Souvenir Foto School: Day 20 - G for Gradation of Color

My plan this whole month was to photograph something gold for my letter "G" assignment for Souvenir Foto School. But today I awoke to yet another grey and gloomy morning, so I decided instead that I would bring a little brightness into my day with some pretty paint colors. I don't know what it is about melon-hued colors that I love so much, but I really just can't seem to get enough. xo Ez

P.S. Just a quick note of thanks yet again for all of your lovely and supportive comments for my daily photo postings. I can't begin to tell you how much your kind words mean to me. Thank you for brightening my day with your kindness! xo

If you'd like you can also find all my images in individual and diptych form for this month-long class challenge over in my flickr album. | Souvenir Foto School is offered by Besotted Brand.

Color Inspiration Daily: 02. 15. 12

Peachy Mason Jar Floral Arrangement by Sarah Winward of Honey of a Thousand Flowers (via Paige on Pinterest).

Souvenir Foto School: Day 13 - J for Jam

Today I really wanted to work on getting some great shots in camera that didn't "need" post-editing. I find that once you start Photoshopping things it's easy to feel as though nothing is good enough, so for me it's a challenge to allow an image to just be.

I can definitely see things that I could "fix"...such as the giant crease in the fabric in the left-hand shot, but I'm forcing myself to leave it alone (so.very.hard).

Again, the light was really crummy and grey here today, so I photographed these using the same double foam core board bounce set up that I used on Saturday's images. It really does wonders for a photo. For those of you who are more visual (like I am) I also thought it would be nice to actually show you how I've been using the foam core board to bounce light into my photos. Here's the fancy-schmancy set up (photographed with my iPhone):

I like to have my photos back lit a lot of the time, so I have this little makeshift photo board (just a board painted white) sitting in front of my office window that I use as my "table." My camera faces the window and I place my foam core board in a V facing out from it so that it bounces the window light straight back into the shot and takes out the heavy shadows. I also have half of my window covered in waxed paper to soften the light a bit (I'm sure my neighbors think I'm nuts). Here's what the photo looks like with and without the boards (there was no editing done to either photo, and I used the same settings on my camera for both shots):

Tip: Click on the image to see it larger in a pop-up window.

Credit: I first learned this bounce trick from Nicole of Nicole's Classes (using one board). And btw, if you are ever looking for an online photo course to better yourself I can't recommend it enough! Super awesome and fun!

Prop notes: The little blue spoon was part of a Sugar set from Anthropologie and was given to me by my friend Melis, and the blue "napkin" is a piece of folded fabric. Foam core boards are available in craft and office supply stores for a couple dollars a piece.

If you'd like you can also find all my images in individual and diptych form for this month-long class challenge over in my flickr album. | Souvenir Foto School is offered by Besotted Brand.

Color Inspiration Daily: 02. 09. 12

Bicycles Art Print by Ekaterina Trukhan. Find more in her etsy shop, blog and portfolio.

Souvenir Foto School: Day Six - A for Anatomy of an Alstroemeria

So I ended up skipping day five of the Foto School challenge yesterday. It was my daughter's birthday and I just couldn't bear to make her wait around while I tried to set up a photo set for the day. So anyhow I'm back on track today and am excited to share these beautiful flowers that my daughter bought me on her birthday (yesterday). She surprised me by taking up the same tradition that I have for giving my Mom flowers on my birthday. So incredibly sweet (I might have cried a little bit)!

These pretty blooms are called Alstroemeria. They actually remind me a lot of lilies...but they don't make me sneeze in the same way (thank goodness). I decided that it would be interesting to first show them in their usual form, and then take a shot of them in their disassembled "anatomical" state. I really love the second shot, and am excited to have nearly completed one week of Foto school. Woohoo!

If you'd like you can also find all my images in individual and diptych form for this month-long class challenge over in my flickr album. | Souvenir Foto School is offered by Besotted Brand.