For three years, Toronto Canada area photographer, Diane Wilson, wanted a Scene Machine Virtual Backgrounds system, but her limited finances and the negative comments made by other professional photographers kept it only a distant dream. “They told me it didn’t work and to stay away from it. How wrong they were!” The images displayed here are from her first four days of operation. These clearly show that the Scene Machine works extremely well.For three years, she developed her unique style based on using sets and doing extensive digital work. All of her work was of children with various handicaps. She produced the work for charity and non-profit organizations. She worked out of a converted garage and on location, but her health condition limited her location work.
Finally Diane decided to try to make a profit with her photography. She rented a 15′ x 18′ booth space with peg board walls in a local indoor flea market. The new location also was her motivation to finally get her Scene Machine. She made a special agreement with VB Canadian consultant, Patrick Riley to help her install it and Diane was off and running with her new system!
”I have so many things in my head. I can’t wait to go forward. I am an artist and I want to do paintings and turn them into backgrounds. This is so exciting. I want to do every fairytale. I want to do little boy blue. I need enchanted backgrounds. Realistic is not my style. I already have people driving an hour or more to come for a sitting.”
This is really exciting! There are no words to explain my feelings about the Scene Machine and the freedom it has given me! I have no more worry about trying to steam muslins. I have more backgrounds than I can imagine!”
Diane makes all of her own costumes except for the wings which are made by Tammy Henderson at Enchanted Costumes. Diane uses several small props and even though she is confined to the 15 x 18 foot area, she estimates that she already has 20-30 different sets, all because she can change backgrounds using her background library slides. She gets her props from the flea market, yard sales, thrift stores and antique sales. She has no polystyrene sets because she doesn’t have the space.
Diane gives special credit to Pennsylvania Scene Machine photographer, April Helsel of Keepsakes Studio for providing her with background images to help get her started. Diane reports that because of her limited mobility from MS, her Scene Machine system is even more important to her because it’s difficult to go on location.
Diane says, “The outdoors is not art. I want to create my own complete settings. I think about my work long and hard and then transform the everyday environment into artwork. Some day I am hoping to publish a story book of children’s fantasy photographs.”
“Using my Scene Machine, I can take the same slide and use it so many different ways. The slide is only a paint brush – it is a tool. It is like giving all the students in an art class the same materials and everyone comes up with something different. This is great!”
Diane Wilson has two websites, one that focuses on her non-profit work (www.fairytalesofhope.com) and her new business venture site Until Dawn (www.untildawn.com).
We predict that you will be hearing a lot about Diane Wilson in the future. She has energy, she has enthusiasm, she has ability, and now she has a better way to display that ability with her Scene Machine.
Diane clearly represents a major reason we are so enthusiastic about the Scene Machine, helping photographers become more creative, more efficient, and more profitable.
Diane’s story is really special. Being a professional photographer was not in her plan. She was a partner in a furniture company and bought a D1X digital camera to document the furniture they were making. Some unexpected twists in the road, including being diagnosed with MS, changed all that. She got out of the furniture business and since she already owned a camera, and with training in art, Diane decided to become a professional photographer.