Today we are taking a look at Craig Stronner, we spoke to him below and took a look at some of his work.

What inspires your photography?

My family inspire me to get out there and do stuff. I do it for their future as well as mine, and the fact that I love doing it helps too

What made you get into photography?

I like to think I am creative, and I needed a hobby. I was always interested in photography, but had never really explored it properly. So I bought an SLR camera and learned how to use it

Have you had any successes in the past that you are particularly proud of?

I am about to be published in a photo book

What do you want to achieve in the future?

I would love to have enough work through photography to be doing it full time.

Why did you join Artybuzz?

I was looking for more sites to put my work, and I think ArtyBuzz is one of the best of the ones I found

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Routines are often seen as a bit boring and tiresome, but small routines executed effectively can yield very good results, and this also goes for adding your work to Artybuzz.

Below, we have created a few steps to make sure that adding your new piece of work is exciting for everyone else as it is for us to see one of your new creations. These quick and easy self promotion steps form a nice little routine that you can put into action after uploading a new piece of work to Artybuzz, so why not give it a go and see if you get some results:

Step 1 – Upload your new piece of work

You know the drill, but think also about the tags you add (make sure they are useful keywords) and also how to name your work if you don’t normally think about that.

Step 2 – Share it!

Sharing is a great way to get both people you know and news fans looking and buying your work. Go to your individual piece of work or your profile, and share it on twitter, facebook, myspace and any other websites that you use. This will let your friends and family know about your new work, as well as it showing up in many other streams online.

Step 3 – Bookmark it!

Bookmarking is a really good way of getting new people to find your work. Using social bookmarking services like Stumbleupon, Delicious and Digg means that you can bookmark your individual work pages and also your Artybuzz profile, which can then get picked up by people who have never seen your work before… meaning potential new fans and buyers!!! We provide links for you to share on these service on your profile and art pages, so be sure to give it a go and watch your work page visitor numbers increase!!!

Step 4 – Add to Groups

As well as getting people to notice your work and then view it on Artybuzz, it is also important to get it noticed on Artybuzz itself. One of the most effective ways of doing this is by adding it to relevant groups. People view and add work to groups all the time, so adding yours means it can be seen in other places on Artybuzz as well as in the normal results. To do this, you can simply search for groups using the search box at the top of each page to find relevant groups to add your work to. And if you can’t find the correct group, why not create your own?

Step 5 – Comment

Commenting on other people’s work is also another great way to get your own work noticed. As well as being able to view some great artwork yourself, commenting on it gets people replying to you and importantly looking at your work at the same time. This can lead to sales, so it’s worth doing a quick whip round of commenting every time you upload a new piece of work.

Have a go at following these steps and compare it to previous work uploads that you have done, you’re sure to get more visitors and sales, so let us know how it goes.

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We have a new look home page… well, not an entirely new look, but a slight improvement on the old version.

We’ve added a few quick links to our most popular products, so when new buyers come to the site they can find what they are looking for much more easily, meaning artists on Artybuzz should sell more work… Yippee!!!

We’d love to know what you think about the new home page, so please click the comment button below and give us your feedback on whether you like this or not…

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We’ve added some new ways to share your profile on Artybuzz, which means it’s now easier for you and others to share and spread the word about you and your art.

You can easily let everyone you know about your profile by tweeting, sharing on Facebook, bookmarking your work and much more simply by clicking the buttons on your profile, as seen below:

If you haven’t thought about bookmarking and sharing your work before, then now is the perfect time. It’s a great way to get your work noticed in other places and is a really good way to increase your sales, so start sharing and achieve success!

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I have recently been reading Ideavirus by Seth Godin, and just one chapter in, I have found it extremely interesting. Among a lot of other interesting points, Seth Godin argues that ideas are the key to future success in business, because people are so intolerant to old school marketing techniques and because of the way ideas can now spread like a virus on the internet.

I think this works with modern day businesses, and particularly web based businesses, but I also feel the concept of an ideavirus can be applied to art, design and photography as well. With a great new concept, the popularity of your art can go through the roof, gaining you recognition, sales and influence on a scale unimaginable beforehand.

You can take Banksy as an example. Ten years ago, street art was nowhere to be seen in the mainstream media, as this was still a relatively underground form of art, and one not taken very seriously by the art world. But with Banksy’s distinctive style and idea of using stencils to create provocative and political statements with his art, he and others transformed the viewpoint that a lot of people had of graffiti art, and made people take it more seriously. This was a big and really strong idea, and it spread like a virus through word of mouth, the internet, and eventually through the mass media.

Spending more time thinking of ideas and concepts is much more effective that just doing more of the same work. Inventing things that people love and can engage with will make your art spread faster than ever, raising  you and your work to new heights globally.

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This is a guest blog post from Seba Rashii, an artist from Liverpool and one who also sells here at Artybuzz.

As an artist, I like to think of art being sacred.

As art becomes an increasingly disposable concept via the mass medias commercial acceptance of graffiti styling, increased access to all forms of it for the public and various programs seeking to explain the concept of it to all amongst the great public who may care, we – and I include my fellow artists here, too – are losing the longevity that perhaps more “traditional” older pieces strive and have striven to achieve, however consciously or unconsciously . The evidence is all there in front of us if we stop and think about it properly. Modern art is still dismissed by the average person as nothing to be concerned about. Even the best street art is considered cheap graffiti by councils who stop at nothing to preserve their local artists work and architecture but consider the erasing of graffiti to be nothing. Modern art, whilst still widely appreciated by those with the broadness of mind to accept it seriously, is in reputation nothing to what the classic painters work has become. Consider that the Mona Lisa is still raved about by endlessly enthusing art critics, Picasso pieces are mega valuable works of art and that museums and galleries still favor in general the traditional idea of art, the canvas in a frame, the sculpted figure etc. Of course opinion plays a big part in these ideas, but I think you get the picture.

All too often I’ve rescued a piece of – to my eyes, at least – art from certain destruction on the streets for the simple reason that I consider it worthy of survival and appreciation by others. The fact is, art is not just for the sake of art, it is for appreciation by others. There is no artist in this world who doesn’t want his or her work to appear in public someday and be commented on. It is part and parcel of being an artist and always will be! From the street wall tagger to the classical sculptor there is basic need for appreciation and expression. As an artist myself, I always try and consider the merit of any piece I come across, and of course there are pieces I like and dislike, but the basic point is that I’ve seen them before my very eyes. The one thing in common with all the best pieces I’ve looked at is that they are timeless. Admittedly, my taste is maybe somewhat Left Field, but all of my favorite artists such as HR Giger, Salvador Dali, Banksy, Kami and the like are producing or have produced work that is essentially in the realm of fantasy, and if not fantastical, at the very least original in thought and execution, that has lasted longer and been appreciated by more exactly because of this.

I’m not saying we should forget about the present or even the past, simply that art can be anything it likes and that in general producing a piece with the future appreciation factor in mind is an effective strategy it seems. But in practice, most artists create out their own idea and don’t apply such exact criteria unless it’s a special project. I know that when I make pieces of work, I use my eyes and if my eyes say something good, it’s a winner. In addition to that, the select people I show them to tend to agree as well. I can’t say what makes the piece agreeable to my sight, but it obviously works, even given the fact art is by it’s very nature subjective. I said before that I consider art to be sacred. The title of this article is Art and Death. To connect the two, I’ll suggest the theory that modern art is becoming increasingly throw away in its nature.

The fact is, if the Mona Lisa got destroyed in a fire, art critics, fans, creators the world over would be mourning it’s passing in a similar manner to Michael Jackson’s death in 2009. Understandably, as the passing of any culture or art is sad indeed. But if someone rubs out a piece of street art few will shed any tears unless it was a Banksy. (I love Banksy’s work by the way, so there is no doubt to my intention!) Even then, a Banksy does not a building indestructible make these days. The artist himself acknowledges the fact and even celebrates the temporary nature of work that is in all likelihood going to disappear forever one day. But there is some art that should never be a candidate for extinction and needs preserving for the appreciation of future audiences. As much as I love Banksy, the moment his work gained notoriety is one of the key reasons we have seen art become so much more disposable than it once was.

As much as art should inspire people to create, the art of the moment is in the future going to exist only on the photographs of those who seek it out avidly. Of course now that street art is arguably less ubiquitous in it’s influence than it was, we may just see a return to the classical forms that used to reign. As long there are the ideas the art will grow organically. With art being more and more for everyone now creativity is being encouraged by example. Hopefully we’ll leave behind our own versions of the, (probably quite different to common tastes at the time of their creation), works that still inspire people now such as Munch’s ambiguous The Scream, still a favorite now with many people for that very reason, or Van Gogh’s Sunflowers which was a simple painting of some flowers that is still iconic to this day. Both these paintings are essentially timeless and simple, with scope for interpretation by the viewer. Maybe that is why they have stayed so recognizable to this day?

Arguably, the work produced by mainstream art these days is unlikely to produce such rapture generations after their inception. But saying that, tastes change quickly and there will be a time when this art is recognized for what it was. Consider the fact that the new media available to creators now is already revolutionizing modern life itself, and as we breathe it is changing the way people create. In twenty years time, the art world will undoubtedly be quite different. As the technology becomes available, the works we see now will be preserved and even recreated.

Art may be dying in a way, but it’s more than likely to be a rebirth.

Seba Rashii

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Today we are featuring the work of Christine Pensa, a painter who has recently joined Artybuzz. We asked her some questions…

1.       When did you start creating art?

After a successful career as a political assistant to both a federal and provincial cabinet minister in Canada – I was increasingly drawn to creative life. I took an art course and found my true passion was painting – not politics. I have been happily creating for the last 15 years.

2.      What inspires your work?

My work is  a reflection of what is important in my life. Mostly I work with the themes of evolution of a life of more meaning, the practice of yoga – and especially women and their diverse manifestations of beauty.

3.       What do you hope to achieved in the future?

I want to keep learning. I want to continue to expand my art horizons. I want continue to take courses and to continue working with school children on large scale mural projects.

4.       What made you join Artybuzz?

I was first drawn to Artybuzz because of the great name and the images on the site. I think the internet provides a fabulous opportunity to reach new audiences, but I’m also particular about which venues I choose to display my art. Artybuzz provides quality products for the public to buy art at many different price points and likely encourages those who would not normally shop in a gallery.

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When selling on Artybuzz, or when showing people an image of your work, you obviously want it to look its best. The hours you have spent painting a picture, drawing an illustration, or finding the right subject for that perfect photograph could all be undermined when selling or showing your work on the web, simply because your image on the web doesn’t do the actually work you have produced justice.

To try and help stop this, we have put together a few simple steps and tips on how to photograph artwork and make sure your work looks the best it can:

Step 1 – Taking the Photograph

If you are a painter, illustrator, or any kind of artist that works in traditional mediums then you will want to make sure your work is photographed properly to do it justice. A few key tips when it comes to how to photograph artwork are:

- Make sure it is lit well (bad lighting can ruin the look of a picture, so light your work well, and make sure the light is spread evenly, avoiding shadows).

- Make sure you photograph it head on (so it does not look distorted)

- Make sure you photograph the whole image (you don’t want precious corners to be cut off!)

An alternative to taking a photo is to scan in your work, though obviously if it’s big this can’t be done.

Step 2 – Using Photoshop to Make Your Image Resemble the Original

Following on from how to photograph your artwork, using photoshop to tweak things is also a good idea. If you don’t have Photoshop, then GIMP is a free alternative that works in a very similar way (you could also try and get a copy of Photoshop from a nice friend of yours who might have it).

Listed below are a couple of easy steps that won’t take much time but will improve your image dramatically:

Cropping

If you have photographed the background behind your work, then you will want to get rid of this to tidy it up and make sure that a good print can be made from your work. To do this, select the crop tool (as seen below) and drag it over your image. You can adjust the parameters of the shape by pulling the arrows, and once you are happy with selection, double click on it and it will crop for you.

Auto Levels

Following on from how to photograph your artwork and then crop it. One of the easiest and most effective ways of improving an image is by using the ‘Auto Levels’ option. To do this, simply go to the top menu and click: Image >> Adjustments >> Auto Levels. Doing this will fix any irregularities with lighting and colour, and will usually improve your image. This technique can be used on photography, paintings or anything else that you produce. An example can be seen below:

Curves

Curves are another reasonably simple tool that can be used to manipulate the monotone colours in your images. To use this tool, simply go to: Image >> Adjustments >> Curves, and then pull the lines (seen on the right below) to see your image change, if you don’t like what you have changed just click Ctrl+Z or press cancel.

This tool can be used to highlight different shades and produce dramatic effects that can often improve your image, or give it a whole new dimension of depth, as seen in the example below:

Seen above is an extreme example of the use of curves, being more subtle can have softer effects. Curves can be used on photography, paintings, or any kind of art to produce interesting different effects. They may be for you, but if you want to play around a bit more and produce something a bit different then it might be worth a try.

Hopefully this helps you understand how to photograph artwork better, and will help in the future.

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It’s budget  day in the UK today, and with Alastair Darling having delivered his speech, we’re featuring a very relevant image from our new member Jamel Akib, it’s called ‘Hand With Currency‘ and can be seen and bought by clicking the image below:

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