Wednesday, February 12, 2025

Just make it up as I go...

With the news that is overwhelming and concerning each day, I do try to find something...anything to take my mind off from it and also ease my whirling brain from both the news and the difficulty of being a Caregiver.

I was stuck inside [during that last cold spell] so I decided to do something interesting 3D printed character I acquired. It has no face, no name, but has the number 13 on its chest. It is a color I would never have chosen, but there it is. 

Pink.

Pink must have a story behind her. She is a she, correct? She came with a faithful robot dog. Everyone needs a faithful sidekick, right? So I call them Pink and Pip. I don't know why but just because I felt like it.

They live somewhere in the future I suppose in a warehouse. 


She dreams of a beautiful place a dreamy place. The sort of place her handlers have talked about in the distant past. Beauty, flowers, tranquility.


Pink and Pip play fetch on their down time as Pink explains about this wonderful world she has never seen but has only heard about.


Pip rejoices with her master and plays fetch. They talk about dreams and possibilities. Why is it that their handlers are the only ones allowed to have dreams?


Robots don't really sleep. But they do have down time. One night...Pip pulls Pink out of her downtime. Pip squeaks and squawks.  


This is no imaginary dream. She awakens to ...
to what? She is not programmed for this.


She goes outside to stare at the unbelievable...


What would happen next? I got stuck here for a long time. Actually for a few weeks. I didn't know what Pink should do.
And I left her in a desperate situation... like a cliff hanger on a mystery show...


But then I recalled my MiniBots from last year. I used them for a while and then gave them a storyline with Donder regarding the fact that they found Worm Holes and Rips in the Fabric of Time to travel through.

Maybe ... maybe Pink should find the MiniBots to help transport her away from this awful future world?



All of the above photos were set up indoors using a digital backgrounds. I made the backgrounds using Deep Dream Generator. I simply create a scene I can imagine [which takes many tries] and then either use my laptop for the background as I do for smaller things, or the old smart TV for the larger items. 

It is like making a movie as you have to build 'a set' for the characters that work. It is like producing a Hollywood scene and is quite fun.

I have learned so much from a site called Toy Photographers. I often go back and read their articles. The tips and tricks are fun to experiment with and I think it helps my regular photography also.

Anyway. If my attention remains focused, I'll see if I can figure out Pink and Pip's next steps.



Tuesday, February 11, 2025

Stopping for a moment

 ...to just relax and think of other things...

I went back to last summer and browsed through photos I took but did nothing with...

for today, I just want to share to peaceful tranquility...

and moments...

this taken in July while sitting on a rock in our creek...


in this place there is no cell service. No one can bother me other than insects and perhaps bird calls. I can listen to the breezes above as they rustle tree leaves.


I may try it this week, although, I would be wearing winter coveralls or something similar to a snow suit. I can just sit on the old cottonwood tree's huge roots.... and settle in and just be...for a while.

Sunday, February 09, 2025

Like it or hate it...I'm having a blast.


I'm not very good at making my figures fly through the air but I thought I'd try a leap.

The easiest way to do this, is put a small piece of wire up their bum and position it so it isn't too obvious. Then take it out in post process. You can actually see it a bit in the upper shot, but it looks so close to the grass I decided just to get rid of the obvious bit.


I am however one of those that are always curious no matter what. I recently got a great deal on something called a Lensbaby. This is considered an 'Art' Lens. These lenses have always fascinated me and I've always wanted to try one. I went with a used Sol 22. It is tiny and it can be a real pain or really cool.

It is a manual focus lens with only an f3.5 aperture. In short, it demands your attention when using it. Many photographers don't see the point of this kind of lens and then there are those who absolutely are wild fans of them. Many say ... well I can just do this post process!



But what it you don't have to do any fancy work? What if it is enough to challenge yourself and try something out of the norm?

All I did here was crop the photo just a bit. The orangish color is from the Ulanzi lights I used to help set the mood to a color to highlight the feeling of rusty junk behind Wall-E and Eve.

I picked these 2 up at a Dollar Store over a year ago and couldn't for the life of me figure out what I wanted to do with them until I felt like experimenting with the Sol 22.

The lens let me make Wall-E the focus of the subject matter with his sad looking face. Eve is obviously there and comforting Wall-E. She is part of the 'story' yet not the main focus.  Anyway, that is how I see it.



This next shot is of Donder. He is a Luggan and I really am not sure what his back story, but he comes labeled as a Luggan from 'Acid Rain'. Apparently in the future, the world as we know it is washed away and destroyed by Acid Rain. There are a lot of figures created around this story.  Donder was interesting and bizarre enough to catch my attention.

In my story... Donder hooks up with the MiniBots to create or find a way to get out of horrors of the world that has gone nuts. 
He and the MiniBots find worm holes and rips in time to transport themselves and anyone else who is willing to pay to leave.
Of course worm holes and rips in time aren't things you can predict....but Donder doesn't really care.


I thought I'd use the Sol 22 with Donder and try something out of this world for lighting. The Lensbaby would focus on Donder and the rest would ... well you can see...



I had a crazy idea of using bubble wrap with mini lights taped to it as a background.




The result was so amazing, that I had to use it in a few more scenarios.

Here is my favorite shot of the experiment.
I used side lights of a yellowish glow to highlight Ailie.

Ailie and Rabbit at the Worm Hole... [not shot with the Lensbaby lens]




One thing led to another and now I'm taking this mini lens with me to figure it out. Manual focus can be hard as well as composing with this lens. In fact there are a LOT of times I wouldn't use it, but it is great for slowing down my thinking process and making me more aware of compositions while using it.

Last but not least. A landscape shot with it.

I didn't like it at first. But it does give me a feeling of huge expanse of the ridge I visit often.



I am embracing this new challenge. Quite fun.




Saturday, February 08, 2025

Renaming Lake Michigan satire....

 With all of the other insanity going on, I'm just going to put this up. Some good giggles.... Thanks Gov. JB!

Gov. JB Pritzker trolls Trump with satire.



Wednesday, February 05, 2025

Well that was fun.

 


Woke up with a nagging pain in the sternum area.

I did chores and hubby started getting after me for his coffee, for this, for that. Nag, Nag, Nag...when I didn't feel like getting nagged.

I didn't really feel that great and knew something was off.

So I grabbed the BP cuff and did some measuring. Wowzah! Off the charts!

After an hour or so of trying to 'calm' down and using all the tools in my basket [breathing, quiet, meditation, and so forth] nothing changed and I still felt quite off.

I grabbed my keys and shot off a text to Olive to ask her if she could drop in on Rich if I get held up going to Urgent care.

She zoomed down and picked me up and took me to the ER. The triage nurse asked what the issue was and I replied that my BP was very high and wouldn't come down. My sternum was painful as was my upper back. 

She said, "You said the magic words and suddenly I was whisked into a room and hooked up with a dozen leads with so they could look at my heart." I glanced over and it looked quite normal. Next came the vampire to draw blood...she was excellent and cheerful. 

The nurse started and IV on the other arm. A job nicely done.

The doctor came in with a dozen questions and said my heart looked normal and proceeded with the 100 questions he had to ask. When he gave me a chance to speak I told him I 'think' this is really just an out of control anxiety attack. My worry was my BP which is normally 102/77 raging at 167/88. With all the poking it went higher.

X rays, and more tests and then he came back and said it all looked good. I pointed to the BP and the fact that I was trembling and asked what that was all about. He shrugged and talked about the labs and I had to repeat in an hour.

He did ask what I normally took when I was 'anxious'. I wanted to be a smart ass and say Jack Daniels [I don't], but was honest. "I go for a hike. I go for a walk, nice long walk in the woods, or go work out at the gym."

He asked 'what can I do for you?' I said "Give me something that makes me feel like I'm not going to blow a head gasket?"

His answer, "I can give you Nitro and that should bring it down and will probably cause you a headache." --- It gave me a headache and the pressure went up.

Then the nurse brought me baby aspirin. Then they all left. I chatted with Olive and told her I was going to go into my Head Zone and practice my relaxation breathing along with some mental calming.

My BP dropped, still a bit high, but it dropped.

Then another person came in for more blood. It SHOT up. Go figure!

Next the Doctor glanced at the unimproved high pressure and told me I was good to go. No immediate life threatening issues were found. Go home and see your PCP.

Seriously. He was doing his job and all the protocol was perfect. He explained that he was looking to make sure I did not have a LIFE Threatening Condition. 

[Maybe not to him!]

One of my gym pals is a NP, she saw me and walked in to chat. She listened to me, offered comfort [as Olive did], she actually gave me some hope that I was NOT crazy. She and I did discuss the fact that the Prolia med has caused me to be ultra tired and unmotivated to be able do what I normally do. Was the high BP part of it? 

Was it a wake up call to something else? Would it hurt to no longer take the med and do what I've done before? More confusion that answeres.

All heavy questions, but questions I needed to talk to a health professional about. 

I walked out of there exhausted with a last BP reading of 171/90.

I ate when I got home, and took a long nap.

After a simple supper, I sat down with hubby and took my BP. 119/82.

When I woke up? 102/77. After chores? 106/76.

I will be the very last to admit it. But let's just call a spade a spade.

Anxiety Attack.

You know there is little out there that is helpful for a person in a full anxiety crisis. 
See a mental health professional. Breathing exercises. Do a group therapy thing.

Seriously. It does not stop those things in the moment. What is there to stop that crippling moments that lead to more crippling moments?

This is my first time with this serious of an issue. Being me, I will investigate and get myself some answers.

However...


And that is that.
The discharge paper included 'stress' and 'anxiety'. Funny how the doctor never seemed to be able to acknowledge those exact words to me.



Tuesday, February 04, 2025

Stunned...

 Below is a place we call PeeWee's Dump. I thought it would be a great place to explore with some of my characters. 

Yeah...
that didn't work out well....


That gaping hole in the earth that is surrounded by metal, plastic, old bottles and shredded unidentifiable things made Charlie very nervous.
It is a perfect place for 'possum and perhaps other critters to hang out. 

However, it is close to home and it is a perfect spot for some toy shots that would include the MiniBots and perhaps some evil Lego characters or other nefarious toys.




I've used the partial milk can more than once in some photo 'shoots'. Getting to this spot in the summer is really difficult because of the brush. I always seem attracted to junk piles when the forest is resting itself..


Last January I fell in love with this spot.



Well, that was a wash, so I moved on and followed Charlie down the gravel road.

That lead me to these shots...



I had a productive walk. I went in by the fire number for this land and discovered another tennis shoe, barbed wire, bent t-posts, and a rusted bucket. 

I couldn't help but investigate the possibilities of the rusted bucket.


The day was heavily overcast and rather dull looking, but the air was fresh and felt nice. We walked out onto the cropland and looked over the ridge. I hope Linda [the farmer that rents this land] will plant soybeans on this field this spring. It is easier to enjoy all year long when walking out to watch the sun come up.

When I got home I was floored by more dreadful news. 
Who let Musk into the Treasury and what are they stealing? This should strike fear into everyone.



Sunday, February 02, 2025

On a roll.

Friday we had another unbelievable day for Wisconsin. I didn't need long underwear and I didn't need a heavy jacket.

Yet I still found ice in the valley.
Cell phone shot of the creek below and the forest above.


The sun shines on this area where the ice is gradually melting into the creek bed.



This is a very curious spot. The creek is generally very narrow here, but the trickling water in the subzero weather built layers up and spread the ice out to the edges of the bank. 
This would be the normal width of the creek here when we have plenty of rain.


Charlie went ahead of me scenting for deer and mice. He did get to chase a squirrel. 
His prizes were Rabbit Pellets of course. He insists that he needs to have a few daily. After all, they are Smart Pellets!
All in a little dog's day of work.


I've also been working on two separate 'toy' story lines for my own entertainment.

One is outdoors with the orange and black Titan 13 3D articulated figure. I've set the Lego folks aside for now since my creative juices are mesmerized by these two figures.

Titan 13 photographs very well outdoors much to my surprise. 

A Toy Photographer on Flickr and Toy Photographers [.com] asked me what the back story was to Titan 13. Titan 13 is the name of Toy and all the variations of this printed figure. It is 5 inches or 13 cm tall. 

I replied "No back story yet. I'm wondering if he just got dropped into this world and we'll have to figure out what is happening by looking at the photos."

I'd like their poses and actions in the shot have to speak for themselves.

I do appreciate many other photographers who include a narrative to tell the viewer what is happening in the picture. Wouldn't it be unique to let the viewer decide? Or even yet, another thought popped into my head today.

What if I just gave each shot a one word description? 

Reflections



That would be so challenging with a piece of plastic wouldn't it?

The next two are of T13 and her dog. This Robot/Figure is my current indoor Table Top Challenge -- self imposed challenge.


Unwind

Dreams


Or...
what if there is not title but the viewer decides on the word or vision for themselves?

....



Another thought struck me. What about doing a series of shots without a narrative by me, but a narrative by the figure itself?

Happiness
Sadness
Surprise
Lonely...

Hmm, it is a thought.

And yes, I'll be bringing back the wooden guy this month. I usually pull him out to do a Valentine's themed series of photos.

With the landscape as dull as it is, I need to do something else that keeps my enthusiasm up for right now.