Did I mention that I also have a passion in music? When I was young I had a dream to become a professional singer…
I used to have a pretty wide vocal range and can sing very high pitch.
I used to sing, record, and mix my own songs in my home studio.
I have over 100 songs recorded in different languages, including English, Chinese Mandarin, and Chinese Cantonese. Here‘s one of the songs I recorded that used in last year’s review video.
I was the runner up of a local idol singing competition.
These all become history after my thyroid surgery 3 years ago. My voice box was touched during the surgery and somehow I can’t sing high pitch like before. I still LOVE singing though.
It would be so fun if I could work on a project to combine music and photography.
If you are following my facebook fan page, you should know that I did my first street photography by walking into this museum right before Christmas last year. I was amazed by the beautiful music this group of gentlemen played. That was the Bluegrass Jam part I.
I was invited by one of the gentlemen to join their performance again. It was such an honor to be part of their private jam. This group of retired gentlemen meet occasionally in the Clay County Historical Museum. They bring their own chairs and instrument playing hours of their favorite type of music – Bluegrass.
Let’s meet the musicians!
Sir Steve Bode – the gentleman who invited me to the Bluegrass Jam. Steve has been playing banjo for 37 years no wonder why he calls himself a banjo nut.
This is the manager of Clay County Historical Museum – Mr. Larry Willis. He is a guitar player. Larry and his brother Ron volunteer at the museum a few times a month and started the Bluegrass Jam. Larry and his brother Ron have their own band Willow Creek with two other members Rick and Gail Dakon. I met Ron last time, but he was not there this time. It’s one of those deals where you never really know who might show up to jam. Hope I get to meet Rick and Gail next time.
This is the only lady in this group who was present that day – Mary Bliefnick, another banjo player. Mary has her own bluegrass band – Hootin’ Annies. Let’s show some love to her band – more “like” is always welcomed.
This gentleman made his first appearance at Steve’s Bluegrass Jam. His name is Howard Roberson and he also plays guitar.
I have never seen the instrument this gentleman plays. It looks like a cello, but much bigger. Mr. Darrel Phillips plays the giant bass.
The last gentleman plays this mysterious instrument – mandolin. He is a retired veteran. His name is William Baldridge. Everyone calls him Bill. Bill also has a passion in Photography. He was a photographer in U.S. Air Force working in the photo recon lab! He is a PhotoShop expert. As we were talking he would like to know more about LightRoom’s workflow.
Look how focused they were! They are truly loving their music.
The Clay County Historical Museum is a neat place to visit. It is located in Historical Liberty downtown. There’re all kinds of bottles on the shelf behind this “lady”.
I had very limited space to take photos during their jam. Oh yes, and there was a mirror on the wall! I didn’t even realize that I was taking a self-portrait.
This time I also brought my HD video camera and took a short video of their music. I so regret that I didn’t record their beautiful music last time, so I kept reminding myself to take my video camera.
Sorry for the shakiness! I was carrying my huge camera on my neck and holding the video camera recording the same time.
I wanted to tell their story – so I walked out of the museum and started recording as I was walking into the museum again.
This was a joyful experience for me as a photographer. I really enjoyed documenting the wonderful moments and telling people’s stories. Maybe photojournalism will be my next focusing area in photography.
Tagged with: bluegrass • bluegrass band • bluegrass music • Child Photographer • Clay County • Clay County Historical Museum • Family Photos • Kansas City • Kansas City Life Style Photographer • Liberty • Liberty MO • local • Photographer • Portraits • Portraits Photographer • street photography • veteran • Wedding Photographer
I don’t know who had the most fun that day, us picking bluegrass or Lai taking the photos! We certainly enjoy our music. But, as you can see by these photos, she REALLY knows how to produce great pictures. If she can make these old hillbillies look good, she can certainly do the same for nice looking folks. I highly recommend her photography work if you ever need it.
As can be plainly seen, Lai’s work is first rate. I especially appreciated her engaging yet low-key style of going about her work. She finds a good balance of getting the material that she is seeking without being obtrusive. Lai brings a fresh perspective to familiar situations.
What a lucky day when Lai decided to walk into the Clay County Museum! Her winning smile and passion for photography and music are contagious. We all appreciate her photos. She’s got SKILLS!