Nativity for a friend! PIC HEAVY

[CoolHandLuke]

Hello everyone... I really have not been posting any work, just cherry picking some threads here and there. The main reason is that I've been really busy at work and in my rare free time I've been carving a nativity for a very good friend. This is kind of an art concept/symbolism piece, and I know the photos are not good... but what the heck, hope you like it. I used domestics (walnut, maple) not so domestics (Olive "from israel" ) and exotics (kingwood, cocobolo, bocote, black palm, rambutan). The nativity is made up of three separate scenes, with each on it's own absolutely stunning base of maple burl slabs with the bark scrubbed off. Mostly finished with platinum shellac and ren wax. I promise better pictures soon, you really can't even get a good look at things here...just couldn't wait (finally finished it today!).

BTW in case you've never used it...rambutan is hard stuff ccasion1

there are some individual shots to show some up-close detail so you get the feel, and the entire set.

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[sawman101]

Beautiful work!:eusa_clap:eusa_clap:eusa_clap:eusa_clap

 

[bobby g]

Fantastic! Thanks for sharing this work.

bobby g

 

[James Davis]

I am in Awe!!! Fantastic job with the interpretation of the figures.

James

 

[DWSmith]

Stunning work! Absolutely beautiful!

 

[sbarnhardt]

Dave,

That looks good. Very good!!

 

[ScottM]

All I can say is WOW!!!

 

[CaptnA]

Very neat!
That must be a heck of a friend!~

 

[LeftyTom]

:eusa_clap Nicely done, Dave! :icon_thum

 

[dpsnyder]

Incredible! great interpretation on an ageless theme. I love the bases as a way to focus on the separate scenes.

Beautiful work,
Dan

 

[ChrisB]

Great work! I love the designs!

 

[PChristy]

Great work:icon_thum:eusa_clap

 

[Sealeveler]

Beautiful cutting there.You done good and your friend will be very happy with it.
Tony

 

[Joe Scharle]

That's good!

 

[Trent Mason]

Beautiful work! :eusa_clap:eusa_clap:eusa_clap:eusa_clap:eusa_clap

 

[sawduster]

Top-notch work bro :icon_thum ccasion1

 

[Glennbear]

Unfortunately carving projects are rarely showcased here on NCWW so when beautiful work such as yours is shown we non-carvers are in total awe. :wsmile:

 

[Jim M.]

WOW! great job, Jim:icon_cheers

 

[nelsone]

That is great! I can see why you were in a hurry to post!

 

[ehpoole]

Lousy pics, but truly awesome carving! Whoever receives this nativity scene is sure to cherish it for several lifetimes.

With regard to the pics:

+ Use your camera's 'Macro' (close-up) mode whenever an object is too close for the camera to properly focus.
+ Increase ambient room lighting (essential for good photos from compact cameras).
+ Use your camera's flash ONLY if it improves the scene without creating harsh blowouts in the highlights (i.e. bright white spots in the photo).
+ Keep to low ISO settings (around ISO 100 is optimal for most compact cameras).
+ Use a tripod or other camera support; lower ISO means longer exposure times which means more opportunity for camera shake if handheld (especially in cameras without image stabilization).
+ For small objects like this, use minimal zoom (e.g. stick to the wide-angle end of your camera's optical zoom -- never use digital zoom except when shooting pics at well below your camera's native resolution). Most compact cameras become very fussy with regard to focus if you try to zoom-in on a closeup object (some camera's will display the minimum and maximum focus distance for a given zoom, others make you guess).
+ Practice, practice, practice. Only through practice will you learn your camera's strengths and weaknesses. It costs nothing to take bad pictures with a digital camera and only a second or two to delete such images, so do not hesitate to experiment. Unlike the days of film, digital camera's readily lend themselves to such experimentation without breaking the bank. In my first few weeks with a new digital camera I will easily take 2000-5000 photos just to identify all the strengths and weaknesses of a given camera -- it takes just a few minutes to delete them all when done! (In the case of a DSLR, it takes a few extra minutes to clean the sensor after all this break-in experimentation -- but no such issue with compact cameras.)

Most of all, thank you for sharing such craftsmanship with us!