Mextures Artist Feature | @marvinsdaughters

Happy Friday, y’all, and welcome to another Mextures artist feature! Today we are getting to know Lori, best known as @MarvinsDaughters on Instagram. Lori’s gallery is a stunning palette of nature’s many gifts, beautifully edited with our favorite Mextures app. From animals to plants and trees to calming country landscapes, with a dash of the city here and there, Lori’s gallery is like a peaceful retreat. I hope you’ll enjoy getting to know her and her art! Please visit her gallery or comment here to show her your love and support! Don’t forget to follow her if you’re on Instagram and love nature photography and Mextures edits.

Getting to know @marvinsdaughters

Hi Lori! First things first – who are you?

Hello! My name is Lori. I’m 55 years old, happily married, and the mother of two grown sons.

Time flies, doesn’t it? (Cliche…) It’s nice to meet you, Lori. How did you first get involved with photography?

I got my first camera for my 10th birthday, in 1970. It as a Polaroid Land Camera. Fast forward through the decades of 35 millimeter film, then the thrill of digital cameras, to the present where I use the camera on my iPhone more often than my DSLR. I have always felt there is something magical about capturing a moment in time.

Isn’t it funny how our phones have replaced even our fanciest SLR’s? And, I often marvel at how the images from the phones compare to images from our SLR counterparts – because of apps like Pro Camera 8 and ProCam 3, we have just about as much control of our shots. While I can’t speak for other phones, the iPhone’s lens is not that bad, either, at this point! And that leads us to Instagram. How did you get involved with Instagram?

Originally I joined Instagram to promote my crafting blog. I soon found myself spending all my spare time looking at the different styles of photography. I wanted to join the fun! I have “met” many nice people on Instagram – it’s great to share a creative interest with the Instagram community.

It absolutely is! That’s my favorite motto on Instagram – community over competition. There is so much to learn and to enjoy from each other, and my experience with Instagram has been a kind and beautiful one, as well. Was it through Instagram that you found yourself working with Mextures? How did Mextures come into the picture with your art (see what I did there)?

I first heard about Mextures through the iPhone Photography School. Let me just say, my name is Lori and I am addicted to the Mextures app. I want to “Mexturize” every picture I take. I love the versatility and range of the app. I think it’s great that so many people share their Mextures formulas on Instagram. From the #formula_sharing_is_caring hashtag, I have imported quite a few formulas. I use these formulas to edit my photographs. One of my goals this year is to create and share my own formulas.

That’s a great group – I think I still get their newsletter!! What is it that keeps you interested in Instagram and Mextures/Photography?

Learning. In 2014 I decided to finally learn how to use the settings on my camera. I had always been an auto only shooter. Making the break from shooting auto only to manual or semi-manual (AV mode) has opened the door for me to different genres of photography. I love all genres of photography, but I am drawn to macro and minimalist photography. Depth of field fascinates me. Learning how to set the aperture on my camera was a huge breakthrough for me!

That sort of leads us into discussing how your practice with art/photography changed over time, doesn’t it?

Yes, is does! My camera is a Canon Rebel XT. There are probably some people in the camera world that consider my Rebel XT to be a dinosaur and they are probably right, but she gets the job done and hey! I finally know how to work her! But that’s been the biggest change in my practice over time – in 2015 I discovered the iPhone Photography School on Facebook and signed up for their online courses They have a great little academy and (as I mentioned) that’s where I first heard of Mextures. Through both of these I have learned many new things and practices.

What do you enjoy the most about your art/photography?

Community. That’s my favorite thing about Instagram and art, and the same is true for my “real life.”

Is it safe to say that community is what inspires you the most in your art, then?

Yes, it definitely inspires my art. Even in “real life,” for example, my sister and I are always on the hunt for a great macro shot, or a landscape or a sunset. Some people would describe us as competitive and others would describe us a super competitive. Really, we’re just normal sisters. But the truth is competition has little to do with it – it’s the inspiration and drive from each other (and the same from the art community) to grow as an artist. My husband enjoys street and architecture photography. It’s fun to share a hobby with the people I love. I am also luck to have friends willing to pose for me as I work on my portrait ideas. And, I find so much inspiration scrolling through my feed on Instagram. I have to make lists of all my ideas.

What themes do you pursue most often?

So many. So, so many. I actually have three Instagram accounts. That’s almost embarrassing. Probably more embarrassing for my kids than me! @marvinsdaughters is my nature/landscape/macro account. @gig_drive is my street photography/architecture account, and @wednesday_redo is my back and white account. I love the way an all black and white gallery looks – timeless. So inspiration isn’t a problem for me, really. Lack of time is!

That’s not embarrassing! I have three accounts – my art account, my personal account (random life stuff to share with family and friends since I left Facebook), and the feature hub I founded last year. I think it’s a great idea to separate the styles and have different accounts – that’s one of the “rules” of Instagram I tend to break regularly: having a very mixed up gallery as far as subject and styles. Hahaha! Do you have any professional goals with your art?

One goal I plan to work on this year is to do some portrait work with period costumes. I want to add some fantasy and whimsy to my photography.

What couldn’t you do without regarding your art?

In macro photography I am alway working on getting a crisp and focused shot, so my tripod is essential. I have an attachment for my iPhone called Shoulder Pod, that I use to easily attach my iPhone to my tripod. When it comes to editing, it’s all bout the iPad. I can’t imagine editing without my iPad. NO, I don’t even want to think about that!

I’m right there with you on that one – and I’ll have to check out that iPhone attachment for tripod. I have a tiny iPhone dedicated tripod and I HATE IT. I’ve always wanted to be able to use it with my actual tripod. Thanks for sharing that! And finally, last question: if you could have any superpower, what would it be and why?

I thought about choosing flying as a superpower, but that probably wouldn’t be doing my skin or hair any favors at my age. Then I considered the power cut calories but I realized that was really willpower, which seems like a superpower sometimes. So I have decided on teleportation. If I could have any superpower it would be to teleport. My oldest son and his fiancé live 2,777 miles away from us. Basically, all the way across the country. I have spend a considerable amount of time wishing that I could teleport to be with them. And yes, there are probably several other places I would visit if I had the ability to teleport.

That’s fabulous! I’m sure we all hope you get to see them very soon!! This was so much fun, Lori. Thank you so much for taking the time to chat and be a part of this adventure with us. I am excited to see your formulas for Mextures as you work on them and share them, and I know we all encourage you on that front – we’re all Mextures addicts, too, you know!! Wishing you the best in your art, and in life, and so much gratitude for your contribution via your amazing art and your wonderful personality to this blog and to our Instagram feeds. Thanks, again, Lori.