Wednesday 29th November – Speaker Julie Close – Fact, Fiction, Fantasy

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Julie Close became interested in photography in her home town of Doncaster during the 1970s. She especially enjoyed the technical process of the dark room and developing her own photographs. Having to find employment she moved to Bridge of Earn hospital, where she was involved in all aspects of medical photography, principally, ophthalmic, dermatology, and orthodontics.

On a personal level at that time. Julie’s photographic interests were predominately flowers and plants. As with her darkroom experiences, Julie was interested in experimenting with the process of taking images.

Having decided to put on an exhibition of her work she was somewhat dismayed at the reaction of those who liked her images, but didn’t take to her frames they were in, not suiting people’s living rooms. This adverse reaction inhibited immediate further progress, she had lost her mojo!

Julie’s work flow was stimulated once again through her creative use of a scanned image, in which she set up a cut out of a mount. She realised the potential of developing depth into a combined image. Reading extensively on how to create composite images, notably, Masters Of Deception by Al Seckel, Imagine by Erik Johansson and Digital Alchemy by Bonny Pierce Lhotka.

Julie expanded her scope of images, and as Two Pixels, once more entered the exhibition arena, through the Perthshire Open Studios. Julie projected a collection of her images to the members, with many levels of symbolism and creativity. Her ideas germinate during her skiing holidays in the Alps, when she is cocooned in her camper van during inclement weather.

Some of the subjects she has created a series of images of include, An Insight into Lebanon, The Scottish Referendum and more recently, the Brexit vote. Through her words and images, Julie gave her audience an interesting and thought provoking presentation.