Showstopper
copyright 2008 by Michelle P. Henry

I make art using fractals. Many people, when I say that, look at me strangely or curiously, and ask, "What's a fractal?" Remembering a time not so very long ago when I had no idea what fractals were, myself, I try to boil it down to the most basic of explanations; this means simply responding, "It's art from math.". And then I go on to elaborate a bit, though I don't want to get too complex with my response, since I really don't want to alienate anyone who might otherwise be truly interested in learning more about it. Since there's still a great deal that I myself don't understand about how the formulas and algorithms really work (and honestly, it's not really necessary to know all that, unless you're interested in writing formulas), I don't try to give a long, drawn-out dissertation on the history of fractals to anyone, ever. That being said, I won't do it here, either, but will refer you to some other sites that do explain it, if you'd like to know the particulars and nitty gritty of all that. I just tell others that, fortunately for me and others interested in making fractal art, it's not necessary to know how to do the math! Believe me, I don't even get along with algebra, much less calculus, trigonometry, and complex functions! And those last three items listed are certainly (at least as I understand it) involved in the writing of fractal formulas and algorithms! Basically, I see the men and women who write these formulas as mathematical geniuses, whether they themselves believe that, or not! But a lack of knowledge of "higher math" should never stop anyone from making fractal art; not knowing the math should never scare anyone into staying away from the beauty to be found in fractals!

A General Overview of Gradents/Coloring Fractals
Now, gradients, or color palettes, are very important in fractal art, and this is a point which I would underscore more than a few times over. Why? Simply because I've learned, through much experience, that the right coloring can either make, or break, a piece of fractal art. I've learned that it's possible, for example, to make a piece look "3D", and fairly solid, as if you could just reach out and pick up the item or individual pieces you see within the fractal--and that only by having the gradient "tweaked" just right! I always make my own gradients (and any good fractal program will allow you to do so) in the program I use (Ultra Fractal--more on the various programs used for making fractal art later). After my initial foray into UF, and a bit of figuring things out and finding out how to work with the gradient editor, I began always, with very, very few exceptions, making my own gradients--my own color palettes. This was because I wanted to be able to totally control the colors I used, and to be able to honestly say that, "Yes, that's completely my own doing!"--and of course, what artist doesn't want to be able to take the credit for their work? *grin* I can't take credit for writing the formulas, but I sure can honestly say that the gradients are all my own effort!

Besides--doing the colors myself, and continually learning how to better "tweak" (make small changes in) the colors in the gradient editor, has really taught me a great deal that I wouldn't have necessarily learned otherwise. But the tricks I've learned as to coloring have made all the difference in much of my fractal art; before I learned how to do any of the fancier things, such as masking, I figured out how to do some wonderful things simply by using various coloring tweaks! And again, a policy of "no fear" is the order of the day--you can't be afraid to experiment with the gradient editor! If you tweak the colors and then find you've messed it up, there's always the "control z" function--just undo it, and start over! There's much more I could say on coloring, but this is just a very general introduction, so I'll save the rest for later!

Tweaking the Parameters: A Small Introduction
Now we come to a subject that often strikes fear into the heart of those new to fractal art--tweaking the parameters! This is such a broad subject, and so involved, that some trepidation is really understandable here; however, again I must say that fear will get you nowhere! There are, it's true, about a "bazillion" (well, not really, but you get the idea!) parameters with which to work in some fractal programs, but honestly, to me that's a good thing, not a bad one! That's one of the reasons I love Ultra Fractal so much--it gives you the opportunity to control so many things, to change them and truly make a piece of fractal art that's exactly what you want. In the last paragraph, I talked about tweaking the coloring, tweaking the gradients. This time, though, I'm talking about tweaking the parameters on the parameter tabs--and it depends on which program you're using as to your choices in this.

Now, I did say that you didn't have to understand the math behind fractals in order to make beautiful fractal art, and that's true. When it comes to working with the many available parameters, though, it is a nice thing to understand what such terms as "cos, cosh, abs, cabs, cosine, atan, atanh, and the like, mean. If you don't, don't worry--I still don't have a clue about those, myself, and I've been making fractal art for a little over three years now! It's just that, if you get a hankering to understand those terms, at least a little, you might want to try looking up an explanation for them. I've been planning to do that, but just haven't gotten around to it yet, since I already know it's not actually necessary. But my curiosity is there, so I might just have to go ahead and see what I can find out on the mathematical terms used! But tweaking, or making changes to, parameters, is actually a fun and educational experience; though it does take a bit of patience, it allows you to see the many forms a fractal can take--and believe me, they can take many forms, both amazing and complex! With UF, the simplest thing I've found to do is to just start going through the list of parameters within a certain formula--whatever choices I'm given on the parameters tab, I experiment with them to see what happens. And yes, each formula has its own set of parameters, with some formulas having many more parameters than others. By simply choosing different parameters from the lists, and trying various combinations, I'm able to see what my choices do to the basic fractal formula (the fractal formula with no specific coloring or tweaks--just the basic, plain formula, really), and I can decide what combinations I like, and want to use.

There are specific kinds of parameters, such as outside coloring, inside coloring, mapping, and the like, in Ultra Fractal; there may be other kinds in other programs. As I say, this is an awfully broad topic, and I'm only giving you the briefest of introductions to it. Really, I'm only trying to whet your appetite on the subject, in hopes that you'll want to learn more, and perhaps download a fractal program to try! And again, I will be referring you to other websites via links, so that you can gather more information and do some further research, if you so wish!

Rose Transparent
copyright 2008 by Michelle P. Henry

Really, my site is meant to be an introduction to fractals, aimed at those who truly have no prior knowledge of them, and how they work. I understand well the confusion and curiosity of those folks just finding out about fractals--I remember how I felt when I first got started in them! So if you're looking for technically-minded text, or more complex explanations, you'll need to look up some other sites on fractals and fractal art, as I'm hoping to keep the explanations here fairly simple, yet still giving enough information so that it's possible for those who wish it to download a fractal program, and have some clue as to what to do with it once they've got it! *wise nod* Basically, this is a "welcome to the beautiful world of fractals" site! Here's hoping that, if you're just gathering information, or simply curious, or even already considering trying out a fractal program, you'll find the inspiration and help you need to get started as you read my organized ramblings, lol! I do thank you for reading this far, and hope you'll visit often, and bring a friend along too!

Dance of the Flowers
copyright 2008 by Michelle P. Henry

Fantasy In Blue
copyright 2008 by Michelle P. Henry

Autumn On My Mind
copyright 2008 by Michelle P. Henry