Self Portrait Challenge // week 2 The Mirror Selfie

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WeeklySelfPortraitChallenge

This is a challenge to photograph a self portrait image {or two} every week for the rest of the year. By forcing myself in front of the camera I hope to learn a thing a two about posing my models and clients, and perhaps be creatively inspired to try a few new things that scare me. Click here to see the previous posts.

I am also included all the settings I used to take these photographs, in case are interested in recreating them or want to know more about how I take my photographs. 

Enjoy!

The Mirror Selfie

SelfPortrait

Camera: Nikon d700

Lens: 50mm 1.4D

Settings: ISO 400 Aperture F/1.6 Shutter speed 1/200 sec

Post editing: basic exposure & noise correction in LightRoom

SelfPortrait

Camera: Nikon d700

Lens: 50mm 1.4D

Settings: ISO 400 Aperture F/1.6 Shutter speed 1/200 sec

Post editing: basic exposure & noise correction in LightRoom, black & white conversion

Would you like to join the challenge? No fancy cameras needed. You can even use your phone. This challenge is a fun way to challenge yourself to get in front of the camera, instead of hiding behind it. I'd love for you to join me!

Enjoy the rest of your weekend everyone.

x

Self Portrait Challenge // week 1 double exposure

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CityGirlSearchingPhotographySelfPortrait

Today I was inspired to start a weekly self portrait challenge. This is by no means a way to showcase my face all over this blog, but rather a way to practice portrait photography and try out new techniques and poses (without having to track down a friend and force them to pose awkwardly for me). I love shooting portraits, and am always trying to find new and creative ways to showcase my subjects beauty, so I hope that I can apply the new things I've learnt online so I can share them with you.

I will also be posting what settings I used and whether I did any editing to the photographs so you can try them at home.

Thank you to the lovely Colette & Kristien who inspired me to start this challenge today.

Experimenting with Double & Multiple Exposure

Camera: Nikon d700

Lens: 50mm 1.4D

Settings: ISO 2200, Aperture F/16, Shutter speed 1/200

No post editing

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Camera: Nikon d700

Lens: 50mm 1.4D

Settings: ISO 1250, Aperture F/3.5, Shutter speed 1/1600

No post editing

I learnt so much about double (and multiple) exposure today (thank you to another of my favourite South African bloggers, Emma Jane Nation for further inspiration on this subject).

I created the layering of images in camera, instead of the alternative way of producing these images in Photoshop and was surprised at just how simple it was to do.

If you'd like me to do a tutorial on double exposure, let me know in the comments below. 

Enjoy the rest of your weekend everyone!

x

Photography Styling Challenge {Personal}

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First a little apology, I nearly a week late in posting my photographs for this challenge. This months theme, Personal, is the last instalment in the monthly photography styling challenge created by Redesigned by M. Life just got away with me (doesn't it always) and I am only posting my photographs for this challenge now.

The photographs cannot be edited, and only a maximum of five images may be posted (always difficult for me, as I can never choose which ones I want to display!). My first submission was for Morning {click here} followed by Bedroom {click here}, Order {click here}, Patterns {click here}, Fashion {click here}, Light {click here} and Living Room {click here}. Each theme or concept is open to interpretation by the photographer, and it has been really interesting seeing how each of us have handled the themes in our different ways. 

I wanted to share with you a little more of what I have been doing in my spare time for this personal theme. I met a wonderful new friend (Storm) who shares my passion for photography and beautiful images and we have been meeting up to create styled photography scenes (using our friends as models). We have done two so far (click here to see more of the photographs) and we just finished up a third one last week. This time a late afternoon, beach picnic shoot a short drive from my little town here in South Korea.

I used the following settings on my Nikon d300s & 35mm 1.8 lens:

-ISO 400

-Aperture of 9

-Shutter-speed 1/250

-I had my white balance on shady

The weather was changing constantly while we were shooting, and I wasn't quick enough with my white balance (well actually, I was too distracted with getting my angles and composure just right that I started neglecting my settings). I try not to focus so much on getting my settings 100% correct (some of my photographer friends out there are probably cringing right now!) as I feel touch ups can be done later in an editing program (I use Adobe Lightroom), but creating the actual picture cannot be done at a later stage. Anyway, I plan on editing the images in a slightly different way that is my usual style, this time trying some film textures and edits. So I had this in mind the whole time while shooting, and so I am not that happy with these photographs as they are, raw and unedited. But, it was a lot of fun frolicking in the waves and eating the sandwiches once we had finished shooting.

As always I would love to know your thoughts, please do leave me a comment below.

Enjoy

x

Korean Temple Styled Photoshoot

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Korean Temple Styled Photoshoot by Roxy Hutton of CGScreative-05.png

My friend Storm and I had such a great time creating and styling the flower crown shoot we did a few weeks ago (click here to see the photographs) that we have decided to do another styled shoot. Our next model was a South African girl I met on a rooftop braai a couple of weeks ago, Roslyn.

I really wanted to incorporate something truly Korean into the shoot, so we decided to again shoot here in my small town. This time, at two of the local temples.

Roslyn, you were a pleasure to photograph and I had a wonderful afternoon chasing the light with you and Storm. Thank you for being our model, I hope you (and my readers) like the photographs!

x

We are going to make these styled shoots into something of a series here on the blog, often incorporating DIY elements into them (just like this flower crown). The next shoot is going to have much more of a summery, salty flair so make sure to check back here on the blog soon. I'll also be posting sneak peeks on the Facebook page soon.

Happy Friday everyone!

Photography Styling Challenge {Living Room}

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RedesignedbyMPhotographyStylingChallenge

This months theme for Redesigned by M's Photography Styling Challenge is 'Living Room'. In this challenge the photographs cannot be edited, and only a maximum of five images may be posted. This is always difficult for me as I tend to take so many photographs and I always struggle to choose JUST five. Each one appeals to me in a different way. But, in essence this is exactly the point of the challenge...to better yourself as a photographer and stylist. 

My first submission was for Morning {click here} followed by Bedroom {click here}, Order {click here}, Patterns {click here}, Fashion {click here} and Light {click here}. Each theme or concept is open to interpretation by the photographer, and it has been really interesting seeing how each of us have handled the themes in our different ways. 

As with all the challenges so far, I had high hopes of being able to style my living room in an interesting and unique way, but we are in the middle of moving apartments (and apartments here in Korea are very different from Western ones) the living room becomes the TV room, the kitchen, the dining room, study, craft room and at times, the bedroom. It was really hard to think of a way to style it in a way that aligns with my photography style.

So instead of putting too much pressure on myself, I am using photographs from a styled shoot I did a few weeks ago. My friend and I did a flower crown photo shoot with our beautiful Korean friend {click here to see the photographs} and these photographs are from the actual making of the flower crown which took place in my living room. I will be doing a full DIY post showing you how to make a flower crown, but here are a few highlights from the shoot. 

CityGirlSearchingPhotographyStylingChallengeMicingRoom

The photographs came out a little darker than I had anticipated (and this challenge is all about not editing!) but I quite like the effect they have paired with the rich colours of the flowers and the floor.

I used the following settings on my NIkon d300s & 35mm 1.8 lens:

-ISO 320

-Aperture of 1.8

-Shutter-speed 1/60

-I had my white balance on indoor

I deliberately didn't want to use a flash, but looking back now, if I had a diffuser a flash would have really helped me as it was a cloudy & cold day and there was very little natural light coming in through the windows. But I am happy with how they came out. As always I would love to know your thoughts, please leave me a comment below, I promise to respond! 

Enjoy

x

Make sure to pop on over to the other participants and see how they interpreted this theme:

Redesigned By M, At The Corner Of Happy And Harried, My Food Tapestry, Inge Kathleen Photography, The Delicious World Of Chefette Spicy, A Tree Grows in the Bayou, I Live Under A Rock, Hooked On Homes, Samta Photography, Miss Wang Photography, SimplyVegetarian 777

And a warm welcome  to our newest participant: Coconut Craze

Photography Styling Challenge {LIGHT}

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Photo Styling Challenge

The theme for this months photo styling challenge was Light. I had grand ideas of building a studio, light painting the beautiful cherry blossoms happening here in Korea right now, fairy lights and mason jars but the last few weeks have run away with me and I used what I had at my disposal this morning. This included a new mint green succulent I found at a strawberry festival yesterday, my windowsill, pretty early morning light and a few bamboo shoots.

This is my sixth submission for Redesigned by M's Photography Styling Challenge which she started in June last year. You can see the previous photographs here: Morning, Bedroom, Order, Patterns and Fashion. In this challenge the photographs cannot be edited, and only a maximum of five images may be posted. This is always difficult for me as I tend to take so many photographs and I always struggle to choose JUST five. Each one appeals to me in a different way. But, in essence this is exactly the point of the challenge...to better yourself as a photographer and stylist. 

I chose to use the literal interpretation of light, and catch the early morning rays that come into my little kitchen window. I also wanted to photograph my new 'green' collection of bamboo and succulents, and then thought to myself...plants need light more than anything else to survive. They are the perfect encapsulation of the theme, but also, aren't they pretty!

I used the following settings on my NIkon d300s & 35mm 1.8 lens:

-ISO 250

-Aperture variation of 2.8

-Shutter-speed 500

-I had my white balance on indoor

And for the first time I played around with my exposure (I've never really known exactly what to do with it) and got a glimpse as to how it can lighten certain elements of a photograph. That's the thing with photography, there is always new things to learn, and it's always a fun journey.

Enjoy! x

As always I'd love to hear your thoughts.

Make sure to pop on over to the other participants and see how they interpreted this theme:

Redesigned By M, At The Corner Of Happy And Harried, My Food Tapestry, Inge Kathleen Photography, A Woven Life, The Delicious World Of Chefette Spicy, A Tree Grows in the Bayou, I Live Under A Rock, Hooked On Homes, Samta Photography, Miss Wang Photography

And a warm welcome  to our newest participant: SimplyVegetarian 777

Photography Styling Challenge {Fashion}

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Today is my fifth month contributing to a wonderful photography styling challenge started by Redesigned by M in June last year. 

The photographs cannot be edited, and only a maximum of five images may be posted. This is difficult for me as I tend to take so many photographs and I always struggle to choose JUST five. Each one appeals to me in a different way. But, in essence this is exactly the point of the challenge...to better yourself as a photographer and stylist. One of the biggest challenges for myself this year as a photographer is to shoot with more purpose, and not to just snap away and hope that 1 out of the 400 images i capture comes out exactly as I envision it. So yes, this series has been challenging, but I've learnt a lot about myself as a photographer and about my equipment too. I am very proud of myself to say that I only took 30 pictures for this shoot, I tried to put a lot more thought into each photograph. I had my husband as my model (he didn't enjoy being in front of the camera very much and there was such an icy wind...I had to shoot fast! But I'm very happy with how the photographs came out).

My first submission was for Morning {click here} followed by Bedroom {click here}, Order {click here} and Patterns {click here}. Each theme or concept is open to interpretation by the photographer, and it has been really interesting seeing how each of us has handled the themes in different ways. 

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Here are my five chosen images for this photography challenge. I styled my husband for the shoot, and we went outside into the back streets of our little town here in Korea to make use of the slightly grungy setting juxtaposed against my male model. It was my first time shooting a man (as opposed to my female models) and it was a lot more difficult than I thought it would be. My model didn't enjoy being in front of the camera much, so I had to work quickly and give out as few 'orders' as possible while still guiding him into the right poses that worked with the setting. 

I used the following settings on my NIkon d300s & 35mm 1.8 lens:

-ISO 400

-Aperture variation of 5.6

-Shutter-speed 200

-I had my white balance on cloudy and right at the end for the last two shots I changed it to the indoor setting and suddenly the photos were a lot warmer and more inviting (I kept both to show you the difference, if I had more time I would have shot them all on the indoor white balance setting, but thought it was a good exercise to help me learn more about white balance)

I am starting to include my settings used in this challenge to give you an idea of how you can recreate the style of these images. I am constantly learning every time I pick up my camera too, but I hope these help you a little in your photographic journey. 

As always I'd love to hear your thoughts.

Make sure to pop on over to the other participants and see how they interpret this theme:

Redesigned By M

At The Corner Of Happy And Harried

My Food Tapestry

Inge Kathleen Photography

A Woven Life

The Delicious World Of Chefette Spicy

A Tree Grows in the Bayou

I Live Under A Rock

Hooked On Homes

And a warm welcome to two new members in our photography styling challenge:

MeraKitchen

Miss Wang Photography

Photography Styling Challenge {patterns}

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RedesignedByMPhotoStylingChallenge.jpg

Today is my fourth contribution to the wonderful monthly Photography Styling Challenge that Redesigned By M started in June last year. 

My first submission was Morning {click here} followed by Bedroom {click here} and Order {click here}. Each theme or concept is open to interpretation by the photographer, and it has been really interesting seeing how each of us has handled the theme in a different way.

The theme for this month is Patterns, and I couldn't wait to get started photographing the pretty stationery that is on offer here in South Korea. 

The photographs cannot be edited in anyway, and only a maximum of five images may be posted. This is always difficult for me as I am tend to take so many photographs that I struggle to choose the best ones. Each one appeals to me in a different way. But, in essence this is exactly the point of the challenge...to better yourself as a photographer and stylist. One of the biggest challenges for myself this year as a photographer is to shoot with more purpose, and not to just snap away and hope that 1 out of the 400 images i capture comes out exactly as I envision it. So yes, this series has been challenging, but I've learnt a lot about myself as a photographer and about my equipment too. 

CGSPhotographyStylingChallengePatterns (4 of 21).jpg

Here are my five chosen images for this photography challenge. I styled my shoot in my bedroom to maximise the soft morning light that comes through our one and only window, and I used a piece of white foam board as a reflector and base.

I used the following settings on my NIkon d300s & 35mm 1.8 lens:

-ISO 400

-Aperture variation of 1.8 - 2.5

-Shutter-speed 320

-I had my white balance on cloudy and used only natural light (no flash was used).

I am going to start including my settings used in this challenge to give you an idea of how you can recreate the style of these images. I am constantly learning every time I pick up my camera too, but I hope these help you a little in your photographic journey. 

Photography Styling Challenge {Order}

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Today is the third month that I have been contributing to the wonderful Photography Styling Challenge that Redesigned By M started back in June this year. 

My first submission was Morning {click here} and then Bedroom {click here}. Each theme or concept is open to interpretation by the photographer, and it has been awesome seeing how each of us has handled the theme in a different way.

This week's theme is Order (organization) and there are elements in this theme that we have to use for the next theme, which is Chaos.

So that sure made things a bit tricky.

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The photographs cannot be edited in anyway (this was so hard for me and the horrid green tables and artificial light in the classroom just wan't doing my images any favours) but I was able to resist. Also, only five images can be posted, this is always difficult for me as I am tend to take so many photographs and I struggle to choose the best ones. Each one appeals to me in a different way. So yes, this series has been challenging, but I've learnt so much about myself as a photographer and about my equipment too. 

If you have been reading my blog for a while, you will know that I love all things pretty, and dainty, and full of pastel and pretty pink bows. But, as this is a photography challenge, I really wanted to challenge myself to take some photographs that are different from my usual subject matter. I decided to shoot one of my classrooms here in South Korea. At the start of the school day all the students have all their things in order, and wait patiently for the school bell to announce the start of the day. By late afternoon, the classroom is in complete disarray. Papers flying all over the show, girls screaming, hair curlers lying on desks and milk cartons scattered about. It's quite a sight. You can check back next month for photographs of the chaos of a Girls Middle School.

For now, here are a few shots of order and calm at the start of a school day.

Photography Styling Challenge {Bedroom}

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Today marks the second month of Redesigned by M's wonderful photography styling challenge. Each month we are given a new theme, and we have until the first Monday of the next month to post our photographs. The photographs must be unedited, and must have been taken since the start of the challenge in June this year. Click here to see my photographs from last months theme {Morning}.

Some of my thoughts behind my shoot:

These photographs are of my friend Cassandra's room here in South Korea. Here in Korea, as part of our contracts with our schools, we are provided with housing. Now housing is a pretty strong word for most of our accommodation. For the majority of us, we are given a single, one room apartment (one room meaning that that one room is your bedroom, kitchen, lounge, study and entertainment area). We eat in our 'rooms', we get ready in them, we relax in them, we sleep in them. Thank you to the lovely Cassandra for all her idea's, and for putting up with me climbing all over her pretty room.

On that note, here are my submissions for the theme {bedroom}:

 

Photography Styling Challenge {Morning}

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I have joined a  wonderful new photography challenge held by Redesigned by M. The challenge is designed around styling your own workspace for your photoshoot and was created with two main outcomes: learning how to use your camera in its fullest capacity, and learning how to be your own stylist for a shoot.

I absolutely loved this challenge, as for me, the best part of any shoot is the styling element, where I have to move around objects to create the 'perfect' shot. Personally, when I take photographs, what I love most is the small details, the tiny bits that make up the whole. This is exactly what I get to do with this challenge. 


No editing may be done to the photographs, apart from edge cropping, and all photographs have to have been taken since the start of this challenge in June this year.

If you'd like to know more or if you want to join the challenge, pop on over toRedesigned by M.

This months theme was {Morning}

I spent a lot of time thinking about this theme, how to make it unique, trying to get all artsy farsty with it.  I really wanted to use the beautiful natural light that comes in through our bedroom window here in Korea and brainstormed how to style my shoot around that.

Here are the results. Hubby had to be very patient with me, but I quite like how the photographs came out.

What do you think?