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 with Jasmine, Tuberose, and Neroli 1 oz/ 30 mL 

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

[Samtian]

@danielledanielle 😄 thank you!!!!

[Titian06]

Beautiful, @Samtian ! 🥰  You definitely achieved "soft and romantic-y"! 💖💖💖

[Samtian]

@Titian06 Thank you! ❤️

[itsfi]

@Samtian, this is beautiful.♥️  If you were going for soft and romantic, you most definitely achieved it with this photo. I love the additional items you used and their placement - they all add to the look and help to showcase the gorgeous highlighter! 😍

[Samtian]

@itsfi Thank you so much!!

[itsfi]

This was a photo I posted to the hauls thread a few weeks ago. I liked how the light reflected off the product. 

Photo Details: 

Spoiler

Product:	Victoria Beckham Beauty Reflect Highlighter Stick - Pearl
Camera:	iPhone X
Background:	Table top
Prop(s):	Product box
Other Material:	None
Lighting:	Natural; window to the right of the product. About 90 minutes before sunset.
Editing:	Rotated photo so that it’s upright and cropped.

[Sunnysmom]

Love this @itsfi ! Gorg. 

[itsfi]

Thank you @Sunnysmom! The highlighter stick and sunlight did all the work, really. Loving this VBB highlighter stick - it truly does “reflect” the light. 😃 That was really noticeable based on your swatch of it compared to mine on other threads. However the light catches it produces a pretty highlight but it’s fun that it reflects differently depending on how the light hits it. 

[Sunnysmom]

Def true @itsfi ! She’s a sneaky little one, this Reflect! 🤩

[itsfi]

@Sunnysmom😂🤣😂

[tsavorite]

@itsfi ,

The reflected light is beautiful!   Good capture!

[itsfi]

Thank you @tsavorite! 😃 I lucked out! Which is sometimes how it goes, isn’t it? 

[Saradestin]

Such a beautiful photo @itsfi ! 😍😍😍

[itsfi]

Thank you @Saradestin! 😁 I'm slowly getting in some time to take photos - it's a nice creative outlet for me. 

[Titian06]

Very pretty, @itsfi ! 💖💖💖

[itsfi]

Thank you @Titian06! 😁 It's been a lot of fun for me to see everyone's photos and to try different techniques.

[Samtian]

@itsfi This is really pretty! I also love the light reflection!

[itsfi]

Thank you so much @Samtian! 💖 I really do find lighting to be so important for me when it comes to my own shots. 

[Samtian]

July is highlighter month! It's been a super busy non-stop month for me, mom had surgery and I have been taking care of her, work, work work, sickness, and more editing ha! I am hoping to get a few done in the next week or so!

[Sunnysmom]

Thinking about you @Samtian ! 💞

[Samtian]

@Sunnysmom Thank you!