Here goes my recent interview on Abstract Art about my Aura Pictures; how I got started and what inspires me... click here to check out interview.
Tell us a little bit about yourself and your art specialties.
My name is Master Psychic Rachel. I’m one of the Internet’s top-ranking online psychics. I’m also an iPhoneographer who enjoys taking pictures and doing graphic designs with my iPhone in my spare time. It’s almost like a meditative ritual for me.
How long have you been an artist and how did you get started?
I been a visionary/artist all my life -- as long as I can remember -- but I didn't really take my photography to the next level until around the time digital cameras came out. I remember taking some boudoir pictures of my girlfriend just for fun, wanting to test out my new digital Cannon Power Shot s45. I remember playing with the controls on the camera, not really knowing what I was doing, creating washed out pictures, messing with the f-stop and apertures and just creating some really funky pictures. In the end, my girlfriend loved the pictures. She loved how I accented her voluptuous curves and brought out her face and eyes. I would take pictures from the weirdest angles sometimes and then edit them, but the overall result was always funky and unique.
From there she showed other people my pictures, and the next thing you know, I was getting calls from her friends asking me to do their boudoir pictures, and then I was asked to do a wedding. From there, my love for photography sort of just grew.
How would you describe your art style?
I am an iPhoneographer, but my style didn't really come out until some years after the iPhone came out. I remember playing with my daughter’s friend’s iPod Touch and I was really intrigued by all the apps, especially the picture apps. So I saved up my money real fast and bought me an iPod Touch oand then eventually an iPhone…
Being a digital photographer who couldn’t afford Photoshop and really not having the time to learn the power of it, I knew that with iPhone apps I could be creative on the fly with very little money and a short learning curve.
I would end up taking a picture and running it through an app, then taking that same picture and running it through another app, sort of layering different effects and styles on top of each other until I came up with what I called Aura pictures.
I would have to say that my style of art is a cross between reality and virtual reality. I like to combine the two. I like to take natural pictures and then manipulate them into unique pieces of art depending on the mood or aura I get from the subject or pictures.
Are you working on any art projects right now? What should we expect next from you?
I never really plan my art. It sort of just comes when the moment strikes, like when I am in this really creative zone. So I don’t have any picture projects planned right now. But I do have other multimedia projects in the works. My photo designs are more like a hobby. I do them for friends and clients mainly in my spare time.
With me, you should always expect the unexpected. You just never know what to expect when it comes to my art, and that’s sort of how I like it.
What/who inspires you to create your artwork?
I really get inspiration through energy -- the energy I have at that moment, as well as the subject, the time, the place where I am, and then I sort of create things from there.
I put no boundaries or restrictions on my art. It’s whatever comes to me in that moment, then it is what it is. I try not to put a map or plan into my art as I feel planning takes away from my full creativity.
I try not to draw too much inspiration from other artists, which can be a good and bad thing. I like to come up with fresh new ideas and I try to think out of the box, which comes so naturally to me that it’s pretty easy finding inspiration out of thin air, again through energy and spirit.
What's your favorite accessory or tool you use in your art making process?
I love my iPhone from which I do most of my art work. I also like the app PhotoToaster. That’s the first app I run to when I get a new picture. The filters in the app really make pictures pop. Then, I usually jump over to Image Blender or Snapseed. Image Blender allows me to layer my designs, and Snapseed is another app with really cool filters and effects.
Do you use Photoshop or anything like that in your workflow? How does it help?
I don’t use Photoshop as I could never really afford it, but I do use PicMonkey Photo Editor which is like the poor man’s Photoshop. If I have some final tweaks or if an app can’t do for me what Photoshop could, that’s when I go over to PicMonkey for final editing or retouches.
What advice do you have for somebody who wants to get started in the arts?
Be you. Don’t let anyone tell you how to hold your brush or shoot your shots. Stop doing what people expect you to do and do what you want to do. Be free with your creativity and let no one stop you. A lot of people may not get what you do and that’s okay. As long as you feel good about what you’re doing, that’s all that matters. Hopefully down the road, all the perks of being a great artist will come, but until then, never give up.
What would you like to be doing in art 5 years from now?
In five years from now, I hope to be doing more moving pictures -- movies and videos. Lately, I been playing around with videos more, but I think in five years I hope to be more focused and prepared to maybe write a book or script and bringing those things to life.
Tell us a little bit about yourself outside of your art. What other hobbies or careers are you working on?
Outside of my art, I’m a single mother of two. I love to write and record music as well. And I also do spiritual counseling for people all over the world and from all walks of life from my website www.MasterPsychicOline.com.
Where can we find your work? Any websites or social media we can check out?
What I want to share right now with the public is on my website. I do have some private accounts in which I experiment with my art and get feedback from friends and family before I put it out there to the public, but right now you can see my work all throughout my website www.MasterPsychicOnline.com.
One of the services I offer on my website is called an Aura picture and here you can see even more of my art. I have a ton of pictures that have yet to be released, but you can get a glimpse of what I do on my site. You can be sure that with me, there’s always more to come.
Master Psychic Rachel
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