31 Days of August

Last year I took my first month's challenge to take one picture a day, aiming to improve my skills with the DSLR camera (Nikon D3200). The challenge was a failure to me, though I participated to the end. I had imagined that I would go around my business in town, carrying the heavy camera and in between chores would take a few perfect pictures. Of course, I was quickly disillusioned and ended taking pictures with my phone or the small travel camera. Although everyone nowadays is a photographer, I do not feel comfortable taking pictures with the DSLR in public on the street, just seems too pretentious of me.

So this year I limited the area of picture taking to our home and the nearby places, where I could easily carry the camera and even a tripod, with the exception of the three hikes on Vitosha and Rila. I took all the pictures with Nikon 3200, played with the settings and tried new techniques. I still haven't read the f*ing manual and I don't intend to (too boring), but I did read a lot of tips and trick and advices and watched video lessons.

Because of the limited area where I took the pictures, they are not very interesting and diverse, but they did teach me something about light, composition, viewpoint. Now I'm thinking about joining the 365project, the only thing that's stopping me is that this picture taking actually takes a lot of time - sometimes an hour for a picture and I'm not willing to invest that much time into taking pictures every day. And I would risk soon to succumb to mediocre casual pictures taken just for the sake of uploading any picture of the day.

Day 1
I started the challenge with a reference to a picture I took four years ago and submitted to a photo contest in a popular Bulgarian news site. The editors liked it and are still circulating it every summer. This is a printscreen of the head page of the site on August 1st:

Day 2
Sunflowers bouquet with light from the windows, accentuated on the flowers

Day 3
Home-made eclairs

Day 4
Composition with coffee

Day 5
Beautiful tree on Vitosha

Day 6
Almost full moon

Day 7
The beautiful colors of Caprese salad

Day 8
A puzzle assembled

Day 9
A rose in the twilight, using flashlight to distinguish it from the surroundings

Day 10
Lots of traffic in the sky

Day 11
Composition in yellow - homemade lemonade

Day 12
Hummingbird moth in action on Vitosha

Day 13
Rain drops, taken with high speed

Day 14
Grapes

Day 15
Composition with fruit

Day 16
Colors

Day17
Rustic composition

Day 18
Citrus chicken while cooking

Day 19
Lots of pictures taken on Malyovitza,
There I experimented with speed (for running water), light and boken

Day 20
Night subway (high ISO, open aperture, low speed)

Day 21
Cooking peach jam in the oven

Day 22
Lines in the sky

Day 23
Beer picture

Day 24
Charlotte cake for Gaby's BD

Day 25
Portrait picture

Day 26
Leisure time

Day 27
Composition with white wine

Day 28
Cinnamon buns

Day 29
Heart-shaped boken lights with hand-made paper filter

Day 30
Street photography - market

Day 31
Because it was the last day I posted three pictures I liked which I took that day
Sunset

A curious ornament

Graffiti

Phone Case Part 1

I made a phone case :) A fairly complicated one, with a zipper and an internal pocket for money, with a second pocket for the metro card, fusible, lining, string holder, inserted bottom piece. I took a few pictures in the course of work, but not enough for a photo tutorial. But just in case and for my own reference, because I have a double order :))), I'm posting them here:

1) These two parts, strengthened with fusible and with the relevant velcro piece attached, make the flap.

 All materials are recycled from old Gaby's jeans (butterfly included) and Gaby's blouse (lining).

The internal pocket for the money, with a zipper. I couldn't find a reverse zipper in any store, so I used a regular zipper.

And the string holder. Gaby insisted on a metal ring, I would have preferred two buttonholes. But the customer's always right :)))

The two front parts of the outer fabric and the back are sewn together. Actually before this one has to add the bottom to the front pieces. I found this out the hard way.

 The lining and the flap are sewn to the front parts:

And then I got carried away and didn't take any more process pictures :))) But What you do is sew the back to the bottom, sew the sides, turn the lining and sew it from the outside and voila - the case is ready:

Beaded Easter Egg Shell

Photo Tutorial

A couple of years ago I found an excellent tutorial on how to make a beaded egg shell - and I made this one. I've lost the tutorial, but I have the old egg shell, so I decided to reconstruct it in this new photo tutorial.
I bought several kinds of beads and I chose these four to make the shell:




Cut 2.5 m thread, run it through the first round bead and make a knot. Thread three more round beads, then alternate 9 long with round beads, finish the row with four round beads. Run the thread back through the three but last beads and start the second row. Every second round bead is the bead from the previous row. Continue in this manner until the shell is big enough (11 diamond rows):







Close the last row without round beads - thread through the beads from the previous rows. Finish with a circle of round beads. Leave the other end of the shell open to put in the colored Easter egg, or use a wooden decorative egg.









And another one: