I wasn't sure what I was going to do this week. I have already started running out of ideas.

I like the black background and using the smaller radius of light to fade things into the shadows. I also like having a prop, such as my guitars, in the photos. This week, I was sitting on the couch in the living room wondering what I was going to do. The guitar came to mind then, somehow, the lamp came to mind. It was fun trying to incorporate the lamp in the photo. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to achieve what I was shooting for. I wanted the light from the lamp shade to spill onto the background, creating a cone of light. It didn't work... I'll have to try it again.

Here's the photo I chose to use this week....

Here's one more from the session that I liked. I left the capo on the headstock, which I don't like and my guitar is sticking outside the frame. It's so hard to frame these shots! Does the live view function on the 5D Mark II allow you to use a TV or monitor to frame your shot?

Another sweet set John! Great work! It almost looks like you are on a movie set!

There are tons and tons of ideas out there for self portraits. Here are a few:

• Back lit or rim lighting portrait
• Classic 45-degree lighting against an all white background
• Silhouette portrait (you could go nuts with how to light the environment around you)
• Studio portraits using colored gels
• Shooting yourself via reflected objects

Take it outside and do some environmental portraits. Ideas include:

• Alley shots with the guitar - shooting for a grunge feel
• Shots that include you and your family (it's harder than you might think!)
• Multiple personalities portrait (merging multiple frames of yourself into one image)
• Environmental portrait with fill flash.
• Environmental portrait with reflector fill
• Environmental portrait shooting directly into the sun
• Environmental portrail shooting away from the sun

These are just a few ideas! Having fun is what it's all about. Keep up the great work!

Thanks for the suggestions, Steve. They will come in very handy for sure. I'm not sure I would have ever thought about the silhouette idea. That one's pretty cool as well as shooting my reflection.... I'll have to keep that one in mind next time there's a full moon and shoot my reflection in the livingroom window. I want to get outside more, but it's pretty cold. I've tried going out once.... My light stand fell over and bent the umbrella!