Besotted with…favorites for Friday

La Femme brush lettering via besotted

I. New York Times has ‘The Week in Good News’ and we are loving it! The secret super colony of Adelie penguins they found from space? AH-MAZING! This is the stuff of storybooks, Michelle’s favorite part is that they were found on the ‘Danger’ islands.

II. While we are on birds, did you know there is a scientific term called ‘gifting’ in the animal kingdom. This little girl’s story is so magical.

III. Looking for some foodie eye candy? Athena Calderone’s new cookbook, ‘Cook Beautiful’ is truly swoon worthy.

IV. I have been trying to make a regular drawing practice, I just found these free online classes and tutorials that look promising!

V. Have you heard of 40 hz?  It’s a sound frequency that supposedly helps in productivity. We haven’t tried yet, but our business partner in Rare Bird Fonts has been seeing results!

Low Key Photography Tutorials

lowkey poppy via besotted

Our prompt this week is ‘low key’.  You can do this in both color and B+W. Your image will have predominately dark tones with prominent highlights. This creates a very moody and atmospheric image. You just need one light source, it can be a sun spot or a key light (like a small lamp).

It’s not too late to start your Foto Rx 52, shooting consistently will be the fastest way to becoming a better photographer. Follow us on Instagram for more inspo and edit examples. Shoot this week’s prompt and use #fotorx52 so we can find you and cheer you on.

//RESOURCES//

Photo shot Canon 6D (full frame)

Image edited with B+W actions set (coming soon!)

Edited in Photoshop CC

Tutorials + examples of low key photography:

Caravaggio 

Nice examples of low key image

Complete beginner’s guide to shooting low key

Low key photography tutorial video

Low key portrait tutorial

Five for Friday

georgia o'keefe portrait via peabody essex museum

Another incredibly fast week and we are in March?! What the what? I could use a little slowing down of time, you? No worries, we are feeling extraordinary productive and on a creative upswing. I wonder if it has anything to do with our #fotorx52 photo project? Having a photo prompt and weekly deadline is working since we spend the week thinking about what we are going to shoot and how and of course prepping our prompt ideas for the following week.

I. Have you heard about this company that is basically a Wholefoods without the branding? Everything in the on line shop is $3, their brandless branding is A-OK with me, most items are organic and GMP free, worth a peek!

II. Michelle just finished reading this fictional book based on the correspondence between Georgia O’Keefe and Alfred Steigliz, it’s on my list to read next.

III. Fuji Film just released their newest camera model and the word on the street is the video capabilities is aces. The better news is their pro camera X-T1 is a steal now, and I am trying to figure out any good excuse why I shouldn’t have it (I really, really want it).

IV. I have been on the hunt for a good dry shampoo spray, I recently picked this one up made with clay. So far it’s not leaving my hair white or gray, which seems to be the norm with dry shampoos. The scent is strong, but not unpleasant and dissipates fast, under $10 to boot!

V. If you missed it we did a mega round-up of our favorite Skillshare art classes– drawing, lettering, watercolor! Not to be missed! I mentioned in that post that these classes have helped me immensely with my once sub-par drawing skills.

Our mega list of favorite Skillshare classes!

favorite online art classes via besotted

We recently found out that we are ‘teachers to watch’ on Skillshare, a huge honor considering how many wonderful teachers and the volume of classes there are available at Skillshare. We know how overwhelming it can be so we have created a list of some of our very favorite Skillshare classes broken down into accessible categories! It’s amazing the talent that has pooled together in the Skillshare community, you truly get to learn from individuals that are at the top of their game in their industry, many are also blessed with the ability to easily translate their knowledge into consumable bites. I don’t think I would be this far in my drawing endeavors without having taken some of these classes that really gave me many ‘light bulb’ moments!
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