Julie Powell is a photographer, writer and educator, offers unique photographic opportunities and inspirational ideas to help YOU become the photographer you wish to be.
All in Inspiration
I often get asked to break down, HOW I got the shot, so I thought I would share a fairly common type of still life image I captured and break it down. This time, I’m talking raspberries.
This year I’m back with a few more ideas. This is a great one for staying inside and does not need much.
I have been playing a bit with the new standalone version of Excire Foto, a great search tool to easily sort through your images. This version is great if you don’t use additional software like Lightroom Classic for cataloging and editing your photos.
Occasionally things go awry with your camera. Not faulty, just unexpected or strange.
It’s possible that you fiddled around with one too many settings. Or you changed things and can’t seem to reset them. But what if you are trying to do something and just can’t figure it out?
I love to document some of these, as well as behind-the-scenes setup and of course, behind-the-scenes for the actual shoot. It has become an expected thing now with my creative sessions and even my workshops to capture and share these videos.
Does noise really matter all that much in portraits? I think people are too hung up on having their images 100% noiseless, whereas the crisper and sharper, the better. And that’s just the point isn’t it?
Going a bit stir crazy in self-isolation? Looking for some fun activities to burn through the hours? How about trying your hand at some of these, especially if they are out of your comfort zone.
Have you suddenly found yourself with some spare time on your hands? Looking for the silver lining, perhaps think of this as enforced creative project time.
I love my pets and I love getting creative. Nothing allows my creativity to escape and really capture painterly portraits like Topaz Labs Impressions 2. Being able to recreate the look and stokes of some of my favourite painters — Rembrandt, Cezanne and LaSala, just to name a few.
Want a fun project you can do right in your kitchen? How about exploring some minimalism with everyday stuff you have on hand. No need to leave the house, no need to leave the kitchen — you just need a little bench space and a window.
There is no escaping the current media storm — it is EVERYWHERE! And while many are out panic buying toilet paper and canned goods, what is the overall impact on your photography business?
I saw it in my own business fairly early. I’m no doctor or financial expert, but it appears that one is in higher demand than the other. It appeared at the start that people are more worried about a looming financial crisis caused by this outbreak than the outbreak itself. Now it is both.
Be your own superhero, and I am not talking about running around with our underwear over tights (let’s face it NO ONE wants to see that on the average photographer) and a shiny cape saving the world. To me, there are everyday superheroes, who seem to be able to achieve amazing feats that some of us can only dream of. Let’s face it, it’s all too easy to let someone else take the spotlight, right?
Brand new on the website, Model Packs with 20 hi-res images from some of my favourite studio shoots
Feeling a little caged in after spending the last few weeks in isolation? Now that the weather is a little bit nicer, maybe it’s time to grab your camera and macro lens and go exploring your own backyard (or front yard) a little. We may not be able to go far, but when you look at the world with a macro lens, you don’t have to.
So what can you do in this downtime? None of us like it, none of us want it, but we can put this time to good use.
Fellow Photofocus author Lauri Novak recently wrote a post about asking for critique on images and it kind of got me thinking.
When a message can brighten your whole day, sometimes it’s easy to forget it’s the little things that matter the most
Most people believe that still life is just flowers and kitchen stuff, but it’s much more than that. It’s true that I photograph a lot of flowers and I have a real penchant for vintage kitchenware, but that is not all there is to still life.
Still life photography is not just about sticking a flower in a vase and taking a photo of it — it requires a little more planning and studying than that. Still life has been around for a very long time, and sometimes we can learn from that.
Throughout the month of March, every Sunday I am going to post a quick video on a quick fix, edit or adjustment in Adobe Photoshop
