I love taking pictures and have taken enough photography classes to know which lens to use, which camera settings to adjust, and how to position my subject to get the perfect photo. Unfortunately, I am all about capturing the moment and the automatic mode on my camera (or, more frequently these days, my phone). But the good news is that I am able to capture the moments I probably would have missed if I had taken the time to get it “right”.

Here is the original image:

Two methods for getting a more professional look with a candid snapshot after the fact is by a) adding a solid, neutral border and b) softening any background distractions. Usually, the border is created by matting and/or framing the photo. The background can be softened in a darkroom (for those going old school with film photography) or by using photo editing software like Photoshop (for digital pix). I have experience using both of these techniques, but in my opinion, nothing beats hand-altered photos.

There are a few ways to alter photos in combination with encaustics. One artist I follow soaks her prints to soften the emulsion, and then sands and scratches the surface to obscure any distracting elements and add scribe lines before encasing the photo in a layer of clear encaustic medium. Another one begins by pouring or painting encaustic over the entire photo, and then enhances the pieces by scraping away some of the wax and by rubbing in oil-based pigments. Both methods add interest and result in beautifully distressed, hand-altered finishes but for this project, I use my own simple technique that is about adding just the right amount of white encaustic paint in the just the right places with just the right amount of fusing to get the effects I desire. This process still gives the photo the hand-altered, dimensional quality I love, but it doesn’t obscure the main focal point of my image, which I think is especially important when working with portrait images. Encaustic art is meant to be displayed sans a glass overlay, so I mount my photo onto a cradled wood board that can be hung on the wall exactly as is.

Check out the video that shows how I created this piece in real time here: https://youtu.be/sqmDDfQ_M7g