It All Starts with a Smile

Back when Kaelyn Alecto first opened her sim, It All Starts with a Smile; I found myself duly impressed by the creativity, the amount of detail and the beauty of her work.  That was back in 2013 when I first discovered her sim, and I even marked it down in a note card that I kept, with the most photogenic sims that I had seen.   While updating that note card back in the beginning of this year, I was saddened when I tried to go to the sim, to discover that it was no longer there.  Approx. a week ago, I seen a name that made ME smile..It All Starts with a Smile is up and running, refurbished, revamped and now tropical in it's setting. 

Once more, the beauty and creativity that is Kaelyn's is back and I believe even more beautiful than her previous place.  Did she outdo herself?  I believe so, yes and once more, I'm beyond impressed with her work. 

As I was photographing different spots and areas, I could not help but think to myself that I could spend at least a couple of more hours there enjoying the sim, the atmosphere and taking photos, very easily.  There is just simply so much there, so many quaint and relaxing spots to sit and enjoy, so many areas that I found to be amazingly photogenic, that you would end up with a huge pile of photos to appreciate from her sim.

The theme of the sim is tropical, with lush vegetation and warm sandy beaches to walk across, while enjoying the sparkle of the water reflecting on the surrounding waters.  The Sim has been broken up to one larger area (it's where you land) and 4 smaller surrounding islands, with a variety of different items to be found on each.  Dotted through the sim, are several points where you can grab a canoe; so that you are able to canoe on the different streams and lagoons that run through and around the sim.

Now that I'm getting a bit long winded, I think I'll quieten down and just let you see for yourself, some of the shots I took while I fangurled Kaelyn's work.

In case you missed the link up above, here it is again!  It All Starts with a Smile

Note:  The sim is General rating, so please keep that in mind in the type of photos you wish to do here.  Also, around the sim you will see tip/donation vendors, which is a wonderful way of helping keep a sim going and really does assist in the sim maintaining itself.  If you require rezzing abilities, there is a group that can be joined, with a small 250L join fee, which grants you rezz abilities.

Tea Time on the Grid

While looking through my previous posts, I have noticed that I have been trending more heavily towards charming, rustic sims/areas so for today's post, I've gone more towards a sim that is very peaceful, beautifully done and leaning towards a more zen look. 
Moonlight Tea house is well done, each detail very well thought out and to just sit and enjoy the visual beauty of it, I found it extremely peaceful.  The blending of plant life with the water life is seamlessly done, with koi slowly swimming through the waters, lending graceful motion through the colorful scheme. 
With many areas that are perfect opportunities for photos, this is a fantastic area for hobby and professional photographers alike.  That being said though, for someone just looking for a spot to rest their weary selves and enjoy the visual grace and beauty of this place, you will find it both relaxing and exhilarating.

And in case you missed the link up top, here it is again! 
Moonlight Teahouse

Shitenno Isle

Looking back in the last few posts, I figure I've been hitting a little too many rustic villages and settings, so today I set out to find something a little different.  The upside of looking for something different is that you never know what you will find and the downside is you don't know what you will find..
I found Shitenno Isle, which if you know me really well; you will know I love the Oriental artistry and culture alot.  Maybe due to the fact that I am such an avid follower of the style, I was maybe expecting a little more than what I found.  Don't get me wrong, I found some beautiful views and areas in Shitenno Isle but I also felt like it wasn't quite finished.  The idea and the set up is perfect for a beginning but I suppose what I missed was more foliage and more detail to be done on the grounds.  The buildings though, you will find no complaints there.  They are breath taking, very very detailed and beautifully textured and arranged on the land.  The town square is done perfectly, with the exception of once more, not enough detail in decorating the land.  Maybe I'm dropping in before they are finished and I hope that is the case because I would love to see the finished work, since I did see a ton of promise there.
Please note..the land is set for Adult, so please keep that in mind when popping over there and you will have to look around a bit for those spots I mentioned but they are well worth it.

For anyone interested in which windlight settings I'm using, here is the list that was used today:
First photo:  Phototools - Absinthe Light
2nd photo:  Phototools - Dreambook Light 03
3rd photo:  Jay Battlescars 4.0 - Summer
4th photo:  Places Alirium
5th photo:  Annalu Default 3

Our turn through The Looking Glass

In 1871, Lewis Carroll invited us to go through a looking glass with a little girl named Alice, where she was met with fantastic adventures with amazing creatures in this wondrous fantasy land, which was her second trip in fact to this strange land. 
In Second Life, we can travel through to an amazing and wonderful land, thanks to the creative and talented minds of Marcus Inkpen and Sharni Azalee, the owners of The Looking Glass sim.
They have created a sim that is fantastical, whimsical and different, with touches of steampunk atmosphere, earthy charm and a wonderful eye to the smallest details.  Depending on which lighting you choose, you can go from fantasy, to steampunk to gothic very easily. 
I took several photos myself, getting a small taste of some of the things that the sim offered but it's a sample, since there is so much more than what I can even show in just one posting..so drop by and visit and see for yourselves on how many things, wonders and adventures you can find here.

One of Annan Adored's windlight settings

Regions windlight settings

As you can see from the photos of the same tree, windlight is really everything, giving the same thing a whole different look and feel about it.

The Looking Glass

Everlong: Eclectic View

I've heard of Everlong a few times, through facebook and the destination guide, so I finally popped over there to take a peek of it for myself.  The best way I can describe it is it's like a dream that you have been invited into, with a variety of different looks and feels about it the different areas.  You have grown up, relaxing areas and then it goes to things that we remember from our childhood, like a favorite doll or a carousel that we never wanted to stop riding.
The landscaper/creator of Everlong has put together an eclectic mix of beautiful scenes that makes one feel like we are being given the rare gift of looking into their mind or invited to even view images from our own.  Either way, take the tp and see for yourself, it is well worth the visit.

Everlong - The sim is moderate, so please keep this is mind when you are doing photos here

Netherwood: Rustic Beauty!

I seem to be on a rustic, country kick right now but I can't help it, the creators make them just too gorgeous to pass up, which brings me to Netherwood.  Netherwood is owned and created by Lauren Bentham, who is also the owner and creator of Bentham Manor, Everwinter sim,Baja Norte, Baja Cove, Baja Bay, Baja Sands & Storybrooke Gardens.  Wow, busy lady! 
Nertherwood is a blending of beautiful landscape, well thought houses with livestock grazing gently in small pastures, a rivers framing the landscape, creating a gentle flow throughout the sim.  It is a little graphically demanding in some areas, so this is not for the faint of video cards but even on the lower settings, you cannot miss the beauty that has been created here by a designer with an amazing eye for detail.  If you are looking to rezz things, like bloggers and photographers enjoy doing, there is a group that you can join that will give you the rights to temporarily rezz which costs 150L.  As the owner states though, that helps keep the sim running, so well worth helping her out.
I admit, I enjoyed photographing this sim quite a lot, since there is just so much to enjoy and the set up to be honest is perfect for photos, in my opinion; so please enjoy!

Now off to find another adventure and wander the great wide grid!

If you were looking for the link, here it is!  Netherwood
*The land is moderate btw, so please remember and respect that, thank you!*

Oh yeah, if you wish to do a little tour of all the amazing sims that Lauren has, there is the list with the links:
Everwinter
Baja Cove
Baja Norte
Baja Bay
Baja Sands
StoryBrooke Gardens

Field of Dreams

If you are an avid fan of photography, then you should be made aware of this fantastic event that occurs each week called Photohunts.  I've done many photo hunts with this group in the past and they find the most fantastic, out of the way, amazing sims!  I'm not sure how they find all of these wonderful treasures, but they do.  If you want to take a little peek at them, you will find them here.
Thanks to this group, I can also bring you this wonderful sim, which was featured back in February by the Photohunts group called Field of Dreams.  The amount of detail and the feel of the sim is blended perfectly together to create a rustic and charming atmosphere throughout the sim.  There is quite a number of great areas for photography at the sim, allowing for quite a variety of different shots that can be done here, keeping in mind that the land does have a moderate rating, so no xrated photos please.
As you will see from some of the photos I took while I was there, I had alot of fun with both windlight and angles on some of the shots.  I hope you enjoy!

Telrunya - Forest of Dreams

I admit, I have a deep fondness for fantasy themes that go with Fae or Elven.  It's probably from my days in roleplaying, when I first started in SL.  The outfits and looks were amazing and the only limitation was what your mind put on you.
Telrunya truly fed all those things in me and more.  To say that this sim is breathtaking does not do it justice.  The designer, Nessa Zamora; not only invites us into her dreams and fantasy world, she creates a dreamscape of color and composition that blends, flows together and allows her guests to indulge in a plethora of different areas filled with fantastic beauty and secret gardens.  As she states in her own profile, "A haven for  those who look for a tranquil environment, a home for fairies, fauns, elves and those who love to be lost in a dreamworld... "
**Side note:  the sim is not only amazing and beautiful to see, it is also graphically demanding.  This is not for those computers that are faint of heart or weak in the graphics card division."

Credit:
Sim designer and owner:  Nessa Zamora
Telrunya

Foul Whisperings: Etheral and Dark Beauty that it is.

     I recall coming across this sim a couple of years ago.  Foul Whisperings is hauntingly beautiful and almost ethereal in it's atmosphere.  According to the sim owners description, it's a symbolic treatment of the key elements or themes of Shakespeare's play, Macbeth. 
     I admit, I'm a geek; I love Shakespeare's works and in fact own a very impressive collection of his plays so a sim dedicated to one of his most well known plays is intriguing to me, to say the least. 
     The sim is designed with different scenes from the play, incorporated in the design to create an amazing experience all together.  This is a sim that honestly deserved to be explored slowly, so that you can discover all the different areas.  There is, according to the notecard that you can receive, an experience that has also been set up, so that you can fully be immersed in the atmosphere that they designers have produced.
For photographers or photo hobbyists, the sim sports some very impressive and diverse areas that are wonderful for different photographic themes.  From dark, maybe gothic look, to an ethereal and possibly even a macabre theme, it's all located at the sim for your pleasure.  
As you will see, I went with more of a fantasy/medieval theme for my own outfit, so there is a few more looks I hadn't mentioned earlier that is also doable at this fantastic sim.  Enjoy!

Credits for Foul Whisperings:
Developed by Kate Richards, Angela Thomas and Kerreen Ely Harper through a grant funded by the Australian Council for the Arts Literature Board, and sponsored by investor partner, the New Media Consortium.

Producer: Kate Richards (Nini Dubrovny)
Director: Kerreen Ely-Harper (Dorothy Porta)
Virtual Worlds Content Designer: Angela Thomas (Anya Ixchel)
Design Consultant: Adam Nash (Adam Ramona)