1978

I’m schlepping into concept art (I hope). My first attempt at photographing an environment required no less than 1) a cool motel off the beaten path 2) trips to Boomerangs (Kansas City) and many nights online scouting for retro 70s-wear. And, of course, two models who are willing to have fun playing dress-up for an evening. 

My own parents’ 1970s foray into Square Dancing conjured up ideas for this shoot. As a former writer (I said former), I preconceived a storyline around the theme of “square dancers.” A main image concept I had (and actually got) was this photo setup below. Here, we see our square-dancing couple just won first place at a local dance off. See the trophy next to Sidney at the mirror?

A note on the coloring. I used a pre-set action to get it. Apparently, I forgot to white balance, and the original, original is way too red from all the red in the room and what the subjects are wearing. Any ideas out there on what to do? Here’s the white balance tweaked to this before the action pre-set:

And, yep. I did the hair and makeup. Dress by, well, that’s my mother’s old dress. A perfect fit.

A couple more photos of our resident cowboy.

In researching the decade, I looked through old advertising and many books. Of course, the 70s were filled with reaction to the Vietnam war, rising oil prices, and many of the ramifications of the economy that we are also seeing now. In fact, one advert I came across gave warning to “Wake up America” and continued on in the copy about our reliance on foreign oil. Almost 40 years later, it’s disconcerting to be reminded of what a similar path we are on. But, that’s another story, another time. Let’s get back to grooving on the 70s with another set of photos. The set up this time? Disco, hobo chic, and “Charlie girl” darlings….