One of my favorite paintings is, "Girl with a Pearl Earring" by the Dutch master Johannes Vermeer. The painting has been referred to as, "The Mona Lisa of the North." Hey, I like it even better than the Mona Lisa.

One of my favorite movies is "Girl with a Pearl Earring," starring Scarlett Johansson.

Both the painting and the movie inspired today's shoot. I wanted to recreate the lighting and look and feel of the portrait with my digital camera and bit of Photoshop work. I made the portrait in my office – I don't have a studio.

I'm kinda jammed right now, but tomorrow or the next day I will show you some behind-the-scenes shots from the shoot. I'll also share the tech info on the making of the "Girl with a Pearl Earring - The Photograph."

Okay, a quick tip: I used the Portrait Smooth effect in Topaz Adjust to smooth out the model's skin. For more on Topaz Adjust, click here.

Stay tuned.

For now, try this type of "self assignment" at home. After all, it's Sunday, a day off for many folks. Find a painting that you admire, see the light, note the props, and try to make a photograph that looks like the painting.

Another idea is to find a photograph that you like and . . . :-)

I teach stuff like this on some of my workshops and at my seminars. Join the fun!

Explore the light,

Rick

P.S. If you like photographing people, you might like my book, Face to Face: