Collections a Photo Prompt

Rock collection edited with Foto Rx Stockholm actions

Our prompt this week for our Foto Rx 52 project  is ‘collections’. Michelle and I are both on the minimalist side so we don’t have grand collections, but even something as simple as these beautiful pebbles in the same tones can help create a beautiful image. Photograph something that has sentimental value or go for a nature walk and revel in all the many splendors available. This could easily turn into an ongoing photo project for you!

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!

P.S. Have you heard of Vero? Supposedly it’s like Instagram without the algorithm and a lot of people are jumping the Instagram ship. We aren’t crazy about the aesthetic, but we do like the concept a lot, we would love to hear from anyone that is using it!

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Foto Rx Instagram

Photo shot with Fuji Xt10

Image edited with Stockholm | clean x minimal

Edited in Photoshop CC

Some photographers and their collections:

Jim Golden’s Collections of everyday objects

Christopher Marley’s intricate Natural History Collections

Lisa Congdon’s Collection a Day.

How-to Freelens

Freelensing resources via besotted

If you can’t believe we are still doing our 52 week project, let me tell you that I can’t believe it either. So if we can motivate and shoot a photo a week, I am positive you can as well. Won’t you join us?  Our prompt this week is freelensing, this technique is for the brave or wildly foolish, it seems we can be a bit of both. The concept is you take your lens off your camera and manually move it around until you get focus. The results are always unique and totally unexpected. We are not experts by any means, so we are going to make sure that we provide you plenty of resources if you do decide to do something as crazy as this. I always use my older camera that I know I won’t mind if it falters, but there are pro’s out there that dare to use their expensive equipment, but I am neither that brave nor foolish (yet).

photo by michelle p.

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Foto Rx Instagram feed

The Art of Freelensing

Freelens photography tutorial

Freelens how to do it

Freelens tutorial

Freelens demo

A little bro but good demo

A tool to make it easier

Photo shot with Fuji Xt10

Image edited with Stockholm Clean x Minimal

Edited in Photoshop CC

This photographer utilizes the technique beautifully

Five for Friday

sketch cleaned with lettering Rx via besotted

I actually forgot to post my Five for Friday, because I had a four year old field trip hangover, or something like that. It was my daughter’s first big field trip and although it was  a total blast, my mind obviously turned to mush and forgot I had a blog, it happens. So I am here on Saturday giving you a Five for Friday, because that’s how I’ll have to roll for another 14 years, k?

I. I have to mention we are doing a giveaway for Lettering Rx, it was created to quickly clean and digitize you lettering but we have found it works equally well on line drawings (just make sure your lines are black and not too thin). This is my attempt at an Ellsworth/Michelle type botanical. I am actually pretty happy with the results! I used a 4b Derwent sketching pencil, the 4b being Michelle’s preference. The tip is nice and soft.

II. Have you read any good books lately? I used to only read biographies, but once Michelle and I started writing our book, I have fallen head over heels with reading books that have a magical element. The upside is most of them are for a younger reader so I can consume them pretty quickly. I just finished the ‘The Secret Horses of Briar Manor’, where a little girl during World War II sees flying horses in the mirrors, or does she?  The pick this week for my daughter is one of my favorite children’s illustrators who has also penned this book. It’s called ‘Colette’s Lost Pet’ featuring a giant parakeet named after Marie Antoinette? Totally in.

III. I made a goal to improve my skin this year, one of the ways that I am doing that is exercising. I found this instructor on line, and although visually it’s pretty much the antithesis of my aesthetic Cassey’s incredible positive energy keeps me coming back for more. I love that I can choose to do exercises in very small time increments and often times will convince myself to do just one 8 minute workout and end up doing much more. My face has a glow and bonus my arms are getting some definition.

IV. I received a Le Labo lip balm for Christmas and I think it just may be my favorite lip balm of all time (and I am seriously a lip balm fanatic). It’s not greasy, almost creamy, doesn’t taste like anything and gives the perfect amount of sheen. The packaging is pretty good looking too.

V. It’s still freezing in the Pacific Northwest, I am so happy that Michelle got me this blanket. My daughter has dubbed it the ‘Yeti blanket’. It’s so warm and cozy (very luxe). The other day my daughter had pulled it off the sofa in a rush and I came back to the livingroom to find my Frenchie laying on it on her back with her paws in the air and what could only be described as a delirious smile, seriously. It also is perfect if you want to add a little texture to your interior design.

How a pro calligrapher cleans + digitizes her lettering

Bespoke Strokes for Lettering Rx

I got a vey kind email this morning to let me know this post which I launched yesterday came up empty. Nope, I was not going extreme minimalism I think I had my first major blog blooper, my apologies!  We wanted to let you know that our friend the very kind and talented Chantelle Hoffman of Bespoke Strokes is generously hosting a giveaway of our beloved Lettering Rx on her Instagram feed, which she uses as a professional calligrapher to clean her lettering and get it ready for vectorization or digitized to share on social media (like this graphic which started out as a very quick Iphone snap and we were able to clean, remove background and place on a colored background in about 2 minutes!). Chantelle has been a professional calligrapher for 20 years and can claim clients such as Tiffany’s, Hermes, Louis Vuitton amongst others. This my friends is such an incredible endorsement for us that someone of this caliber and experience would trust our product to save her ‘endless hours of time’ as she’s said. If you have been wanting to take your lettering and illustration business to the next level, than Lettering Rx needs to be in your digital tool box. It is a Photoshop based product, but we pinky promise that if you can click a button you would be able to use our product.

Please visit Bespoke Strokes Instagram for more information on how to enter to win, all the links below!

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Bespoke Strokes Instagram

Bespoke Strokes Studio

Lettering Rx

Lettering Rx video