From time to time I look back on all of my posts, Blog & Instagram and take note of which I am the most proud of. I want to do more of those. I noticed there was some consistency on which ones I loved the most: my challenges. These challenges allow me to try something different, expand my capabilities, and create some memorable pictures. The next challenge I decided to take on is Greek Goddesses.
I love Greek mythology and wanted an opportunity to learn more about it while also doing another photo challenge. I picked 7 goddesses.
*This order may change.
It has been a long time since I did a photoshoot, let alone a challenge. There was so much I already forgot. For each image, I tried to pick poses to emulate. In the past, if the pose wasn’t working for me, I switched it up on the fly. This time, I did not allow myself to do that. I picked the pose for a reason and needed to figure out why it wasn’t working the way I wanted it to. By challenging myself, I was forced to grow, but also, was forced to take some really unattractive pictures.
Pheme: Goddess of Fame, Gossip & Renown
Makeup Inspiration:
From the start, I knew I would want to try the makeup trend of enlarging your lips. I do not understand or enjoy this trend, but big lips are currently the image of fame. I have seen so many naturally beautiful women botch their faces to chase a trend that is (hopefully) a fleeting fad.
As we grow older, we look back upon trends that we used to follow and laugh at ourselves. Why did we allow our eyebrows to be that thin? Why did we think bright blue eyeshadow was flattering?
I am all for following trends and testing out different images, with one catch. Don’t do anything that is irreversible. This is advice that my mother and grandmother always tell me and it has proven to be quite useful.
Use makeup to enlarge your lips instead of surgery. When the trend changes to make thin lips stylish, you will be thanking me.
My makeup look was dual inspired: Kardashian & Euphoria. You cannot see the Euphoria inspiration in the final image. This makeup inspiration made my eyeliner extremely thick and ended up looking really dumb in so many pictures.
Hair Inspiration:
When thinking of fame, my mind went to my personal favorites. I wanted to include a positive famous image to juxtapose my gigantic lips. Most of my favorite women do not have signature hairstyles. Only one: Ariana Grande. I am a big fan and love her hairstyles with the front strands pulled out.
My front strands are a little too long for this hairstyle. I took some pictures with two strands and a high pony. I updated my hair mid-shoot to have 1 strand and a clip (also trendy right now). It is definitely a skill to be able to put together an entire photoshoot. I knew my pose, my focus would be on my lips, and yet, my original hairstyle choice blocked my lips.
Pose Inspiration:
Pheme is not only a goddess of fame, but of gossip. I picked this goddess based off of the opportunity to do a gossip pose that looked like I was whispering to someone or the camera. I took on the challenge of elevating a rather cheesy inspiration photo.
Jeez. I do not think I realized what I was setting myself up for. I took photos face on, photos with one hand, photos with two hands, photos looking away, photos whispering off camera, etc etc. Have you ever thought of what you look like when you whisper? I hadn’t before. How should I curve my hand? Will my audience get it?
For some of the pictures, I had my hand curved in such a way that it looked like I was a very dolled up turkey. In other pictures, my lips looked clown-like (which was both the point and not the point of the makeup).
Outfit Inspiration:
I originally wanted the bright colors to pop with the Euphoria makeup that was orange and pink. It was also helpful that it has puff sleeves which has been a popular trend in recent years.
Since the pose I picked barely showed my outfit, I only had to pick out a top. After I took 1000 pictures, I realized I forgot to put on my jewelry. Also, I forgot that the pose I picked included my hands. I stopped mid-shoot to take off my chipped nail polish so I wouldn’t have to edit it later.
Challenge:
Make a decision and stick with it even if it proves to be 10x harder than you originally planned. The effort and persistence will be worthwhile when the sense of completion and pride sets in.