Much about art and illustration is learning to truly see things.  That’s not easy these days as the pace of our lives seems to keep accelerating.  To slow things down a bit, I’d like to share a technique I learned on Tik Tok from @creatingwonders.  The results can be interesting and fun seeing the world in slow motion.  Add the right music to accompany the video and you have a piece of art.  Here is how to do it with an iPhone (apologies if you have another type of phone).

First, find a group of flowers or vegetation you find interesting or beautiful.  Next, open your phone camera.  Select SLO-MO from the list of options.  Turn your camera upside down (so the lens is lower and it is easier to sweep across your subject without videoing a finger).  Press the red start button and move your phone through the flowers.  I suggest repeating the process a few times and then replay the clips to see your results.  Sometimes the flowers completely block the video for what ends up being several seconds in slow motion, but there may be a section you particularly like that you can select through editing on your camera phone application. 

Here's a video to demonstrate what I described above:  Demo Video

And here’s the result of what I demonstrated:  Joe Pye Weed Video  (Music is All I Love by Phillip E Morris found in the InShot application.) You can add music to the video using a variety of apps.

Here are a couple more examples I made:  Bee in the Yarrow.  (Music is Zen Garden that I found on Tik Tok).  I like how the music gives this video an ethereal feel.

And Hydrangea Blossoms (Music is entitled Someday from Past Memories.)  In this video, I moved the camera from low to high finally capturing part of the sky.  

I could play around with these videos even more by adding effects or a trailer.  It’s all dependent upon one’s creativity and how much time you want to put into it. 

I'll finish with a few tips that I learned through trial and error:

• Video on an overcast day to reduce shadows. 
• Try to select a time when the wind is calm.  I tried the technique again after the rain from Fay stopped.  The wind made the video a little too crazy even in slow motion. 
• Widen your stance from the beginning to the end of the sweep of your video if possible.  It’s difficult to stand in front of something and try to lean forward.  You will likely have to pull the camera up to keep your balance sooner than you would like. 
• Try this technique when you are on a walk and find something of interest. 
• Try to avoid including houses and other distractions in the video.

I hope you can give it a try; it's an entertaining project that may give you new insights.

Until Next Time,

Julie <3