program. but first I had to copy them from the External Hard drive to the laptop, then into the processing program, then file them, download them onto a thumb drive and then put them into the file I have on the new computer. Remember that patience I mentioned? I used quite a bit of it this morning trying to find these photos.
And so we move on to the second year of the challenge 2023

By 2023 several of the photographers had clicked and we were inspiring each other. by this time I had set up a small table studio on my back deck and would go out into the cold set something up then pop back into the warm house to see what I had, and posted what I liked the best. The next day I came up with another idea and spent the morning photographing it, and posting my favorite from that shoot.

by day 3 of the week I was thinking of all the different ways I could photograph framing

and because I was now friends with the 15 or 20 photographers left in the challenge I could interject my sense of humor, wanting to know who put a rubber ducky in my cup of coffee… there were lots of side challenges going on and we crashed the site a few time.
The challenge was revived again for 2024 and the same photographers joined again.

This time because I had already done the challenge for two years. I was able to anticipate the challenge, I had been out thrift shopping and looking for things I could photograph for this challenge. the frame and the fake flowers were additions to my photo prop selection.

These swans were also a thrift store purchase that I thought I could use in symmetry challenge but liked so much I used them for framing.
By day three of that week I noticed the mountains framed by the clouds and fog and submitted that as well to the challenge.

Moving on to 2025, I was challenging myself to find a way to make a creative statement by using the processing and editing programs, include my sense of humor and some of the past ideas thrown out by the 5 or so members of the group that had a similar sense of humor.

At one point we had a frog theme going on during one of the challenge years, I had picked up this frog and this frame in my thrifting and wanted to make something with them.

The trolls were now being featured in my challenge shots as well as the dinosaurs.

although this shot didn’t make it into the final collage.
The question in my mind was how to make these three shots work in one shot that featured framing?

A simple shot of the frame on a white fleece background.
resize the photos of the frogs trolls and dino’s and paste then into the frame shot.

Then post those three shots onto the white fleece background

And crop.
So what started out as a challenge that I wasn’t interested in, in 2022 became one of my most favorite challenges.

Looking Back at my work series

In 2020 I bought a used reconditioned laptop. It had 1Terabyte of storage on it… Knowing that I take a lot of photos I knew I would need that storage… I had already bought, and used an external hard drive a couple years prior because my laptop before this one died. It was to protect my work should this reconditioned laptop die… Now in 2026 the laptop is in need of major repairs. I have managed to limp along with it for quite a while even though I had bought a new computer tower the summer before last. I was not happy with the windows 11 program and had it changed back to windows 10 then never activated it till now. I am finding all sorts of issues. My newer Computer tower will not communicate with the laptop, nor will my external hard drive, or my printers. Each thing is taking a lot of work to either make work or needs to be replaced just to get the drivers I need.
In 2022 I had joined a 52 week challenge, never imagining just how much it would inspire me and how many photographs I would go through in one year. I quickly filled up the laptop with photographs and had to download them onto the external hard drive. The first year I was not organized by the second year I knew all 52 challenges and was able to put each week into a file, by the third year and every year after I have preset up the challenge files. I admit last year the challenge did not hold my attention and I drifted away. So I now have about 3 Terabytes of photos just from this challenge over the years Most of them are on the external hard drive and I have not delt with them. Yet. What I have been doing is going through the photos that are still on the laptop and downloading them( again) onto Jump drives. 3 of them that hold 32 gigs each. Then taking each drive and uploading them onto the computer tower, and filling them up again. It is taking a long time to download them I am on my second round of filling up the 2 jump drives. So while I am working on getting photos transferred from the laptop I am looking at 2025’s photo work and the file for 2024 challenge work, thinking I need to do posts of some of my favorite challenges.

So this post is simply some of my favorite collages I made for the various challenges, that were still on my laptop, and easily available for this blog series idea.

My Original Plan for this Blog…

The purpose of this blog is to share my work. It is a many pronged process where I plan on sharing my hiking adventures, my photography visions while out and about, my creations in my little photo studio, and the notecards I had made several years back when I was planning on retiring from retail. It is a way to keep my photography going and to keep me going. And hopefully a way to sell my notecards, on eBay.

It starts with the camera a simple tool used to record things around me in this world. I started with a simple to use manual camera, as my experience grew, I went up to the much larger and clunky 6×7 camera to supplement the much smaller 35mm SLR camera. Then I quit for 20 + years. I got too busy.
My photo journey started again when I got a simple digital SLR 35mm camera, and on my days off from work going hiking with my German Shephard.

That simple digital camera only survived 2 hikes. It was too simple, I couldn’t use my many, much loved vintage lenses, and I accidently spilled some Gatorade on it, short circuiting the electronics. But I was hooked on photography again. I bought another used digital camera that was more advanced. I photographed anything and everything to share on Facebook. A power outage was an opportunity to get out and take photos of my dilemma

After a couple years I decided to step up my game and I had some notecards of my favorite shots made. I knew that I would be retiring from retail soon and wanted to have an avenue to support myself.

I had a website created and hoped to blog and sell my photo notecards maybe even my photographs. I left my retail job a couple of years earlier than I had planned. It opened me up to explore and enjoy. Everything was paid for, and I didn’t owe anybody for my work. It was freeing…. but my cards were not selling on eBay, or Etsy, or even on my website. I heard from many people Why should I buy notecards when I can use e-mail or Facebook? My website got hacked and I was constantly removing scams, I had pulled my notecards from eBay and Etsy. Tried relisting them again and nothing was selling. I became frustrated and angry, and the blog was reflecting that. Then Covid hit. I let the blog go because I didn’t feel it was doing what I needed.
I was following a photographer whose books I had read, and in one of his articles he mentioned another photographer that was a local to Oregon. I soon started following her and at the end of covid she offered to Do a 52 week photo challenge. I jumped on it and did some of my best most creative work over the next 4 years… I also wore out 5 cameras. Pretty easy to do when you are trying to come up with new ideas for the weekly challenge, and there are no limits… taking 100 photos a day was not unusual. I put together a small photo studio on my back deck where it was protected from the weather in the winter. If I had an idea, I grabbed the camera and started putting it together…. It didn’t matter that it was 25 degrees outside or 85 degrees outside…. While working on the challenge I ran across this troll doll with pink hair and he became a major influence on my photographs and the challenges.

Meet Pinx whom I have mentioned in the earlier blogs as my alter ego.

After a while there were 3 Trolls

and a few plastic dinosaurs they called lizards.
And Now

there are 8 of them and a whole bunch of dinosaur lizards

My whimsical side has evolved and maybe, new plans for notecards. But first I need to sell the older note cards, and the two new notecards I had printed this last summer.

So if you are interested in my notecards you can find them on eBay at deannedementphotography

And Thank You for taking the time to read my post.
Deanne

The benefits of supporting friends and creativity…

I have totally enjoyed working with the trolls, they have allowed me to expand my creativeness. They have pushed me to execute some of my ideas that I had been trying to figure out for a couple of years. Many of those ideas came from the 52-week Challenge by Nicole Smith, Nicolsey Photography. I loved trying to come up with new ideas for the challenge, and the supportive conversations I would have with the other members of that group. The ideas were constantly flowing even if I could not totally figure out how to do it. I had quite the photo set up on my back deck but always knew that I wanted to move it back into my garage studio area. The back deck was too limiting even though it was convenient. I made the effort to use the photo studio area in the garage studio area this last year. Adjusting the height of the photo table, putting down flooring that is comfortable to stand on.

Another thing that has helped me with the photography has been the Current Class at the Bend Parks and Recreation. I have always had good balance but that really doesn’t stay unless you work at it constantly. The exercises in the pool are designed to improve and keep that balance and fitness intact. While photographing the gnomes and trolls I found myself constantly needing to step up on the little footstool to get the better shot or hanging snowflakes from the ceiling , stepping over it to adjust the scene, or moving it so I could bend down and pick up one of the Styrofoam snowballs off of the floor. All the while dancing on the floor to… Well Christmas music this time.
The thing is all of these things are easy to do simply because of the friends I have made over the years. From my little coffee group of online sellers, to the bigger group of people in the 52 week photo challenge, to the group of people in the pool who also like to go out to eat and hike. All of you have contributed to my health and enjoyment, in one way or another and I would like to Thank you for that….
So Thank You Friends….

A Hiking trip with friends at Fall River Lapine Oregon

Four Friends with a love of hiking, have decided to get back into the outdoors, It is fall and maybe a little bit drippy or maybe just a bit chilly and cloudy. No matter because it is not too hot and there are no mosquitoes. The photographer never ends up in the photo but that is ok we will find a way to make it happen.

The trolls thought it was a great idea to get out and go hiking, their lizards not so much, in the end the trolls stayed in the nice warm backpack and the lizards stayed at home.

We started at the bridge where a lot of fly fishermen were fishing. the plan was to go down stream for a mile or so then come back. Unfortunately for me, the photographer, I quickly realized that I had not packed the backup batteries, and the camera battery was low, so photos would be limited. My hiking partners Susan, Geri, and Robin, would be my focus with a few shots of the river thrown in and a prayer that the battery lasted.

Yes !!! We did manage to get the photographer in a picture…. Thanks Geri for taking the shot….
While it was gray and we did get a raindrop or two on us it was bright and light so there were a lot of squinty eyes in the photos….

A little waterfall coming over the logs that had fallen into the river provided lots of good hiding places for the fish to hide.

There were a lot of little details and nature that begged to be photographed but I chose to catch them another day. This mushroom put on top of a stump by a critter was just too much to resist. I knew that we were nearly back to the parking lot so I could use up some of the battery without fear of missing the best photo ever….

After about an hour and a half we ended up back at the bridge where we started…
It was another Great Hike Where to Next Gals?

Self-Assignment Challenge: Gather from the yard use the vintage Roseville vase.

I have been working hard on refinishing a vintage cabinet that my grandmother had in her pantry for her summer harvest canning. It has been 2 months of painting, stripping paint, cussing, sanding and repainting, in the cooler mornings, before the day heats up or I had to go to my favorite class in the pool. I will save that story for another time when I can look at the photographs and not cringe with frustration. My vision for that cabinet was to store my growing collection of vases and vintage canning jars, that I like to use in my photographs. Yesterday the vases and jars went into the cabinet and I was free to think about photographing some of the flowers growing in my yard.

I have been reading a couple of books by a floral designer named Ariella Chezar, she suggested walking in nature and collecting for your flower arrangements. I have frequently done that with some of the dried barley heads, poppy seed pods and gnarly sticks from the local juniper trees. But I never thought of using the greenery with the juniper berries. As I went on my morning wandering in the yard, I noticed some plants that had heart shaped seeds. I usually pull those plants because they are weeds but, working on the cabinet meant that somethings got to grow. My win.
So my photo Challenge was to take a Roseville vase I bought last fall in a thrift store combine the juniper clippings, the seed heads, with some of the oriental and tiger lilies that have been blooming. The first photograph was the result of that challenge. I like it. But is that it ??? Well No… I had also collected yarrow, bee balm, daises and I had been photographing for a little over 3 hours with all of the different flowers and various containers. The challenge was saved for last and when I got the shot I envisioned, I then started adding the other flowers to the mix. I really don’t know how Mylo the fluffy cow, got into the photo

He does seem to like flowers though

Behind the photograph scenes Challenge for 3 years

My early spring flowers.
This shot was made last week for the 52 wk challenge Behind the scenes. The theory behind this challenge is to show what actually goes on during a photo shoot. Ideally you might include the photographer in the scene shooting the shot and then include the shot. But lately I have been just showing my inspiration for the shot. So while this was the shot I was going for

This was the shot that was posted on the challenge. It shows the main photograph which was the idea. The small inset photograph on the right, are the dandelions in my front yard flowerbeds the inset on the left is my garage photo studio and several of the containers I thought might look good with the dandelions.
Last year for this challenge I had a much harder time getting inspired. I had my photo area set up on my back deck which is protected in the winter.

My inspiration for the 2024 was simply what can trigger an inspired idea. I decided to photograph what had been set onto the photo table, where I kept my photo props and the lights I had purchased to make lighting the scenes easier. In the center photo you can see my feet propped up on a footstool to show that I was sitting in my favorite chair trying to come up with an idea for that years challenge.
My most favorite year was 2023 I had so many ideas

2023 was much chillier most of my flowering plants were way behind schedule. We were still dealing with COVID limitations, I think it was my most creative year and many of the other photographers in the challenge that year were inspiring me.
This shot I had pulled out my bracelets that I had worn for work before I retired. What better way to show them off than to put them on some of the natural rock features in my lower yard. I even used the rock that the bracelets are sitting on as the background for the collage. The shot with me in it was taken using my tripod and self timer while I held one of my other camera bodies…. Did I mention that I have worn out 3 cameras during the 4+ years of this challenge.

2023 was also the year I had given myself a secondary challenge, for each challenge I did one submission in Black and White and the others in my usual color. This was my B&W submission, again, on my back deck photo studio. The subject was an odd shaped vase some juniper sticks, and the few daffodils that had just started blooming, but my idea was to photograph the chair that had so many uses behind the scenes.
The day I shot the B&W collage I also shot the color photos and made them into a collage for the challenge too.

In this collage I used the same daffodils, juniper sticks, stems of dried Flax seed heads, various vases and some toile inside a diffusing light box. All of these were with natural light. I also used Pinx as my photo assistant. I put the different photos on a background that was a piece of sample glass I had photographed to use for collages.

I find I enjoy playing with this type of challenge and hope to continue to play with my camera my ideas and the ideas of my friends.
And the first shot? with the dandelions…. Well that wasn’t my favorite shot it was this shot. I needed one more flower, went out to pick another dandelion and came back with this tulip instead.