I’m thrilled to re-introduce you to Kat Sloma of Kat Eye Studio. Kat is one of our awesome Mortal Muse alumnae and she is a fabulous photographer offering workshops and e-courses. Kat is sharing some of her experiences with mobile photography as well as letting our community know about a great opportunity to exhibit our own mobile images. 

My first real experience with mobile photography happened as a result of Mortal Muses, even though I was no longer a Muse myself. I was visiting founding Muse Kirstin McKee in October 2012, and she saw me using my iPod Touch to check email. “You have to get on Instagram,” she declared, “and you will love Snapseed.” So there, in her kitchen, she gave me a personal tutorial on both apps, and the possibilities of mobile photography had me hooked.

KatSloma_Dyed-for-SpringIt couldn’t have come at a better time for me creatively. A year and a half after moving home from Italy, I was still struggling with finding my artistic vision, back home in Oregon, USA. It turns out, I was more than ready for something new. I dove in to the mobile world whole-heartedly, quickly moving from that old iPod Touch with its VGA camera to an iPhone 5 and an iPad. Before I knew it, my dSLR and lenses were gathering dust on the shelf.

KatSloma_VanishingHaving a camera with me wherever I went allowed me see creative possibilities in things I had walked by every day… a leaf on the ground, the branches of a tree. Having the processing power of the apps allowed me to experiment and play with photographs in a way I never had before. I started to realize how limited my view of photography had been. There are so many different ways we can take an image of something, framed from the real world, and turn it into something new.

KatSloma_DissolutionNot only has mobile photography expanded my personal artistic vision, I believe it’s expanding the definition of photography itself. So, last year, in a call for exhibitions, I proposed one to The Arts Center in my hometown. I wanted to share this exciting new medium with my community, in an open call to mobile photographers. And guess what! They accepted my proposal and invited me to be one of the curators. What a great opportunity!

KatSloma_Defying-GravityAnd, even better, it’s an opportunity to share with you. The exhibition is an open call to artists, meaning anyone, anywhere (YOU!) can submit for the exhibition. I need your help to show the community what a fantastic and creative medium this has become. Will you join me? The deadline for submission is June 2.

Call to Artists — Expanding Vision: The Contribution of Mobile Photography

  • What: Call for photographs made with mobile devices (phones or tablets)
  • When: August 21 – September 28, 2014
  • Where: The Arts Center, Main Gallery, Corvallis, Oregon
  • Deadline to Apply:  June 2, 2014

How to Apply:  Online HERE

Artists have embraced technology as an art-making process since photography became available in the 1800s. Each new technological advance increased the tools available for creativity and artistic expression through photography and mobile photography is no exception. This method of image making has the potential for the greatest widespread influence of any type of photographic innovation. People who would never have considered themselves an artist, or even creative at all, now have the means to be just that with mobile device camera technology at their fingertips.

We are looking for the full breadth and depth of what mobile photography has to offer. While the chemical darkroom allowed some latitude for expression, the digital darkroom increases the possibilities for manipulation of images even more dramatically. Mobile devices have a myriad of programs and apps–all on the device itself–that give the photographer an incredible opportunity for creative expression. Mobile photography ranges from the representational to the abstract, from street photography, still lifes, portraits and landscapes to fully abstracted impressions. We hope to see examples of all these approaches, highlighting how mobile photography contributes to the expanding artistic vision of photography.

Eligibility:

  • The Call is open to all individuals using a mobile device to create images.
  • All images must have been created in the last two years.
  • Work previously exhibited at The Arts Center will not be accepted or presented to the jurors.

Terms and Parameters:

  • The original image must be created and edited in its entirety on a mobile device, either phone or tablet.
  • The submitting artist must be the owner of the image.
  • All submissions must be via digital image uploaded via the online submission form.
  • The $10 application fee must be received by the deadline. Applicants may submit up to 5 images for this amount.

Sounds like a great opportunity! Thank you so much, Kat, for sharing it with all of us here in the Mortal Muses community. I’m definitely submitting my work. Are you?

Meghan of Life Refocused