A Year of Beauty- Photography Challenge- Year 2

[Samtian]

September/October is here so break time is over!

Time to start with some fundamentals. Photography has it's own set of "rules". Which of course are meant to be broken, but it's really helpful to know some basics. Starting with the rule of 3rds in composition. What you do is place your subject on one of the "imaginary" lines that cut a photo into thirds ( 9 sections). I do this rule often, but sometimes parents don't like it in their pictures and want the subjects centered. Included is images with the lines showing. Just basic set up so you can see it. One of the easiest ways to get something on one of the lines is to crop it down. When you crop an image you usually get the lines that show up, using those lines tells you where the "thirds" are, and just line your subject up with one of them. 

If you want to get really technical I encourage you to look up the Golden Ratio and learn about it. It has many names and it is way too mathematical for my brain to comprehend. To my knowledge I don't think I have ever taken a golden ratio image. I have golden triangle but not ratio. Check it out! photoworkout dot com/golden-ratio-photography/  

Hopefully you can see the lines...I should have thought it out and used a dark background. 

What a great first year we had!! Even if I dropped the ball sometimes! I decided to change things up this year with the themes. They will be a little more challenging this year.

2023-

April- DOF 2 images.

May- Flash/Artificial Light.

June- What you see vs. What I see

July- Break

August- Break

September/October- Rule of 3rds.

2022 challenges-

April- Lipstick

May- Eye Shadow

June- Primer/Foundation/Concealer/CC/BB

July- Highlighters

August- Brushes

September- Sheet Masks

October- Hair Care

November- Fragrance

December- Nail Polish

January- Blush/Bronzer

February- Candles/Wax Melts/ Diffusers

The challenge and "rules"-

1. Flat lays and staged photos only. I'll post examples below. But no faces or people allowed in your photos. (Though you can include photographs).

2. All photos you take must be your own. 

3. Post as many images as you want, you have a whole month to get creative with each theme. Post one, post everyday, doesn't matter.

4. Let's talk gear and products! Tell us about your image. List the products and colors, talk to us about your concept and how it came to be, taken with your phone or DSLR? 

Here are some helpful reads- digital-photography-school dot com/flat-lay-photography/  and digital-photography-school dot com/tips-for-getting-started-with-still-life-photography/

Here are some of my example images I've taken in the past-

Gucci Bloom Eau De Toilette 1 oz/ 30 mL 

Floral Street Sunflower Pop Eau De Parfum Travel Spray 0.34 oz/ 10 mL 

[Samtian]

@fatimamummy Glad you are back! 

[itsfi]

Welcome back @fatimamummy! Time off is great but it always feels like you need more of it after getting settled back into your pre-vacay routine! 😆 You've been missed!!! So happy to *see* you!

[nadnaddy]

This is one of my favorite sheet mask brands. I love the smell, it is not too strong but just makes me really relax from my stressful week. I don't know why I just love using sheet masks maybe because we can try many type/brand in a month. how about you guys?

[Anjaliaulak28]

Love the glow recipe drops 

[CynthieLu]

Beautiful pictures @nadnaddy

Masking really is a special time to unwind and this photo hits than peaceful serene vibe  ☮️ 💗 love it!

[itsfi]

@nadnaddy, it's always great to have a mask on hand to relax and unwind. 😊 The not-overwhelming lavendar scent just elevates that experience - aromatherapy, truly. Your background and layout looks so relaxing too! 

[Samtian]

@nadnaddy I love seeing all the different like thousands of masks there are! Great image and choices!

[itsfi]

I've used different mediums to collect my thoughts on sheet masks that I've used over the years - Excel, post-it notes that I've meant to transfer into a spreadsheet or Word doc, and most recently, a journal, which I've used on occasion to track my daily skincare routine, or as here, to just focus on sheet masks. Most of these photos are from last year's sheet masking, but I see one that I haven't gotten around to posting on the mask thread. Note to self! 😆 All photos taken with my iPhone X, at various times during the day. 

[hunterbloodhp]

love the hand written! looking like a true calligrapher there 

[Titian06]

@itsfi - Your pics are great as always! 💖💖💖  This time I find your post intriguing--that you can use masks regularly.  I've tried different kinds of masks and all of them made me feel like I was suffocating. 😄🤷‍♀️. I'm glad you love them so much! 🙂

[itsfi]

@Titian06, thank you. Your feelings about sheet masks being suffocating is not uncommon. It may be more work than it's worth for you, but have you tried taking a sheet mask, cutting it half so there's a top half and a bottom half? Or even vertically so there's a right half and a left half? Just thinking aloud here and wondering if that might resolve or at least help to alleviate the feeling of suffocating. 

[Titian06]

@itsfi - Now that's an idea, cutting in half horizontally.  I can visualize myself using a mask that way.  Maybe I'll pick out something during the F&F sale to experiment with...🤔  Thanks for the idea!

[Samtian]

@itsfi I love when you include your notes! It's always so fun to see. 

[itsfi]

Awww, thank you @Samtian! This thread has been fun - it's great to see everyone's set up and I always find myself learning a lot when folks share their inspiration or thought process behind a photo. So a "thank you" right back at ya for creating this space for folks to learn from the sidelines or by jumping into the mix. 💖 

[nadnaddy]

wow, thats a lot of sheet mask 😍.

[itsfi]

@nadnaddy, yep; sheet masks are a part of my skincare / self care routine, usually once per week, at least.

[SurprisedLemur]

A green masking sesh inspired by @itsfi  🙂

 

[Samtian]

@SurprisedLemur Oh that is so fun!!! how do you like the mask?

[SurprisedLemur]

It was very nice and refreshing @Samtian ! I like the tonymoly masks in general because they're generous with the serum 👌

[nadnaddy]

I see tony moly's sheet mask. it brings a lot of memory from my teenage year. one of my old time fav 😍

[itsfi]

Yes to greens @SurprisedLemur! 💚 Such great green tie-ins for your layout. I'm jelly - your plant looks happy and thriving!