I've been playing with my iPhone 18 camera and macro photos. I took some close-ups of a beautiful vase of flowers my husband brought home from the farmers' market today for me I'm attaching the full shot of the flowers in a vase, and the macro shot of the yellow Zinnia. I took the macro shot into my AI Image Creator (Kre8or) and used the Frozen Ice Encasement technique. Then I added a prompt for cinematic light, a marble pedestal, and a spotlight. The last image below is the result. What everyday object would you like to transform with this effect? Disclosure: The Kre8or link is an affiliate link. You can check out the Kre8or tool if you like. Its great and not too expensive. I use the $9/month Spark plan.

Here's an image creation challenge for you. Use the attached first image of a purple bloom and follow these steps. (You can click on the image, right-click, and "save as" to your hard drive so you can find it and upload to your AI tool) 1. Use the original purple bloom image below as a reference image and ask your AI to modify it to deeply saturate the colors. 2. Next, modify that new image and ask the AI to adjust the lighting to create a circular spotlight effect. 3. Next, ask the AI to modify that new image to place the purple bloom in a ceramic container with ot her similar blooms. I made my container a deep purple. 4. Finally, ask the AI to modify the image to create a scene with the container on a deck. I used the Kre8or AI tool for mine, but you can use ChatGPT or another AI tool that you have access to. NOTE: I was not happy with the spotlight effect - the existing light on the bloom kinda messed that up. Share your results in the comments. If you like, use your own image of a flower or bloom. -Shirley

I just received my new iPhone 18 Pro Max, and I've been learning how to use it, especially the new camera features. Soon I'll create a new course on those camera features and explain what they are. Meanwhile heres a link to my recent blog post on my Bella Vista Outdoors blog site. https://bellavistaoutdoors.com/how-to-take-great-nature-photos-with-your-iphone-18-pro/ Note: I am an image creator and have used many tools, traditional wet art media, digital tools (like Photoshop and Corel Painter), and AI tools like ChatGPT and Kre8or. I consider AI art (created via prompting) a valid creation tool, albeit different. I tend to use my own photos and photos of friends (with permission) as reference photos and write my AI prompts around an original photo. I'm a photographer myself (I've used both film and digital cameras since my teens, and I've owned and operated a photography studio, and created many websites and blog sites). I like realism as a photographer, but as a traditional artist, I'm also drawn to fantasy and abstract creation. This morning I took an image of my latest Christmas ornament created for my Bella Vista Outdoor Shop with my new iPhone 18 Pro Max. See attached image. I designed the ornament using a previous winter photo of an Ozark waterfall captured by a friend (Dave Melor, used with permission). Disclosure: I've included a couple of affiliate links in this post for the iphone and Kre8or. Wishing you all a blessed day. -Shirley

To be completely honest with this community, I am disclosing that some of my articles may include affiliate links to products and services I support. I intend to keep my Courses FREE, though. I have several affiliate blog sites and some POD (print on demand) stores that I manage to earn from. I created this community for other reasons. Actually, I'm retired at this point, and I am mostly a stay-at-home person because I'm in a wheelchair for health reasons. I'm a former traditional artist who moved into digital art, a former photography studio owner, and a retired civil servant (many years with the FDA as a computer specialist, providing help desk, training room, and website-building support). I still have a deep interest in creating art, digital images, websites, blog sites, and photography. It's difficult for me to do some of the things I love physically, so I've begun creating digitally and online t o keep my mind active, learning, and creating. I hope to share what I've learned and keep learning within this community. Here's my "Tea Lady Shirley Image". I love all things tea, and I host tea parties at my home.

One of the things I love most about AI image creation is experimenting. Sometimes a small change in a prompt can produce an entirely different image. And sometimes the AI surprises us with something we never expected! When I created our first course, AI Image Creation: From Prompt to Picture, I wanted it to be more than just reading about prompting techniques. That's why every one of the 10 lessons includes a hands-on creative exercise! You'll have opportunities to: - Start with a simple prompt and build on it. - Experiment with different lighting and camera angles. - Discover how composition and color change an image. - Explore weather, atmosphere, and artistic styles. - Learn how to improve an image that didn't turn out quite right. - Bring everything together in your own final creative project. And here's the fun part! Each lesson invites you to share your creations right here in our Community. I'd love to see your experiments, including the ones that didn't quite work! Sometimes those unexpected results teach us the most. You don't have to be an expert, and your images certainly don't have to be perfect. We're here to learn, experiment, exchange ideas, and encourage one another. Here's a little challenge to get us started: Choose any lesson you've explored and try its creative exercise. Then share your favorite result, or a before-and-after comparison, with the group in the Share your creation category. Tell us what you tried, what happened, and what you learned. I'll be sharing some of my own experiments along the way, too! Remember, creativity isn't about getting everything right the first time. It's about discovering what's possible. Happy creating!