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 

[fatimamummy]

Thank you so much @itsfi  I am glad how well it all worked out and yes it is a bluish black flower shaped dish that I mostly use to keep small jewelry

[itsfi]

Last but not least for the November Photograph Challenge - Fragrance

Photo Details:

Spoiler

Product(s):	Tom Ford Private Blend Eau de Parfum Mini Decanter Discovery Gift Set (consists of 0.4 oz. decanters of  TOM FORD Bitter Peach Eau De Parfum TOM FORD Rose Prick Eau de Parfum Fragrance TOM FORD Lost Cherry Eau de Parfum Fragrance)
Camera:	iPhoneX
Background:	Table
Prop(s):	Used the box for the trio as a prop, along with cream colored knit throw, journal with a black & white herringbone print
Other Material:	Faux sprig of greenery with individual blooms sprinkled about
Lighting:	Natural, indirect lighting
Editing:	None

This is one of my favorite purchases of the year and shot. Thank you @Samtian for this challenge. To say it's amazing is an understatement. I've learned and continue to learn so much here. 💖

[Saradestin]

You always amaze me with your gorgeous pictures @itsfi ! ❤️❤️❤️

[itsfi]

@Saradestin, thank you for your always kind and encouraging words. 😘 I'm getting to combine two things I'm interested in through BIC and this thread - beauty products and photography! It's a definite win-win for me. 💖

[Saradestin]

Win-win for you and for us @itsfi , because we get to enjoy your gorgeous pictures!

[Samtian]

@itsfi This picture and everything makes me so happy! Such a beautiful purchase!

[itsfi]

Awww thank you @Samtian! This one was a fun one to set up and shoot. 😃 The final finish came out close to what I had in my mind for the shot. Yaaay!

[fatimamummy]

Your TomFord collection is beautiful @itsfi I love this photo and the casual but luxe vibes it gives.

[itsfi]

Thank you @fatimamummy! I'm making an effort to mix up my layouts more and experimenting with blending different looks - casual and luxe, staged arragements of products and more natural ones ... or maybe less staged 😂. 

[Titian06]

Very pretty, @itsfi ! 🥰

[itsfi]

@Titian06, thank you! These TF mini decanters are so fun - I didn't want to pass up an opportunity to take a photo of them.

[itsfi]

November Photography Challenge - Fragrance

Black & White or Color?

I love black and white photography but don't really do much of it. Inspired by the color and black and white photos that the fabulous @fatimamummy posted, I thought I'd give it a try with a couple of fragrances, to see the effect created by each

Killian (head on shot):

Kilian (angled shot):

Photograph Details: 

Spoiler

Product(s):	KILIAN Paris Mini Perfume Discovery Set (this is such a beautiful set!)
Camera:	iPhoneX
Background:	Table
Prop(s):	None
Other Material:	None
Lighting:	(1) black & white shot - used "mono" setting on phone; (2) color photo taken with indirect light, mid-morning
Editing:	Zoomed in, cropped at  top of photo to level out box

Byredo (flat lay):

Photo Details:

Spoiler

Product(s):	Byredo Eyes Closed
Camera:	iPhoneX
Background:	Table
Prop(s):	Flower garland
Other Material:	None
Lighting:	(1) color photo taken with indirect light, mid-afternoon (2) black & white shot - used "mono" setting on phone
Editing:	None

[Saradestin]

It is such a pleasure to the senses to enjoy your art @itsfi ! 😍

[itsfi]

So well said @Saradestin! Thank you! 💗

[fatimamummy]

These are awesome @itsfi  I also love black & White and if it was upto me most of my photo would be some tone of grey or B&W

[itsfi]

Thank you @fatimamummy! 😀 I don't know what it is exactly, but there's something about the look and feel of B&Ws that grabs my attention from the start. Oh grey tones?! It would be fascinating to see how changes in the greyscale of a photo changes its overall ambiance of the frame. 

[Samtian]

@itsfi I love those black and whites! I want that discovery set lol. 

[itsfi]

@Samtian, I love seeing B&Ws; I really should do them more. It was fun to be able to do the same shot in color and then again in black and white. Seeing the photos next to each other when I scroll through the pics on my camera phone was great - made me look at the photographs in a more detailed way. Gave me a lot to think about (and work on for another day)! Thank you, thank you! Love this thread samtian ❣️

[Samtian]

@itsfi You can have so much fun with black and whites! There are so many different kinds to try.

[Samtian]

In February I was at a photography workshop/get together thing. And one of my all time favorite photographers was there. In his area of shooting he was over, he had us all switch our cameras to mono mode. He personally shoots it like that, so he isn't distracted by colors but just focuses on highlights, shadows, and tones. It threw so many people off. It was a challenge for sure! Of course when you upload them to your computer they are in color though. 

[itsfi]

Whoa! That sounds so cool @Samtian! I loved that you were able to take part in a session that one of your favorite photographers was leading / overseeing. How great was that?!!! So happy for you. What a fabulous challenge he had you do - I can see how that could throw people off. But what great lessons to be learned about all those things you mentioned - highlight, shadows, tones. I did start thinking more about those things when comparing these B&W shots with the color photos. Didn't necessarily think about those things before too much before; I'm usually just focused on getting a shot in before something rolls off the table or making sure the top part of my shoe doesn't end up in a place in the frame where I can't easily crop it out. hahaha! But now it'll be something I consider when setting up for a shot.