Tuesday, December 2, 2008

Failure



I've been debating whether or not I wanted to post this, but I think I should. So, here goes.

You all know how much I love doing reader requests, right? I do. However, I've gotten a few that I've just totally failed. Pictures didn't turn out right. My photography sucks.

If you've been waiting on a request from me that I haven't fulfilled, I didn't forget about you. I'm just a big freakin' failure! Arghhhh.

Here are a few of the requests I've totally bombed on:

China Glaze OMG collection along with the rest of the Kaleidoscopes: I lost them! I can only find the couple that I use regularly. I have no idea where they could be. I have re-purchased the whole set of both, so I should be able to finish this request soon.

Mood Polishes: I have a bunch of these, and one day I sat down to photograph them all. Problem is, only one of them actually changed colors. I must be doing something wrong. The one that changed colors is up on NailGal (I think it was Toma Green Glitter to Gold Glitter?), but the other pics ended up in the trash. Anyone have any experience with mood polishes? Do they just stop changing after a certain age, do they go bad? I even put my hands in hot water and cold water and nothing.

Dupes for CND AB Positive: This one seemed easy, but I haven't actually been able to find a bottle of AB Positive or even a picture of AB Positive to compare things to! And on top of that, I find it next to impossible to photograph reds properly- they end up all weird and radioactive looking. Does anyone have this polish, and if so, can you take a picture of it for me? Pretty please?

Essie Bridal Collection 2008: I have had this sitting on my kitchen counter waiting to be photographed for months. I think it even has dust on it now. I have a hard time photographing sheers like those because they always come out looking white instead of whatever shade of off-white they are in real life. I'll have to try harder on this one.

Sally Hansen Nail Prisms / Other Duochromes: These are just really hard to capture and I haven't been happy with any of the pictures I've taken of these. I'm still trying to figure out what type of lighting and angle works best to show the multichromatic properties of these. Right now I've only been able to get one color in a picture, and that's lame.

Neons: These are the hardest things of all to photograph. Orange and green are the most difficult. I have a few great shots of a variety of neons- the Color Clubs, the Misas, the Essies- but I think those were just luck. I've tried quite a few times to get entire hand (not just 'skittles') shots of the China Glaze neons, the New York Summer neons and all the other random neons I have in my collection and they pictures just come out bizarre and warped and freakish looking, like nuclear nails on charred black fingers. I'm still practicing photographing these.

There are a couple more requests that I haven't been able to get just right, but you get the idea.


So... there. I did it. I've admitted failure, but not defeat! I haven't been able to get these pictures right yet, but I'm going to keep trying until they're perfect! Thank you for all your requests and also for your patience. You guys ROCK!!!!!

19 comments:

  1. Hi Scrangie,
    I have many Toma "mood" polishes and, yes, all mine changed over the (maybe 5 years) that I have owned them. They all turned watery and grey looking in the bottle and sadly lost their color changing properties. They were so cool, too!

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  2. Hi Scrangie,

    Don't be so hard on yourself! It sounds like you are in the post-illness blues, so please start thinking positive thoughts!

    I love your pics, and yes, some types of polish are harder to photograph. That being said, your pics are typically excellent, and we all appreciate your hard work on them. We know you will get to the requests when you can, and I for one read everything you post :).

    Now, as for the Toma polishes, I hate to say that with age, they don't seem to change colour anymore. I only have one relatively new bottle of green to gold (not glitter) left from a recent gift of about 30 toma polishes. I also found their polish not the best quality to begin with, but the mood changing was what sold me. I wonder how the Nubar moodies are in comparison...oops something else to buy!

    {> {>

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  3. Okay, I don't think we should be using the f-word around here. IMO, you've got the best swatches on the web!!!!

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  4. Hi Scrangie,

    I've heard somewhere that you can't use base coat and more layers of the polish should be applied to see significant colour change.

    These tips work for me. I have 4 bottles of Nubar moodies that I bought a few months ago. I've only tried out 3 of them as the last bottle is a red polish and I'm not willing to get stains on my nails from not using base cost!

    I can't wait to see the photos of China Glaze OMG and Kaleidoscopes collection!

    And I totally agree with KimmyDarling that you have the best swatches around!

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  5. IS it just me ????? I had to look at that "fail" pic a good 2 minutes before it dawned on me what the "fail" was? I feel dumb now :) :) :)

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  6. Hi Scrangie,

    I just wanted to say thanks for all the swatches. I can't believe you even bought the ChG holos to swatch for the blog. That is pretty freaking awesome.

    Respect!

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  7. Um, you are so NOT a failure! Don't even go there! I always find your pictures absolutely friggin amazing, the best around!

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  8. Your successes far outnumber your failures, so you should be congratulated!

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  9. Scrangie, I had the same experience with mood changing polishes. I have one, a Toma, that works, but the ChG & Nubar ones don't (I've even tested going outside when it was 20 degrees out and windy!). So it's not you, it's the polish!
    And the failures, well, I just don't post 'em anywhere!

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  10. Hey Scrangie, I think your photos are great and amazing to look at, so we won't mind waiting n_n It's almost exciting knowing now what you are swatching!

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  11. :oD scrangie i cant tell how much i appreciate that you have remembered ALL of the request i made if ive made any more i dont remember lol. and i dont know if this helps with photography but in order for me to see the full rainbow of colours available in my duo polishes i do this: turn towards the light source and i usually (i dont think you have to hold you hand like thislol) i usually bend my hand in half cuticles facing away from me and move my hand,starting in front of me low down, and move my hand up wards. i dont know if this is confusing but it shows me rainbows! especially with my nail prism, turqoise opal ..mmmmm T.O

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  12. brooke dont feel bad i looked at it yesterday and came home from work and posted a comment just now and decided to go look at it again,, and JUST got it LMAO!

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  13. LOL at FAIL picture :) But not anything fail about you or your blog, I love it!

    I've seen some pictures on a Swedish blog where she photographed neons when the nails were under water, and you really see the neon!

    Keep up the great work.

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  14. What I do when I have a NOTD or EOTD that's very hard to photograph: I make a tiny movie of it! It really helps :D

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  15. You're my favorite nail blog in the world and can never fail! You do all of this in your free time, you give your real opinions freely, and you have the best pictures! You are no failure and I am so grateful for your responsiveness to your readers' requests.

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  16. dude, you're doing US a favor when you swatch our requests! thank YOU!!

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  17. Girl you are too hard on yourself! I buy/don't buy based on your pics and reviews. If you were a failure, I wouldn't hit your blog daily!!!
    WE LOVE YOU SCRANGIE!!!

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  18. Lisa, ah that's sorta good to hear that it's not just me. Most of mine are pretty grey looking now that you mention it! Thanks :D

    Melli, awwwwwe thank you so much! That means a lot to me. <3
    I'm glad to hear that I'm not doing something wrong with the moods. I think they're a combination of Toma, Nubar and China Glaze. Disppointing, but at least they're nice colors :D

    KimmyDarling, you're too kind! Thank you soooo much :D <3

    Anonymous, ooh thanks for the tip! I don't usually use a base coat with the Mood ones, but I do only do two coats. I'll try doing more coats and see if it helps :) Thank you :D

    Brooke, awwwe lol. It's a more subtle FAIL picture but I find it quite hilarious :D <3

    Pixie, THANK YOU! You are so sweet :) At least I LOVE holos, so it's not a loss :D <3

    Katee, awwww gosh.... Thank you! *blush* :D

    Dee, thank you so much! That makes me feel much, much better <3 <3 <3

    Siobhan, ah, thanks! I'm a little disappointed that they don't change, but I like the colors they are so I'm not complaining :D Keep up the good work on your awesome blog! <3

    Steph, thanks so much! You're the best <3

    Anonymous, thank you! And thanks so much for the tip! I'm going to try that next time :)

    Danielle, hehehe <3

    Ane Kristine, thank you! And that's really fascinating! I would have never thought of that, I need to try this! Thanks again <3

    Fashonista, neat! That sounds like a great idea! I have no idea how to make a video on my camera, I'll have to try to learn cause that's a great idea :D

    Ilakdala, awwwwwe thank you so much! I'm so thankful for my readers- you are all so wonderful, and I love sharing with you all <3

    Sweetpea85, thank you! I love doing it :D

    SiennaX, awe thanks!! :D

    I LOVE YOU GUYS!!!!!

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