Earlier this year, Zack Arias announced a new project, dedpxl. It’s a series of photographic assignments, with a critique by Zack and his wife at the end of each one. The critiques are really interesting, mostly because Zack is so no-nonsense and doesn’t stand for any trendy shit; he wants good, clean images and wants everyone to just start looking harder at things and objects and compositions, and to be encouraged to always improve.
It’s been really fun to have something so different to think about and look for and create, for personal projects!
The most recent assignment was THE EGG.
I did a few setups:
First, the kids’ IKEA table, where I laid my flash down and kept the bounce card so I’d get lots of light without the harshness of direct flash. I added some DIY white backgrounds to keep a nice high-key effect. I used the 4x macro filter on the 50mm f/1.4 lens. 
This one got a B+ in the critique!
Then I decided to do a “naked egg” as another type of shoot. I soaked it in vinegar to dissolve the shell. Then I noticed how cool the little bubbles looked and did some photos of that stage, before the egg was actually naked. Again I’ve got the bounced flash, and one DIY white background (a piece of paper taped to a coffee table book). I used the 10x macro filter for these.
This one got a C in the critique. And I’m not upset by that at all, there was some good feedback!
Here is the fully naked egg! It felt SO weird and crazy but cool. I think I needed some different/additional lighting to take advantage of the almost-transparency. 
Then of course I had to see if I could do this…and it worked! 
I tried two more toothpicks on the side…not so much. 🙂 
I think it was a twin yolk–how cool! 
If you’re looking for a project to kick start a bit of creativity, you should join the fun! The final assignment just went up–this time it’s a competition with a sweet prize!