weekly GarethB's 52 challenge for 2019 - Week 51 & 52 - CHRISTMASSY & OUTTAKES - FINISHED!

Week 20 & 21 -Snappers choice & Whole

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Just some 'ticks-in-boxes' for me this week....and last week too actually!
Not my best work if I'm honest, been pretty busy and fell a little behind....hopefully I'll find my 'thinking cap' soon.:thinking:

Snappers choice.

I literally took this photo a minute ago....funny how you spend many years looking at the same bit of wall and never really see the details!
I liked the shadows/pattern this lamp made on the corner of the wall behind, and rather fortunately they curve in the same way that the lamp itself does at the bottom of the frame.


lamp 1 by Gareth Bellamy, on Flickr

The lamp wasn't going to be my first choice....
This was....


toroid 1 by Gareth Bellamy, on Flickr

It's a toroidal transformer - used to make a bench power supply - I thought it looked unusual, but in the end I wasn't happy with it....kinda looks just 'plonked'!:LOL:
It's on a green anti static mat though!

Whole.

There have been two other 'bread' images here, both better than this, but I shot this several days ago in my defence....so definitely not copied!!:giggle:
This one is a whole seed cob.


whole seed loaf 1 by Gareth Bellamy, on Flickr

...as always, thanks for looking folks.:)
 
I like your bread one Gareth. Just ready for the strawberry jam or a bit of cheddar! The slices are very artistically arranged as well.
 
Hi Gareth,
I don't think you need to find your thinking cap at all. I love both shots for Snappers Choice. I think I prefer the lamp but I do find the transformer compelling. I like the way the wires fan out. I wonder if it would be a contender for focus stacking?
I like Whole too. Nice focus on the bread and a good use of nice warm light too which really compliments the subject matter.
 
Great take on the theme Gareth, another one of those where I wish I'd thought of somthing similar!
 
Scots_quine said:
I like your bread one Gareth. Just ready for the strawberry jam or a bit of cheddar! The slices are very artistically arranged as well.
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Thank you kindly Joan....funny you should mention cheddar, that is indeed what happened within seconds of taking that photo! Yummy!:)

Dave70D said:
Good set of shots Gareth, I had a little laugh on the first shot as it looks like a pair of breasts lol. Great shot for whole too.
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Many thanks Dave, although I'll never be able to look at that bit of wall again now without thinking about your comment!!:LOL:

Leebert said:
Hi Gareth,
I don't think you need to find your thinking cap at all. I love both shots for Snappers Choice. I think I prefer the lamp but I do find the transformer compelling. I like the way the wires fan out. I wonder if it would be a contender for focus stacking?
I like Whole too. Nice focus on the bread and a good use of nice warm light too which really compliments the subject matter.
Click to expand...

Thank you Lee, very kind of you to say.(y)
That's a good idea to focus stack the transformer....I might revisit it and try harder to create a more compelling composition....I'm in no rush to build my power supply, it slightly worries me if I'm honest!:giggle:

Daniel_Paul said:
Great take on the theme Gareth, another one of those where I wish I'd thought of somthing similar!
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Thanks Daniel, I certainly appreciate your positive comments!(y)
 
Week 22 - Fragile

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Here is my entry for the fragile theme.
They are soap bubbles floating into plumes of smoke, both of which are quite fragile.

This first image is along the lines of what I wanted to achieve, in that I wanted the swirl of smoke to envelop the bubble.
Ultimately I was a bit disappointed that the 'main' bubble isn't quite in focus!:facepalm:
It's a very hit-n-miss process....mostly miss actually, but I was quite happy overall with these three images.


TP-52-2019 wk-22 - Fragile 2 by Gareth Bellamy, on Flickr

I thought the smoke in this next one looked like a bony hand gently holding the fragile bubble.
(Actually there's two bubbles if you look closely!)


TP-52-2019 wk-22 - Fragile 1 by Gareth Bellamy, on Flickr

And finally, I decided to play around with some coloured overlays in photoshop. It may not be to everyone's taste, but I quite like how the smoke resembles flames.


TP-52-2019 wk-22 - Fragile 3 by Gareth Bellamy, on Flickr

...as always, thanks for looking folks.:)
 
Last edited:
Really like the last one, you should go with what you think. That must have taken some patience :clap:
 
Allan.H said:
Really like the last one, you should go with what you think. That must have taken some patience :clap:
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Thank you kindly Allan!(y)
It was indeed a bit fiddly, but not as bad as you might think....and I went with the 'bony' hand one in the end....as much as I like the 'flames', it didn't really seem fragile enough!

mdpF2 said:
They're great pictures, really creative, well done!
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Thank you very much Mark, I appreciate the positive comment!(y)
 
Last edited:
Snappers choice
I think you could have cropped the bottom ⅓ off. The top half of the shadow looks like a basque/corset thingy.

Whole
I like it. It looks ready for breakfast.

Fragile
Really like the first one, although they're all pretty good.
 
Hi Gareth

You know how to wow, superb images, glad you said what they are, it had me guessing.

Pete
 
Gareth, your take on fragile is great. The bubbles and effect are very appealing. Must admit I like the first one. I particularly like the way the smoke swirls around the bubbles. Really nice !
 
Very creative take on Fragile Gareth, great shots too!!
 
I love these Gareth. I have had an idea in my head for months now involving bubbles but never thought to combine them with smoke. Very clever and creative. Gold star for you this week.
 
Dave70D said:
Loving the whole set for fragile Gareth, all very nicely done but if I had to pick it would be the bony hand one and imo it`s a cracking shot.
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Many thanks Dave....the 'bony hand' one is my favourite too!(y)

Nostromo said:
Snappers choice
I think you could have cropped the bottom ⅓ off. The top half of the shadow looks like a basque/corset thingy.

Whole
I like it. It looks ready for breakfast.

Fragile
Really like the first one, although they're all pretty good.
Click to expand...

Thank you for looking and commenting Dominic.(y)
My free image was quite rushed, and I agree that had I have taken more time to compose it, I would have cropped it differently.
That said, I did rather like the way the shadow 'mirrored' the shape of the lamp itself.
Furthermore, I honestly never thought it looked like a ladies undergarment....both you Dave (@Dave70D) have remarked upon it however!
And since the lamp sits right in my line of sight when I'm watching telly, now all I can see is a corset and a pair of boobs!!!:LOL:

seaodyssey said:
Hi Gareth

You know how to wow, superb images, glad you said what they are, it had me guessing.

Pete
Click to expand...

Thank you so much Pete, I certainly appreciate your very kind comments!(y)

rpn said:
They are beautiful. My first impression was two shots merged together and never thought they are all single image. I just love all of them. Very well done. :clap:
Click to expand...

Thank you most kindly Stan!(y)
After setting up for these images, I briefly considered merging two images, since the first hundred or so shots were awful!
But after an hour of trying different bubble blowing techniques, it started to pay off.
The trick is to blow the bubbles over the top of the plume, and allow them to drift into it. This means the plume is not disturbed too much, and with practice, I was able to drift the bubbles in quite accurately....most of the time!

chrispp said:
Gareth, your take on fragile is great. The bubbles and effect are very appealing. Must admit I like the first one. I particularly like the way the smoke swirls around the bubbles. Really nice !
Click to expand...

Thanks so much Chris for looking and commenting.(y)

Daniel_Paul said:
Very creative take on Fragile Gareth, great shots too!!
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Thank you kindly Daniel, I appreciate your positive comments as always!(y)

Scots_quine said:
I love these Gareth. I have had an idea in my head for months now involving bubbles but never thought to combine them with smoke. Very clever and creative. Gold star for you this week.
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Thank you very much Joan, very kind of you to say!(y)
I highly recommend it, it was very satisfying and relaxing working with both bubbles and smoke....not least because of the aromatic incense sticks I was burning to produce that nice, clean plume.:giggle:
I plan to revisit both bubble and smoke photography again soon, although since I am banished to the garage (the aroma can get a little stifling as well as the bubble mess), it will likely be during the summer months!:giggle:
 
Week 23 - Squash(ed)

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Here is my entry for the squash(ed) theme.

It's simply a glassful of cool, refreshing orange squash....with ice!

Although in reality, it's a glassful of cheap-n-nasty orange 'flavoured' cordial with some plastic ice cubes thrown in for a bit of added flavour!
It was fun to set up and shoot, but the clean-up and reset after each shot was a pain!
I ended up not getting the 'right' combination I was looking for - namely a nice big splash from one cube, and another cube just about to enter the liquid.
So I resorted to some photoshoppery to 'comp' in a cube from an earlier shot...although I ended up adding two extra cubes.

Background is a large diffuser with a back-lit blue gel flash, and two more flashes lighting the glass and the ice.
I think it came out ok, (I'm using my newly acquired big, white, shiny tile) but the strong(ish) shadows on said tile are probably going to bother me eventually - I should perhaps have used my mini softboxes!:facepalm:


TP-52-2019 wk-23 - Squash(ed) by Gareth Bellamy, on Flickr

...as always, thanks for looking folks.:)
 
GarethB said:
Week 22 - Fragile

(Click here to go back to the contents page)

Here is my entry for the fragile theme.
They are soap bubbles floating into plumes of smoke, both of which are quite fragile.

This first image is along the lines of what I wanted to achieve, in that I wanted the swirl of smoke to envelop the bubble.
Ultimately I was a bit disappointed that the 'main' bubble isn't quite in focus!:facepalm:
It's a very hit-n-miss process....mostly miss actually, but I was quite happy overall with these three images.


TP-52-2019 wk-22 - Fragile 2 by Gareth Bellamy, on Flickr

I thought the smoke in this next one looked like a bony hand gently holding the fragile bubble.
(Actually there's two bubbles if you look closely!)


TP-52-2019 wk-22 - Fragile 1 by Gareth Bellamy, on Flickr

And finally, I decided to play around with some coloured overlays in photoshop. It may not be to everyone's taste, but I quite like how the smoke resembles flames.


TP-52-2019 wk-22 - Fragile 3 by Gareth Bellamy, on Flickr

...as always, thanks for looking folks.:)
Click to expand...
Very nice and creative shots the, really like those.
 
Squashed - Brilliant!!!
 
GarethB said:
Week 23 - Squash(ed)

(Click here to go back to the contents page)

Here is my entry for the squash(ed) theme.

It's simply a glassful of cool, refreshing orange squash....with ice!

Although in reality, it's a glassful of cheap-n-nasty orange 'flavoured' cordial with some plastic ice cubes thrown in for a bit of added flavour!
It was fun to set up and shoot, but the clean-up and reset after each shot was a pain!
I ended up not getting the 'right' combination I was looking for - namely a nice big splash from one cube, and another cube just about to enter the liquid.
So I resorted to some photoshoppery to 'comp' in a cube from an earlier shot...although I ended up adding two extra cubes.

Background is a large diffuser with a back-lit blue gel flash, and two more flashes lighting the glass and the ice.
I think it came out ok, (I'm using my newly acquired big, white, shiny tile) but the strong(ish) shadows on said tile are probably going to bother me eventually - I should perhaps have used my mini softboxes!:facepalm:


TP-52-2019 wk-23 - Squash(ed) by Gareth Bellamy, on Flickr

...as always, thanks for looking folks.:)
Click to expand...
Love that, superb image all round :)
 
Epic shots for fragile Gareth! Amazing to get the bubbles and smoke together like that. Very creative :clap:
Equally stunning image for Squash. Beautiful vivid colours and spot on timing. Simply perfect!
 
Fragile - these images are just stunning! Wow, I'm lost for words, great work.
Love the idea for squashed, really fits the theme well.

Apologies i've not commented on your others, but as usual they are all extremely well taken.
 
Dave70D said:
Another great image from you Gareth, nicely on theme and great colours and focus plus I like the shadows in it too.
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Thank you very much Dave!(y)
I was a bit worried about the shadows initially, but I think they're growing on me!:giggle:

rick448 said:
Love that, superb image all round :)
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Many thanks Rick, for looking and commenting!(y)

Leebert said:
Epic shots for fragile Gareth! Amazing to get the bubbles and smoke together like that. Very creative :clap:
Equally stunning image for Squash. Beautiful vivid colours and spot on timing. Simply perfect!
Click to expand...

Thank you so much Lee!(y)
I was a little concerned that the colours were a bit too vivid/saturated, so I toned them down a little in post.
Or more accurately I lightened the blues a bit, since they seemed really too rich/deep in camera.
It turned out quite well in the end, glad you like them.

FlyPhot said:
Fragile - these images are just stunning! Wow, I'm lost for words, great work.
Love the idea for squashed, really fits the theme well.

Apologies i've not commented on your others, but as usual they are all extremely well taken.
Click to expand...

Thank you most kindly Jim, for your positive comments!(y)
No need to apologise mate, I always appreciate any and all comments from all the talented toggers here at TP!:)
 
rpn said:
Very creative, well thought out and excellently executed. You've put a lot of thoughts and time in setting up the shot the result shows they all worth the effect. :clap: If I'm being a bit nit-picky I'm not too keen on the shadows.
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Thank you for the very kind comments Stan, most appreciated!(y)
I agree about the shadows, I'm going to kick myself for not using mini softboxes, but they're quite small, and I surmised that due to the proximity of the flashes to the subject, they wouldn't have softened the shadows a great deal.
I'm probably wrong however, but I wish I had tried nevertheless!:facepalm:
That said, I think they're sort of growing on me!:giggle:
 
I actually like the shadows.
 
Above - I like the first one great view over the stalls roofs very colourful against the grey stone building.
Hot - Right on theme would have been even better if the one on the plate was toasted and buttered.
Light - I love these shots keep meaning to have a go at this sort of thing myself.
Crowded - very crowded image well laid out works well,
Decay - lots of decay and neglect in the shots of the building I quite like the 2nd image but they all work. the Decaying log shots are great too and The little spider is a great shot.
Free Choice - great shot I love the pattern on the wall.
Whole - good arrangement very inviting.
Fragile - Wow great images I like the first 2 best.
Squash - great splash shot and lovely vibrant colours.
 
Squash - Wow! Great capture Gareth, really clean, to the point, you've captured the ice cubes perfectly and the amount of 'splash' is just right! Looks like an advert shot! Well done :D
 
Hi Gareth,

Looks like I'm doing another mega catch-up...

Above - #2 for me, I love the castle. Though I kinda wish the banner wasn't in the shot, so I might have cropped up a little maybe.
I just read it's history on wikipedia, I guess it survived the C17 troubles due to it's main use being a prison rather than a castle after 1200 or so.
Hot - Works nicely for the theme and is making me suitably hungry.
Light - Loving these. #1 for me, though #4 runs it a very close second with the different colours. I would never have guessed what it was if you hadn't said.
Crowd(ed) - Someone has far too many Monopoly sets. I recall there only being 6 players usually ;)
Nicely thought out and set up and well taken without any nasty highlights.
Decay(ed) - Such a lot of choice considering you were getting desperate ;) For me, Decay-12 seems to sell the theme the most, it is obviously falling apart and overgrown.
Free Week - I think I might have gone with your original image, because I'm a sucker for bright colours and it's an interesting thing.
Whole - Liking the layout with the ever decreasing slices. Works well for the theme.
Fragile - Soap bubbles, blimey, I had them done as baubles. That must've taken a lot of effort to put together, fair play to you. I think #1 for me, having 3 bubbles as well as the smoke and those lovely star-burst reflections.
Squash(ed) - You're being too hard on yourself, I think that's fantastic. Loving the colours, the action, the contrast and no one would guess there was photoshopery in the mix too.
 
Squashed - that's another stunning shot, fantastic! I like the shadows, and the shiny white tile!
 
Gareth, the orange against the blue background is great. I like the shadows on the tile and think they add to the composition. The splashes work and add movement towards the squash !
 
You win the internet this week and last Gareth.

What fantastic images - fragile is just superb. Very clever concept, fantasically composed and taken and so interesting to look at. Bravo

Squashed - again, very very clever. I am in awe. The colours, vibrancy, water droplets are just perfect. One day i'll up my game a bit and try and get something like this
 
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