The VaNiTy ThReAd

[UncommonTruth]

I've been wondering how you get such a nice soft smile. I'm a happy go lucky person, I smile and laugh constantly irl, but smiling here looks more like someone about to get sick lol. I want your smile :matte-motes-smitten: not the scary one that shows up for me.

[Kylie Jaxxon]

Hi Uncommon, I have found that going into appearance and adjusting the "mouth corner" of the shape works great...just an ever-so-gentle uplifting of the corner of the mouth can make all the difference in the world...makes your avatar appear pleasant, happy, IMO.  Those other things are too harsh, unnatural looking for me

ETA:  Oooops....meant shape, not skin

Here's one where I adjusted:

 

 

[Kelli May]

Mildy military at S.I.C. 49

[Wicked Galaxy]

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UncommonTruth wrote:

WOW! I LOVE that look! What is it and where can I find it? :smileysurprised:

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thank you all for your kind words

I'm always very proud of my sissy's work, I love being her muse and sharing her creations.

@uncommonTruth... here is the info for everything I'm wearing.. if you need LM's for anything IM me in world

Skin - curio - airhead

Eyes - Ibaneze - Limlight

Hair - truth - Jordan

Dress - Chocolate Atelier - tulle dress red - (group gift)

Necklace - Curious Kitties - angry sorrow red

Bracelet & armband - gfields - metal rose red

Earrings - U&R Dogs -  L'Isle joyeuse Pierced Earrings

nails - candy nails monotone

Wiki

[Jaikke]

you guys and girls post so many pics with great eyes,  what's the secret?  I know about directing using the camera just cant seem to get the effects and awesomeness many are getting.

[Venus Petrov]

Sometimes it's just random luck for me.  Other times, I use CTL-ALT-left click on my chest to force my eyes to focus ahead and snap.

[Dresden Ceriano]

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Mayalily wrote:

@  Myself

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Talking to yourself in the forum now?

...Dres (at least Maddy has the decency to use an alt... lol.)

[Kylie Jaxxon]

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Jaikke wrote:

you guys and girls post so many pics with great eyes,  what's the secret?  I know about directing using the camera just cant seem to get the effects and awesomeness many are getting.

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I take a zillion pics from all different angles and use different poses...I pick the best one

 

[Cinnamon Mistwood]

I have never posted to the vanity thread.  I am not much of a photographer or photo editor, so this one has only been cropped to cut out an ugly couch that was on one side.   Somehow I was able to time it right so I was actually looking towards the front when it snapped the pic.  Okay...  Here it goes:

[Jaikke]

Thanks all and thanks Venus didnt know about Ctrl-ALT left.

[valerie Inshan]

A chilly morning in soft colours.

[Kelli May]

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Jaikke wrote:

you guys and girls post so many pics with great eyes,  what's the secret?  I know about directing using the camera just cant seem to get the effects and awesomeness many are getting.

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1. A professional once told me that the secret of good photography is lots of bad photography. That works on two levels... every bad photo you take is practice that improves later pictures, and if you take a lot of pics, there's a chance one of them will look good.

2. Eyes. As previously mentioned, ctrl-alt-left click will point your av's eyes at wherever you click. It can disrupt your pose (if not on a poseball) or move your camera, though. You can also the camera control palette to correct any movement, or freeze-frame (in the snapshot menu) and move the camera to where you want it.

3. It's not always necessary to have your av looking straight down the camera. In fact, as long as they aren't all cross-eyed, it can look better if they are looking somewhere else. If your subject is looking left, frame them on the right of the picture and vice-versa.This is considered more classic in terms of composition... Google 'rule of thirds' and 'rabatment of the rectangle' - basically anything interesting in the picture should aligned with an imaginary grid dividing the frame into 3x3.

4. Fancy stuff... play with the Windlight settings. Background haze can help focus attention on your subject. Moving the sun around can improve the contrast in the picture, remove ugly facial shadows or put an interesting sunset over your subjects shoulder. Weird skies can accentuate interesting colour schemes. Playing with the zoom (ctrl-8 & ctrl-0, ctrl-9 to reset) can stretch & compress the background for 'nightmare' effects. Finally, there's a load of stuff you can do in image-manipulation software.

5. Facelights. If you don't use one day-to-day, consider one for photography. Make sure it doesn't wash out your features and you have 'local lights' checked in Graphics. Also, because framerate isn't so much of an issue, you can use higher graphics settings for photography than for normal SL wanderings.

 

ETA: The final rule - or zeroth rule, depending on how you want to look at it - is to break the rules, but to know that you are breaking them and why you are doing it. 

 

[Venus Petrov]

That is wonderful advice, Kelli.  In addition, I suggest that you snap your photos to disc.  You will save L$.  You do not need them uploaded into SL to post them here and those you want to upload will be the select few.

[Kylie Jaxxon]

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valerie Inshan wrote:

A chilly morning in soft colours.

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Ohhhhh, Valerie...I love this one!  Very nice :matte-motes-sunglasses-1:

[valerie Inshan]

Thank you Kylie! :smileyhappy:

[Jaikke]

Thanks Kelli,  this will help in my rl photography too.  

[Kelli May]

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Venus Petrov wrote:

That is wonderful advice, Kelli.  In addition, I suggest that you snap your photos to disc.  You will save L$.  You do not need them uploaded into SL to post them here and those you want to upload will be the select few.

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Absolutely... I always save to disc, and very few actually get uploaded. Maybe only 1 photo in 10 makes it to SL, a lot of L$ saved.

@valerie: love the way the blurred foreground of flowers adds texture and depth to the picture.

[Kelli May]

Here's one that started off with some straightforward glamour shots, before I got all arty and obsessed by the fall of light & shadow.

[Storm Clarence]

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Kelli May wrote:

Here's one that started off with some straightforward glamour shots, before I got all arty and obsessed by the fall of light & shadow.

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This photograph appeals to my eye in so many ways.  

A beautiful woman; the colors and shading; wonderfully creative; sad and happy; incredibly soft; a sense of elegance; brutally sexy.  

[valerie Inshan]

This is just incredible, stunning, dark, soft and mysteriously sensual. I absolutely love it. You did an astonishing job here, Kelli. I am very impressed.

Shall I dare posting this dull winter morning picture?....

[Kelli May]

Thank you very much, folks; I'm just glad you enjoyed it as much as I do.

@Storm: I should steal that line for my sig & profile.

@Val: as if you ever post a boring picture! I love the way you put the seasons into your photos.

[Ariel Vuissent]

So many lovely photos here! Mine is rather boring, I'm afraid, but here's a simple fall shot, in my new coat and boots sitting on a pile of leaves.

[Venus Petrov]

Absolutely fantastic to see new posters and lovely photos!  (Hugs Val!)

Kelli, your latest photo is remarkable for the feelings it evokes.  Wonderful work.

Ariel, your photo is not boring!  Fall is my favorite season and you on a pile of leaves is wimsical!

Speaking of Fall...

[Kylie Jaxxon]

I'm sorry, but that knowledge base is ridiculous.  I've searched using different keywording for this question and nada, always brings back results that have nothing to do with my question.

Can someone tell me real fast how to upload multiple photos at a single time...it says we can upload 10 at a time, does that mean in one batch or daily or what?  And if there is a batch uploader, how do I access it? 

[LoveAngeL Lyre]

Hello Kylie. It 's true. Go to your profile here --> View images on the right --> Add images --> Browse --> pick up to 10 pics --> Open.