Do you hide your mess when posting photographs?

Here's a random topic.

As much as I try to keep my work area tidy, it is to a certain extent a hopeless cause. When I post photos of my builds-in-progress here, I take various approaches to minimize the amount of mess I show in the picture. I might actually clean up first (!), or angle the photo away from the messiest areas, or crop the crap out of the final image. Or all three. It might still end up looking like a mess, but definitely less so than if I did nothing.

What do others do? Do you try to sanitize the public image of your workspace, or show it in all its lived-in glory?

I show it as it is.

I clean up. (Any excuse!)

A combination of the two I guess. Pretty much do the same that the OP described.

blackbrandt said:

I show it as it is.

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Really? Never would have guessed...

Hey! That hurt.

Besides, cleaning my workshop? HA! That's a more herculanean task than getting all politicians to stop lying....

I move them to a different location for photos.

Yes, if I take pictures in my messy rocket shop room. But the lighting in there isn't good for photography and good lighting is essential for good rocket pictures. I moved here in the spring and all of my best rocket pictures were taken at my previous house where I had better lighting in my shop.

There isn't room to build, let alone take pictures in my shop (garage) so on those rare occasions when I do take pictures, I take them in the kitchen or outside on the porch.

[edit] I also have a big piece of a sky blue bed sheet that my wife threw away. I use that for background sometimes.

I have a 24" wide roll of plotter paper that I use as a backdrop for pictures. When I post an action shot though it's hard to hide the mess.

dave carver said:

I move them to a different location for photos.

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That's what I do too

I try to have a clear background for the pictures.
There's a large square of white art board that I have Velcroed to a closet door.
Most of my pictures have that for a background.

hcmbanjo said:

I try to have a clear background for the pictures.
There's a large square of white art board that I have Velcroed to a closet door.
Most of my pictures have that for a background.

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Oof, I have a big piece of white foam board right next to my bench, never even thought of putting it up there!

In the interest of full disclosure, here's my workbench completely unedited, as I found it this evening before I started:



It's actually not bad (I haven't been accumulating stuff as long as a lot of other folks here) but I certainly would have moved some stuff around before posting to a build thread.

....wow...you have a tool I don't have and now have to get...I must get one of those rubber mallets...for something...I don't know what...but I have to have one now...

dave carver said:

....wow...you have a tool I don't have and now have to get...I must get one of those rubber mallets...for something...I don't know what...but I have to have one now...

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I've never used it while rocket-building (hard to imagine a use in LPR) but I have used it a ton for other stuff. Closing paint cans and hammering together PVC are the first things that come to mind, but I'd used it for lots of other stuff as well. Good thing to have around, small investment.

I am proud of this work area photo. It was a really clean and organized day so I had to take a picture. It is worse now with multiple projects going on at the same time.

Daddyisabar said:

I am proud of this work area photo. It was a really clean and organized day so I had to take a picture. It is worse now with multiple projects going on at the same time.

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I read it before I looked at the pic. :lol:

Nice fleet!

No

(and the extra characters to make a post at least three letters long)

dave carver said:

....wow...you have a tool I don't have and now have to get...I must get one of those rubber mallets...for something...I don't know what...but I have to have one now...

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That is not a mallet.

It is a non-sparking precision impact actuated alignment facilitation device.

That's Nothing!! but my wife was :shock:


So I cleaned, now its like this


:wink:

Daddyisabar said:

I am proud of this work area photo. It was a really clean and organized day so I had to take a picture. It is worse now with multiple projects going on at the same time.


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Looks like you're out of Tums.

My Gypsy said:

Looks like you're out of Tums.

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All that mindsimming uses up the Tums real fast. Hard on the tummy, as is Tex Mex and beer. At that time I was thinking of using the plastic lid for the cab on the Crazy Train rocket but it did not work out. Never throw away any container that might be used for rocket parts!

There was a show on the BBC where the little old ladies go in an clean up the disaster houses. One of the episodes was cleaning up a model rocket builders pad. They went in and cleaned so he went out and launched a V2.

It is a non-sparking precision impact actuated alignment facilitation device.

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I was sure it was a #2 Loon Mallet, very useful on the Internet. Persistent cases need a #1 Loon Sledge, which is often confused with the Hammer of Thor.

And to the OP's question, I usually clean up before building, so my pictures are either of a workbench in progress or out in the driveway where the light is better.

I look for a tidy place in the house to take pictures. Then I go outside.

I always try to keep my area clean after each building session. By doing so I'm less likely to lose something important and when I do take a picture of the finished project it doesn't have a "busy" back ground....I'm pretty OCD at cleaning.

I don't want others to see pics of my junk. lol

I havent done a build thread in a long long time, but when I do I actually move my building operations from my workshop, which is a disaster, to a work table in an adjoining room, where I can lay out parts, materials and tools in some kind of sequential order.

When I'm just fooling/fiddling/f****ing around in my workshop, I have 4-5 projects going on at the same time: 2-3 rockets, rebuilding/rewiring a launch control system, fixing an electric fan, etc etc -- junk sitting all over the place.



This thread might embarrass me enough I might go down there with a bulldozer and clean the place out.

:y::y:

Daddyisabar said:

I am proud of this work area photo. It was a really clean and organized day so I had to take a picture. It is worse now with multiple projects going on at the same time.


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My house looks like this just before a launch, for a VERY SHORT time.