Hello all my artsy friends! Ahhhh, it's almost time for sunglasses to make a prominent appearance in our photos (at least here in the States). Along with those fabulous sunglasses, come the distracting reflections that often appear in the lenses. There are times when you want those reflections to show through - you might even set up the photograph to catch a particular reflection. But, there are also times when the reflections are just plain distracting to the viewer (and the page on which you are placing the photo). Never fear though, there is a quick fix to eliminate (or sufficiently diminish) the distracting reflections. Here is a page I recently created with a fabulous new summer kit by Little Butterfly Wings and Studio Basic Designs called Beachscape. Here is a before and after comparison of the … [Read more...]
Photographing Food
So many moments of our lives revolve around food such as everyday meals with family, special events, indulgences, weekend take-out, sick bed meals, etc. Food is an integral part of our lives and photographing the food can help tell our stories.Often I will take a few photos before eating; my friends and family are used to me asking that they wait a moment so I can take a few photos. If the background will help to tell my story, I will take a pull-back shot, including some of the surroundings, the decor, the people, anything that is relevant to the food I am photographing. They don't need to be perfectly framed, I don't worry about some of the photography rules such as "rule of thirds", cutting off limbs, etc. I want to frame my photo to include what will help to tell my story, often the photo needs to be taken quickly, so what is important is capturing the moment, not how perfect the … [Read more...]
Photographing Fall Foliage
Hi everyone, it's Polly Rae, here to give you some tips and ideas on photographing fall foliage, although these tips can be applied to photographing any greenery, at any time of the year. Regardless of what camera you use or your skill level, it is possible to capture some interesting photos of foliage.Tourist spots, scenic routes, parks and wilderness areas are all popular spots for photographing the outdoors, capturing the beauty of the fall foliage, but there are a few other areas you might not think of. I don't generally carry my DSLR around with me but I almost always have my iPhone or my small mirrorless Sony camera in my pocket or purse. But if I am purposely going on a photo walk, the DSLR comes with me. Here are some additional ideas of where you might find some interesting fall foliage to photograph: Higher elevation areas offer stunning views, looking down over … [Read more...]
Tips for Great Halloween Photos
Greetings, Spooooooky Scrappers!Polly Liana here, with some tips to make your Halloween photos the best they can be.First things first: as with scrapping, start doing your photos before the big day. If you've got kids or if you live on a busy street for trick-or-treaters, it is likely you will be very busy on the afternoon and evening of Halloween. So, in the days before, try to take some photos to capture the details you want to remember.Of course, one of the most important details is costumes. I love to get my kids dressed up ahead of time, put them against a blank wall with lots of sunlight from a window and get a couple of great shots of them. It's much easier to do it during the day than trying to do it the night of Halloween. In the end, it could be the difference between these two looks: Here are a few more of my oldest daughter over the … [Read more...]
Fall Photo Prompts
We are well into the month of September. Soon the leaves will start to change. The weather will be crisp and cool. Fall is my absolute favorite time of year. There are so many things to see and do. Today we are sharing some fall photo prompts to help you capture all of those fun fall memories.The pretty background paper used above is part of the September 2014 BYOC. You will find it in the Washington Square Papers by Amy Wolff.If you happen to capture photos from these prompts and post them on instagram, be sure to use the TLP hashtag (#The_lilypad) so we can leave some love on those fabulous fall photos. For more information on hashtags, check this blog post. … [Read more...]
Back to School Photo Prompts
Hello pad people!! We are keeping with the school theme today and sharing with you some First Day of School photo prompts. So get those camera ready and click away!A special thanks to Renne of ForeverJoy Designs. I used the gorgeous and fun school themed 2 Cool 4 School to create the photo prompt above. Thanks also to Amber of Stolen Moments for the fun Blackboard Alpha used above as well.Thank you all for visiting the blog today and if you are looking for more back to school inspiration be sure and visit our Back to School Pinterest board. … [Read more...]