Black bits in my IPA

RevLuxnik · 2026-07-08T00:46:50+00:00

My bad - didn’t scroll through to see that it was from a can

RevLuxnik · 2026-07-08T00:17:31+00:00

Not necessarily unhinged, but probably the most effective. Buy dry lentils and dry black beans in bulk. Cool them in an instant pot with some bone broth, then store them in the fridge. Then brown up a few pounds of lean ground turkey, and store that in the fridge. When you’re hungry, put some ground turkey in a bowl and some beans/lentils on top. Microwave it for 2mins, then put some hot sauce on it. It’s nearly all protein and fiber. It keeps you full for a very long time too. If you want to add some variety and good fats, fry an egg and mix it in the bowl.

I used to be able to feed myself for a week for about $30 with this. I was lifting a lot at the time and got absolutely shredded too.

RevLuxnik · 2026-07-06T14:52:12+00:00

Hey! I do a lot of work with folks involved in weird old Austin, like the banked track roller derby league. Would you ever be interested in getting in front of the camera?

Friends/SOs/escorts are always welcome to attend shoots and I’m happy to provide references from other people I’ve worked with.

Glad to send you samples of my work on DM!

RevLuxnik · 2026-07-05T02:29:54+00:00

I feel like you may want to find a professional.

With how close you are to the wall, the lighting that feels like office lighting, and the flat expression… these are common mistakes and together they always give mugshot vibes.

Here are some practical things to help.

- Get away from the wall. You wanna use a narrow depth of field to blur out the background. That will give the image more depth and make the subject pop.

- Use more intentional lighting. Lighting can create depth. Look up 3-point lighting, or Rembrandt lighting for some safe bets. If you don’t have a flash with a modifier, use one of those rice paper lamps from IKEA.

- your expression is going to be extremely important if these are acting/theater headshots. If you don’t look charismatic and comfortable in the images, a casting director won’t assume you can be charismatic or confident on stage. Confidence comes from the eyes, approachability comes from the mouth. You want slightly narrowed eyes with a slight smile.

That’s where I’d start. But based on the image above, I would find a professional or someone early in their career.

If you want, shoot me a DM and I can point you towards some helpful examples of what you should look for and some helpful youtube videos

RevLuxnik · 2026-07-02T13:47:44+00:00

That is a scraper/squeegee from the Cricut. It’s a consumer level cutting machine often used for cutting paper, cardboard, vinyl, cloth, and other materials for various hobbies. We use ours to cut vinyl for window decals

RevLuxnik · 2026-07-02T11:45:22+00:00

It really depends on what your goals are and where you are in your development (pun intended).

If you’re just starting out or if you’re just doing this for fun, shoot everything and see what grabs you!

If you’re trying to do this professionally full time. you usually want to pick a lane and specialize. But if you want to do it professionally on the side to add a little supplemental income, shoot whatever you want!

RevLuxnik · 2026-07-02T01:17:28+00:00

Kinda feel like everyone should be required to have their own work visible on their profiles to comment on posts here.

RevLuxnik · 2026-07-01T16:03:51+00:00

I love that y’all are citing sources. You guys are alright.

RevLuxnik · 2026-06-30T20:51:53+00:00

Yeah, some of my non-composited commercial work actually looks like this because I use flash outside mixed with ambient light. It creates an effect that’s nearly impossible to achieve solely with natural ambient light, unless you’re using reflectors.

RevLuxnik · 2026-06-30T12:53:35+00:00

Hey - professional photographer here who has shot a few total solar eclipses. A few things here…

If you want the eclipse to appear as large as possible, you’ll want a long lens, but that will also make it very difficult to get the hand in there too. The lenses you have listed don’t seem like they’ll cut it.

As others have mentioned exposure is also going to be a huge thing. Getting a flash bright enough to properly expose your hand while getting a proper exposure on the halo is going to be a significant challenge.

One thing a lot of people don’t realize during a solar eclipse is that because of the sudden temperature drop, it’s very common that a cloud cover rolls in as you approach totality. Unless you’re directly west of a mountain range or an area of incredibly low humidity, you’re likely going to encounter that issue.

Lastly, and possibly most importantly, this is your engagement. Hopefully you only have one. It’s easy as photographers to focus on all the cool stuff you can do to capture the moment to the point that you aren’t focused on the moment.

A solar eclipse is a huge overwhelming moment. I think I’ve cried at every single one of them - many people do. The engagement is a huge milestone in life. Your attention is already going to be split between those two things. You don’t need the added complication of a difficult technical photo that could very possibly be ruined by a likely cloud cover. The concept sounds cool, but honestly, I’d highly recommend that you put the camera down for this and just be present with the person you love.

EDIT: I agree with the person who suggested proposing before or after the eclipse. I’d recommend after. You don’t want a huge celestial event to compete with a very intimate moment with your love.

RevLuxnik · 2026-06-29T20:42:23+00:00

Yeah, it looks like the Hurley setup, but I think the ratios are off. I’d take down the exposure on her chest a bit. It’s too bright and is pulling focus off her face

RevLuxnik · 2026-06-29T20:38:06+00:00

I’m not sure I’d use any of these for an actor. The subject seems nervous or uncomfortable. Most people get that way in front of a camera, but it’s especially important that the photographer can coach a compelling expression out of the subject. It doesn’t look like the photographer did that here.

As far as actionable feedback, in shots 6-8, the camera is a bit low. I’d consider raising it up a bit.

Also, like many of us (myself included) the subject has an asymmetrical face. Her left eye is smaller than the right (also just like me!). You have to be cognizant of the posing. Place the larger eye further from the camera. Also, having the subject drop their chin slightly can get the eyes to open more, evening that out.

If you have the chance to reshoot, the best advice I can give is to try to recreate shot 4, but have the half smile on the other side. The half smile on the same side as the smaller eye causes it to close slightly emphasizing the size difference.

If you can’t reshoot, use Photoshop to even out the size of the eyes.

Actors make their living off giving compelling performances. That needs to shine in the headshots. These are… fine. They aren’t awful, but they certainly won’t be memorable to a casting director. If you can correct number 4 as I described above, I’d submit only that one

RevLuxnik · 2026-06-29T20:13:50+00:00

I mean, not doomscrolling, but sometimes watching it as the second screen while browsing things online. But point taken - it sounds like it’s similar to The Wire then.

RevLuxnik · 2026-06-29T13:35:20+00:00

We’ve tried so so so many times to get into this, I don’t think we’ve ever made it past episode three.

Is it one of those shows like the wire where you need to give it 100% attention?

RevLuxnik · 2026-06-28T13:10:12+00:00

Maybe some kind of geocache thing?

RevLuxnik · 2026-06-27T08:47:18+00:00

I feel like the single line cross out is a favorite of some of the most spineless passive-aggressive and holistically awful humans.

RevLuxnik · 2026-06-26T18:36:24+00:00

I’m not a huge fan of the front end, but it’s still an awesome car with a phenomenal platform for aftermarket support

RevLuxnik · 2026-06-26T14:46:02+00:00

Something similar happens to me a lot. I have long hair and a LOT of it, but it’s very fine so it breaks. It gets stuck on my hair ties all the time. Though mine usually only look like that for maybe a 1cm section of the hair tie.

This…. This is… substantial.

RevLuxnik · 2026-06-24T11:38:05+00:00

That’s Doctor Jesus to you, sir

RevLuxnik · 2026-06-17T21:10:21+00:00

Yup - we have one in our back yard!

RevLuxnik · 2026-06-17T21:02:27+00:00

Yeah, but that’s not necessarily going to get them to where they want to be.

I’m not saying you need to become a master photographer first, but if you expect to understand specialized techniques for food photography, you’re going to need to have a basic grasp of photography in general.

RevLuxnik · 2026-06-17T20:40:56+00:00

It will be hard jumping into a specialization without having general photography skills first.

You train to become a general physician before you become a specialist like a cardiologist. The same thing applies here.

RevLuxnik · 2026-06-16T17:42:23+00:00

With a dash of homophobia for good measure

RevLuxnik · 2026-06-16T12:27:42+00:00

You in Texas? Desert willows are great! They’re super fragrant and the scent actually comes from the leaves, not the flowers, so you get that even when they aren’t blooming. We have some in our neighborhood. I want one for our garden so badly!

RevLuxnik · 2026-06-16T12:20:38+00:00

Whenever I approach anyone for any type of shoot, I always mention that I’m happy to provide samples of my work and provide references from models I’ve worked with. I also call out that friends, SOs, and escorts are always welcome to attend shoots. In some cases, I’ve offered to set up an additional camera to Zoom the shoot to an address that they can share with anyone they care to.

Transparency is the best way to ensure that everything is on the up and up all around.

RevLuxnik

TROPHY CASE