You may have noticed I like pink and I like flowers, so naturally I have painted quite a few scarves inspired by pink flowers.
However, sometimes when nature is doing it so well I feel intimidated by her perfection and find myself turning to the manmade for alternative sources of inspiration.
Firstly, I take a photo of an everyday object, remove the distraction of colour, then turn the image upside down to stop myself from recognising the object. The idea is to stop seeing the motor bike and just see shapes. Then using Photoshop I soften and blur the lines to produce a picture that gives an outcome similar to the resultant image we see when we squint.
With a little more tweaking I eventually get an image that I can use to work from.
And here’s a little first go, freewheeling in monochrome inspired by a motor bike.
Of course, I’ve used the classic black and white combination before giving a very clear area of contrast. But, wait, I can also see some pink flowers!!
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Agnes Ashe 
Your flowers are beautiful.
Have a nice Friday.
Thank you. I think pink flowers are very popular as they are so easy on the eye. 😌 Have a good weekend – we’ve got rain coming 😟 still the garden needs it.
What an interesting way to get inspiration – with an upside down motorcycle…did I get that right🤔. However you do it the results are wonderful!
Yes, you’re right. I still prefer doing flowers though 😕
I love what you came up with – in the gray and white and black. From the motorcycle! Just fantastic and a great way to force yourself to seeing new things.
Well that’s nice of you to say. Thank you. I find it quite a struggle to restrain myself and not reach for some colour. It’s not the same as working in pencil or charcoal.
Gosh. You are super-clever with Photoshop. I’ll need to explore, I think/. Lovely images too, both your modern-life inspired ones, and the good old floral tributes.
Thanks – I really do enjoy taking photos of flowers ‘cos they don’t answer back and they never criticise the final shot! I only use the amateur version of Photoshop, but it’s very useful for straightening wonky pics quickly.
Wow! Thank you for sharing your creative process. I was fascinated by the way you abstracted the image. 👍🏻