Star Seeds April 2010 ©Marty Knapp

Editor’s note: Each of the photographs featured in this post are linked to Marty’s online catalog where they are offered in a wide variety of sizes and styles.

How Photographs May Come to Us
Some photographs arrive by accident or due to “mistakes.” I’ve found that images sometimes appear when I least expect them. I consider these events to be “gifts” and am grateful to receive them. Such is the time that Star Seeds appeared, unexpectedly, in my viewfinder.

In 2010 I bought a large bottle of hand sanitizer. The beautiful tiny bubbles suspended in the clear viscous liquid caught my eye. One evening, I poured the fluid into a clear acrylic container and created a lighting set for my subject. My macro-lens camera was fixed inches away from the chambered liquid. I pulled a stool right up to the camera and peered at the image on my display. The tiny bubbles, now magnified, were fascinating. The starbursts were a surprise!

An Incredible Voyage
Time seemed to slow as I gazed into the depth of the liquid. When I rotated the chamber, the spheres seemed to dance with each other. I was transfixed, and felt I was floating in a darkened sea of glowing celestial bodies. I could’ve been voyaging to the far reaches of interstellar space. As the evening wore on, I kept on gathering new compositions. After this first exploration, there was one image that stood out. I show it here, titled Communion.

Communion April 2010 ©Marty Knapp

My Fortunate Blunder
There was a point, late during this first evening, where I decided an adjustment to the angle of my camera would create new possibilities. And seduced by what I was witnessing, I failed to notice my fatigue. Then it happened!

As I loosened the swivel mechanism on the camera I failed to support the freed-up weight with my other hand. Suddenly, the camera tilted forward and knocked the chamber over. A puddle of sticky glop rested on my table. Resigned and irritated for pushing things too far, I got up to find a towel to clean this mess up. As I rounded the table I looked down at the spill and was amazed! The surface of this gelatinous puddle was fascinating. I no longer felt tired, but with newly-found inspiration, I prepared to shoot some photographs from above.That is how Star Seeds came into being one night in 2010.

Postscript:
Because of my “fortunate blunder,” I decided to do some more exploring of the surface of this viscous fluid. So on a subsequent evening I deliberately poured a puddle on the table. I made Terrain 716. shown immediately below. I’m curious… Which one do you prefer, Star Seeds or Terrain 716, and why? Please let me know here: info@martyknapp.com.

Terrain 716 April 2010 ©Marty Knapp

Star Seeds April 2010 ©Marty Knapp