In addition to travel and editorial photos, I design a lot of backgrounds, such this blue one at right, an unretouched photo I took using my lensbaby and a macro filter. 
Other backgrounds are more complex. I'll start by combining images of various textures that I have photographed, layering them with different blending modes and other filters and artistic effects using Photoshop, Nik filters and NX2 to come up with a final textured background. I can then layer that textured background over another photo to turn it into something very different than what I captured with my camera, such as this sailboat image. It's a photo of the Coast Guard Cutter Eagle that I took during OpSail 2012. It now looks more like an illustration as does the red kite in the tree which is a straight photo that has turned into an illustration again simply by means of layering it with various textures and then using different blending modes. 
As much as I love "getting it right in the camera the first time," I also love playing with the almost endless possibilities available to the digital photographer. Since I started shooting stock photos a few years ago, the question of "how will this photo be used?" has grown from the three most likely scenarios - hanging on a client's wall, advertising a client's product or illustrating an article - to similarly endless possibilities.That's why I was really excited when I discovered redbubble earlier this year. Although I plan to continue earning income by licensing my work to other people for their designs, now I can also see my own designs on products of my choosing without having to first license them to others or collaborate with a designer. (*ordering info below - or click on any of the underlined text) Products like iPhone cases, iPad covers, Tshirts, onesies, hoodies, and stickers. It's such a tangible use of my work. I love the idea of someone seeing my work countless times a day as part of something they are wearing or using so often. Or children playing with my stickers and putting them on things they love - grown-ups too.
I am particularly excited about this design incorporating the yellow irises. It's one of my favorites and, as it turns out, it's also a favorite of my daughter's. It started out as a photograph that I took during my college reunion at Smith College a few years ago. These wonderful yellow irises (Iris pseudacorus L.) grow in and around a small pond next to the greenhouse and are truly a spectacular site. To give the image its grunge vintage feel, I combined a few of my photos of textures, layering them with different blending modes to get the abstract retro effect. Yellow is my favorite color too and I just love how well the textures work with the image - it looks ancient and new all at once.When I designed my first iPhone cases earlier this year, I sent my daughter the links to check them out, but she has an Android, so no chance one of those cases was going to land in her stocking this Christmas. :( Then, redbubble added iPad case templates (with iPad minis coming soon). It just so happens she's getting an iPad for her 20th birthday this month so I asked her to take a look at the cases I'd designed and pick her fave. She picked the yellow iris iPhone case and asked if I could design a similar iPad cover. As you can see, not a problem!
The textured photos are a very different look than this straight photo at left of peeling paint that I took in Tallinn, Estonia or the photo at right taken the same day as the photo of The Eagle during OpSail 2012 in Connecticut. I think both styles, the straight photos like this sunset and the textured ones, work equally well as iPhone and iPad cases.The next two are my latest experiments, fractals that have been cut out and added to a gradient background, for that geek chic style which is very popular on redbubble. You can link to them here.
Please check out the rest of my work at redbubble especially in my iPad/iPhone gallery and if you're getting an iPad or giving one as a gift this year, as of this writing (December 15, 2012), you can get 10% off iPad cases using the code "RADPADS" at checkout. I just used it successfully to save on the case I designed for my daughter. 
I also thought this funky fractal made a cool sticker and a great hoodie too. I love the fact that the T-shirts and hoodies are made by American Apparel here in the USA so no worries about sweatshops - the iPad, iPhone, and iPod cases are made by Uncommon and printed in the USA too. Please check them out for some Christmas gift ideas too. I would love to know what you think of my work so please check out all I have to offer in the way of redbubble products and please comment here or on the redbubble site itself. My profile is http://www.redbubble.com/people/campyphotos
Enjoy the holidays!
Click below to see all my designs or click on the photo below to go straight to my profile on redbubble where you can order any of my designs. If that doesn't work here is a link - you can also just cut and paste it into your browser. http://www.redbubble.com/people/campyphotos/collections/176737-favorite-ipad-iphone-ipad-cases Thanks!
