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Meet Deb: Photographer of the Highland Cattle
One of the things that we are very proud of as a small business is our range of exclusive artwork.
We work with artists to find unique designs to transform into painting kits for our wonderful community. Today’s artist is both.
Meet Deb, who won a competition in our Paint Plot Facebook Community Group to submit an original photo. Deb won a Paint Plot Membership for her wonderful photo and we caught up with her to learn a little more about the image and her life.
Can you tell us a little bit about yourself?
I am a specialist teacher and support students that have English as a second language. I was born and bred in Brisbane and still live there today. I love this city, but love exploring other cities in Australia and around the world. I have family in NSW and Tassie so find myself visiting regularly. I am particularly fond of Tassie and love it so much that we chose it as the location for our wedding last year.
Have you done a lot of travel overseas?
I discovered the joy of travel late in life and didn’t travel anywhere really until I was in my 40s. After a brief visit to Fiji, I packed up the kids and travelled for 6 weeks around the UK and a few European countries. Since then, I have well and truly been bitten by the travel bug. I have travelled to France, Italy, Greece, Austria, Spain, Africa, Hawaii, NZ, and Vanuatu. When I am not travelling, I am usually planning my next trip!
The highland cow image was taken in Scotland. What year was it taken?
One of my favourite places to visit is Scotland. I have been there twice and am planning on returning there this June. It was on my last trip to Scotland in 2018, celebrating my 50th birthday, that I took the photo of the highland cow. I was determined to get a photo of a ’hairy coo’ as they call them over there. So, when we arrived on the Isle of Skye and I saw several of them grazing in a paddock, I pulled over, jumped out of the car and ran alongside the fence trying to capture the perfect shot. They can actually move quite fast when they want to! I love the image I managed to get.
Do you do a lot of photography? Do you have any other hobbies?
I invested in a decent camera so that I could take beautiful photos of my travels. I am still learning how to use all the functions on the camera, but it does take a lovely picture. You see, one of my other hobbies is scrapbooking. I love to scrapbook all the photos of my travels. At any given time, I usually have about 6 scrapbooks on the go. The two hobbies tie in very nicely together. (I have attached a pic of the scrapbooking page I made for the highland cow photo).
Do you do any other arts and crafts besides paint by numbers?
I guess I would call myself a creative person. I am always trying my hand at creating things and find great joy in it. Over the years I have taken classes in watercolour painting, life drawing and pencil sketching. I can’t remember how I stumbled across Paint Plot, but I think it was during covid restrictions. I was surprised at how much I enjoyed the process. Having previously done watercolour, I thought I would find PBN too restrictive, but I found it very relaxing and love the end product.
Which paint by number kits are your favourite and which one would you recommend?
I usually purchase kits that remind me of places I have travelled to. So far I have bought Santorini, Old Italian Town, Tropical Island, Amalfi coast (I think), Great Ocean Road and the Devine Deer kit, Joy’s Proteas and my Highland Cow of course! My daughter enjoys doing them too and we usually take our kits with us if we go away for a few days. It’s a nice activity to do together. They also make a great gift idea and I have given several to friends as gifts. I think my favourite so far (I haven’t painted my highland cow yet!), is the Italian Old Town, it looks so realistic when finished. Lots of small cells though, so patience and a magnifying glass are needed!
Are there some designs that you are keen to paint but haven’t done yet?
The next kit I have my eye on is the Italian Beauty kit. It looks like Lake Como to me, and that is one of the destinations on our upcoming trip. The world is an amazing place to explore.
If you could do one thing to change the world, what would it be?
I hope the current situation in Ukraine is resolved soon and peace can return to the region. It breaks my heart to see how their people are suffering. If I could change one thing in the world it would be to end the conflict. War is never the solution.
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