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Aww…some Monday’s Music Moves Me

Aww…some Mondays

Fun With Filters

A lot of people I know enjoy taking photos but they dislike the post processing. I actually enjoy both. I am by no means an expert in either phase of photography and there are a million things that I still need to learn about capturing and editing images. From time to time I like to take an image and just mess with it by adding filters. My photo editing programs of choice are PhotoShop Elements 2020 and On1 RAW. PhotoShop Elements does more than I am capable of doing and is less expensive than the subscription service to full blown PhotoShop. On1 RAW is a series of pre-sets and filters one can use to create unique effects without an in depth knowledge of photo editing terms like layering, masks, etc. Recently I took a walk around our local town and photographed some murals. There is a small restaurant/coffee shop that caught my eye, so let’s have some fun with filters.

This image is SOTC (Straight Out of The Camera). The mural is whimsical and I asked myself, “What happens if you close to that plant and shoot through the foliage?” It kind of looks like you are sneaking up on the cat.

After a few enhancements to clarity, texture, and adding a vignette, here is how a focused section of the mural. The image has been cropped to 8×10 proportions, the colors have been enhance slightly and the exposure has been edited in PhotoShop Elements (PSE). The texture has been enhanced with On1 RAW. Now let’s get funky.

Okay, now I have added a dark vignette and a “Cold Fusion” lens flare pre-set from On1 RAW. The yellow flare over the cat almost looks like an idea has popped into his head. The whole process took about 15 minutes and now I get to share it with you and my FaceBook friends. This is just one of the ways I entertain myself during these shelter-in-place COVID-19 days.

Monday’s Music Moves Me

Last week I got ahead of myself and posted songs fit for this week’s theme. The theme at 4M this week is songs that are about the moon or have the moon in the title. If you want to know what my original choices were, just scroll down and listen to my choices. I think I will freestyle this week, with one exception. My parents were members of The Greatest Generation and their favorite music came from the Big Band era. My mother’s favorite big band was the Glen Miller Orchestra because Glen Miller played the clarinet and that was the instrument my mother played in her high school band.

Now I’m going to switch gears and choose music from a different theme. I graduated from high school in 1965 and looking back it was an awesome year for music. The Stones released “Satisfaction”, the Beatles charted “Help”, the Righteous Brothers had their best year with “Unchained Melody” and “You’ve Lost That Lovin’ Feeling”. Even the Billboard 100th ranked song for the year was Marvin Gay and “How Sweet It Is (To Be Loved By You). So, let’s start there and listen to just how great 1965 was for music.

1965 was a very good year. Have a blessed week.

Almost Wordless Wednesday

A couple of weeks ago I posted an image of a floral arrangement that my wife created for a wedding reception. That arrangement was all artifical flowers. The arrangement above was created last week for a bridal shower and it is all natural blooms & foliage. I think she does professional level work.

Aww…some Monday’s Music Moves Me

Aww…some Mondays

Murals & Me

From time to time I have posted wall murals that have been painted on buildings in our area.  Last year this mural appeared just off of the downtown square.  I thought it was very cool and thought that it would be a fun thing to grab my camera and shoot a selfie.  That never happened.  It turned out that the mural was a temporary piece and early this year it was replaced.

Batman disappeared and a new image replaced the iconic comic strip theme. The new one is a bit more patriotic but is also an excellent work of art.

This mural immediately got me to thinking about the photo possibilities. With social distancing and shelter in place orders from all forms of government it is pretty easy to get a clean image without waiting for people to pass by and out of the frame. I was thinking that on a Saturday or Sunday morning the lighting would be good and there would literally be no one stirring. That seemed like a great time for a selfie!  Well, Saturday at 6:00 a.m. I set up my camera, tripod, and remote shutter release.

You’re probably going to see some form of this image around Veterans Day, but I still miss Batman.

Monday’s Music Moves Me

Well, we have certainly entered the dog days of summer here in NW Arkansas. This week the temperature will probably reach triple digits and the heat index will approach 110. The humidity will be high and no one will feel like doing anything. Hot summer nights might be spent gazing at the moon…which happens to be the theme for this week at 4M.

One of my all-time favorite bands was Creedence Clearwater Revival, so it should come as no surprise that Bad Moon Rising would be my first offering.

Of course, as a child of the sixties, no moon theme would be complete without Cat Stevens and Moonshadow.

I have to admit that when the world embraced Beatlemania I drifted towards the Rolling Stones. I eventually came around to the Fab Four, but I always liked the harder edge of The Stones music.

So let’s close this set with the boys from Liverpool and Mr. Moonlight.

Well, it seems that I have had a “senior moment” and gotten ahead of myself by posting the theme for next week. So I guess that means I’ll be on the search for more Moonstruck Music this week. Stay safe, stay healthy, and have a blessed week.

Aww…some Monday’s Music Moves Me

Aww Mondays

Dad! I love this toy, but it’s kinda creepy.

No Expense Spared

Several weeks ago I shared a few photos of collectable miniature pick-up trucks and explained how I captured those images. Well here is another look and my state-of-the-art small venue photography studio. No high-end studio lighting to be found here. Those two lights are rechargeable LED work lights from Walmart. and they are far and away the most expensive things in the studio, except for my camera & lens. Of course they can be used for any project around the house. The lights have a 2 hour run time per charge, but it takes several hours to completely recharge them and they will not work while charging. The upside is the elimination of extension cords on the floor for me to trip over. Okay, the chair is a left over shower chair from my surgery. You’ll have to scroll back to “Happy Socks” parts I, II, & III to get the full story. It allows me to get down to the level of subject and saves a of stooping and bending. Thankfully my camera also has a flip screen that helps as well, I just haven’t gotten accustomed to using it yet. The base and background are 2’x2′ pieces of 1/8″ plywood that I painted. I painted the opposite sides different colors for more variety. The possibilities are endless. I’ll go into more detail in another post one day soon. So what did the coffee cup finally look like?

Here is an image of a souvenir cup from the 1986 Tulsa State Fair that I found at a local flea market. I grew up in Tulsa and the fair was always a big deal. The pottery is Frankhoma. Frankhoma pottery was made near Tulsa and was very popular when I was a youngster. Note that the background has changed.

The final image is a pitcher. While Frankhoma pottery was considered by many to be country-western in theme, there are elegant little details that scream art deco and mid-century modern. Look at the spout on this pitcher. It is just beautiful. Oh look…different base, different background. How does he do it?

Monday’s Music Moves Me

I have to admit, the first time I read the theme for 4M this week I was at a bit of a loss. We are supposed to pick songs that are played at sporting events. I mean, we play the National Anthem at every sporting event, but then what. Well if you are a college alumni, chances are you attended football, basketball, or some other sport that had all or part of the band in attendance. So, let’s start there.

Prior the start of home football games at major universities like USC, Penn State, Alabama, Texas and my alma mater, University of Oklahoma, the marching band puts on a pre-game show that is often more fun and certainly more enthusiastic than the half time presentation. So I chose only one video today, but you will find the National Anthem, the State song, and the school fight song all in one place. At the end of the video you will be ready to play some football, or at least root your favorite team to victory. Without further delay, I present the Pride of Oklahoma…The University of Oklahoma marching band. This is gonna be fun.

BOOMER SOONER!!!

Not Quite Wordless Wednesday

Wedding Reception Centerpiece

Recently my wife was asked to create a couple of centerpiece arrangements for the wedding of a friends granddaughter. I captured a few images while they were sitting on the counter at home. Due to COVID-19 I was unable to attend the wedding and reception, so I didn’t get any images of the arrangements in their final placement. And just in case you’re wondering, they are silk flowers.

Aww…some Monday’s Music Moves Me

Aww Mondays

In Arkansas we are about to enter the dog days of summer. You know, that time when the temperature and the humidity are both near 90! In the cool of summer evenings my wife and I may enjoy grilling and spending a little time under the covered portion of our patio which is made possible with the help of a ceiling fan. On those evenings Lucy transitions from “House Princess” to “Patio Princess” and she does it seamlessly.

Before & After Part II

A couple of weeks ago I posted a few images of the before and after transformation of my old student desk from “shabby chic” to “country casual”. The project went very well and there is one more piece of furniture to re-purpose. My bedroom in junior high also had a three drawer chest, commonly called a bachelors chest. It had been a part of the shabby chic room with the desk above. Well here ya go!

To be perfectly honest, the chest turned out better than the desk. Anyway, both pieces will be headed off to college this fall with the middle grand daughter. It’s hard to believe these objects from my teen years are now sixty years old. I’ve been told that there are two more pieces now waiting in the wings for me to work on. Stay tuned, this may turn into a real hobby.

Monday’s Music Moves Me

This week is a free choice week at 4M. Last week I posted a song from the genre known as Red Dirt Music which is a blend of country/bluegrass/southern rock. Every so often a genre like country music wanders from it’s roots and becomes popular and groups like those playing Red Dirt music come along and move the needle back toward a more classic sound. The current Nashville scene is very different than when Hank Williams and Patsy Cline were the superstars. There is a lot of pop sound going on that is not terribly different from top 40 radio. Bands playing Red Dirt music are making an effort to reign in the pop sound and return to the roots of country music. Red Dirt music got it’s start in Stillwather, Oklahoma and the name comes from the color of the dirt around that part of the state. I have actually seen it rain red mud in Norman, OK. I cannot say that I am a diehard fan of Red Dirt music, but the sound is refreshing and I do like. So without furher delay here are a few examples of the Red Dirt sound.

Have a blessed week y’all!

Aww…some Monday’s Music Moves Me

Aww…some Monday

Cousin Bruno!

This past week-end our family gathered to celebrate Father’s Day. Our daughter, her husband and the four grandkids, plus the husband of our oldest grand daughter assembled at our house for a cook-out Saturday evening. Our oldest grand daughter and her husband brought Cousin Bruno.

Our 3 year old American Cocker Spaniel, Lucy stands at 12 inches tall and weighs in at 18 pounds. Cousin Bruno is approximately 24 inches at the shoulders and tips the scales at 95 pounds. He is an 18 month old Chocolate Lab and Bruno is a stunning canine.

At first, Lucy was not terribly thrilled about Bruno, but after a little getting acquainted they got along just fine. Lucy spent a lot time trying to capture the high ground just to prove to Cousin Bruno she was in charge. It was a great week-end having all of the family together. As the grand kids grow up, their schedules get filled and getting together as a family is becoming more difficult, so we cherish these times. Hope you had a grand celebration.

Monday’s Music Moves Me

This week the theme at 4M is songs that honor World Music Day. I’m not quite sure what to do with this challenge. I could select music native to various regions of the world. I could select music by artists from around the world or I could select songs about exotic places. Well, here goes nothing.

I don’t know if this truly qualifies as music, but I do know that it is a popular form of competition in Europe, and that would be drum corps. I love watching precision drills and the Top Secret Drum Corps from Switzerland is among the best in the world. Enjoy.

By the name of the group, Cross Canadian Ragweed, you would think that this band comes from the Yukon Territory of Canada. Well they do come from Yukon…Yukon, Oklahoma that is and they are one of the top Red Dirt music groups in the country. Red Dirt music refers to a brand of country/rock/bluegrass blend that originated in central Oklahoma. The land west of Tulsa turns to mostly a red color clay similar to that found in Georgia. The music is a bit of a throwback to the dust-bowl folk/country sound of Woody Guthrie with southern rock overtones of Alabama, Lynrd Skynrd, and a little bit of Leon Russell for good measure. It may not be music from around the world but it from my world and my playlist.

My final offering comes from a group that is purely of Ameican origin, but they have played around the world. Currently, we are in the middle of a cluster of patriotic celebrations in this country. May gives us Memorial day. June 6, we honor D-Day, the invasion of the Allied forces to free Europe from Nazi rule in WWII. June 14 is not an official holiday but it recognizes the official adoption of the American Flag in 1777. June 19 may not be an official holiday either, but there is a push to make the anniversary of Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation that freed the slaves a national holiday. July 4 brings this season to a close with Independence Day. So what better way to honor these celebrations that with The Presidents Own, Marine band and “Stars and Stripes Forever”! Have a blessed week.