The Photoshop Challenge

So... 

It appears we skipped the month of June. But, in our defense, June is a busy month! There's graduations, and open houses, and weddings, and too much to do! To be honest, the month just flew by and when it was over we kind of looked at each other like "June? It's over? It's seriously July already?" One AWESOME thing we learned from skipping a month was just how many of you truly do read this blog, and really do anticipate seeing the new challenges! That blew us away, and made us both so excited to continue doing these challenges! Thank you for reaching out and asking "so where the heck is the new challenge?!" We promise to get our act together!

SO WHO WON THE LAST CHALLENGE?

That said, the last challenge was the Nature Challenge. And the winning photographer chosen by your votes was... drumroll please....

Melissa!

The stunning model, Hannah, acting like a total wind/stormy/bohemian nature goddess. 

WINNER, WINNER, CHICKEN DINNER! 

As always, we draw the name of a voter at random and that voter wins a prize! 

This month's lucky winner is JENNIFER ZIELINSKI!

 Congratulations Jennifer and thanks for voting!
And no, you didn't win a chicken dinner.
This is what will be coming to Jennifer...wonderful handmade goatsmilk soaps from Kid Acres Soap Shoppe:

Smells so good, and makes your skin as soft as a baby's lil' tush!

The New Challenge

The theme this time around is The Photoshop Challenge. 
There really weren't any rules to this challenge. Basically we were to plan a themed image, photograph it, and then drastically enhance it in Photoshop to bring it to life!

This is a Blind Challenge Ya'll

Meaning, just as before, we aren't telling you which photographer shot which image!
We want you to vote for the ART, not the photographer.
So, read each little blurb, look at the images, and choose your favorite!

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PHOTOGRAPHER A

Summertime brings the only insect that I truly think is pretty cool---fireflies. 
They're so magical...it's kind of a fun Michigan kid summer thing to go out and capture them in a jar for a little while. And by the way, since Amazon has EVERYTHING, you can now buy your own firefly-in-a-jar, and let the real bugs keep their freedom.
 https://www.amazon.com/Firefly-in-a-Jar-Realistic/dp/B005AJPK1K 
It's like childhood in a jar! We didn't have Amazon when I was a kid. Had to go out and catch them ourselves. Anyhoo, fireflies are what sparked (pun!) my idea for my image. I needed children...which, between the two of us, we have plenty to choose from. And instead of them capturing a firefly, how cool would it be to capture a fairy?! 

When I was little, we had these old, old story books--a fairy tale treasury--on our bookshelves that had wonderful stories and beautiful illustrations. 

I'd spend hours reading those.

This image is as inspired by those books as it is by this carefree (albeit very warm) summer.

Sarah's very lovely niece played the part of the fairy.

Gorgeous girl!

These two little cuties are Melissa's kiddos.

The images of the models were combined with a separate image of the jar.

True experts at being photography subjects.

 All were shot against a blue chromakey background, which ended up being such a very pretty color that I decided to keep it.
Photoshop has "brushes" that you can collect and stamp onto an image, and I was able to find a moon, some branches, fairy wings, and little glowy itty bitty fireflies (lightning bugs?).

PHOTOGRAPHER A'S FINAL IMAGE

Detail view of the fairy...she's too beautiful to not see up close:

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PHOTOGRAPHER B

 My first thought was to do something creepy, but every concept I came up with was too "halloween-ish". Somehow my mind drifted to Edgar Allan Poe and at first I was going to do something based on the Telltale Heart. That morphed into the Telltale Heart, Raven wings.... basically just a bunch of "Poe" stuff. I thought it would be cool to incorporate a hand drawn anatomically correct heart, and well lookie here.... my model is an artist and already had drawn one! It was meant to be! 

Seriously, how awesome is this? Can you believe she drew this?!?

I was still undecided about some parts of my final image during the shoot and was kind of winging it (psshh I NEVER do that ha ha) until my model mentioned a poem called Annabel Lee. I looked it up, and it was EXACTLY the inspiration I needed! I based the final look of my image off that poem. I styled my model, did her hair and makeup, and photographed her holding a little wooden box. I then superimposed her heart drawing into the box, added ravens exploding out of her hair, cracked her face (as she was my little broken porcelain doll), and added gears into her head because why not? I also did some other things like enlarging her eyes to help with the porcelain doll look, and specific image toning.

PHOTOGRAPHER B'S FINAL IMAGE

I turned this.... 

....into this!

For the moon never beams, without bringing me dreams

Of the beautiful Annabel Lee;
And the stars never rise, but I feel the bright eyes

Of the beautiful Annabel Lee;
And so, all the night-tide, I lie down by the side
Of my darling -- my darling -- my life and my bride,
In her sepulchre there by the sea,
In her tomb by the sounding sea.

If you want to read the whole poem, go here.

Voting has ended!

Thank you for your votes--you all are great!
Stay tuned to hear the results
(and also to find out who is the lucky voter)

The Nature Challenge

Last month's challenge was the Garbage Bag Challenge and the winner was...

I know, I know.... Garbage Bag Couture at its finest right here!

Melissa!

Melissa's gothic/high fashion/whatever else it was creation was chosen as the favorite by YOU the voters. Speaking of voters, we draw a name at random from the voting pool after each challenge and that month's winner was PATTY SEYMOUR

Patty received a little gift from Sarah...a Marvel coffee mug with m&m's. Oh, yeah.

To see what voters have received in the past, check out Melissa's blog here.

This month's challenge is aptly titled "The Nature Challenge".
Since Melissa won the previous challenge she got to choose the theme and the rules. 

THE RULES

1. You may use any age/gender for a model.
2. You must use elements found in nature to create a look that embodies the theme of "Nature".
3. That's it---Anything goes from there on out!

And this time we are doing something a little different. 

We are not telling you who photographed which image. 

Simply vote for your fave without having to choose between Team Melissa or Team Sarah!

Once again---winner chooses the next challenge, loser sends a little gift to one of you wonderful voters. (be sure to leave your email so we can enter it and find you!)

A few notes from the photographers

(Who will remain nameless. For now.)

PHOTOGRAPHER A

Somewhere in my internet travels I had come across this amazing gown with a bodice make completely of flowers. I'm not talking Halloween costume type of dress...I'm talking Beyonce wearing it to the Met Gala type of dress. So I did what I normally do and took a screenshot, archiving it in my special folder full of special ideas that I may someday come back to. So, helllooooo nature challenge! I already had the white gown, which is actually someone's old wedding dress, and just needed to "nature-ify" it up. My first stop was the flower shop, as I knew I wanted to use real flowers. The colors of the flowers were determined by what the florist had hanging around that were almost dead and therefore the cheapest. My only requirements were no neons or unnatural colors! My next stop was to my front yard where I gathered up pieces of this and that out of my perennial flower beds and maaaaaaaaaybe some of last year's dead leftovers that I never cleaned up. But, you didn't hear that from me. I wanted to go with a dark edit, something that really embodied what the weather was like that day. Which was rainy, cold, and dreary. Perfect day for a photo shoot, right? 

PHOTOGRAPHER B

Remember that crazy cold winter we had? And how we thought spring was coming because it got really warm, but then it got really cold again and snowed? 

And how this was repeated 57 times? 

Well, we finally....FINALLY....had spring*. Buds appeared on trees, birds started singing, and I was inspired. I found a blossomed-filled tree, and I put a bird's nest on my lovely model's head (faux, because I wouldn't do that to my model or birds) , a tutu around her neck, and a homemade "nest" skirt around her waist.
I think she has a bit of an Effie Trinket vibe (any Hunger Games fans out here?). I played around a bit while editing this later, also chose colors that give it a bit of a cinematic look.

Our shoot took place at a park, and as an older gentleman bicycled past us, he uttered, and I quote, "Oh my.......". That's what art does. It evokes emotion. 

*It snowed again less than a week after this shoot. 

Speaking of nature, after you vote, go out and breathe in some fresh air, smell some flowers, listen to some birds. 

If you're stuck inside, you can check this out for the next nine hours or so:

Nature Sights and Sounds for NINE WHOLE HOURS

THE FINAL IMAGES

VOTE!
As always, one lucky voter will receive a little prize....that could be you!
You may enter & vote once a day.

PVP Nature Challenge

Email (for prize drawing):

This One

That One

myiq

The Garbage Bag Challenge

The winner of the previous challenge is... 

Sarah! with her movie-inspired image

(for the 3 people in the world who have never seen this movie---

Sarah's was based on The Princess Bride)

(Also, 3 people---watch that movie.)

And our winning voter is...

AmberR

Amber, you'll be getting a little gift from Melissa. :)

Thanks for your vote!

Now.

The new challenge.

THE GARBAGE BAG CHALLENGE

heh heh heh

I know what you're thinking:
"I have lots of garbage bags at home that I'd love to wear. But how? How, Melissa and Sarah, do I wear them?"
Well, sit tight.

RULES
Create and photograph a look using garbage bags.
And tape. Tape's okay, too.

Melissa and Sarah both wanted to make something gorgeous out of something a non-glamorous as trash bags, yet each went in a totally opposite direction with this challenge.

Melissa went with black garbage bags.

Melissa spared no expense and went with the Walmart brand

Sarah chose white

Sarah spared even less expense and went with Dollar General bags.

Check out the behind-the-scenes videos:
Click here to see Melissa's
Click here to see Sarah's

Final Images:
(Mobile Viewers: please tap on each image to see a full size/higher res version)

by Melissa

by Sarah

NOTES FROM THE PHOTOGRAPHERS

Melissa: I have found the one thing the internet does not have. Regular sized colored garbage bags. I reeeeeally wanted to use grey or tan or even a light pink garbage bag for this challenge but struck out everywhere! I could find primary colors, but nothing in the hue I wanted so.... Wal Mart to the rescue! I opted for traditional black and decided to step out of my comfort zone and shoot something dark and moody. My model, Skyler, is seen here wearing about 45 of the finest (a.k.a. cheapest, hey I was just going to cut them up!) black garbage bags I could find and a roll of black duct tape. I spent close to 4 hours creating the dress and in all honesty, was very relieved to find that it photographed very well! Skyler was an amazing model and didn't bat an eye when she
discovered I was going to dress her up in garbage bags!

Sarah: I had a box of kitchen trash bags that were too small for our trash can (note to self: get the TALL ones next time). Since I had gotten the most votes with the last challenge, I got to pick the theme for this one. I finally had a way of putting those bags to use!
I was thinking about doing something poofy. Perhaps ballerina-inspired. I was going to go all avant garde, with a large headpiece and bold makeup, but the girl I had in mind to model was going to be out of town the day of the shoot. My niece, albeit a bit younger, was willing to model, but she couldn't make it over, either! Shortly after I got that message, I was contacted by the grandmother of a young model, asking about a shoot. Perfect timing!
As my models got younger and younger, I changed up my design. It took several hours to make, and I had my moments of "what did I get myself into??" but I finished it up the morning of the shoot, and when Harper arrived she was the perfect model, and made those garbage bags look divine!
She is wearing fifty garbage bags, and is absolutely beautiful!

VOTING TIME!
REMEMBER: To be eligible for the drawing, you must leave your name so we can find you!
UPDATE: Voting's over! 
Thanks for your vote!
Winning photographer and winning voter will be announced later this week.

The Movie Challenge

We had so much fun with the Thrift Store Challenge that we were itching to do the next one!

As per the rules, whichever photographer received the most votes got to pick the next challenge. Sarah was the winner with her gorgeous steampunk inspired thrifted creation seen here:

And the loser, Melissa, had to send a gift to one lucky voter. That voter was April Moore! (April, if you are reading this, keep an eye on your mailbox! It's on it's way!)

THE THEME

Sarah's idea for the next challenge was "The Movie Challenge". This challenge focused on taking one of our favorite movies, and translating it into a still photographic image. Either a clone of a specific scene from the movie, or just something loosely based. Didn't matter what, just had to be derived from the movie in some way.

THE RULES 

• Style a shoot based on a favorite movie.
• Shoot must include 2 models, no more, no less.
• Models' look must be inspired by characters from that movie.

SARAH'S CHOICE

The Princess Bride: which is an amazing movie full of sword fights, dashing handsome gents, a damsel in distress, and true love. Also, in case you didn't know... it IS based on a kissing book.

MELISSA'S CHOICE

Wayne's World: which is an amazing movie full of funny one liners, 2 dashing handsome gents (in their own way), a fierce "oh yes, she will be mine" damsel, and.... you guessed it... true love. 

Here's a fun tidbit!

SARAH'S FAVORITE SCENE FROM "THE PRINCESS BRIDE"

Note from Sarah: There is SO MUCH amazing going on with The Princess Bride. Handsome Westley, beautiful Buttercup. True love. Quotes galore. Mawwiage. I love this scene of the wedding of Buttercup and Prince Humperdinck. ("Hold it, hold it", you're probably thinking..."She doesn't marry Humperdinck..." Well, keep your shirt on...). Do I remember what was said at my own wedding? No, actually I don't (sorry, honey!)...but I for sure can quote the vows said here:

MELISSA'S FAVORITE SCENE FROM "WAYNE'S WORLD"

Note from Melissa: This scene is my favorite because seriously, could Garth BE any nerdier but yet adorable at the same time? (Did you say that in your head like Chandler Bing? I did.)
Not only that, but Wayne's advice about love, while gross, is true right?

"I say hurl. If you blow chunks and she comes back, she's yours.
If you spew, and she bolts... it was never meant to be."

Not as glamorous as Westley saying "As you wish" to Buttercup, but still tugs at the heart strings, amirite? 
And don't act like you've never tried to do the foxy lady dance.

THE DAY OF THE SHOOT

 This time around, we decided not to shoot at the exact same time. Rather, Melissa went first so Sarah could take some behind the scenes video for her, and then Melissa did the same for Sarah. First models up were Jillian and Hailey a.k.a Wayne and Garth. 

I've had the great honor of photographing these beautiful ladies before!

Check out this super fun behind the scenes video!

Sarah's models arrived shortly after Jillian and Hailey wrapped up their shoot. First to arrive was Sarah's son, Anthony, who was raised watching The Princess Bride, and taught to appreciate every. single. line. His look was inspired by Westley...or rather, the Dread Pirate Roberts. The second model was Sarah, who not only has a fabulous first name and the perfect hair, face, and poise for Buttercup, but she also knows the movie inside and out.

It's reassuring to know this generation is being exposed to such movie epicness. 

Check out Sarah's behind-the-scenes:

THE FINISHED PRODUCT

  Sarah's Take on "The Princess Bride"

"Why do you wear a mask? Were you burned by acid or something?"
"Oh, no. They're just terribly comfortable. I think everyone will be wearing them in the future."

Melissa's Take on "Wayne's World"

"A gun rack? A gun rack. I don't even own "ah" gun, let alone many guns that would necessitate an entire rack.        What am I gonna do with a gun rack?"

NOTES FROM THE PHOTOGRAPHERS

Sarah- Winner, winner chicken dinner (from the Thriftstore Challenge)! That means I have theme-picking privileges--woot! Our family loves movies, so naturally I thought it'd be fun to incorporate our faves into a photoshoot. I adore every single minute of The Princess Bride, so that was an easy choice. Quirky humor, beautiful settings, romance, adventure, Andre the Giant...it has it all. Not to mention being one of the most quotable movies of all time. I shot Sarah's senior portraits the week before the shoot, and asked if she'd be my Buttercup. I was told that her family adored the movie as well, so I knew she'd be perfect. My son can not only quote the movie, but can handle all the accents, inflections, and timing of the lines. He only had one class that day, so he stopped by the studio afterwards to by my Westley. Costumes--I had a red tulle skirt, and I added a shirt from Goodwill for Buttercup--Sarah (model Sarah) brought along some belts that proved quite useful. Anthony provided most of the clothing for being Westley, although I did pull a black blouse out of my closet and clamped it around his waist as a sash. I searched high and low for a "fire swamp" backdrop, but apparently there isn't a high demand for those. Melissa happened to have this fantastic forest backdrop at her studio where we shot, and it was exactly what I needed. Thank you, Melissa--you're the best!

Melissa- I was so excited when Sarah chose the Movie Challenge as our theme. I have loved Wayne's World since I was a kid. It took me exactly .2 seconds to make my decision to use it as my inspiration for the challenge. Wayne's World is one of those movies that I can pretty much quote line by line. I'd have to say my favorite character is Garth. Wayne's cool too, but Garth has that loveable in a weird way quality! My models, Jillian and Hailey, were an amazing Wayne and Garth! My idea was to take early 90's grunge and put a little modern spin on it. Imagine if Wayne and Garth were high fashion models posing for Vogue magazine... that was my plan! The blanket on the back of the couch was a little throwback to Wayne's basement, and I just so happened to spot it at my grandma's house... thanks grams! The only thing I would have changed about this image was to put "Wayne" on the left, because that's where he sat in his mom's basement...in Aurora Illinois...with an extensive collection of name tags and hairnets.To see the rest of the images from my session with Jillian and Hailey, click this link right here!

CAST YOUR VOTE!

and enter your email for a chance to win a little gift from one of us! 

UPDATE: VOTING CLOSED!

trivia quizzes

The Thrift Store Challenge

Welcome to our first challenge in our Photographer vs. Photographer series!

This first challenge was all about creating something out of nothing. MacGyver style. Remember MacGyver and how handsome he was then? If you are too young to remember him (and this means we are SO old), he was this guy who was always in situations that required him using available tools to escape/dismantle a bomb/save an orphanage. He could build an airplane out of a toothpick and bubble gum.  

 See that missile he's holding? That's toilet paper, a swizzle stick, and a flower pot. AND he made it with his eyes closed.

So, we decided it would be fun to see what we could come up with! It started as something we could do for fun, just once, and morphed into a monthly series of challenges.

The rules are simple:
1. The only items that can be used are items purchased at a thrift store. Except for shoes. Shoes can belong to the model. Thrift store shoes gross us out.
2. The only tools allowed are the ones found in our "tool kit".
3. Budget: $20 or less

THE TOOL KIT

 We were each allowed to use only the tools provided in our tool kit. This amounted to basically needle and thread, safety pins, and mini clamps.As you can see, Sarah cheated and used big scissors. But, in her defense the little ones in the kit wouldn't even cut paper....so... big scissors are deemed ok to use!

Yikes! How are we ever going to use ONLY these tools to create art?!

 THE SEARCH IS ON!

Sarah chose to find her treasures at Goodwill. In a snow storm. 

She took this selfie while hiding behind her van. 

Melissa chose to look for her treasures at Salvation Army. After just rolling out of bed. She took this selfie in .2 seconds and then hid. How do people take selfies in public and not feel weird?!

Look at all the options Sarah found! How in the world will she turn those into something beautiful?

 .99 old lady collars and a $2.29 holiday garland..... hmmm what can Melissa make with these?

Strike a pose, there's nothing to it, Vogue. Or try on a tablecloth... same thing.

Can you believe Sarah bought all of these majestic beauties for less than $20?!

THE DAY OF THE SHOOT
Our models Amy and Kristen arrived.
They really didn't know what to expect,
other than the fact that they would be wearing some second-hand stuff.
And we even did hair and makeup on our models.
Oh, yeah. It got real.

Behind-the-scenes: Melissa

Behind-the-scenes: Sarah

THE FINISHED PRODUCT

 Sarah's Final Image                                                                         Melissa's Final Image

Ooo la la!

NOTES FROM THE PHOTOGRAPHERS

Sarah - Challenge? That's my middle name. Not really. But I do love me a good challenge. I didn't have anything in mind at first, but no worries, because my Pinterest board is brimming over with inspiration (and also dessert recipes should I not fare so well here). At Goodwill, I headed straight to the dress section, and the first dress I chose was an old, stained, pink mother-of-the-bride dress. Fell in love with the collar, thought it would be a cool steampunk/victorian accent piece, then went about looking for other pink items to pull the look together. Came across a long dress--perfect since I needed lots of material for the outer skirt. Then I spotted a pink blazer/skirt suit with amazing texture. $17.99 was my total! I've rigged up "dresses" for women's portraits before, and I knew I had plenty to work with. I got to work the day before the shoot...cutting and needle-and-threading. Sewing. I was sewing. Not my forte, but I kept hearing Tim Gunn say "Make it work."
Shoot day: Clamp clamp clamp. Thank goodness we had those tiny clamps in the kit! It's a good thing photographs are taken from one angle only! Kristen was an AMAZING model, and I have to say, it all came together much better than I had thought it would. Especially 1 hour into cutting and sewing the day before--I had my doubts!

Melissa - I didn't really have a clear idea or style in mind at first. I'm the type of person who needs to browse a store and build ideas as I see things I like, pretty much how I Christmas shop now that I think of it! I did know that I wanted to stay true to my style of light colors, soft tones, with delicate and feminine touches. The first item I stumbled upon at Salvation Army was the lace tank top. I didn't even notice that it was a hand made piece with part of the back cut off until I got home! The skirt is actually a tablecloth. I kept things very simple and used safety pins to loosely pin the cloth around Amy's hips and then sewed her right into it! The garland was turned into a head piece by bending pieces together and the rest is held together with needle and thread. It turned out much prettier than I anticipated! I love the color scheme. The old lady collar doilies from before? Those turned into pretty neat little wrist cuffs, don't you think? I chose to go without shoes because I was feeling a little bohemian/hippie vibe from the whole ensemble, which I feel I finished off by styling Amy's hair with a curling wand for spiraly, kind of wild curls. This challenge was so fun! I can't wait till next month to do the next one!

NOW, LET'S VOTE!

UPDATE: VOTING HAS CLOSED, 

The winner is....
SARAH!
Sarah: I am honored, and would like to thank every single one of you that voted. And also Melissa for being such a great sport and only accusing me of cheating a few times. Better luck next time, Melissa. Haha. And a great big "thank you" to Kristen for being a fantastic model! 
New challenge to be announced soon!

The voter whose name was drawn is: April Moore.
April, you will be receiving a little something in the mail from Melissa.