It’s really been a thrill the past few months to see that a few photographers on Flickr have asked permission to take my photos and rework them into their own stuff… but this one takes the cake!

~American Virus Graffiti~

Photo collage by Lancelonie

This image was made by Lancelonie on Flickr. When she asked me if she could use something of mine for a photo idea she had, she really didn’t specify exactly what she was going to do. She ended up using a sketch I made while playing around in Corel Painter. Thing is, this particular sketch has special meaning to me. It was the first image I ever uploaded to Flickr.

I can’t shake the feeling that what I’m doing is a bit self serving. I like to be creative for pleasure… or maybe salvation. As a person in recovery I’m beginning to believe that the time I’ve spent alone making little drawings, or now taking pictures, has been a form of therapy, an inverse reflection of the years I spent in self destruction. Anyway, seven months ago I decided to share my therapy with the rest of you. ‘Boy With Red Hood And Star Goggles’ is the first image I posted to this blog (~ americanvirus presents ~).

I have to say, this has been a wonderful experiment so far. The last seven months have kept me very busy learning more about photography, and becoming more and more motivated to create. I can’t believe how many friends I’ve made on line in such a short amount of time, and I really want you to know that you guys continually challenge me to stay creative and completely inspire me with your work.

BTW, Here’s the original drawing.

~boy with red hood and star goggles on~

And this was it’s inspiration.

~Son of Rambo (the movie)~

I love that movie.

Make Believe. Not War.