Between a couple of frantic and stressful weeks at work and getting reading to leave on vacation tomorrow morning, I just never got started on this. When I finally did, I found that - at least with my last minute compositions - it was a lot harder than I thought it would be!

Anyhow... I played with some different exposures, contrast settings, and lighting, and the results are below.

This is my favorite. Even though I only got off 1 shot before Ivory decided she wasn't in the mood to model for me, I'm still pleased with the result. I especially like the combination of the silhouette in the foreground and the glow on her right side.

Seriously underexposed but probably okay nonetheless!

I like the highlights on the cup, the sugar jar, and the spoon, as well as the semi-silhouette effect. The brighter chair provides some contrast, but the corner of the pile of junk at right would get cropped or cloned out if this hadn't been for class.

A different arrangement of the same element. I did try the white poster board as a background, but - correctly, I believe - decided that in this case, the interesting light patterns on the tiled table top are more interesting than the flat light.

This one was over-exposed... okay, but not my favorite. The back light was not nearly strong enough to make it really interesting, though with a little tweaking, it might make an interesting part of a collage or something!

Don't ask me why I included this! I shot it at a weird angle, then used the Measuring Tape tool in Photoshop CS to straighten it. The shot was too tight to crop and, as it happens, I kind of like the effect - even though the photo itself isn't particularly interesting. As a matter of fact, the 'framing' effect from the straightening might be the most interesting thing about it!