The right light

Since opening my Etsy store I have gradually improved my photo technique using my little Canon point-and-shoot, some indirect natural light and either a sheet of pearly white card left over from making our wedding invitations, or a piece of wood from our wood shed.

But sometimes the light is just not right for photos, and I am so very impatient.

For some time the photos of my orange daisy patch earrings have bugged me. Well forever in fact. I finished them too late on a Sunday, and I just wanted to get them photographed and listed, otherwise it would be days before I'd get another opportunity. However I don't think my haste really did me or my earrings any favours, in fact I think it made the earrings look quite terrible. This is the original listing here:


So last weekend while photographing some new earrings I decided to re-do the orange daisy patch earrings to show them in a "better light". I expected them to come up much better, but even I was shocked by how much a reshoot has improved the whole look of this listing:


Perhaps next time I'll be more patient... But I wouldn't bet on it ;)

Autumn inspiration

Ok, so technically it is winter now, but our beautiful little Japanese Maple in the backyard is still wearing it's autumn colours with pride.


It just looks so bright and happy, I never tire of looking at it.


To top it off it was a beautiful sunny day, and my mokume gane & fire opal ring is on its way to a new home in the USA.


And finally I got to spend a little time in the workshop. My peppermint crisp ring is very close to completion, I just need to finish the setting and then set the ring and polish it up. Here's a sneak peak with the stone just sitting in the incomplete setting.


My head is full of ideas for some new pieces, must get them into my sketch book as my baby brain means that those idea may float off to the ether again! Hopefully I will get a bit more time this weekend to do some more.

Raid the wood shed!

I love using old logs as props, they have so much character and can really offset a silver piece of jewellery. This beautiful specimen was at the Tafe where I studied, I'd love to have something this spectacular at home.



I have some nice old logs in the wood shed that make good photography props.

My original favourite...


...got retired after the plumber spilt some blue goo over it.

Then I found a new one that had a nice little knot hole...


...but it met an untimely end at the hands of my hubby weilding an axe...



Alas the wood shed is probably not the best place for them. So the moral of my story is, if you do happen to find a nice log in the wood shed, perhaps you should move it somewhere safer! I'm off the examine the survivors to see if there's any 'talent'.

'Scent'sational Spring

Despite the somewhat disappointing spring weather we have had this year our front garden is out in bloom at the moment. It is full of colour and life... and inspiration!



This weekend we have two new additions, they both look and smell divine.



While we were planting these two I noticed some gaps, maybe a few more roses will be making their way to our garden in the next few weeks ;)

From here to Eternity

People have all sorts of different ideas about when is the 'right time' to give or receive an eternity ring. Some say 1 year, 5 years, 10 years, after the first child... For me it was 'whenever you make it'.

My hubby and I got married a little over 4 years ago, in April 2005. I had some pretty specific ideas about the aesthetic of our wedding. When it came to a dress I knew what I wanted didn't exist, so I found a dressmaker who would understand my vision and translate that into the perfect dress.



Aside from the fact that my dress HAD to be pink, I also wanted something that would convert to an evening dress. The gem encrusted waistband hid little hooks that would allow the chiffon overskirt to be attached and removed later. The overskirt was made of three layers; hot pink, pale pink and ivory. When the overskirt was removed the dress became a pink satin evening dress with silver lining. And the jewellery was made from the leftover crystals and pearls.



I also wanted to design and make our wedding rings. At the time I was still studying, and a very wonderful teacher allowed me to come in early and also work on the rings in our chain making class, giving me plenty of help at the same time. Both rings are 18 carat yellow gold, mine is knife edged with 12 diamonds, his has chamfered edges with 6 ceylon sapphires.



My eternity ring is currently a work in progress, it will tie together the features of both wedding rings, with 12 pink sapphires and it will feature champhered edges to match the profile of my husbands ring. I look forward to being able to show you the finished product. But for now, here's a sneak peak...

Now that's one creative Mother

With Mother's Day fast approaching I thought I would pay tribute to a Mother who is also a spectacular artist. She inspires artists the world over and never seems to suffer from a creative block.

Her ideas are weird and wonderful, her palate extensive. Her work can be seen all over the world, but I have put togther just a few of my favourites from Australia.

Mother Nature, you rock!

Hey Hey - It's a Giveaway!!!!

I have had a busy few weeks with family friends and a holiday and have not blogged for some time. It's time to jump back in with both feet and I have teamed up with Kirsty from Filmless Photos to bring you a great giveaway.

I think we are all continuously striving to improve our photography, and the lucky winner of this giveaway will have a helping hand in the guise of Kirsty's How to Take Great Product Photos eBook - PDF.

Kirsty's book is intended to be a guide on taking good product photos for your online store, and providing you with a basic overview on photography terms, techniques and things to take into consideration.

You can learn a little more about Kirsty in the blog feature I did on her in February.

Ok, now that you are all pumped about this great prize I had better let you know how to win! Entry is simple, you just have to sign up to follow this blog (existing followers gain automatic entry).

For extra opportunities to win you can:

• Post a comment on this blog telling me your favourite item from Filmless Photos and why it's your favourite, please include your email address so that we can contact you if you win. (worth 1 extra entry)
• Write an entry on your own blog promoting this giveaway, add a comment to this thread so that we know you have done so and include your email address. (worth 2 extra entries)

The winner will be chosen at random on Friday 3rd April 2009 and will be published in my blog. Kirsty will email you your prize directly. Good Luck!

The 6th in the 6th

I have been 'tagged' by Jay (Finki) to play 6th in the 6th. A blogging game where you locate the 6th photo in your 6th picture folder and blog about it. Then tag 6 more people to do the same.


The concept sounds pretty simple, until you encounter my complex photo filing system (IT nerd). Anyway, based on the algorithm I delevoped to traverse my file structure the 6th in the 6th is this photo taken in June 2006 on the first of our 'annual girls weekends'. On this occasion we had rented a lovely house in Daylesford, in the heart of 'spa' country.


After a night of way too much food, a few glasses of wine and some chick flicks by the open fire, we awoke on Sunday for a morning of pampering at Peppers Hepburn Springs. We found that some 'locals' had congregated on the front lawn to welcome us.


So now I will tag Vanessa, Tiffany, Wilma, Tess, Alison and Kathleen... so... Tag -You're it!

If life gives you lemons....

After a slow start to summer in Melbourne this year the past couple of weeks have been scorchers. While I quite like the heat our beautiful lemon tree outside our back door is feeling a bit worse for wear.

This week our poor tree has been dropping lemons like crazy. The photo below is just what has fallen in the past two days, I have another 5 big bags in the kitchen to distribute to family and friends.

But in case unlike me you are experiencing a lemon shortage, here are a few that might interest you.

SLICED LIVELY LEMON EARRINGS

Pucker Up Apron

Lemons Excursion - Fine Art Photograph

L is for Lemon t-shirt 18m

Lemon needle felted wool Waldorf necklace doll

But since life is dealing me lemons think I might call hubby and get him to pick up some Coronas on the way home from work ;)

Filmless Photos

I have always been a visual person, and a self confessed photo junky (my poor over-photographed 17 month old son can attest to that). I love how photos engage the imagination and can evoke memories and feelings in a very powerful way. And this is exactly how I managed to stumble across a new store this week called Filmless Photos.


What drew me to this shop is undoubtably the Frangipanis, I am so enamoured with them I found a florist who would have a batch flown from Darwin to Melbourne for my wedding! But the magic of photos is that they will speak to each of us in a different way.

Kirsty of Filmless Photos includes a little story with each of the photographs about where or why it was taken. Kirsty has kindly provided some insight into her photography background and inspiration for me to share with you.

"I probably seriously started photography when I was 20 (now 26) with my Dad's old Minolta film SLR. It only had one lens, so I learnt to compromise with shots and make do with what I had. My first digital camera was a Kodak point and shoot (I got that for my 21st), which I was using right up until last year when I splurged and bought my Canon EOS1000D and a set of great lenses. I've always loved photography. My grandfather was a great photographer and so are mum and dad. I actually have a set of my grandfather's filters and a really old home made tripod. These are my most prized photography possessions! Inspiration....well, my camera is always with me. It's almost part of my anatomy! "

"I spend a lot of time traveling with my paying job (I'm an Occupational Therapist), so I get to see an awful lot of the countryside and draw inspiration from that. Australia is truely amazing through the lens -there's just not enough time to capture it all! People and animals are also an amazing inspiration. I think the true mark of a great photographer is being able to portray something's character in a single shot - it's something I really want to work on."

Well Kirsty I think you have definately nailed that with this pic!


For those of us who are not real pros I have asked Kirsty to share some quick tips to get us on the right path:

• It doesn't matter what sort of camera you have, it's all about lighting and imagination. Don't be afraid to experiment!
• There are masses of tips out there on the web - type your question into google and you are guaranteed an answer!
• Learn to use the manual settings on your camera (reading the manual is really worth it), you'll get better shots.
• Invest in a tripod - it's the best thing for getting that tricky shot, and a lamp with a "cool daylight" fluro globe - it will give you great light to shoot with.
• Think about your composition, straight shots can be boring shots. Get below your product, level with it, or above it to get some great angles. Use neutral backgrounds so as not to take away from your product. And try and take a shot of your product used in context - it will make sense to the buyer if the product is a little obscure, or hard to portray in a single shot.
• Keep shooting! If you only get one or two good shots for every 12 you take your doing well. If you get one GREAT shot, fantastic!

Kirsty is in the process of putting together an ebook for the Etsians who want to learn about product photography - it should be available very soon, so watch this space!

Images used with the permission of the artist.