Movies That Feature Stained Glass

We love movies and we love stained glass. It just makes sense to find movies that feature stained glass windows. When ever we are watching a show we always point out all the awesome glass windows. We wonder which ones are real and which ones are sugar glass. Either way they are fun to point out. 

 This movie is "Young Sherlock Holmes". The knight comes right out of the window and starts attacking. It was a pretty cool visual effect. 

 In the movie "Burglar" Whoopie Goldberg and her sidekick meet at Merlin McFly's bar although the name was changed for the movie. The windows are amazing. 

 Marvel's TV show "Cloak and Dagger" features many stained glass windows in an abandoned church. They aren't very religious. 

 "The House With a Clock In It's Walls" has  several windows that move and change.

 "Doctor Strange" features a huge glass window that is also used in the trailer. 

 In "Harry Potter" there was a mermaid window that stole the scene. 

 Our favorite movie with stained glass is "The Santa Clause 2" We liked it so much that we made our own interpretation of one of the windows in Santa's workshop.

 Here is the workshop. I could work here. 

This scene in Disney's version of "Hunchback of Notre Dame" gets me every time. I have basked in the colors of a stained glass window and it's pretty dramatic. 

I hope you have enjoyed our movie memorabilia about stained glass windows. I know there are hundreds of others. If you know of others, let me know. We might need a reason for a movie marathon. 

We are all made of stardust

"We are stardust, we are golden, and we have to get ourselves back to the garden." Joni Mitchell sang the Crosby Stills and Nash song about going to Woodstock with pizzazz. I was taken by the phrase "We are stardust" because it is true. We really are made from billion year old carbon. I can lose myself while gazing up into the night sky just allowing myself to be a part of the universe and realizing all that is possible to learn. While exploring the meaning of life, the time of man and the what it means to get back to the garden,  I find myself designing all kinds of stars.
Just today I took a batch of mini stars out of the kiln. I love the variety of colors and the way they change as the heat melts them.

10 Glass Photo Tips, Learning By Doing

Learning to photograph glass is a trial and error activity. I know there are rules about ISO and aperture settings when you have a nice camera. What if you are shooting with your phone? It's still a valid photo and it gets the point across. As a matter of fact I have seen some awesome phone photos so do what you can with what you've got. We are still learning.
There are some tips that everyone can benefit from.

1. get out the glass cleaner and polish till it sparkles. Dust shows up.

2. Use a tripod. I'm pretty stable but sometimes a sneeze will sneak up on me.

3. Try lighting from different angles. Stained glass has a different look when lit from in front and behind. Both can be pretty dramatic. Even side lighting can look good.

4. Stage your glass in various settings. I have played with black or white backdrops, natural settings and installed windows.

5. Use the reflection to your advantage. I like when the glass reflects the light. It shows up the texture.

6. It's okay to have people in your photos. There is a personal touch when the artist or owner is smiling with pride while holding their masterpiece.

7 Stage on different surfaces. I have shot on a white marble table top that looked great. Out in the grass might be just what shows off your piece.

8. You don't always have to shoot straight on. Sometimes an aerial view, side view or even from underneath can be super fun.

9. Try shooting just a portion of the window for a different effect.

10. The best advice is to use your imagination.

The more you practice, the more you'll learn and the more you'll succeed. And don't be afraid to take many pictures, you can take a dozen bad ones and then get one that's gold and nobody has to know that you took a picture of your finger, or it was blurry...they'll just love the one you show!