A Cup Of Tea - A Healthy Choice - Monday, White On White - White Is White Challenge

Would you like a cup of tea? This teacup is filled with a mixture of different kinds of tea leaves - black tea, oolong tea and white tea. Tea has many health benefits, as it contains polyphenols which have antioxidant properties. The benefits of tea drinking have been listed as helping to prevent cancer, type II diabetes, heart disease, stroke and alzheimers.

The photograph was shot as a stock image for Getty Images.

Today's subject for the White Is White Challenge is White On White. It can be a tricky subject to shoot because the foreground will often blend into the background. A good white on white image will have a definite separation in the whites of the subject matter from the whites in the background, (unless of course you are after an artistic blending in effect). The foreground image should appear to have the light wrapping around it to show its dimensions. I also allowed my background material in the foreground to have less light to give a sense of dimension for the spilled tea leaves.

There are different ways of getting the separation of subject matter from the background, but the key secret is that it is the background rather than the foreground that is lit. In simple terms, to get the effect in my studio I bounced one strong light off the ceiling to light the overall shot (and so mainly the background) and then I bounced a less powerful light off a white reflector to light the subject, the teacup in this instance.

I then fine tuned the whole thing using layers in Adobe Photoshop® CC 2017.

The explanation and rules for the challenge can be found in this post

Camera: EOS 5D Mark II
Lens: EF100mm f/2.8 Macro USM
Settings: 1/125 sec; f/16; ISO 100
Software: Adobe Photoshop® CC 2017, Adobe Camera Raw

Image © Diane Macdonald. All Rights Reserved.

Here are my other posts in the challenge:
Thursday #1 – Food and Drink
Friday #1 – Architecture – also Rules Page
Saturday #1 - Water In Nature
Sunday #2 - Anything Goes

Thanks for taking the time to read this! I appreciate it.

Resteems and Upvotes are very much appreciated, and they are helping me to save for a trip to Tahiti, which my husband and I hope to make for our 25th wedding anniversary in 2019!

To find my photography and designs on Steemit, please search on #dianemacphoto and to check out my art prints and stock images, please visit my website.