New World Notes

Cajsa's Choices: Favorite SL Pics from 2019 I Couldn't Feature Last Year

Cajsa Lilliehook covers the best in virtual world screenshot art and digital painting

Sometimes I come across a photo I love and then I forget it. Asked to come up with my favorite photos of the past year, I thought it might be fun to go through my favorites and find some lost ones that I forgot, misplaced, or otherwise left behind. “Waiting for a rainbow” by Bisou Dexler is such a lovely picture. It’s not just the array of blue on blues, but also the sharp edges of the hydrangeas. There is a simplicity in this picture that shows real confidence. You can see that in Dexler’s entire photostream.

Cajsa's SL Flickr Pics: Favorite Virtual World Photos for Christmas Week

Cajsa Lilliehook covers the best in virtual world screenshot art and digital painting

I love Shivren’s reminder that Christmas Down Under is very different from Christmas up north. It is just such a fun, cheeky photo and a perfect introduction to a look at some of my favorite Christmas screenshots from Second Life.

Nekotto gives us a kawaii Christmas with Santa’s elves and the avatar in a drum major’s uniform. I love how the subject is the focal point from which everything radiates.

Cajsa's SL Flickr Pick: Leone33 Resident Creates Beautifully Varied Images

Cajsa Lilliehook covers the best in virtual world screenshot art and digital painting

“Smoke Woman” by Leone33 Resident is a romantic photo with the lovely avatar becoming smoke. The black and white color scheme makes its form more dramatic. It is just one of the many striking and varied images in Leone33 Resident’s photostream which is full of experimentation.

Cajsa's SL Flickr Pick: Danna Benoir's Beautifully Composed Images

Cajsa Lilliehook covers the best in virtual world screenshot art and digital painting

“Good Company” is a fun photo from Danna Benoir, a fashion blogger whose blog is called My Wardrobe. I love the sharp detail and the saturated colors in the photo. She probably has three dogs in her photo because she has three dogs in her Second Life, but it is an interesting look into the Rule of Odds which says “framing your subject with 2 surrounding objects (thus creating an odd number of 3) suggests balance and harmony visually.” So how does a picture with four objects, the woman and three dogs fit into the Rule of Odds? Look at how they are grouped. There’s the small dog, the woman, and the two dogs together, a single unit in terms of the composition. They are positioned together in the same post. This, then, is three visual objects even though there are four subjects. There is a lot more on this idea here.

Cajsa's SL Flickr Pick: Mr. Nobody's Virtual Winter Wonderland Photos

Cajsa Lilliehook covers the best in virtual world screenshot art and digital painting

Mr. Nobody’s photostream is a delight, filled with photos that capture residents in the act of living. In “Deux âmes errantes” you see two wandering souls going down the stairs on a city street. The black and white, the use of light, and the depth of field put the focus on the couple. There is a naturalness to the picture that I love.

Cajsa's SL Flickr Pick: The Casual, Spontaneous Coolness of Jane Bang

Cajsa Lilliehook covers the best in virtual world screenshot art and digital painting

I love the bold colors in Jane Bang’s [Harmony Marquis] self-portrait in orange and yellow. I had to laugh, too, at the “Made In the 90’s shirt coupled with the Champagne Supernova lyrics in the description. Jane Bento is another pose0maker shooting pictures to illustrate her Space Cadet poses which are notable for their casual ease. Her stream is a collection of photos of her and her friends just chilling and enjoying life. 

Cajsa's Second Life Flickr Pick: "ItsNotNoah" Creates Spectacular Cinematic Images and Shows You His Process

Cajsa Lilliehook covers the best in virtual world screenshot art and digital painting

Why does ItsNotNoah have only seventy followers, especially when he includes a gyazo video of his editing process so you can follow the raw SL photo to the glorious final product? 

And glorious is the word for his photos which are full of detail, light, and emotional impact. I am guessing he must have another account that hit the Flickr limit… just a guess. Anyway, this person seriously deserves more followers.

Cajsa's SL Flickr Pick: The Amazingly Posed Screenshots of Shoko Tachikawa

Cajsa Lilliehook covers the best in virtual world screenshot art and digital painting

Shoko.Tachikawa is a pose-maker who creates photos to illustrate the poses. They are full of action and movement. I like the “blue period” aesthetic in this photo. Poses are such an integral part of the best SL photography, and I love photos that show them off to their best advantage.

Cajsa’s SL Flickr Pick: The Song-Inspired Screenshots of Cecilia Nansen

Cajsa Lilliehook covers the best in virtual world screenshot art and digital painting

I love “Leaving New York” by Cecilia Nansen. The light leak overlaid over the black and white photo adds so much light and ambiance to this winter photo. With the trees, the sidewalk, and the buildings, we have three leading lines converging on a point in the distance. I love how the snowflakes are so much like the tree lights, it seems as though light is falling from the sky.

Cajsa's SL Flickr Pick: Nath Baxton Brings Pop Art Sensibility to Virtual Fashion Photos

Cajsa Lilliehook covers the best in virtual world screenshot art and digital painting

Nath Baxton brings Pop Art to fashion blogging and it’s pure genius. His “125” cracks me up. After all, how do people put those pants on? You get a clear photo of the avatar combined with Pop Art sensibility and even a big can of laughter. Note, too, how each panel reflects the other, with the same colors and circles, but presented differently.