ShutterQueen Ink

Artist Spotlight: Sarah Kaufmann, Charming Cheese Lady And Her 300 LB Cheddar Canvas

Take your pocket video camera with you everywhere because you never know when a simple trip to the grocery store will turn into a right brain branding interview with a charming cheese lady and her 300 pound cheddar canvas. When I walked into Bloom, much to my cheese lover’s delight sat the largest block of golden cheddar I’d ever seen!

 

Sarah Kaufmann, a professional cheese carver from Wisconsin, meticulously etched a mermaid and local sea life into the Wisconsin cheddar. With patience and passion she skillfully angled her ceramic sculpting tool while interacting with customers and sharing her story, along with some other interesting facts about this edible piece of art! PRESS PLAY AND ENJOY!

Artisticpreneurial Spotlight: Meet Jewelry Designer Catherine Smith

The Queens Branding Tour hugged the S-curves and followed the winding, twisting trail to a small town called Highland County in the mountains of Monterey, Virginia. I couldn’t shelter myself full time in small town living but they are a breath of fresh air, literally. Imagine a place where you inhale brisk clean air and exhale relaxation and tranquility…

 

Highland County shares it’s quaint quiet little alcove of the world with eager syrup seekers during the annual Maple Festival. The streets come alive with hustle and bustle as vendors market everything from jewelry and handcrafted furniture to art and, of course the star of the weekend, locally harvested maple syrup.

 

One of the big highlights for me was meeting Catherine Smith, a jewelry designer and entrepreneur. Just wait until you hear what prompted her to create these unique adornments and the ensuing inspiration that propelled her to transform her passion into a business! I’m thrilled and honored to feature Katherine in my artisticpreneurial spotlight segment. Listen to the video to hear her intriguing story along with some sound business advice!

Announcing A New Era: Celebrating The Irresistible Creative Side Of Everyday Life

How do you attract the irresistible in everyday life? Just keep your antennas on full alert and your cameras handy to record and preserve all the scintillating moments happening around you. 

 

I recently bought a Kodak ZI8 camera and absolutely love it! The compact little machine does not replace the capabilities of my 35 millimeter with interchangeable lenses and getting up close and personal for macro shots. And I still need the expertise of my videographer but you cannot deny the quality of the video for a handheld device that you can whip out of your pocket or purse to capture the world around you.

Everyday life might be:

 

*  a bluejay feeding frenzy as they dive for peanut, walnut, and grahamn cracker nuggets

 

*  mischievous squirrels defying all claims of the squirrel proof feeders

 

*  A dutiful cardinal husband feeding his feathered wife

 

*  The cheese-carving artist you meet at a grocery store cheese tasting

 

*  A painter stroking brilliant emotional hues onto a blank canvas outside under the sun

 

*  A hummingbird streaking in to extract nectar from a scarlet red hibiscus flower. 

 

*  Introducing the newest four legged member of our family

Honeybee Portrait Session And Not 1 Sting

"Busy as a bee" When I was photographing these diligent little pollinators it became easy to understand where that saying originates from. They are constantly on the move from flower to flower, battling the hummingbirds for a taste of the succulent Penta juices. 

I was only a few inches away hoping they were too busy feasting to pay attention to my voyeuristic intrusion into their world. They lifted off and buzzed around my ears but didn't retaliate by stinging me on the nose.

Now that the refreshing fall season has arrived the bumble bees have disappeared. 

So I started to ponder do bees fly south with the birds for the winter? In case you're yearning to possess this bit of insect trivia here’s how the bees enjoy their vacation:

The following honeybee nuggets of knowledge are compliments of a great website called http://www.davesgarden.com

 

Honeybees have a very interesting method of winter survival. Honeybees stop flying when the weather drops below 50 degrees. When the temperature drops below that, the bees all crowd into the lower central area of the hive and form a "winter cluster." The worker bees huddle around the queen bee at the center of the cluster, shivering in order to keep the center around 80 degrees. The worker bees rotate through the cluster from the outside to the inside so that no bee gets too cold. The outside edges of the cluster stay at about 46-48 degrees. The colder the weather is outside, the more compact the cluster becomes ^[1].

Hibernating honeybees have been studied and shown to consume up to 30 pounds of stored honey during the winter months, which helps the bees produce body heat. Heat energy is produced by the oxidation of the honey, and circulated throughout the hive by the wing-fanning of worker bees ^[2]. Note the diagram at right.

On warmer days, bees will venture out for short flights to eliminate body waste. The flights do not last long nor do the bees travel very far because if their body gets too cold they might not be able to return to the hive ^[1].

 

 

Tranquility Through The Shutterqueen's Lens

This was my tropical view when I lived in a beach cottage just on the other side of the sand dunes. I awoke to the gentle splash of frothy waves caressing the sand. The feathered orchestra chimed in with their morning choir practice and the salty ocean air aroma wafted in through the open windows.

Now that home has been demolished and replaced, inhabited with new residents and I've moved on. But the memorable images live on as I'm driven to express my artistic brand.

As an artist, how do you express your brand to your audience?