4 minute read
Artist of the Month: Marta Everest
Jessica Drossin Interviews Artist of the Month, Marta Everest.
JESSICA DROSSIN: Marta, I've been following your work now for nearly a decade. You have a distinctive and recognizable style that always feels fresh and exciting. My husband doesn't go on Facebook that often, but whenever he sees your posts, he'll say, "Wow, Marta Everest posted!" Can you please tell me a little about what inspires you?
Advertisement
MARTA EVEREST: I'm a cheerful person who is also very sensitive and emotional. I often feel nostalgic for the past, especially my childhood years. I'm passionate about classic art and old master paintings (and some contemporary ones as well). I basically find inspiration on anything that speaks Old World. It can be a movie, a painting in a museum, an illustration from a novel or just a wicker basket in my mom's kitchen. Classical music especially is a great source of inspiration for me and always stimulates my creative side. I think I'm just an old soul.
JD: Can you tell us a little about your background? How did you become interested in photography and what lead you to using textures in your portrait work?
ME: I was born and raised in Sevilla, Spain in a very loving family that I always thank God for. I moved to the United States soon after I got married in 1998 and in 2004 we decided to move back to Spain to start a new life and raise our children. Today, I’m the mother of 5 wonderful children that mean the world to me. I became interested in portrait photography in 2002 when a photo of my oldest daughter won the 1st place at the American Baby Contest and then another photo won 2nd place the following year. I felt I had a good shot in the portrait photography world so I just pursued and followed my dream. I bought my first digital camera and my first editing software in 2007, totally clueless on what to do with it. I didn’t discover textures until a few years later and I just found myself immediately driven to them. Today they’re an essential tool in helping me create a story.
JD: Can you tell me a little bit about your editing process? Your work stands out, in part, because your processing choices are so distinctive!
ME: Adding textures to the photos is the most gratifying part of my whole editing process because it's the part where I get to unleash my creative side and imprint it on an image. When I work with textures I like to apply them using two different types of blending modes, soft or overlay. Usually I only work with two different textures at a time but sometimes I can use up to three of them or use the same texture twice but with a different opacity, position or blending mode than the first one. Once I've made my selection, I use the curve panel to blend them together adding contrast and depth to the photo to set just the right mood. Combined with textures, and prior to applying these, I also like to use actions and reduce or increase the opacity of them as needed (my favorite ones are usually the cool ones).
JD: The photos of your children are so beautiful! How do you make them feel so timeless? Do you purely use natural light?
ME: My goal is to keep my work fundamentally simple, but at the same time, I strive for an artistic feel to it, something evocative and imperishable. With the help of a single softbox (no flash) and in a confined space (my house small living room) I’m able to create the perfect scene for all my photos.
JD: What are your goals for the future?
ME: I have three main goals. The first would be to learn or develop a new editing technique for my outdoor photos (lifestyle photography is my second favorite genre of photography). The second would be to continue crafting and improving my fine art portraits with the same passion and care with which I do now and finally, God willing, to be able to hold an exhibit at an art gallery. Most of all, I hope to continue doing what I do now ten or twenty years down the road with the same enthusiasm and dedication I feel today.
Follow Marta here: https://www.instagram.com/martaeverestphotography/
Marta Recommends:
