f.Light Photography

For this week’s photo I wanted to create a mosaic. I like the idea of cutting up a self-portrait into many pieces and rearranging the pieces into a colourful mosaic. There’s no real deeper meaning in this week’s topic, it was just for fun. And I did enjoy doing it.

So, this week no long explanation, just a cut-up fun picture. Hope you all had a wonderful weekend. Thanks for reading and I look forward to sharing some more photos with you in the next week. Cheerio!

Last week I decided to buy some nail polish. I haven’t used any for the last decade, but decided it was high time that I fancy up my toe nails. At a certain age it becomes imperative to enjoy the little things in life, and that’s what I decided to do. Enjoy colourful nails, splash out and be girly once in a while…which, let me tell you, is so much fun.
Only girls can go out and display outrageous colours on their nails without looking odd, and only girls get to torture themselves in the name of beauty and not find it weird. A few days ago my husband expressed his disbelief at the things women do to themselves to look pretty (i.e. waxing, tweezing, dieting). All these things are such an integral part of our lives as women that we don’t even realise how incongruous it must look to the male species.

But then again, don’t we look fabulous? I guess the results do sometimes justify the pain in getting there.

So, this week it’s about celebrating the feminine side, the love of beauty and colour and life. I dare you to paint your nails (of course only if you’re a lady) and to let it remind you every day to enjoy each second and to make the most of every one.

What would this world be without music? I don’t know if I could survive without it. Ok, maybe not all music. I’m more than happy to get rid of blues, R&B, rap, techno, death metal, jazzy stuff, house, trance and a few other genres. But when it comes to just melodies, the pure sounds of an instrument picking out the notes and stringing them together in beautiful harmonies, that doesn’t compare to anything else.

Since I was little I’ve loved music and singing. I played a few instruments, but never had enough discipline to learn to play the piano, the one instrument I’ve always wanted to be able to play. Often when my sister played on her piano it was wonderful just sitting there and listening. I loved Mozart and Clayderman, and the worship songs we learned at church.

I was always the one to do the singing, to use my voice as the instrument. But for this week I wanted to focus on the instrument I’ve never been able to play properly, but which will always have a place in my heart…and not just because it’s great to photograph! So here’s to the piano and music and harmony!

Because pianos have black and white keys, I love having photos with a piano in it in black and white. So this week I went monochrome. Monochromatic piano. Sounds almost like a piece of music…

I love books. No question about it. If I could, I would probably spend all my time stretched out on my bed, or cuddled under the blankets (depending on the weather), devouring my books. It’s not just that I like reading them, I also like owning books. I cannot walk past a second-hand bookstore without pausing and most often entering. I have my favourite authors, my favourite genres and my favourite books. But I am always willing to find new ones. I do prefer older books, those which were written before 1980; somehow back then writers weren’t as vulgar and there was less perversion. Of course I’m speaking primarily about the genres I like to read: romance, thrillers, crime-fiction and humour.

These last couple of weeks I’ve managed to squeeze in quite a few books, even though I’ve been super busy with work and the still ever-present need to find a house. It’s really frustrating, and I guess reading somehow takes my mind off it and gives me a breather. I love that about books. And movies. But that’s another topic for another day.

So, this week’s photo is dedicated to one of my biggest hobbies: READING!

Two days ago I spent the afternoon with a couple of friends in the botanical gardens. It was awesome. So quiet and peaceful, and lots of nature to enjoy. To top it all off, I got to take lots of photos of very uncomplaining people. Which I really love. Because it helps me to focus on different aspects of my photography, and it also gives me the opportunity to keep shooting, and hopefully improving with each shot.

I mostly focused on the little girl again, cuz let’s face it, kids are just that much cuter than grown ups! But I also have one or two shots that focus on other things. I know the one is not a portrait of a person, but it just fits in with the whole shoot, that’s why I included it in my portraits section. I also took most of the photos (if not all of them) in the shade of a big tree, so the light was different than in direct sunlight. I edited the one photo with the girl and the cute expression on her face with a soft channel mixer layer, and I really love how it gives the photo such a soft and light look. I think with this shoot I captured really interesting natural expressions, and that is what I love. Capturing something of the person, and not just a plastic facade.

Can’t wait to do a more intentional photo shoot soon. I have some people who are interested. So keep reading and I will post photos as soon as it happens. Here’s holding thumbs!