Pocket Bliss

Pocket Bliss was an unexpected gift. I had come to this location on Sanibel Island several times, always in the wee hours of the morning when it was almost pitch black, trying to perfect a completely different photograph, "The Road Less Traveled." That's a whole other story in itself.
 
During my third time back, I caught a glimpse of what might be a different image, but I was so focused on getting Road Less Traveled that I basically banged out one attempt at this view, thinking it would be a throw away shot. Normally I would shoot and light a scene several times to get it right.
 
When I got home I had all but forgotten the time I'd spent on this vertical silhouette - the lack of sleep was probably a contributing factor. And maybe being in a sleepy haze helped me see something that was barely there. But I was thrilled at this unexpected gift that had barely registered in my brain at the time of shooting it.
 
After uploading the images to my laptop, I noticed this gem just sitting there. The photo is a composite of two different photographs, meaning two frames were shot: the lit path below and the silhouette above. The two images were later combined using Photoshop to create the one final image: Pocket Bliss.
 
Wearing black from head to toe, to avoid detection by the camera, I had lit the ground in the first shot, in what looked to be a 3 or 4 minute exposure. I walked down the path with an orange spotlight, returning to light the other side with the same orange spotlight. Then with the camera shutter still open, I had picked up a green flash to light the green pools of light between the spotlights. This had been done in almost complete darkness.
And I had done this just once! Thankfully the image turned out!! I'm repeating myself, but its so baffling to me that I had such little hope this photo would be any good, that I didn't even bother to shoot a second attempt at lighting this.
Then there's the next frame, the silhouette. Without moving the tripod, I had waited for the sky to get bright enough that I could shoot the silhouette of the trees without it being blurry. 
 
It took me a few minutes, just staring at this image, trying to remember the blur of how I could have possibly created this shot in the middle of working on another.
 
What I vaguely remember is that while I waited for the first light of the morning, I was busy trying to nail down the steps and the lighting - basically the choreography - required for The Road Less Traveled.
 
That image could only be shot with light in the sky and it was still too dark out. So after figuring out what I had to do, and putting the right filters (aka gels) on my lights, the sky started lighting up. It was enough light for me to get the second image I needed to finish Pocket Bliss. I returned to the camera, snapping one image of the silhouette using the early morning light.
 
Then I quickly moved and re-framed the camera - all my lights were ready - as I prepared to shoot Road Less Traveled. You can see looking at both images that they are at the same location.
 
On that third trip, having failed the two previous times to properly light and shoot Road Less Traveled, I finally managed to get it right. And as a bonus for my perseverance, the universe gifted me Pocket Bliss!
 
 
A short behind-the-scenes video is available here.
 
"In none of his photos does Nuez exploit the obvious" 
Montreal Gazette
"Seductive ... Nuez's photos do not leave one indifferent"
Ciel Variable - Contemporary Photography magazine
 
Light Paintings series
 
I sometimes fantasize that with the snap of a finger, I can escape reality ... in a moment, be transported to a dream world free of life's demands, a child's playground where magic exists and all is right with the world.My Light Paintings are that portal. Through them I can transcend reality and escape into these beautiful, vibrant yet peaceful realms.
 
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Although there is some digital manipulation in this series, the unusual lighting and surreal quality in the Light Painting series is achieved by using colored lights during long exposures. They are not digital effects.