Lucy
My wife is apparently preparing something in the kitchen and it has Lucy’s full attention. She doesn’t really beg for food, but if something falls off of the counter it will barely hit the floor before Lucy has her nose on the fallen object and checking to see if it smells good enough to eat.
Mini-Studio
Since we have all been sheltering in place for the past three months, I have been playing with a few ideas for my photography. Several weeks ago I posted images of some collectable model pick-up trucks that were from a Thomas Kincade collection that was released in the mid-80’s or early 90’s. After watching a few videos about photographing smaller objects I decided to construct a sort of mini-studio.
This image was captured using some simple props that I acquired. The gray base is a 2’x2′ piece of painted plywood and the blue background is a plastic tablecloth from Walmart clamped to a frame built out of 1/2″ PVC pipe that I bought at Lowe’s. I used an LED work light for the main light and then supplemented with on-camera flash. This was my first effort and it was hot in the garage, so I didn’t spend a great deal of time refining the techniques.
In this image I used a warmer gray base and a black background of the same painted plywood. In post processing I decided to give it a retro feel.
So…what does this state of the art mini-studio look like you ask.
No expense was spared in the corner of the garage to create these images. Of course I have to set it all up when I want to photograph something and break it all back down when we need to put the wife’s car in the garage, but it is a mini-studio on a budget and the possibilities are endless.
Monday’s Music Moves Me
It’s the first week of June and summer has come to Northwest Arkansas. As I write this post, the outside temperature in over 90 degrees and the heat index is pushing 100! It may be a long, hot summer in the Ozarks. Enough about the weather, the theme this week at 4M is songs that begin with the letter “J”. One’s first thought might be that there are no great songs that start with this tenth letter of the alphabet but then, “Jolene” pops into my head, followed by “Johnny B. Goode” and “Jail House Rock”. After considering those songs, I thought that everyone would be posting them so I would go find some music that might be new to you and me.
The first song is not new to me. It is an old country classic from the 50’s or early 60’s that my dad liked to listen to.
I was a child of the 60’s so everything from The Beach Boys to Jefferson Airplane falls into my wheelhouse of musical favorites. The 70’s brought us knit suits, stacked heel shoes for guys, and Disco. The undisputed kings of disco were the Bee Gees and that is no “Jive Talkin”.
This next song is new to me. The water tower in the background is from Blake’s hometown of Ada, Oklahoma. My great-aunt lived just north of Ada and I visited her farm many times as a youngster and an adult. Aunt Elva was my dad’s favorite aunt and an extraordinary woman. For those of us born and raised in Oklahoma, we will always consider our home state to be located “Just South of Heaven”.
Closing out the playlist this week will be a song of inspiration, and Lord knows, we could all use a little inspiration these days. People are trying to solve the worlds problems with worldly thinking and it isn’t working. The answer to solving the tension, unrest, and discord that abounds today is not more demonstrations, curfews, or national guard. The answer is found in changing the hearts of men and that happens one heart at a time. All of the pain, anger, and rebellion has to be replaced with “Jesus, Messiah”. Have a blessed week.
Driller's Place 
Awww, what a great shot of Lucy. Our Little Bit would do the same thing.
Love your miniature cars. Love the photography too.
I always enjoy your music videos.
Thank you for joining the Awww Mondays Blog Hop.
Have a fabulous Awww Monday and week, my friend. 🙂
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Glad you enjoyed your visit today.
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I have a long way to go in my photographic journey. I enjoyed seeing your studio because it was low budget but pssst, don’t tell anyone else; no one will ever know. The only song of your set that I knew was “Jive Talking” and I enjoyed both the country songs. It’s a wonderfully cool late spring day here in upstate New York (although it will be in the 90’s by Wednesday). I hope that many hearts are changed in the coming weeks. The streets where my parents took me for Saturday shopping back when I was growing up in the 50’s and 60’s were two of the streets trashed by the rioters in the Bronx (NYC) and the saddest part was, most of the looted businesses on those streets were small businesses – many were minority owned.
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I’ve got big plans for “studio” options, especially around Christmas. I’ll update from time to time so stay tuned.
The Blake Shelton song was new to me and I thought it was worth a listen.
I can understand protesting the injustice of a situation, but when it morphs into senseless violence against innocent merchants I just don’t get it.
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As Snoopy said, anything that falls on the floor is legally belongs to the dog.
Your collectables are beautiful.
Great music, and we all needed that last one.
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Around our house it will definitely hit the floor because Lucy refuses to catch anything in mid air. She will let a kernel of popcorn hit her between the eyes, then pick it up off of the floor.
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I like your mini studio for mini photography 😉
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The studio will be an ongoing, ever changing work in progress.
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Love the little vehicles. We remember seeing them back a while when you posted them. Photography is such a fun hobby as the creativity options are endless! These new shots are really nice and it’s always amazing how simple it is to create a whole new look!
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I’ve got a thousand ideas floating around in my head for this little set-up.
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I like your collectables. Nice songs
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I have enjoyed them for years. I think they were only produced one year.
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Lucy is a polite little pup, and so cute, I love that anticipatory look on her face! Those little trucks are amazing, very nice and I love your song selections today. Have a great week.
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Glad you enjoyed your visit today. Lucy is a special friend to both my wife and me. She is a great source of comfort and joy.
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Lucy is a gorgeous pup! And I have to laugh at all the ways we are keeping ourselves busy! Have fun!
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I have a couple of other diversions that I will be sharing in the coming weeks.
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goody goody! Cheers!
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Lucy is a polite pup, isn’t she? Most dogs would be begging for food…as would many cats….
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Lucy tries to put a guilt trip on us by just sitting and staring at whatever we are eating.
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Lucy is a little sweetheart.
Great job on the studio. I know people who sell a lot of stuff on ebay and they have a little studio set up to better photograph the goods they are selling. I have a lot of “stuff” that is still good. I have thought of selling it on ebay but it is a lot easier and quicker to take it to the Salvation Army.
Great song choices. A by product of being retired is that I can read your posts during more normal times and thus actually listen to the songs at a volume where I can hear it. I am not sure that I have ever heard the Blake Shelton song before. It is beautiful.
And amen to the end of the strife.
Take care!!
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The fact that the “studio” is small, mobile, with flexible parts makes it a fun diversion all by itself. I may do a whole post on it’s possibilities soon. Have a blessed week.
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We both picked the Bee Gees and your songs were amazing. Thanks for sharing both.
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Disco was not my favorite genre of music but the Bee Gees were undeniably talented. Have a bleesed day.
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I love your car photos. I grew up in the sixties or seventies, too, but didn’t listen to country. Of course the Bee Gees were big then! I’m glad you are sheltering in place because COVID is bad news. My sister went to the emergency room last night spitting up blood with pneumonia. She had COVID three months ago and thought she was over it, but she isn’t. I hope she can leave the hospital before long. Be careful!
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We probably wander outside of our “shelter” more often than we should, but we try to take the proper precautions.
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I love your mini studio, and I am ALL ABOUT doing things on a budget. And I had literally no idea that Thomas Kincade had model cars. The photographs look fantastic!
Two of your songs this week were new to me, but I do love some Jive Talkin’!
You have a blessed week yourself.
Kim
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I think I saw the trucks in an ad in a Southern Living magazine and decided that I would like a set. I have never seen another set of them and there were no other series of vehicles produced. There are a couple of pieces missing now but I just call that personality. Have a blessed week.
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Your first tune my mama use to play on her stereo when I was growing up. She loved music my mama did & she’d sing, and dance and sometimes she’d even tap dance! God bless that woman! Glad I came back I forgot to finish my comment. Silly me! Anyway, thanks for the introduction to Blake Shelton’s new song. I never heard that one before… very cool. Thanks my friend, and you last tune too. It’s beautiful and love the words. Sheesh, where have I been under a rock some where! hahaha Have a great week my friend. Stay healthy, safe and happy! hugs
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I was happy to find a Blake Shelton song that was new to most people. The last song might be more familiar as recorded by Chris Tomlin but the Gaither Vocal Band does a very nice arrangement of the tune. Stay safe and stay close to the house. Have a blessed week.
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I’d love to have a little space like yours to play around with my camera. I’m still hopeful the Lord will open our eyes to finding the house that he wants us to relocate to in the very near future. You’re so right about the crisis we’re dealing with currently. There’s nothing man can do to fix this, it’s a change that begins in the heart and until that happens people will continue to at odds. The left keep shoveling their load of bull with the hopes of being our savior for these problems and they are not, they are the furthest thing from being what Jesus is the individual and the world. If only every man would surrender his/her complete all to His leadership and love, then what a wonderful world it would be. Thanks for joining the 4M crew on the dance floor, my friend. Have a boogietastic week!
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We downsized a year after I retired seven years ago and I was probably the smartest move we made, even though I miss the location of our previous home. The new place is closer to essential services like my doctors while the old place was closer to nature and made for much more interesting photography.
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Great photos and some cool songs!
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Thank you.
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