Thursday, April 06, 2023

Wicked Weather!

You can Dance in a Hurricane

But only if you

are standing

in the

Eye.

I heard the above words when I was listening to my Pandora Station with earbuds while sorting out medications for Hubby. Doing meds for half the month or the full month takes quite a bit of time. I generally listen to music to blot out any distractions.

I just loved the lyrics to this song and sadly I don't know what the song was!

The winds whistled and roared above our little hollow and once more, I was grateful for not living on the ridge. We'd had over an inch of rain during the night with a lot of lightening and thunder. 

A few times when the thunder shook the house, Charlie was sure that the world was about to end.

Since it was soooo gloomy out, I decided to do some lightbox photography.



The ambient light was a little easier to control. Pictured above is the lightbox with a black background and a little Ulanzi cube light, a balloon light, a face mister, and tacky stuff. 

The tacky stuff is great for keeping the feet of the taller figure in place.

The little light comes with filters to change the color of the light. I'm still experimenting and learning all about light. I never thought I'd ever do anything other than outdoor photography.

However, here I am, learning something new.



I am really happy how this turned out. I used the lightbox with the lowest light setting and a diffuser over the light.
I used the Ulanzi cube with a slightly orange filter at the foot of the toy pointing up.

I used the face mister to produce...well, mist!
I learned a lot about mist. It can confuse the camera and it can also make things rather grainy. 
Finding the right balance takes a bit of work and quite a few shots.

Dark Trooper leaving his
charging station with 
a mini Dark Trooper



I found these non-Lego Legos a while ago when searching for knights.

[Pointing below at the photo---->]

If you are a fan of Tolkien and the Lord of the Rings series, these guys would be identified as Uruk-Hai Orcs. One Orc from Lego would be nearly $26.00. 
In a photo like this, you cannot tell if it is a real Lego or a knock off. I was able to get 7 Orcs and 7 Elf like knights in one package for less than one Orc.

These guys look pretty fierce. And now I am laughing because this Orc is holding his shield upside down!



A few days ago, I did make it down to the creek to enjoy some quiet time with Charlie. I had Squatch and Hobby in my bag. I went to my favorite spot and did this:


It's nice that they too can get out and enjoy some peaceful times.


This morning the moonlight woke me up and the skies were clear and bright!

Whew! Mother Nature has decided to give us another break from the Wicked Weather.

It'll still be a little windy, but at least I can get out today and enjoy the weather.



12 comments:

  1. Sun is out today, so we will venture out also, hope the snow plow has gone! You even got their shadows in the creek! What fun for you! We do meds once a week here...and it is no fun. There is a shortage of Daliresp now and we resorted to getting 20 pills at the local pharmacy...$38.00 but the real cost was $384.00 so we are thankful for insurance...usually that med costs us $12.00 for 90 days.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. If hubby were not under the VA disability rating he has, we would not afford most of his meds. Most of his issues would have gone untreated. :(

      Delete
  2. The song is The Eye by Brandi Carlile. You do enjoy yourself! You're a creative person.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Funny that you knew that! I love that song! Of course, I like a lot of her songs!

      Delete
  3. Val, I've been a reader of your blog for a long time now but I've been feeling the need to comment. I love your commitment to playing and enjoying yourself in whatever whimsical pursuits make you happy. As a fellow equestrian, crossfitter and hiker, thank you for encouraging me (even if you didn't know) to keep playing and have fun :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Wow! I didn't know! Thank you for your comment. CF, riding, and hiking are all part of my mental and physical self care.
      :)

      Delete
  4. We had a terrible storm in our forecast, rains and winds and possible hurricane. We had a nice rain and that was it. Glad you made it through okay. I so admire your playful spirit!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Good that it wasn't terrible! I see that trees did get blown over up on the higher ridges, but just mostly rain down in our hollow.

      Delete
  5. I enjoy your collections. I am a fan of a lot of your characters and did not know that they sold them. They light box is a great way to explore so many kinds of lighting effects. My box is white only.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. The Dark Trooper is a newer one and a bit pricey, but Iove the reflections on his black armor. However, dust really shows up on it too!

      You can make your light box black if you use black construction paper. This one has plastic inserts and I added black paper to the sides. I can swap out colors, but the best colors are white and black.

      Delete
  6. I am SO glad the wicked wind has subsided! I've been staying out of our pines. Love the Lil' Squatch & Hobby photos, complete with reflection!! Cube lights are cool. Might add moody light to some of your outside set-ups too. Not sure how bright they are. Never heard of a balloon light. No surprise there. Nice to see your light box set-up and that you are throughly enjoying it!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. The balloon lights are tiny and go for hours. They are used in balloons and in containers with water and flowers to light up tables at a wedding.
      The cube lights have different degrees of light, so they could be used in night photography outside and day time too!

      I like that little patch of sand in mud in our creek, lots of cute opportunities there!

      Delete

Please include at least your first name if you are commenting Anonymously. Thank you.