Photography : KaleidoscopePhoto

kaleidoscope - california retro hotel

KaleidoscopePhoto – california retro hotel

Kaleidoscope is such a fabulous word, isn’t it!? And it perfectly describes the neon-bright, carnival-inspired images of Leah from KaleidoscopePhoto. Saturated hot pinks and yellows predominate, and combined with mid-century signage and flowering succulents produces work that is reminiscent of a time when Thunderbirds, flamingoes and going on the road with Kerouac were where it was at. Unsurprisingly, her favourite art includes the wild colour of the Fauvists, and the pop quality of the work of Takashi Murakami. She also loves photographer Richard Misrach “for his spot on composition and subtle color harmonies.”Initially training in Fine Arts as an oil painter, Leah told me that this is an enormous influence in her work, in terms of being able to manipulate and transform images. “I found using Photoshop with a tablet and pen a surprisingly natural and intuitive progression as I’ve taught myself over the years. I change colors and play with texture overlays, manipulating imagery to create something hyper-real or whimsically imagined. This is easily my favorite part of making these prints.”

kaleidoscope - adventure is a verb

KaleidoscopePhoto – adventure is a verb

kaleidoscope - turquoise desert landscape

KaleidoscopePhoto – turquoise desert landscape

kaleidoscope - pastel beach

KaleidoscopePhoto – pastel beach

I asked her about her choice of subject matter. “I love all of the photos of mid century Americana I’ve been able to shoot over the years. I’m originally from the east coast, and vintage metal signs, retro cars and all things old metal are a bit of a rarity out there as they rust out over time. Real estate also tends to be pricier there, so remnants of the past- old hotels, funky tourist attractions, etc, are cyclically discarded for the new. This seems to be the opposite out West, and when I first moved out here I was floored by the beautiful ghosts that decorate the southwest. Its been a source of excitement and inspiration ever since, and I’m constantly finding new places to shoot and explore.””Some of my favorite photos are from a trip on Route 66 in early January. It was a bit of an unorthodox, off-season time to take the journey, but because of it I have beautiful photos of thick snowflakes falling on the Wigwam Hotel of Holbrook, AZ and old roads shot against steely grey winter skies.

“I have lists upon lists of places I want to travel to take photos of, but I rarely shoot formal studio “still life” imagery that is set-up. Most of what I shoot is found on-site, so I rarely have time to plan ahead or consider my capture beforehand.”

kaleidoscope - gas

KaleidoscopePhoto – gas

kaleidoscope - tropical neon flowers

KaleidoscopePhoto – tropical neon flowers

She found Etsy a few years ago, and started off simply selling vintage cameras through FotoRetro. Although she had always taken photos and made imagery, she hadn’t really considered selling her photography. She discovered Etsy was a really inspiring online community of makers, and it seemed a natural progression to post her photographic work after that.

kaleidoscope - workspace

KaleidoscopePhoto – workspace

You can find Leah in her Etsy shop at KaleidoscopePhoto. She has also recently opened a Storenvy site, which she thinks is a great alternative online marketplace for artists. You can find her at kaleidoscopephoto.storenvy.com.

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