Frills 'n' Spills: camera

Showing posts with label camera. Show all posts

Lilac dreams...

The light here in the morning is beautiful, it casts a peachy glow over everything but it never seems to translate in photographs. I'm sure if we played around with the settings on our camera we could capture it much better but as with most things, a lack of time is what puts me off! I would love to have a variety of interesting backdrops for these photos, but working full time and leaving ridiculously early in the morning leaves me with literally 5 minutes to get these photos and it leaves me genuinely wondering, how do other bloggers in full time work do it?! It is so frustrating as I love blogging and I obviously want my photos to be as good as they can be but real life doesn't leave much wriggle room at the moment!

Dress: H&M via charity shop, top: Warehouse via charity shop, jacket: Principles, belt: Topshop vintage, shoes:Office

In the spirit of full matchy matchy-ness I dug out one of my favourite blushers, Summer Rose by Mac and my pinky violet lipstain from Max Factor (I ruddy love those lipstains!)

I came up with the idea for this outfit after Warehouse had a lilac skirt and white top combination on the mannequins in their store when I visited a few months back. I was tempted to buy the skirt and recreate the look myself but remembered I had this H&M dress to try it with instead. This top is so versatile, I love wearing it and it looks equally good with jeans and shorts as it at does with skirts and would definitely recommend getting a top with an interesting hemline!

Slowly trying to soften these shoes up, they are absolutely gorgeous but the leather is still very rigid, any ideas about how to soften them slightly? I want them to be as comfy as possible for when winter arrives again!

How do you make your photos as good as possible with very little time? Any ideas about how to soften my shoes up?

Monki navy lace dress...

I bought this gorgeous navy lace dress when I was in London at #LDNLUNCH. Hannah took me and Lily to the Monki store on Carnaby Street and I fell in love. I have been desperate to try Monki clothing ever since Selina raved about them and I was not disappointed. I loved the layout of the store [I forgot my camera so I don't have any pictures :( ] and could have easily bought bags full of stuff...I thought it was beautifully merchandised and I thought the prices were very reasonable too, I will definitely be going back!

Dress: Monki, belt: New Look, bag: c/o Accessories Direct, shoes: Office

I have been looking for a navy lace dress for a while now but all the ones I found were too blue and not dark enough... until I found this beauty!

I bought this in a Large which I thought was usually equivalent to a 14 (my usual size) but I think the medium would have easily fitted so maybe size down if you buy it! I quite liked the looser fit though, it made it a bit more daytime appropriate as well as being very comfy, there's nothing like an elasticated waist! ;)

VERY windy weather made for some funny outtakes!

I love the inky colour of the dress and think it will look equally fab paired with some hot pink accessories! I just realised though that I paired navy blue with black... a fashion faux pas?!

Mark had chicken and bacon club sandwich with French fries

My bacon, brie and cranberry crusty granary roll...delicious!

Mark and I went for lunch at The Arthouse Cafe in Worcester which is linked with Huntingdon Hall and I would thoroughly recommend it, my food was lovely! Another unusual place to have lunch and a drink!

Do you like Monki? Would you wear navy and black together?

P.S. Apologies for the harshness in some of these photos, we were using a different camera and although it is very nice, I much prefer the softness of our DSLR!

Bottle green, navy blue and cracked brown leather...school girl chic?

Top:ASOS, skirt: ASOS, belt: vintage Laura Ashley, shoeboots: Office

Recently I have noticed that my style has become much sleeker and toned down and clothes that I wouldn't have looked at a year ago I am now being drawn to. When I first bought this skirt I wore it a lot with stripes and red tones but I think it looks equally good, completely pared down. I don't know whether preferring a more classic look is a sign of me growing up and my style evolving or just a sign of me becoming less adventurous in my old age?!

I really liked the earthy tones and slight schoolgirl vibe I got with the bottle green and navy together- it's just a shame that my uniform wasn't this! I have to say though, my skirts were nearly as short at school :P These shoes always remind me of the 'sensible shoes' I had to wear for school but obviously much much nicer! I can't seem to stop wearing this belt either, it's the perfect shade of brown to match my bag and shoes and tie the outfit together and I can see this accessories combination becoming a staple throughout Autumn...

My attempts at taking photos with the tripod seem to be improving slightly, I only took about 20 of this outfit ;) I do miss having Mark around to take my photos and now my siblings are back at school I am reliant on my tripod and a teeny tiny remote!

Outtake of the day comes courtesy of me awkwardly trying to hide the remote as my ankle snaps off... ah well!

Has your style evolved? What are your favourite colour combinations?

A blogger's best friend...

Hello! I'm Claire from Jazzpad and whilst Maria is sunning herself on holiday (all those feeling remotely jealous say 'aye') I thought I'd give her a hand keeping her blog ticking over and offer something a little different to Frills 'n' Spills. I'm in no way trying to compete with Maria (she's far too style savvy and well-loved for that) so here's something away from styling and fashion debates which, though very different, I hope is still really relevant in the blog world.

Photography is equally, if not even more important than the written entries in blogging. It's the visuals of a blog which make the first impression, and regardless of how well-written and engaging a blogger is, chances are you won't give it a read unless there is something punchy and exciting to feast your eyes on. Be it outfit shots, photo diaries or images of haul purchases (you lucky things you), a camera is a blogger's best friend.

Your digital camera is definitely an invaluable aide to your cause, but have you ever thought about going back to basics with a manual? If you're reading this and think "psssh, I'm a 35mm pro, she's preaching to the converted," then apologies, but if you're the sort who has wanted to dabble in manual for a while but just never really had the courage to do so, I implore you.

These are all taken with what must be the best starter manual Lomo camera, the Colorsplash. It was my first toy camera which I've had for about 3 years now, and apart from a couple of winding/learning/teething problems at the very beginning, it has never let me down. The same cannot be said for my Holga Mini, which is still sitting on my naughty shelf. With long-exposure settings, multi-coloured flash options, relatively cheap price, and the tendency to prompt conversation from any onlooker ("Is that a gun? A microscope?"), I would not trade it for the world.

There is something quite romantic about manual film. It's the excitement of forgetting what you've snapped, and months later stumbling across a slightly over-exposed shot of a building you'd walked past on a holiday and can't remember the name of it. It's something you really can't mimic with digital images, and with the magic of developing film it's possible to put your manual snaps on a CD, so you can still share them with the world.

It really is a cup of tea...

So all that is left to say is a big thank you to Maria for letting me ramble on in her arena. For me, her USP is her ability to involve readers; I love the way every post of hers has a question at the end of it, to prompt your involvement with whatever inspiration she offers that day. It's something no other blogger does quite so well, but of course you know this - why else would you be reading her blog?

Either way, I hope you liked this little filler post while she is away, and if you do have any questions or comments about anything Colorsplash-related or otherwise, this is my blog and I would love to hear from you. PEACE xxx

Rambling in the woods... (PICTURE HEAVY)

Not blogging for a few days has been very strange, I have felt completely out of the loop as I have barely been online and I now have all of your lovely blogs to catch up on; both a daunting and exciting prospect! I realised how much time I spend thinking about blogging too as every other thing was blogworthy but my lack of internet meant that I had to just enjoy the moment rather than just try and document it without really experiencing it, does that make any sense?!

Just for you Laura <3

I did promise y'all some photos with my new backdrop and with the help of my little sister I have managed to deliver :) I have to say though, my favourite part of being home? Being reunited with my beloved leather jacket, 10 weeks without this is 10 weeks too many! It's definitely one of my favourite pieces in my wardrobe!

Dress: H! by Henry Holland, leather jacket: New Look, belt: stolen from my brother, socks: Marks & Spencer, shoes: Dorothy Perkins

My little sister, Isobel and I went out for a walk after dinner and the dappled sunlight was just gorgeous so she became very snap happy. The area where I live is quite isolated which makes getting anywhere an absolute nightmare but it does make for a very pretty backdrop for some outfit posts! Wasn't the sun today absolutely gorgeous? I couldn't believe how warm it was too: it said 24 degrees on the thermometer here :D

There are drystone walls made of gorgeous yellowy Cotswold stone everywhere and literally hundreds of trees absolutely everywhere! Unfortunately some of these photos came out quite dark so I have had to lighten them a bit but hopefully it doesn't look too unnatural or brash? My socks were a bit of a last minute addition as the nettles here are lethal. I learnt the hard way that bare ankles resulted in a lot of stings last time I was home!

Clambering up onto the gate was not my most elegant moment but that camera angle does make my legs look longer, which can't be a bad thing right?! There are so many horrific outtakes from today but I am relatively vain so I am saving them for a 'special' outtakes special post. I'm sure every blogger has a folder full of failed images on their computer judging by the number of snaps it took to get some half decent ones here! :P I like this picture though as it actually wasn't posed and I look quite happy which I like :) I told you I was vain!

Did you make the most of the sunshine? What do you miss most when you are on a 'blogging break'?

This week has been... full of elbow grease

Moving in and out of university accommodation each term is probably one of the most stressful things that I have encountered. I am guaranteed to forget something vital or lose something in transit and so I have to be organised enough to remember everything the week before I am due to leave...Anyone who has ever met me knows that I am completely disorganised but this time, I managed to get all of my chores done and watch a couple [read 15 or so] of episodes of CSI: Miami - only to clear the V+ box you understand! :P

I have to eat all of the food out of the fridge and try and clear the freezer: dinner yesterday consisted of steak, broccoli, sautéed potatoes and fried onion. Not bad considering I had absolutely nothing useful in the fridge! I had a rummage through the hundreds of bread rolls I have in the freezer (I don't know why as I rarely eat rolls?!) and managed to unearth this steak which made a very hungry Maria, VERY happy!

Blueberry muffins

I had promised my family some baked treats and turning up without them would have resulted in me being turned away at home I think! I made blueberry muffins, ginger bakes (supposed to be biscuits but ended up being more cakey!) and Malteasers cakes. Luckily, these went down well and I was welcomed back home with open arms and the cakes were quickly devoured by the hordes of my hungry siblings ;)

My weapons of choice against the gross black mould that had taken root in our student bathroom. Luckily a few hours (!) of elbow grease later and the bathrooms were sparkling clean again :) I never realised just how much dust our house produces too, do all houses do this or is it just old ones?

I can't really complain too much though as I got a Lindor egg for my troubles from Mark. I think I'm a Lindor addict, I seriously can't get enough of that chocolatey goodness...I just wish the boxes of them weren't so expensive as they are £5+ a box, not really suitable for a student budget :(

This was all of my stuff packed up and ready to go! I am really looking forward to spending some time at home but I will miss the independence of living at uni- the difficulties of students ;) I will be playing about with my camera and the gorgeous location I live in, so expect some photo heavy posts very soon :)

How do you motivate yourself to do your chores? Do you like a change of scenery?

Maria meets...

Welcome to a new feature on Frills 'n' Spills; 'Maria Meets...' I am hoping to interview and get to know a bit more about some interesting and creative people. I hope that this will be a fairly regular feature so I would love to hear your recommendations for who you would like me to feature,please let me know in the comments if you have any ideas! :D

The first person I have interviewed is my gorgeous friend, Neha Bhargava who I met whilst interning over the summer. She writes a baking blog at Shortcake and Snap and her photography portfolio is over at Neha Bhargava photography.

♥ Tell us a bit about yourself...

I'm 23, graduated back in 2009 from UCL in Human Sciences and now I work as a Technology Consultant at IBM. Whilst at university I was the Play Photo Editor of the London Student newspaper, so after graduating I decided to take my photography to the next level and started working on my fashion portfolio.

♥ So, who or what got you interested in photography?

Strangely enough, I just fell into photography. I started out doing digital art, moved onto vector art and then photography naturally followed. Also, can’t possibly go without mentioned the wonderful community at DeviantART who gave me bucketloads of inspiration and
support when I was starting out.

♥ Do you have a favourite photographer? (Celebrity or otherwise)

I absolutely love Patrick Demarchelier’s work, and also Andreas Sjödin who has done a lot of the photography for H&M in the past. I actually applied for work experience with Patrick Demarchelier’s studio in the wild off-chance that maybe they would want an

intern/slave to help out! Besides that, Jeff Hahn, a personal friend of mine. He’s an amazing artist, with real vision and presence.

♥ What are your views on sites such as Tumblr, WeHeartIt etc? Is it difficult to retain authorship of your work?

Social networking is both a blessing and a curse. It’s fantastic to be able to get your work broadcasted out there but it’s never nice when someone claims the credit for your work. A lot of effort and preparation goes into everyone’s work, be it a photo shoot or just an evening meal. Equally annoying is when your work is put up without acknowledgement because a main part of it is to get your name out there and associated with your work! Enough with the moaning though, I think websites like tumblr are great for the snapshot “Hey look what I
stumbled across” moments to spread the word.

♥ I always feel nervous in front of the camera, how do you get your subjects to relax?

I’ve had my fair share of nervous models and subjects and I find the easiest way is to make them laugh, however ridiculous the means! Once all that nervous energy’s out, everybody can relax and just have fun with it. That’s what photo shoots really should be about.

♥ Who or what is your ideal subject and why?

I do like to shoot fashion, but my favourite subject is food because you can eat it straight after :D

♥ I just bought a new camera, do you have any tips for anyone starting out in photography?

Don’t just go straight for the top end camera that everyone’s talking about, it might not suit the type of photography you want to start doing. Do a bit of research before making such a big investment, so you could ask some friends who are photographers or can get you in touch with them, narrow down to a few choices and go down to a camera shop and ask for a side-by-side comparison so that you can find a camera body that’ll last you a good while. Also, get a good starter lens that’s multi-purpose, like an 18-200mm lens or something similar,so that you can learn the ins and outs of the camera body first.

♥ What is your 'go-to' outfit?

Skinny jeans and a top that usually has volume towards the bottom. I like the idea of having something casual mixed up with elegance and a bit of punk. Either that or dresses – I'm obsessed with dresses.

♥ Desert island book, film, album and blog/website?

Only Forward by Michael Marshall Smith (amazing sci-fi book, which is only bettered by Spares, but personally I think this one is the best).

Film would have to be Serenity as it’s a fantastic sum-up to the original series Firefly, even though you don’t get to find anything out about Shepherd!!

Album would be Adele 19, at the moment, because I’m completely in love with her voice.

Finally, blog would be Tartelette – beautiful photography and delicious recipes.

A HUGE thank you to Neha for letting me interview her :) If anyone wants to be featured or has any ideas about who you would like to see next then let me know in the comments :)

Guess what, I'm not a robot...

I love when you find a bargain in a charity shop, it can really make my day and the fact that the money is going to a good cause makes me feel less guilty about spending it! I spotted this cute robot t-shirt hidden amongst some rather questionable jumpers, proof that having a rummage is always a good idea!

Top: New Look via charity shop, skirt: Dorothy Perkins, blazer: Tesco, socks: Marks and Spencers, shoeboots: Next, bag: c/o Fiona and Siren.

I love all of the different robots, aren't they just gorgeous?! I felt quite a lot like a schoolgirl in this outfit, I think it was the grey blazer/sock combo?

I won this bag in a giveaway over at Fiona's wonderful blog and whilst it is not something I would ever choose for myself, I absolutely love it! It makes me feel a bit cooler (definitely no bad thing!) and adds a "delightfully tacky" element to my outfits. I really love some of the stuff on Siren's website, this gorgeous purple suede bag WILL be mine! :)

Also seen here with an outfit that I really loved but didn't photograph well; a gorgeous vintage green 'wiggle' dress and mulberry tights, leaving me looking like a cross between Joan Holloway and Laura! Not a bad combination AT.ALL.

Dress: vintage, tights: John Lewis, coat: c/o Tesco, shoes: Tesco, bag: New Look, belt: Primark

Back to the grind of essay and dissertation writing...luckily I have Danni and Lisa's birthdays to look forward to in the next few days :D I need to put on my dancing shoes and go and party! :D

Have you found any bargains recently?

P.S. Keep a look out for some exciting new features, coming soon! :D

Frills 'n' Spills

Lilac dreams...

Monki navy lace dress...

Bottle green, navy blue and cracked brown leather...school girl chic?

A blogger's best friend...

Rambling in the woods... (PICTURE HEAVY)

This week has been... full of elbow grease

Maria meets...

Guess what, I'm not a robot...

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