Welcome to my blog, in which I post photos from recent travels and photography ideas.
These are posted irregularly, so log in at your leisure to catch my latest ramblings.
November 27 - Christmas Market
For quite a while we have been talking of how great it would be to visit some of the fantastic Christmas markets in Switzerland and Germany. That has not happened - yet. But the next best choice was to visit the Toronto Christmas Market, which we did yesterday. This is now an annual event held in the old Distillery District.
It was a brisk day, so Veda bought a pair of leg warmers to ward off the chill.
Annie then took her parents, Monte and Kate, for a merry-go-round ride.
Here are a few scenes and sights in the market.
Hannah doing a taste test.
Coffee break and warm-up at Balzac's.
Hannah and Chris (with Vodka hot chocolate).
And then it was time to head back home - that is, to Hannah's and Chris's - for a light dinner (and maybe a little wine?)
November 19 - Signs of Winter
Mild days and cold days alternating has been our November. But recently the colder weather has arrived. At this time of year, I often desperately search for photo opportunities. So when I saw this dusting of snow on our deck, I grabbed my camera and made this graphic image.
Earlier this week we visited our nephew, Scot, in Elliot Lake. I went for a short drive even though there was a bitter cold wind. I made this image at Sherriff Lake Sanctuary.
The next day I went for a drive near home. I thought that I might find some macro subjects before the snow cover arrived. Here is one example of patterns in frozen water on a small puddle with oak leaves.
On Saturday morning I looked out our front window and realized that we'd had a fall of wet snow that night. Here is the view down our driveway.
I then went for a walk in Kivi Park, a short drive from our house. There I made a number of photographs in the park's birch forests. This is one of those photos.
There were a couple skiers guiding disabled skiers on the trails, and a few people walking their dogs, but otherwise it was quiet and peaceful.
November 12 - Abstract Photos (Part 1)
What constitutes an abstract photograph?
There is no standard universally accepted definition of an abstract photo. Let me say that the definition itself is quite abstract. But it definitely is something other than a documentary photograph.
In this post I will present my views on abstract landscape photography. Two other variations I will explore in later blogs.
I create what I consider abstract landscapes often by isolating a small segment of a scene, usually with a telephoto lens, as in this image I made in Kootenay National Park, British Columbia.
I look for shapes and colours to create pleasing patterns.
Trees on a mountain slope lit by low light create diagonals behind vertical lines of the tree trunks in the foreground. Thus I have abstracted the scene rather than making a documentary photo (Banff National Park).
Here I've used the colour reflected from sunrise light to create an abstract in this wetland in Lively, Ontario.
Here I made a photo of bands of blue and magenta colours. It becomes an abstract of horizontal colours rather than a photo of a place. Does it really matter where this image was created?
With other landscapes I will juxtapose contrasting elements within the scene, as in this image from Badlands National Park, South Dakota.
This definitely is not a documentary image of a pond, but a study of one hue (blue) with reflections of standing dead trees providing places for the viewers' eyes to scan the frame.
The foreground trees that have been killed by the gases emanating from Mammoth Hot Springs are where the viewers' eyes first fall, before scanning the background terraces. This is a graphic image rather than a documentary one.
Other abstract images that I create are simply isolated details with little indication of place.
The following images are simpler still in their content.
Other abstracts beg the question: "What is it?"
Does it really matter?
If you really must have that information, here it is. The first photo is of patterns on rock at Killarney. It is a simple graphic of horizontal lines.
The second photo is more mysterious. It is NOT a scene with mountains in the background, though it was made in Banff National Park. The photo is of the surface of one of the Vermilion Lakes with differing thicknesses of ice and the background of open water rippling in a very cold wind.
The third photo is a detail of Mammoth Hot Spring in Yellowstone.
I hope that I have been able to inspire you to create your own abstract landscape photos.
November 5 - November Blues - Well, Browns Really!
The November photo blahs are upon us. It is difficult, at least for me, finding interesting subject matter, except when unusual light occurs, as in this photo I made just behind our house.
This is in the same location, yesterday, as we had our first snow dusting of the season. Note the dramatic difference with the same setting under different light.
I then wandered around the grounds with my macro lens, searching for interesting closeups. Here is one image with the light snow covering fallen leaves.
This is the scene looking down our driveway. Too soon the snow plowing will be here.
October 28 - Bare and Brown
Most of the leaves have fallen. Brown is now the dominant colour as you can see that in the following images.
This afternoon we went for a walk in Kivi Park. The park has changed greatly from a couple weeks ago - trees are bare, but the birches still have their appeal, and the trails are great for walking.
This fern is about the only greenery I saw, aside from the conifers.
These mushrooms I found growing on a birch stump.
I will try to blog once a week for the coming months. Some times I'll show images that I made that week and at other times I will look at older photos and speak about them.