A Year of Beauty- Photography Challenge- Year 2

[Samtian]

May- Flash/Artificial Light! Pop-up flash, on camera, off camera, light boxes, flash from your cell phone, and on and on! There are so many ways to light an image beyond the natural sunlight. Flash can help you take pictures during anytime of day, even at night. Flash is something I've been trying to learn myself. Right now the pop-up/harsh/paparazzi type of flash is having it's moment in wedding/couples photography. 

For on and off camera flashes there are a lot of different things called modifiers that help control the light so to speak. You can also use things like reflectors (tin foil, those things you put in your car windshield during the day, a white paper board etc.) to help bounce light and make it more even, you can use sheets to diffuse the light to make it not so harsh as well. I know a lot just use cell phones, so you can also use like a lamp or flashlight to make light, and use a sheet of reflector to help. You can get really creative with this! I was reading that there does appear to be some flashes you can connect to your cell phone as well. 

So the task! Create your images with artificial light! No matter how you do it, or what you use, don't just depend on available light like the sun or your lighting in the house (though it's artificial that's too easy). I'll be posting mine shortly. backlightblog  dot com/flash-photography-on-iphone

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.

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

I've been thinking for a while now about creating a challenge. And why not mix my two favorite things in life!? Beauty and photography. As some of you know I am a photographer on the side. But my creativity for things like this are horrible! Each month we will have a different theme, and your challenge is to incorporate the theme into a creative photo!

This challenge is going to be a little different, because you won't be creating looks! Starting in April, but I'd love to get your input and if this is something you would be interested in participating in. I thought about doing prizes and voting, we can still vote for the best if you guys want. But with all the legal jargon needed for prizes I decided I didn't want to mess with that. I might send  unicorn mail throughout to those who participate often though 😼 PS- They make for great filler posts on your social media too. And active participation in the forum, reviews, and gallery ( don't forget to post your challenge photos there too!) can possibly help your chances of getting gratis...like those two beautiful perfumes I got as a gratis below *wink wink*.  

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 eau de toilette spray 

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

[Margalee]

@Samtian love the idea of this challenge! I'll have to give one of these a try! 

[Samtian]

@Margalee We'd love to have you!

[Buootiful]

May- Flash/Artificial Light!

Flash: I like how it covers up the reflections on  the mirror like surfaces of the products.

I usually take a test picture to see what points the flash will bounce off of unflatteringly.  Then I start moving the phone around to get the best shot. I think I avoided the harshness of this light so that it didnt cover the Rare Beauty lettering. I know its not the best tone but it makes the objects clearer. What do you think? @Samtian 

Flash

Artificial light from several feet away: It gives a true color of the composition but  you can see other objects in the caps of the bronzer and blush. Also, the font on the packaging isn't as sharp as in the flash photo. 

 

[sister13]

Nice job! I like the lighting on the lettering! @Buootiful 

[Buootiful]

Thank you! @sister13 

[itsfi]

Nice show of the contrast in these photos @Buootiful. 📸 That’s a smart approach to taking photos.

[Buootiful]

Awww, thanks! 😘 @itsfi 

[Samtian]

@Buootiful I think you did great! I love how you tried different angles and really thought about it. I love that glow it gives on the reflective surfaces!

[Buootiful]

Thank you, Master! 😘 @Samtian 

[itsfi]

Flash / Artificial Light - May 2023 Photography Challenge

I’ve been out of town, primarily for work, but on one recent trip, I tacked on an additional day to play. Decided to try another shot with artificial lighting in my hotel room. This time with some of my travel skincare beauties. 💜 

Natural light (blinds open, morning) 

Artificial Lighting (from lamp) (blinds drawn, early evening)

I love shooting with natural light. In the winter months when it gets dark earlier, I don’t have many opportunities to take photos when it’s light outside so this winter, I had the chance to learn more about shooting with artificial lights. It took me a while to get the hang of it, how shadows interplay with the lighting, etc. 

Here, the lighting from the lamp helped to illuminate and make more clear the brand name on the cream cleanser and the cream, but made the writing on the cleansing oil (white bottle) less easy to read. 

[Buootiful]

Nice comparison shots! It would be tough for me to decide which one to post. The natural ight highlights the middle product and you know exactly what it is. On the other hand, I like how the Tatcha  name shows more prominently and draws attention to brand of Tatcha, in the artificial light . @itsfi 

[sister13]

Nice pic, thanks for sharing both! I keep wanting to take a pic with flash, but the phone won’t trigger the flash because it just takes the low light pic, haha. @itsfi 

[Samtian]

@itsfi Great job testing! It's sure fun to see the differences between the two!

[itsfi]

Thank you @Samtian! Seeing the contrast between different light sources has been fun.

[Titian06]

This is interesting, @itsfi !  It's like when I search for swatches online.  Which picture shows the **real** color?  That was the first thing I noticed, anyway. 😄  

[itsfi]

@Titian06, it’s funny because sometimes my camera autocorrects color and it’s not always entirely accurate 😆 much like when my phone autocorrects what I’m writing at times. Lol. 

[itsfi]

Flash / Artificial Light - May 2023 Photography Challenge

Okay, I took a few different shots (of the same product) using different forms of artificial lighting. All photos taken with my iPhone X. Editing involved cropping the frame at the sides or bottom of the photo, and including a note in the lower right hand corner to identify the lighting used for the photo. These were all taken generally around the same time, starting approximately 10 minutes before sunset.

For comparison purposes, here's a photo of the product(s) in natural, indirect, indoor lighting. 

Photos taken in natural light (indirect) with various tools (I don't know, are they called tools?) that came preloaded with the camera on my iPhone.

Artificial light - fluorescent lighting 

Artificial light - LED 

It was interesting to see these photos next to each other @Samtian, and as I was taking them. This time around I was focused on getting the shot and noting what lighting and tools I used. I'm planning on trying this again and will try to remember to note my initial impressions after taking the particular shot. 

[Samtian]

@itsfi I really really like how the fluorescent and LED ones turned out!! Great job! I've been sick last two weeks, everyone at work has been knocked down, so I'm going to do mine next week. 

[itsfi]

Thank you @Samtian! It’s been a good challenge for me to see how lighting changes the look of the same product. 👍🏼 

Oh no, I’m so sorry to hear you’ve been sick and your coworkers too. 🤒 I hope you are getting a lot of rest and liquids. Chicken soup does wonders, but I can see how having it for 2 weeks might get just a little tiring. Feel better! 

[Titian06]

Interesting photo project, @itsfi !  Each one seems to invoke a different mood (mood lighting?). 💡