Blomidon Boy's Blog

For Rebekah....

2012-01-22T22:33:00.004-05:00

Tonight I thought I'd post a couple of images applying the same type or style of photo editing to see what sort of effect I could come up with. However, I thought that I'd use it to welcome Rebekah to my blog. Rebekah is a REAL artist. She has also just taken up photography as well, and I am more than a little impressed with the images she posted on her new blog herself. She has hopes to be working in animation one day, and I have absolutely no doubt that she will indeed realize that dream. It is fun for me to fumble around in the various photo editing softwares and come up with the images that I post on here. Big deal eh? So it is with utmost humility that I offer it to Rebekah. Keep up the good work kiddo! You are right, Nothing is Impossible

Afterward......

2012-01-22T21:35:00.002-05:00

This is my first posting in quite a while. It seems that I had become preoccupied with other things that had taken over.....like hitting a wall after finishing the kitchen project. So tonight I thought I'd make a feeble effort to get back into the swing of things again. This is a shot from a bike ride that I took last summer with my buddy Frank. I wanted to make a print of it but the blue sky was all washed out to the left of the building. This sort of prompted me to try doing something else with it, and this is the result. I only have a vague idea of what I did, and probably couldn't duplicate it again. The end result is sort of what I have in mind of what the "end of time" will look like. That's supposed to happen on winter solstice of 2012....however I have a strong feeling that things will continue long after that date. Take it for what it is and I hope you enjoy it.

Red Rose of December...

2011-12-14T15:28:00.005-05:00

'Tis a dull dreary rainy day here in Windsor, and John, this one is in response to your request. I finished sending off the parcel and then took time out to slip over to our neighbors, Terri's and Henry's front yard. This rose bush has been blooming forever it seems, and I keep wondering when it will stop and decide that it is winter after all. So, while my wife puts the finishing touches of paint on the baseboards of the kitchen, I put my #2 closeup filter on my 75 ~ 300 mm lens, and took this shot. Yup! Roses are still blooming here in Windsor in the middle of December. We are just a week away from Winter Solstice, and I never dreamed I could ever do this. Strange Wah? While everyone else is photographing Poinsettias , I am still photographing roses.....no ice on the river yet.

Backlit Leaves

2011-11-08T14:13:00.002-05:00

About an hour ago, I returned from a walk along the river and about the park there. I could not believe the warm temperature today. We had to remove our outer jackets, and sweaters, as we were getting too uncomfortable. As we passed along a path I noticed these leaves that were backlit by the sun, and took a couple of shots. Backlighting is sometimes referred to as "sweet light" and it is used to separate people or objects from blending into a dark background. Of course a shallow depth of focus helps accomplish this as well. In a few weeks time, the trees will be bare once more, and then they will become a more graphic element in photos. It's all good......

Trick or Treat...!

2011-10-31T19:53:00.003-04:00

You just never know who is going to show up on Halloween night. It has been a busy time lately, and I had not put much time or effort into doing something for my blog for Halloween. Then this character shows up at the door! I had no idea just who it was at first. He had two beer cans on his hard hat which had flashing LED lights on the front, and carried a stop sign. He stood over 6 feet tall, and had this red rubber nose. At least it didn't glow, and that would have been all the wrong festive occasion..LOL! Upon looking closer, I finally recognized my friend Frank! What a guy! He is always good for a gut splitting laugh, and I ran for the camera. I finally had something funny for my blog tonight....Thanks Frank! Happy Halloween everyone....be safe.

A Hardy Rose...

2011-10-24T01:47:00.003-04:00

This very lovely sprig of roses showed up on our window ledge a couple of days ago, and my wife told me that our neighbour Terri had brought it over for us. Thank you Ma'am! Of course I had to get out the camera and see what I could do with it. I decided to shoot it off center and use the picture for my desktop image, as most of the icons are aligned on the left side, with a few on the right. It worked out well for that purpose, and since the world has gone to bed, and I am enjoying the quiet time, I decided to use it for this blog. I played with it in Photoshop, PhotoImpact, and Corel before I was finally satisfied with the results. To have roses still blooming in October is a real treat, and they seem to be much more hardy than the delicate blossoms would appear.

Tilden Lake Evening

2011-10-23T22:09:00.002-04:00

This is another shot from my last trip North. I have spent all of about 10 minutes maximum this fall taking Autumn scenes, and they were all done here while we stopped for lunch beside Tilden Lake, just North of North Bay. It has been a busy time, and time has become a rapidly moving thing. There never seems to be enough of it to get everything done. My wife says that I spend too much of it blogging etc.. Anyway, this is my little offering today. The quietness of this scene beside the lake feels right for a Sunday evening post. Hope you like it also.

First Oil Painting....

2011-10-16T20:33:00.003-04:00

A couple of days ago while I was mucking around in some old boxes of negatives, I came across this one. It is a shot of this young lady's first attempt at oil painting. It would appear that I got a little carried away with the back lighting, but when you are shooting film, you don't know what the results are until you get it back from the lab. However, I had to make the artist just as important as the artwork she had created. Since the art is framed with a white border, that presents an extremely strong graphical element within the negative. This would tend to pull the eye away from the lovely young artist. So what to do? Well, frame the artist with light seemed to be the only logical thing to do, so as to draw the eye back to her. In any photo, the eye goes to the light areas, and in this case it helped divert attention back from the white rectangle surrounding the art, to the artist who painted it. I could probably have toned it down a little and still achieved the desired result...Oh well....It is what it is...

All is Quiet on Tilden Lake

2011-10-08T01:11:00.003-04:00

About a week ago, we took a trip North to visit family and do a little visiting with old friends. We decided that it was time for a quick meal and stopped at the little park in Tilden Lake on Hwy. 11N. about 20 minutes north of North Bay, Ont.. It was while I was eating my sandwich that I realized that....no, I do not miss the blackflies, or the bitter cold of Northern Ontario winters, and a few other things that I'll not mention. However, I do miss these little quiet places that are to be found in the North. The little bench in the lower right of the picture was so very inviting, but unfortunately it was still soaking wet from a recent rain. Otherwise, I probably would have stayed a little longer to reflect and enjoy the quiet. This one is for Mike, John, Ed and the rest of my old photo buddies as well. Pretty soon there will be ice fishermen out there, and snowmobiles roaring all over. I prefer to remember this place as it is here. Hope you enjoy it also, and Happy Thanksgiving to everyone.....

A Monarch is Born...

2011-10-06T01:17:00.002-04:00

Today I got to digging around in an old box of negatives, and came across this one. It was shot with my old Minolta XK body with a 50mm macro lens using KODAK Portra 400 VC film. It looked like it was somewhat worthwhile, so I scanned it tonight, and came up with this version. I was also giving some new COREL free trial software a workout, to see if it would offer anything new that would be worth the extra dollars for the upgrade. The jury is still out on that one. Anyway, this Monarch butterfly had just emerged from its pupa stage, and would be flying off as soon as its wings were dry from the sunlight on them. I always thought butterflys were mother natures flying flowers, and it always amazed me at the lengthy journey they make down to South America after been born here in the north. This one greeted the world in North Bay a few years ago, and I watched it over a period of about 3 hours until it got to this point. It was indeed fascinating to watch. Hope you enjoy it also.

Fresh Apple Pies.....

2011-09-18T19:21:00.006-04:00

Now that the new kitchen is about 95 % finished, my good wife decided it was time for fresh apple pies. We had gone last weekend and picked a couple of bags at Thiessen's Pick Your Own, and now they are being put to good use. Of course, this is the rewards of a lot of hard work, and she has stated that it is an extremely functional kitchen. "Thank you Ma'am". It was something that we had partly designed together, and I partly "made up" as the project progressed. Sooooo glad it's almost over finally, and we can get back to regular living again. BTW, the pies do not look like this anymore.....
"Lard Thunderin' B'y"!..... "Some good eh"?

Hot Rod!

2011-09-18T13:08:00.003-04:00

Old vintage cars and Hot Rods were all over Wyandotte St yesterday. It was nice to have a pleasant look back at how it used to be. Polished paint and chrome everywhere. It was hard to take a picture, and not find that you were also doing a self portrait in the process, especially if you were shooting close up. It was a busy day, and I only had about an hour to spare for this event. As a result, I did not shoot nearly as much as I would have liked to. However, there will be other shows for sure, and I hope to go and do a little more shooting.

'84 El Camino

2011-09-18T12:49:00.006-04:00

Yesterday there was an old car show just 4 blocks from my home, and I decided to go see what was happening. Well, they sure don't make 'em like that anymore! I have felt for a long time now, that in recent years, the cars all look the same. They all look like giant lozenges, all rounded and wind tunnel designed. It was really great to see these old cars again. There was '60's music blaring from speakers mounted about 10 feet up in the air, and it took you back to yesteryear. This gentleman was obviously very proud to be one of the participants in this show, and agreed to stand by his "baby". It takes an awful lot of work and dedication to restore an old car. It goes without saying that it costs a lot of money also. So, my hat's off to this fellow, and all of the others who put on a really great display of polished paint and chrome from a bygone era.

Something's a Little Weird...

2011-09-13T19:02:00.008-04:00

This afternoon, my wife was working in the garden as usual, pruning and weeding, and I heard her call to me to come and see something weird. Well, "what could possibly be weird in a garden" I was mumbling to myself as I went to where she was. She had almost pruned this branch off, but noticed this rosebud that looked a little strange. Upon closer examination, it seems that there is another branch growing out of the center of this rosebud, and another rosebud growing on top but unopened yet. Alright then, which gods have we vexed lately? This was totally unusual, and if there is some name for this anomoly in the plant kingdom, I would appreciate it if someone could clue me in. Until then, it has been suggested that since this rosebush grows about 10 feet away from this room, and the window is opened a lot, maybe I should change my musical repetoire a little when playing my accordion, if the plants are going to react in this way... Heck, maybe I should take up another instrument altogether. Nah! My wife would kill me for sure........

P.S. Our neighbor Terri, came across with her camera and took a couple of great shots of this rosebud. She submitted it to the local TV station, and it was used on the 6:00 pm news a couple of hours later. Good for you girl!

Petunias

2011-09-11T23:52:00.003-04:00

This little sprig of Petunias was hanging over the side of some old derelict farm equipment at the Thiessen Pick Your Own Apples Orchard today. The rusted old metal provided a nice background for the colourful blossoms, and I had to stop a minute to grab a couple of shots. I am going to use this little image to welcome aboard my blog paulatorres-96: k_klassen: and Ken Harris. Thanks for your interest folks, and I hope my ramblings on here are, for the most part, to your liking.
It has been very rainy here for the past 3 days or so, and the orchard was full of muddy paths everywhere. Cars had to be left out on the road, but I took a chance and was able to park close to where we would pick apples, and pay for them afterward. Hopefully our new kitchen will soon have the wonderful aroma of apple pies emanating from within. Then there are the preserves, like apple butter, and apple jelly. Ooooh Yeah! You gotta love this time of the year when all of the fruit and produce is fresh and available everywhere.

A Long Time Passing...

2011-08-26T01:07:00.004-04:00

Tonight I scanned a Kodak BW 400CN negative that I shot recently. This film had not been refrigerated at all, and the date on the PRO Pack carton was for 07/2007. That is quite amazing for any film to be sitting around in a camera bag for some 4 years, and then be exposed and processed, and the negs were absolutely just fine. Luckily for me, and anyone else who would still be interested in shooting film, Kodak BW 400CN is still available. It is amazing stuff! It is processed in the regular C41 chemicals used to process coloured negative film, and any 1 hour lab can just put it through with the rest of the rolls being processed.
This old garage is located on the Ojibway Parkway between LaSalle and Windsor, and is almost nonvisable from the road due to being overgrown by very tall grasses in the area. My 16 mm fisheye lens was used on this particular shot, and the grass in the foreground appear to be curved and wrapping around the old building. Small businesses such as this one did not fare too well, possible due to the collapse of the auto industry in this area, and also probably due to the influx of much larger operations attached to the huge box stores which have sprung up everywhere in recent years. So it just sits and crumbles, and is slowly disappearing, just like film photography......

Concert Band Members

2011-08-16T20:46:00.003-04:00

These band members are focused on the music, while I am skulking around the perimeter focusing on them. It had not entered my mind yet as to how I was going to "portray" them, but this felt right to me tonight.....

Surround Sound...

2011-08-16T19:41:00.004-04:00

This fellow is a tuba player in the Greater Windsor Concert Band. I am not sure what the actual type of tuba this is, but the gentleman seems to be wearing it, as opposed to holding it. At any rate, the music was great and much appreciated by everyone who attended this outdoor concert. The conductor stated that in the 15 years that the band has been doing outdoor performances, they have been rained out only once. That is pretty amazing really, but this concert was almost number 2, as the band had to stand around for a while and discuss whether or not to go ahead, as it was raining very slightly just before the start time. However, it finally stopped, and the band bravely went ahead and set up. This image has been edited to make it look somewhat like a coloured chalk drawing. Hope you like it...

Eyes in the Back of His Head....

2011-08-14T21:47:00.006-04:00

Tonight, along with our neighbors Terri and Henry, we attended an excellent concert in Rheaume Park, just about 5 minutes drive from home. The concert was performed by the Greater Windsor Concert Band, and they played tunes from Broadway Shows. Before the music began, I approached the conductor, and inquired if it would be possible to take a few shots during the concert. He advised me that it was no problem, so after about 20 minutes of enjoying the music, I decided to take a stroll around the perimeter, making sure to keep a reasonable distance away. My 75 ~ 300 mm lens was on the camera, and that ensured that I did not have to get very close. While walking around the back of the band, I had a very uneasy feeling that one of the band members was watching me. But I was behind everyone. Then all of a sudden, my eye caught this trombone player wearing his sun glasses on the back of his cleanly shaven head. It looked for all the world like a forehead to me, but it had no nose....I almost laughed out loud, so I grabbed 2 or 3 shots of him. It kind of catered to my twisted sense of humor, and hopefully it will give some of you a chuckle as well.

Works of Art...

2011-08-11T22:13:00.003-04:00

The old locomotive and the nearby structure of golden gears and wheels are both, in their own way, works of art. Neither of them does any disservice to the other. The golden years of rail travel and transport would have been impossible without gears and wheels. Nothing sounded so lonesome as the whistle of the old steam locomotives as they passed in the night. In my mind, each piece is wonderfully unique, and yet go together beautifully. They are however, almost hidden from view by the surrounding trees, and I almost didn't see them at all.

Frank

2011-08-11T20:19:00.003-04:00

This piece of sculpture situated underneath the Ambassador Bridge in Windsor, has always interested me. Today, I was shooting from another angle, and I decided that it needed something to show its scale. So, I used Frank as a measuring stick to compare the size of the sculpture to. He has always been an avid biker, and his photography has improved dramatically since he acquired his Fuji FinePix HS10 last year. It seems to be part of his attire now....I hope he doesn't mind being used in this kindly fashion eh?

Glass Waterfront Tower

2011-08-11T19:53:00.005-04:00

It isn't often that I do much in the way of architectural type photography. For the most part, I have been a people photographer, and now that time and circumstances have foisted retirement upon me, I find that I have been doing flowers and other types of subjects that I was only mildly interested in before. This morning, my friend Frank, and I went for a spin on the bikes along the Windsor waterfront, and this building seemed somewhat attractive to me, sitting above the rocks and nicely manicured gardens. It seems that I forgot to ask Frank what building it was, so I am unable at this point to be more specific.

P.S. I have just been informed by Frank that this "glass tower" is none other than the Art Gallery of Windsor! Thank you Frank.

Dad's Roses

2011-08-09T19:25:00.004-04:00

Yesterday, I ventured out on another quick photo excursion all the way to the back yard again. Our back yard is full of roses right now, and this particular shot was from the bush that I had planted in memory of my Dad. He has been on my mind a bit lately, and so I thought that I would do another shot or two to see what I could come up with. When I downloaded this file, I was happy with the results, but felt that something else could be done with it, to help transform it into something loosely resembling art. I played with it in Corel, using some filters that I did not know that I had in that program, and this was the final result. It needed to look old, but not as in "sepia" or the usual aging filters in the various available software. Hope you like it also.

Angel's Trumpet Flower

2011-07-20T23:18:00.008-04:00

This morning, before I had a chance to have my early morning beverage, my wife comes running in from outside, telling me to get my camera and take a couple of snaps of her newest plant. She had received the seeds last year from her cousin in Belleville, Ont., and apparently had to go through great lengths just to get them to germinate. They had to be frozen for several days, then put in warm water for 24 hours, after which she had to cut the ends off of the seeds. She was ready to throw them in the garbage after about 6 weeks in the soil, when finally they started to peek out and look like they would do something. They are known as Datura plants, and this variety was known as "Angel's Trumpet" or Datura Metel plant. Apparently, all parts of it are poisonous! That will likely mean that when the kids show up, we will have to make sure that they do not handle them, or pick them, and then put their fingers in their mouths or rub their eyes. The blossoms are about 6 inches long and 3 inches wide. They are purple on the outside, and white on the inside. One of the plants have about 25 to 30 blossoms that will likely open in the next day or so. That should be good for a few more pictures. However, the heat here in Windsor has been absolutely oppressive in the last couple of days, and tomorrow it is supposed to be +48C with the humidex factored in. That kind of heat will cause almost anything to wilt, so I expect that if I want to catch many more shots of these, it might be best to do it very early in the morning before the flowers and the old guy both wilt....

P.S. For further info on this plant, check out http://www.b-and-t-world-seeds.com/Datura.htm

Happy Canada Day!!!

2011-06-30T18:18:00.003-04:00

This flower pot with a Canadian Flag amongst the flowers is a little creation of my wife's. It sits on our front veranda, and sends a message of "Proud to be Canadian" and "Happy Canada Day" to all! We are so fortunate to live in this country, and while it is not perfect, it seems that the rest of the world is breaking down the "doors" to live here. Here's to this country, and its wonderful people....Cheers!!!

Just a Few More Days...

2011-06-28T22:13:00.004-04:00

In just a few more days, we will be celebrating Canada Day, and Dominion Day in Newfoundland. This posting tonight is my little tip of the hat to all of the Canadian Do It Yourselfers out there. The last 3 drawers for the bottom cupboards are in the photo on the left, and the drawer fronts are in the making, in the one on the right. This project has had more than its fair share of skinned knuckles, cut fingers, copious quantities of coffee and coke, and a few beers as well along the way. The end is near, and while it has had its trials and frustrations, I have enjoyed the journey. There were many lessons along the way, and may I say that much was learned. Now...to build and assemble the Lazy Susan doors.....

P.S. I bought fresh batteries today for my Maxxum 9 film camera at Henry's. Whooo hooo! Can't wait to shoot and shoot and drain them dry eh....I have a fridge full of black and white film that is still good.

Music and a Coffee to Start the Day....

2011-06-23T22:34:00.002-04:00

Today, just as I was about to make another attack on the kitchen cupboard doors, I decided that I'd take a shot of my "work in progress"... As usual, my old Panasonic portable radio sits amongst the mess on a bench near by and is tuned to CBC Classical Music Station. This same radio used to accompany me on literally hundreds of evenings in the darkroom while I printed for hours and hours into the wee hours of the morning. Now, it performs the same task for me, covered as it is in layers of sawdust and cobwebs. When I took these shots, I had a good chuckle at myself, as it made me remember the many times that I used to watch the pristine environment of the New Yankee Workshop and Norm Abram perform his many wonders. Well, my shop is anything but pristine while I am at work. But then, I'm no Norm Abram, and do not have any TV crew following my every move. Yup! Just three more drawers and fronts to go, and after I lay the new flooring down, my wife will have a new kitchen. It has been a real learning experience, and if I had known before I started what I know now.........

After the Rain.....

2011-06-21T22:48:00.004-04:00

This little image is the result of downloading some freeware photo editing software that I stumbled upon yesterday, while looking for something else. It had rained for a while yesterday, and afterward, I decided to photograph the roses growing by our backyard fence. While digital is wonderful, lately I have returned to shooting film a little. It is such a pleasure to use my film cameras again, where a 100mm lens is 100mm, and not 150mm. When I look at the detail and tones of a medium format black & white print, it makes me long to hold up a 16 x 20 black and white portrait in the darkroom again. You feel like you actually made something yourself, from start to finish. Then when you mount and frame it under glass, it gives a feeling of total satisfaction. Hopefully before too many more months pass, I will be able to process my black and white negatives again, and print them in a new darkroom..... From what I have been reading lately, there are quite a few photographers who are making a return to the darkroom again.....Anyway, hope you enjoy this little image.

Blue Hydrant.....

2011-06-12T20:18:00.003-04:00

The mixture of more pastel hues playing off of the more vibrant and contrasty green and white of this scene caught my eye. It was taken in between cars and people passing by on the street, yet it makes for a rather quiet little scene. Hope you enjoy it also.

Mystery Plant.....

2011-06-12T19:36:00.004-04:00

This plant caught my eye as it was back lit by the sun, which made it appear to jump out at you. Just what this plant is, is a mystery to me. I tried to do a little research on Google, but could not come up with anything. So, if anyone has the name for this plant, feel free to clue me in. I could have excluded the light pole behind it, but felt it would be a good item to give it scale and dimension. For those who would find it interesting, both this shot and the Passion Flower below, were shot with the same lens....my Minolta 75 ~ 300 mm AF zoom, on my Maxxum 7D camera, which is a nice range of photos from one lens. Hope you enjoy.

P.S. Mystery solved! My wife did some research today and came up with the name for this plant. It is a Colocasia Odora plant, aka. Upright Elephant Ears plant. It is a tropical plant that obviously does quite well in this area also.

Passion Flower.....

2011-06-12T19:02:00.004-04:00

After finishing the pantry yesterday, I figured it was time to play for a day. We took a jaunt down to Amherstburg again, and enjoyed the sights and sounds along the river at the Royal Naval Yard Park. There is a section of it there dedicated to Hosta plants, and I had no idea there were so many varieties of these plants. Just as we were leaving, my wife came across this lovely blossom. Neither of us knew just what it was, but I enjoyed taking a few shots of it. Since our neighbor Terri is an authority on all green things that grow, I decided to ask her over to see if she could identify it for us. She names plants like "that white thing that grows beside the garbage pail" etc.. so I figured that she knew about as much as we did. Sure enough, as soon as she saw it, she said it was a "Passion Flower". So I did a Google search, and sure enough, I came across this very blossom, and it said that it was a "Passion Flower to Kindle Sleep"..... O.K. then! Sounds great to me! That mystery was solved, and there is another very large broad leafed plant that I have no idea what it is, so I will rely on someone else, anyone else, to tell me what it is. I'll post it next. Hope you enjoy a little passion today.....

Rose in the Rain

2011-06-11T00:37:00.005-04:00

This rose was shot on Kodak 400 CN Black & White film. It also had been in my old camera about 4 years, and I was amazed at how much image I was able to record after all that time. The roll had only been about half used, and I decided to finish it off with a few rose shots from my back yard before taking it to be processed. While it is a black and white film, it can be processed in the regular C 41 chemicals used to process regular colour negatives. My old friend Dent Peever processed hundreds of rolls of this film for me at his shop in North Bay, when I used to shoot weddings and portraits. To me, this was the acid test for this film. That it could still record an image after sitting in a camera all of these years was amazing to me. I still have quite a few rolls of this film in a refrigerator, and will not hesitate to use it in the future. The rose was one that I planted beside my fence in the back yard in memory of my Mother. She used to have a front yard full of rose beds in Corner Brook. It fell to me to wrap them in burlap (old potato bags) every fall before the snow started to fly, for protection from the elements. It brings back many pleasant memories of my boyhood, and I hope you enjoy this little blossom as well.....

Grain and More Grain....

2011-06-09T23:04:00.006-04:00

Today, I decided that it was about time that I made some sort of effort to post something on this badly neglected blog of mine. I dug out my old Minolta XE7 film camera, and loaded a roll of Portra 400NC that had been sitting in the old camera bag for about 4 or 5 years. I thought that it should be very interesting to see if any sort of image at all would record on this emulsion after not being refrigerated for so long. So, I loaded up, and put on my old macro lens, and set about shooting the 36 frames, all the while thinking to myself that I had probably gone over the edge this time. But, in this digital age, who knows for sure eh? Tonight I took the roll up to Wallmart and the young fellow gave me some funny looks when I told him that the film was about 5 years old, and not to expect a whole lot. If any kind of image recorded at all, that would be a bonus for sure. Well, I did get some very faint images, and were they GRAINY or what! So when I loaded the CD into the computer and went through the photos, if they could be called that, I decided on this one to work on a little. What to do with grain, lots of grain....I figured that there was no way to make a sharp image out of this mess, so I decided to texture the living Hell out of it. This is what I finally ended up with. Go ahead and laugh if you must, but I had more fun today than I have had for a long time, and it took some verrrrry old 400 ISO film, and the digital era to combine to make it fun. Hope you enjoy it a little also.......

Happy Easter.....

2011-04-22T16:29:00.004-04:00

It is such a dreary day today, so I just got to playing around with a couple of photos that I did recently. The hockey game was on when I made this photo, and even though the Stanley Cup playoffs are on, I get bored easily anymore. My mind seems to drift off to more pleasant things than a pack of multimillionaires blasting a puck around a rink, and pounding the living Hell out of each other. I have enjoyed hockey games pretty much all of my life, but I find that the game is so very structured now, and the plays are all so predictable, that you ask yourself, why am I still watching this. I guess I must be getting old and cranky eh? Anyway, while watching the game out of one eye, the other eye was looking through the viewfinder of my camera. It was taken under the lamp beside my Lazyboy, and I was using +7 diopters of closeup filters on the front of my 75 ~ 300 mm lens. Could this be considered multitasking? Maybe that would be pushing the definition a bit. Anyway, this will have to do for my little Easter offering to you. Happy Easter everyone!

Spring Has Sprung...

2011-04-13T18:09:00.002-04:00

This past weekend, the temperature here in Windsor soared up to +27C, and I could not help but feel elated. It meant that the worst of winter was behind us, and we could finally get out and move around without being all bundled up in heavy clothing. April month, also means another Wedding Anniversary was to be celebrated, and a few days after that, the birthday of our little granddaughter. The blossoms in this photo was from a little bouquet that I bought for my wife, and they are still going strong more than a week after the event. For the most part, I like to photograph flowers with my 100mm soft focus portrait lens. This lens, on my Maxxum 7D becomes a 150mm lens, and I added a couple of diopters with a close up filter to be able to work in close to the individual blossoms, while at the same time, include a bit of the surrounding flowers nicely out of focus. I was tempted to go out and buy an auto focus Macro lens, but I'm not sure I would like the results from it any better than I do with this set up that I use here. I have converted an unused upstairs bedroom into a studio of sorts, where I have the advantage of being able to use the lovely natural light you get from a North window. This photo was taken with the softness ring set to +1, and there was very little photo editing done in terms of exposure adjustments etc.. So, here's to Springtime, warmer weather and flowers! Hope you like it also.....

House Explosion on Esdras Place!

2011-03-25T19:05:00.004-04:00

Today's posting is a very tragic one indeed. There is a real pall over the neighborhood since yesterday. The next street over from where I live was the unfortunate scene of a house explosion. An elderly gentleman who seemed to be home alone perished as the house was very rapidly engulfed in flames, preventing him from making it out. A next door neighbor tried to haul him out of a basement window, but was unable to do so, and was overwhelmed by heavy black smoke and flames. The Windsor Fire Dept was on the scene in about 5 minutes, but the house was pretty much gone by that time. The neighbor who tried to pull him from the basement was standing across the road, crying his heart out. It was indeed a heart wrenching sight to behold. There was construction in progress on Esdras Place at the time, and of course it will take several days before the various investigations are completed. Even though we did not know this gentleman since we are relatively newcomers to the area, our sincere condolences go to his family, friends and neighbors. Our thoughts are with you........

The Green Door...

2011-03-16T23:20:00.004-04:00

Remember the old hit song "Green Door"? That was quite a while ago, and when I came across this door on a music shop in Amherstburg this past weekend, that song immediately came to mind. Since it is green, I decided to use it for my St. Patrick's Day posting. The heavy steel hinge and the black wrought iron handle along with the protruding nail heads gives it a very old medieval look. The red colour of the spindles in the little window would symbolize the obvious result of the "troubles" in Ireland. A lot of blood was shed on all sides. The late, great, Dermot O'Riley of the Celtic Folk group "Ryan's Fancy" told me one time as we enjoyed a beer at Fiddler's Green Pub in North Bay, that he enjoyed living in Newfoundland so very much. He said that it was "Ireland without the bombs". Happy St. Patrick's Day everyone!!

Patio Umbrellas

2011-03-14T00:51:00.005-04:00

Folded for the winter months, these patio umbrellas at a restaurant beside the Naval Yard Park caught my eye just as I was leaving to return home today. To me, they look like people wearing capes, leaning forward, on their way to somewhere or something.... but I get a little weird sometimes eh. If you were to dwell on it long enough, you could conjure up all kinds of nonsense I guess....a little rum would help also! LOL! Soon they will be shading patio tables and fluttering in the warm Spring breezes off of the river hopefully.......

Red Cap......

2011-03-14T00:28:00.002-04:00

The ice on the river is flowing along as the Detroit River empties out into Lake Erie. While I was composing this shot today, a fellow wearing a red cap walked into the picture and stopped at the undulating black iron railing. If you look really closely, you will find him in the upper left quadrant just about where the lines of thirds intersect. His cap provided a little splash of colour on an overcast and drab looking day. I couldn't help but chuckle a little at this. Hope you like it also.

Spring Ahead...

2011-03-14T00:01:00.002-04:00

Ooops! Someone didn't change the clock an hour forward last night, or today either. The old town clock in Amherstburg beside the Naval Yard Park has not been tended to, but it is not surprising, as the whole town seemed deserted today. If you were to load up one of the nearby cannons and fire it down the street, you wouldn't have hit a soul. Quiet little county towns like Amherstburg are so enjoyable on a Sunday afternoon, and was the perfect remedy for cabin fever. We have had a fair bit of snow for this area this winter, but it is almost all gone now.

On Thin Ice Maybe.....?

2011-02-11T23:48:00.008-05:00

After coffee this morning, Frank and I took a drive down to the Riverside Marina to check out what was going on down there. Well there were ice fishermen doing their thing, and I could not believe what I was seeing. As I watched one fellow making a hole with the auger, I counted the number of rotations that it would take to break through the ice. It took 12 rotations, and he pulled it up with a gush of water swirling about his feet. So I figured that there was about 3 inches of ice at the most. But maybe I am wrong about that. At any rate, just to show that there was indeed not much ice, only a few feet away was the open waters of the Detroit River as it emptied out of Lake St. Clair. The swans and Canada Geese and a few Mallards were swimming about as usual. I remember venturing out on Lake Nipissing in North Bay, when there was about 2 feet of ice, and wondering if it was safe enough that I would not have to worry about it. It kind of made me chuckle a little bit, because these guys were probably wondering who the idiot was with the camera, that he would want to take pictures on such a cold day, and I was wondering the same thing about their activities. You really have to love what you are doing to venture out onto ice this thin. However, in one way or another, we all live a little on the edge. To each his own I guess......

A Flash of Brilliance..

2011-01-28T20:23:00.003-05:00

This colourful fellow was indeed a flash of brillance against a very dull background, as he darts about. These birds do not sit still very long at all, and you have to be very quick on the shutter. This one is for Frank, who took me on a little tramp around the trails at Ojibway Conservation area today.

In Winter's Grip...

2011-01-28T19:34:00.003-05:00

This is another little scene from our excursion into the Ojibway Conservation area here in Windsor today. While looking through the viewfinder, I decided that I liked the muted tones very much. It makes for a nice, quiet little scene, and you can hear the woodpecker somewhere off in the distance.....

Little Splash of Colour......

2011-01-28T17:39:00.003-05:00

A couple of days ago, Mike posted a lovely photo of a flower box in a window, surrounded by snow. It was beautiful. So Mike, this one is for you. My friend Frank, and I went for a tramp in the woods today at the Ojibway Conservation area here in Windsor. It was very overcast and snowing a little, and I did not think that I would find anything too interesting. However, as we walked amongst the tall trees, this little splash of colour caught my eye, and I went over and took a quick shot with my 75 ~ 300 mm zoom lens. Each little flower is about the size of a pencil eraser. When everything is drab and cold, little scenes that add warmth such as this can only be captured in winter. So I hope you enjoy it also.....

Ornament in the Park......

2011-01-23T23:45:00.008-05:00

This photo was taken many years ago in the park beside Ontario Northland on Lakeshore Drive in North Bay, Ontario. While watching a program on T.V. a couple of nights ago on the news, there was a story about an aeronautical engineer who was being given an award for service to the industry, and the country. He was elderly, and happened to have been the chief engineer on the Avro Arrow project. Remember the Arrow? I get quite furious just thinking about the loss of Canadian jobs and pride the day they took the cutting torches to those aircraft that had been built. It made me think back to the day that I stood in the park and took this photo. As I glanced around, I realized that I was the only person there with a camera. The press should be showing up any minute now, right? But they never did, at least not that I could remember. So here these guys were, hanging on to a line, helping to guide the BOMARC ICBM (Intercontinental Ballistic Missile) down onto its mounting bolts. When this thing was operational in its silo on Hwy. 11N, I used to live literally a stones throw away from the silo. I used to joke that we were totally at ground zero should some idiot press THE BUTTON! At the very least, there must have been arial photos somewhere in the files of the KGB of the silo, that also possibly included our home. However, I was more worried about the black flies and mosquitoes. Anyway, it struck me as kind of odd, that we had spent all of that money, because old Dief was persuaded by the U.S. President, that there would be no further need for fighter aircraft in the future, and that we were wasting our money to complete the Arrow. And here I was, standing there, snapping photos of them erecting the same BOMARC ICBM as an ornament to adorn the park on Lakeshore Drive. The Arrow was soooooo politically incorrect eh! And recently in the news, what did our PM just commit billions of our tax payers dollars to? Fighter Aircraft....built in the USA of course....

P.S. There was an Arrow prototype that could fly up to the edge of the earths atmosphere and open a cargo bay, and launch a satellite into space....no need for launch pads, or sunny weather. This was a Canadian idea and possibility back in the 50's folks....think about it!

My Old Workhorse.....

2011-01-21T12:51:00.010-05:00

Last week, I dug out my old film camera, to check it out, and see if it was still working, or if I should take a sledge hammer to it. It is working just fine, and it felt so good in my hands again that I had to take this picture of it. The ergonomics of this camera are just fantastic, and it is so tough, that my old friend Dent Peever, (may he rest in peace) used to say that you could drive tent pegs with the thing. He wasn't too far off the mark, as one time while shooting a bride and groom in the lobby of the Pinewood Park Hotel in North Bay, it fell unto the floor from a chair that I had placed it on. There was a loud gasp from the onlookers, and I picked it up, checked it over, and continued the shoot with that camera. The loud bang that was heard when it made contact with the stone floor of the lobby had everyone expecting the worst. But it kept on clicking, and the only marks on the thing are from the wear left by my hands over the years. It makes me wonder if anyone is making a digital camera these days, that would take that kind of punishment. Anyway, all of the other shooters in the area were die hard Canon or Nikon users. However, I was much too stubborn for that. Besides, if Minolta cameras were good enough for the likes of Jack Shepherd, and Freeman Patterson, I wasn't going to feel shy about showing up with 2 or 3 of them hanging off of my neck. So, I guess I am paying homage to an old friend, and a real workhorse of a camera. It is retired now, but maybe not for long. They still make Black & White film, and I could build another darkroom eh?.....

Three Little Ones

2011-01-21T12:23:00.002-05:00

Here is another variation or effect of the same little cluster of flowers below. Usually I like very realistic renditions of flowers and people, but today I am in a different mood, and thought something a little different might be nice. Hope you like it also....

Tiny Pink Blossoms

2011-01-21T11:39:00.005-05:00

Today is bright and sunny here in Windsor, and I decided to take a break from building the kitchen.....still. It is starting to look like a kitchen now, with the new counter top, sink, and cupboards all up with the trim on them. Next comes building the doors and drawers... the fun stuff! Sitting in the front window is a plant that the grandchildren gave to my wife about a year ago. The blossoms are about 1/4 to 3/8ths of an inch wide, and are a very lovely pink colour. About this time of the year, I start to get a little antsy to see something besides white everywhere. Hence the flowers today. I used my Minolta 75 ~ 300 mm AF zoom lens for this shot, with 3 magnifying filters attached, for a total of 7 diopters. I have a macro lens, but it is for my old manual film cameras, and would need an adapter to work on the digital. Nothing is cheap or available for long these days, as more and more new technology hits the market. So one uses what one has, and is content with the results, whatever it happens to be. This is my offering on this cold January day. Hope it helps warm your spirits also.

When We Were Young....

2011-01-11T14:58:00.003-05:00

They are both adults now, with children of their own. This photo was taken about 33 years ago, and is another scan from an old slide. It was taken at Sandy Lake, NFLD. and again, it's nice to remember "the good old days." It was probably taken with my old Minolta SRT101, and a 50mm f1.4 lens on it. It was the only lens I had for years, and it makes me believe we have much too much extra gear these days. Hope you enjoy this little portrait as well....

Winters Past...

2011-01-11T12:07:00.003-05:00

A couple of days ago, I came across a few boxes of old slides that had been stashed away out in the garage. Since I was making a lot of sawdust from power tools out there, I rescued them before they were totally ruined. Anyway, this slide caught my eye, and it was shot somewhere in the North about 37 years ago. It brought back many pleasant memories. Since I haven't done any shooting recently, I thought I would scan this one, and post it here. After scanning 3 or 4 of these old slides from many years ago, I had to ask myself if it was really worthwhile to invest in newer digital cameras, or go back to shooting film....while it is still available from Fuji. I am kind of doubting that the files from modern digital cameras will be as archival as film. Also, the scans revealed a totally smooth tonal transition of skin tones especially, that I haven't been able to find the past several years, while shooting digitally. Maybe it is time to dust off the old cameras, and put them to use again....now that I have my cupboards finally built. The kitchen is not finished yet, but the end is in sight, hopefully before the nice warm weather reappears.

Merry Christmas Everyone!

2010-12-23T22:51:00.005-05:00

This little image was done in a bit of a hurry tonight, as I have been very busy working on my kitchen project the last few weeks. It has progressed to the point where things are finally starting to show now. I had promised my wife that she would at least have counter tops to work on this Christmas, and I delivered on that today. So I am taking a break for a few days now to sit back and enjoy the Holidays a bit. Our neighbor, Terri, made this little arrangement and delivered it to our door about a week ago, and tonight, I thought that I would grab a quick shot of it with my accordion in the background. For us, Christmas is all about family, friends, music and good food. I tell everyone to not buy me anything, as I feel that should be just for the kids. But they never pay much heed to my mumblings...! My accordions have been recently tuned by Mr. Leo Niemi of Sudbury, Ontario. He is about 80 now, and a nicer, more humble gentleman you may never meet. He is truly a master at his craft, and is touted by Hohner in Germany as being one of the top accordion tuning technicians in the world. He tuned my older accordion reeds, and I just last week received them, and installed them. It sounds like a totally different instrument now, with a very warm sound. I love it Leo!! It will get a good workout during the Christmas and New Year season this year. For those who might be interested in how the photo was made, I used my 35 ~ 105 mm zoom lens on my Maxxum 7D, and then used the flash in the off camera wireless mode, aimed to bounce off of the ceiling. Then I covered the on camera pop up flash with a kleenex to soften it down a little so as to not cast a harsh shadow behind on the living room wall. It was shot at f4.5 for 1/8 second hand held. Next, I downloaded the image, did a little editing in Corel Paint Shop Pro Photo x2, and uploaded it to this blog. I hope some of you will enjoy it, and I really hope that everyone has a Very Merry Christmas, and a Happy New Year. Catch ya....

A Budding Cartoonist?

2010-11-23T20:49:00.004-05:00

A severe bout of insomnia last night got me to playing Mahjongg long after most normal people go to sleep. Upon winning a game, after about 7 losses, I chose to open one of the "Jewels of Wisdom", and it said that "gentle people demand much of themselves, but the pretty (vain) demand much of others". How true is that? Tonight I was going to post a very ugly picture of my kitchen with the walls smashed out, which I took during the current renovation. But I happened upon this little piece of artwork that was done this past summer by my eldest granddaughter. She had somehow managed to get my youngest granddaughter to sit still long enough to do this little caricature sketch of her. I have always admired artists, and I especially admire those who can draw a sketch of another person, and while it is obviously a cartoon type of drawing, there is enough subtle detail, and hints of the real subject as to make it obvious who the person actually is. That takes a lot of talent and skill. It amazes me that such talent is present in her at such a young age. When I asked her what she would probably do when she grew up, she said that she wasn't sure yet, but she would like to become an animator or cartoonist. It would not surprise me if one day, her artwork was in daily newspapers. She is a gentle little soul, who obviously demands excellence of herself, and already is able to offer something beautiful to others. She was eleven when she drew this with coloured pencils, and the subject was a very busy three year old.
Go for it kiddo!

The Session...

2010-10-31T22:54:00.004-04:00

We returned from a trip North to visit family tonight, and did encounter the white stuff that happens every year around this time up there. It was good to see this part of the country again, but I was not expecting a partridge to fly out of the bush just South of Latchford, and totally take out a headlight in the car. But I had to chuckle to my self that it could have been a moose! Anyway, it was good to see the old folks again. In this photo, again taken by my wife, is her Dad on the fiddle. He is 96 now, and still can tune the instrument to perfection. I was really amazed as he really leaned into this Tommy Makem song that we were playing, "I got some rosin for me bow". We have played together many times over the last 45 years, and he still blows me away even yet. He just loves the old Irish and Scottish fiddle tunes, as well as the Old Time Canadian Fiddle Tunes, played by the likes of Don Messer, King Ganam, Ned Landry and Ward Allen. He has forgotten more music than most of us will ever learn or remember. It was just a whole bunch of fun to get in a few more tunes with him again. It makes a 10 hour trip more than worthwhile. Until next time Dad....

Music & Friends

2010-10-11T17:30:00.006-04:00

There is a folk song from back on the Rock entitled "Music & Friends", and it contains a lot of wisdom and meaning for living a good life. As it is Thanksgiving Weekend, I had the happy occasion to spend it with my family, both here and away, and also a few of my friends. This afternoon, my neighbor Henry, and I spent an hour enjoying the warm temperatures on a bench in the shade, playing a few tunes, and sharing a few laughs. There are a few friends that I left behind in the North, and a few that are new since moving here to Windsor, Ontario, a couple of years ago. They are all a gift to me that I will always treasure. So to everyone who reads this, I hope you all enjoy the good fortune and warmth of family, friends, and good health this Thanksgiving. All three are priceless......

P.S. This photo was actually taken by my wife, Sharon. I told her she was going to do a portrait.....and she did! Thanks love!

Hidden Proof!

2010-09-28T12:51:00.004-04:00

This "shot" is for Mike. He questioned whether or not the bottle that I found tucked away, was actually empty when I found it. Well, here is the 100% Proof, (puns intended) that it was indeed empty. But it sure does explain the terrible wiring conditions that I uncovered! That's my story, and I'm sticking to it......

Hidden.....

2010-09-26T12:37:00.004-04:00

It has been so long since my last posting, I was worried that I would forget how to sign in. The reason being is that I am in the middle of renovating the kitchen, and have stripped it down to the bare studs, and have dropped the ceiling to expose the wiring also. In the process of dropping the ceiling, a VERY dirty one at that, I found this empty bottle of gin tucked away amongst the insulation up there. It has been there since 1953, and the thing that really made me laugh, was that about 10 minutes later, I found a booklet from Alcoholics Anonymous, also tucked away up there. The price of this bottle of gin back then was on a label on the back which said LCBO $3.75! It gave me a good laugh, when I was covered in dirt that had fallen on me. The house is made of plaster board, and I am so glad that little chore is finally done. Other little treasures that I found were a pair of pliers and an old tire iron, similar to the one I used to use as a boy, changing tires by hand in an old BP garage out in Newfoundland. You never know when you will be reminded of the past. I'm still hoping to discover a box with a large amount of money up there! Yeah right! Now, it's back to work......

Hibiscus Blossom

2010-08-24T20:48:00.003-04:00

Tonight, I got to playing around with this image of a hibiscus blossom that I found at Coventry Gardens a few days ago. It was quite high up above me, and there was no way that I was going to get a macro shot. It was blowing around in the wind also, but I put the 75 ~ 300 AF Zoom lens on the camera, switched on the antishake lever, and took a chance at getting something sort of worthwhile. This image is quite a crop from the original, and as such, I am fairly pleased with the results. Hope you find it pleasing also.

Little White Flowers

2010-08-22T22:40:00.002-04:00

These little white flowers were found in a shady spot in Coventry Gardens on the Detroit River here in Windsor. They couldn't help grabbing your attention, as they were in sharp contrast to their surroundings. Again, not too spectacular but I found them to be enjoyable nonetheless. Hope you enjoy them also.

Backlit Plants - Coventry Gardens

2010-08-19T00:14:00.003-04:00

Instead of playing Majong tonight, I decided to post a shot that I took yesterday of some backlit plants that were not too far from the couple in the posting below. It is nothing too spectacular or anything, I just liked the lighting. The large broad leaves of this plant remind me of some of the plants to be found on the seabeds of the oceans of the world. They wave to and fro with the currents, searching for food and light. It seems to me that these plants are not too different from us in a lot of ways.....

Remember When We...

2010-08-17T23:09:00.006-04:00

Today we had family visitors from Belleville and Toronto, and I got to play chauffeur, and give a brief tour of Windsor. As the ladies strolled about looking at the flowers at Coventry Gardens on the Riverfront, I got to wander off a little. This couple sitting on a picnic table in the shade of a tree caught my eye, and I could not resist making an image or two of them. Sometimes colour gets in the way, and when I got to looking at it, I decided to play with it a little, and applied a little sepia, and selective soft focus. Their body language says something nice about them, and I guess that is what caught my attention in the first place. Hope you like it also...

Back Yard Roses

2010-08-08T11:02:00.003-04:00

It has been a very hot and humid summer here in Windsor, Ontario. My photography has sort of been relegated to the back burner, while I try to build a kitchen pantry and cupboards, and travel to various places for Dr.'s appointments and Birthday parties. The Orthopedic Dr. told me last week that my wrist has healed really well, and that I am good to go. But the mobility and flexibility is not what it used to be, nor will it ever be again. At any rate, this morning I decided to use this photo of roses from my back yard as my desktop background, and after seeing it that large, thought that it might make for a nice posting on this blog....more or less, just to let folks know that I am still alive and kicking. It has been a while my last posting....sounds like a confession eh? Anyway, hope you like it, and until next time, enjoy the summer. Pretty soon we will all be posting autumn colours........

Windsor's Roses of Sharon

2010-07-14T18:04:00.002-04:00

Yesterday, I went with my friend Frank, down to the Detroit River to see the tall ships go by. However, it was a very overcast and hazy day, and to make matters worse, when the ships did show up, they were about 20 to 30 minutes apart, and none of them were under sail. They came up the river using their motors, and since the shipping channel is over on the Detroit side, a long lens was needed. But upon returning home, I felt that this was just one of those days that things were not going as they had been expected to. So, I took the camera, and went to my back yard to photograph the Rose of Sharon bushes growing across the back fence. These roses grow everywhere here in Windsor, and they are very beautiful. This shot is taken from one end, lengthwise down to the back corner of our yard. This makes it look almost like one big bush of roses. At least I did not feel that the day was a total write off, and had something worthwhile to download. The effect applied here is called the Orton Effect, and is easily arrived at in Photoshop. It is my first attempt at using this effect, and I am not sure yet if I like it or not. Maybe I need to play around with it a little more, when I have the time......

Baby Blue Jays....

2010-07-04T22:32:00.002-04:00

For the past several days, I have been rather busy converting my garage into a wood working shop. The kitchen project is about to begin in earnest, as I will be building my own cabinetry and drawers, etc. myself, from scratch. Yes, I am one of those DIY guys, and usually get a great amount of satisfaction after the job is finished. That's the pay off. Anyway, this morning while still in a stupor, I heard my wife talking to someone out in the kitchen. I did not hear anyone arrive, so got up to see what was going on. There, perched upon the BBQ outside the window, was a little baby Blue Jay. It seemed that this was the first day out of the nest for him, so I ran and grabbed the camera, put on the 75 ~ 300 mm zoom lens, and came out. It was still there, so I went to the back door, and opened it enough to stick the lens through, and started to shoot. It had not learned to fear anything yet, and every time the shutter fired, it would turn its head and appeared almost to be posing for me. Then I discovered its sibling over on my canoe, and walked over and started to shoot several frames of it also. They spent the whole day in our back yard, and I was able to get a shot of one of them as it struggled to get through a hole in the fence lattice. It was a fun way to start the day, and I hope they stay around for a while.

Pink & Yellow Rose.....

2010-06-13T11:40:00.003-04:00

Way back when I was just a little guy, every autumn, my mother used to have me wrap all of her rose bushes with burlap, or "brin bags" as we called them. This morning while passing a little time playing around with this image, I happened to recall those events from my childhood years. This rose is from my own back yard now, and it is from a bush that was planted for my father. Hope you enjoy it also.

Thorn Between Two Roses....LOL!

2010-06-05T22:26:00.003-04:00

Did I mention that we had a real good time this evening at the Red Bull Open House? The people were so friendly and everyone seemed to be having such a good time. Wow, I couldn't believe it when all of a sudden these two young ladies wanted to have a picture taken with me! When I showed this photo to my wife upon arriving back home, she laughed a little, and then a lot.......Huummm, she didn't have to laugh THAT much did she.......?

The Behind the Scenes Man.......

2010-06-05T21:26:00.002-04:00

It doesn't matter which event you may be attending, there are always those great folks who work behind the scenes, or off to one side, making sure that things are going properly. When we entered the Red Bull Open House grounds at the Windsor Airport this evening, I noticed this fellow standing off to one side of the canvas aircraft hangers. He was just standing there with hands folded in front of him, like I had seen a million times when I used to photograph weddings and family portraits. Afterward, as we were heading out, he was still standing there. So I went over to him, and asked him if I could take a photo. He looked somewhat surprised and said that I could. He said something to the effect that it was making him feel special. I told him that he was one of those unsung folks that kept things running smoothly, but never got many thanks for the effort. Then I told him that I would like to put the photo on my blog, and I am not sure if he will remember the name or not, but if he does, and sees himself here, he should know that whatever he does is worthwhile. Good luck fella, and thanks for putting up with me and my camera for a few moments......

The Red Bull Pilot.

2010-06-05T20:53:00.004-04:00

This evening, Frank and I went to the Red Bull Open House at the Windsor Airport. Wow! We were able to get up close to the aircraft as well as the pilots. A year ago, I posted a photo of the Caesar's Casino aircraft screaming straight up the GM Headquarters tower in Detroit, and this year, the Red Bull aircraft is cavorting amongst the office towers of Detroit, as the posting below shows. Well, tonight, I was able to capture a very candid portrait of the pilot of the Red Bull aircraft. I did not learn his name as there were too many folks crowded around. This photo was taken as he was posing with a group of about 7 people, and I was able to zoom in with the 75 ~ 300 mm lens and grab a shot as I passed by. These fellows are amazing at what they do, and again I thought afterward, that if you were to meet him on a downtown street, you would never guess his occupation. Just goes to show that you never know who you are standing next to in a crowd.

Just Outside My Window is.......

2010-06-04T17:18:00.004-04:00

The Red Bull Boys are back in Windsor this weekend, and my friend Frank and I went down to the river and sat on the rocks for about an hour this morning. The pilots clipped a few pylons during their practice runs, and kept the fellows in the boats busy setting them up again. Apparently the seats in front of Caesar's are designated as the main area, and go for a cool $1200.00 each, so I was told. Guess I will have to tough it out on the rocks instead. But I was not unhappy with my viewpoint and if you stay sharp and have a little luck, you will be able to grab a worthwhile shot or two. Can you imagine looking out of the office window and seeing this pilot go screaming by? Sort of hard on the nerves at the end of the week. TGIF eh!

A Rosebud Cracked Open......

2010-05-27T21:52:00.004-04:00

In our garden this morning, my wife and I were checking out the progress of the rose bushes, and she found a bud that was gnarled and twisted, and would never bloom. It looked like something had bored through and destroyed it, so I figured that maybe I could open it up and uncover the culprit. But nothing was to be found inside that had caused the problem, but I looked at the mess that I had made and it somehow appealed to me. The red, yellow and green colours were kind of nice I thought, but the lighting through the translucent canopy over the pergola did not do it justice at all. So I went inside and retrieved a cereal bowl and placed it upside down to shelter it until the evening light came through the side of the deck. My wife gave me a crooked little grin but said nothing. So this shot was taken about 8 hours after I had mangled it, when the sun was where it should be, and a white object placed to the left of the petals provided a little fill, and reduced the contrast. By now, you are probably thinking that this guy is just a bit off the wall, but it is little events like this that I like to record with my camera that makes a line from a Leonard Cohen song make sense. It said that everything has a crack in it, and that's how the light gets in. Sometimes the cracks occur naturally, and sometimes we make them ourselves I guess. It's all about the light.....

Broken & Beautiful......

2010-05-05T17:18:00.003-04:00

A few days ago, while walking along the Ganatchio Trail here in Windsor, this splash of colour in the bushes caught my eye. What type of tree this is I am not sure, but this branch was obviously broken and splintered. However, in spite of it all it is still blooming and beautiful. Come to think of it, I know some individuals like that........

Meet Zeus....

2010-04-23T18:14:00.005-04:00

Lately, I haven't posted very much and a couple of days ago, while trying to get a shot of a cardinal in the tree in our back yard, Zeus wandered by, and I grabbed a quick shot of him. Often when we walk him, we hear comments such as, "is that a wolf?" or "he must have wolf in him." We don't know for sure, but he hails from Geralton, Ontario, which is out all by itself in Northwestern Ontario, so it is highly possible that there might be a touch of wolf in him. I have seen online photos of wolves taken in this region of the country, and the dusting of gray on his legs, which are very long, and his underbelly, are very similar. Zeus's ears are a little longer, as well as his muzzle, but it is easy to see how he could be mistaken for a wolf. However, he is a very gentle animal, and much loved by his owner. After some desaturation and adding some texture, and framing, I arrived at the effect that I liked most. Hope you do also.

Abstract Carnations

2010-04-16T16:55:00.002-04:00

This is an existing light shot of a vase of carnations sitting on the coffee table. The only light is from my trilight lamp stand next to my Lazyboy chair which I was stretched out in at the time. It was the last hockey game of the regular season before the playoffs, and I was getting bored.....yet again. My 75 ~ 300 mm zoom was on the camera, so I decided to see what would be the outcome of a long hand held exposure at f5.6 for 8 seconds. After a couple of filters in Photoshop and Corel, this is the result. Hope you enjoy it also.

Spring Has Sprung....

2010-04-12T20:26:00.003-04:00

There is a line in a song written by the late Canadian singer, song writer Stan Rogers, about new life pushin' through in the Spring of the year. As I was photographing this little hyacinth plant in a back corner of our yard today, this song came to mind. My first impulse was to just post a straight up photo of this plant, but as I started editing, I decided to try to depict that bursting forth of new life. While doing this, I remembered years ago doing something very similar in the darkroom to obtain a zoom effect. It entailed cranking the enlarger head upward while making the exposure on paper, all the while holding a mask to dodge a butterfly that my daughter was holding on her finger. You needed three hands to do that, but somehow I was able to manage the desired result. Things are so different now, and sometimes I still miss the smell of chemicals on my hands as I would roll into bed at around 03:00 am. totally exhausted......

Camera: Maxxum 7D
Lens: Minolta AF 75 ~ 300 zoom, with # 2 close up filter attached.
Editing Software: PhotoImpact 12, and Corel Paint Shop Pro Photo X2

Jr. Auto Tech....

2010-04-05T19:03:00.002-04:00

This little guy wants to show Grandpa that he can fix his little electric Jeep, so he lifts the hood to show that all you have to do is push a reset button, and he's good to go again. After taking this shot, I could not help but realize that in all likelihood, by the time he reaches 16 in about 12 years time, most of the cars coming off of the assembly lines at the auto plants will likely be electrically powered. It may very well be that he will never know what it is to pump gasoline into a tank in the automobile he will drive, or check the engine oil and coolant levels. He will never know a world without computers and electronic gadgetry and digital everything. Most of this used to be the stuff of sci-fi TV programs, and it is now close to being reality. Here comes the future......today.

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

2010-03-17T12:48:00.004-04:00

This was shot about 4 years ago, and I have gotten a lot of mileage out of this little set of photos. The violin was from a swap that I made for my old lawn mower, and I gave it to my father-in-law who is quite a fiddler even still at 95 years of age. When he got around to buying himself a much nicer violin, he gave it back to me, and since I do not play this instrument, I got the idea that I could use it as a prop for a "White Violin" series of photos, that would continue on over time. The day that I hung it out on the clothesline, and spray painted it white, my neighbor was sure that I had gone over the edge, and acted a little strange toward me for a while....until he saw some of the black & white photos with this as a prop. At any rate, I have enjoyed using this over the years, and it came in handy this year, especially since I have not used the camera much lately. So this is just to wish one and all a very Happy St. Patrick's Day.......

Itching for Spring....

2010-03-08T19:18:00.006-05:00

Today I decided to use a flower from a bouquet that I shot about a year ago. The reason that I have not posted much lately is because I had to have surgery on a very badly fractured wrist, sustained while "teaching" my little grandson how to ice skate..... There are events that occur in life that speaks, nay, YELLS at you, that those activities are a thing of the past. But I really did enjoy our Tuesday mornings at the arena, and the little lad did also. But, so it goes. There has been little effort on my part since, to get out the camera. I would hate to break it while fumbling trying to focus or whatever. So it looks like I shall be more familiar with the tripod again before too long. Maybe that will be a good thing in the overall scheme of things. Anyway, here is my post for today, and I am just itching for Spring again, but we won't talk about the itching going on under this cast to my forearm.........

Windsor Has Snow!

2010-02-22T21:08:00.004-05:00

This morning, the residents of Windsor awoke to a pretty decent snowfall for a change. I couldn't help but smile a little as I looked out the front window while enjoying my hot cup of tea. Afterward, I got into my parka and boots, and went to the garage to pull out the snowblower for the first time this year. It had a flat tire, and that meant, getting out the air compressor as well, to inflate it. After taking a little sandpaper to the spark plug, and adding a little fresh gas, that old blower fired right up on the second pull of the chord. So, it was today, and it was a fun change from the usual routine, in my opinion. There are probably lots who would disagree in this city, as snow is something that just should not happen here. Anyway, the white stuff was very wet and heavy as wet cement almost, according to my friend Frank, who sent along this picture for me to check out. The snow has rolled over off of the rail, and is hanging there like it is made of foam insulation, or something. Thanks for permission to use this photo Frank, as I did not take any pictures at all today. I was too exhausted after blowing out two other driveways besides my own. Guess I'm getting soft in my old retirement years eh?......Ooops! The snow plough just went by and filled in the end of my driveway. Guess my work isn't quite done just yet..........

Small Sliver of Blue.....

2010-02-19T00:10:00.007-05:00

While I was waiting in the parking lot of this Medical Building today, I happened to look up, and noticed the geometric shapes against the blue sky. It wasn't until I was doing the editing that I noticed the small triangular sliver of blue almost hidden from view beneath the green roof. It sort of brings the blue of the sky down amongst the tan colour of the building. The old master photographers used to say that if you don't know what it is about a picture that made you take it in the first place, leave it for a day or two, and then bring it out and look at it again. That little triangular sliver of blue sort of does that for me. Hope you like it also.....

Petals, Close & Soft

2010-02-14T19:31:00.003-05:00

This is a close up of the petals of a bouquet on the table at a family Valentine's Day party today. Our grandchildren are still small, and excited about any occasion that brings the family together for food and laughter. It is a rather simple shot taken with a #4 close up filter attached to my 35 ~ 105 zoom lens, and the flash bounced off of the ceiling. While it is nothing too special, I just like the vibrant colours and softness of it. Here's to all the "loves" in our lives on Valentine's Day!

Snowdrift

2010-01-27T23:04:00.004-05:00

Just exactly where this old, abandoned to the elements workshop is, I am not very sure. It could possibly be somewhere behind Cobalt, Ontario. The patterns in the snowdrift, and the boarded windows seemed to tell a story that this old place had seen some hard times. For some reason, I seem to have gotten sidetracked with scanning old Kodachrome slides that I shot many years ago. There isn't much snow on the ground here in Windsor this year, and unless we get a good dump in February, I probably will not get to play with my snow blower at all this winter.......

Changing Landscape in Essex County

2010-01-27T11:18:00.004-05:00

Sunday was a rainy, dreary day for January, but the sun kept trying to break through occasionally. We went for a drive out to nowhere in particular, and found ourselves out near the town of Harrow, in Essex County. There has been much news lately about Windsor/Essex being the proposed locale for setting up windmills to generate electricity. It sort of surprised me that they had already started in earnest on the project, as this photo suggests. However, when I looked around the area, there were approximately 20 or so of them laying around on the ground. At first it looked like they were parts of an aircraft, but upon closer examination, it became apparent that it was just the various parts waiting to be assembled and erected. It crossed my mind that when all of these windmills get operating, how the birds will fare, as this area is known as a major migration path for our winged friends. But I am sure the large Korean multinational has taken that into account....... right? Just to the right of this photo was a "For Sale" sign on the property, and I wish them good luck with that.

Another Day Done......

2010-01-25T18:48:00.004-05:00

This is another old Kodachrome 25 slide scan that I did today. While I was doing the editing, I couldn't help but wonder if the files from my digital photos would be around as long as these old slides. It makes me wonder if progress is really progress anymore. This photo was taken in Feb. 1987, down by the Government Dock in North Bay, Ont.........

Winter - South Shore Lake Nipissing, Ont.

2010-01-25T16:02:00.005-05:00

Today, I came across this old Kodachrome slide, and thought that it might be a good January scene. If I remember correctly, the temperature was about -34C, and the thing about shooting in that type of weather is, you either don't go out in it, or if and when you do, you had better dress warmly, as you can't be jumping in and out of the car.That would fog the camera lens, and end shooting for quite a while. If during the shoot, the camera batteries packed it in, well, you just reached inside of your parka, and pulled out a fresh set that was in a pocket close to your chest. They were pretty warm, and allowed another hour or so of shooting......The old manual non electronic everything camera bodies were fairly reliable in difficult shooting conditions of northern winters. They went for a long while before giving any problems. However today, with everything so heavily automated, I wonder how long batteries last in the coldest weather. You also have to manually override the camera's default settings, if you are one of those who likes to do a little thinking about what a picture should look like in the end.

Camera: Minolta XE-7
Lens: Minolta Rokkor 28mm, f 2.8
Film: Kodachrome 25

Mommy's Treasure...

2010-01-23T14:25:00.002-05:00

There's nothing like "Happy Cake" and ice cream to put a big smile on a little girl's face after a family Birthday party. Just before going out the door, she gives a big smile for old Poppee, who is always hanging around with a camera.......
Candid grab shots are a lot of fun, and used to be my favorite part of a wedding shoot, as folks milled around outside a church after the ceremony. But that was in my other life......

Duff-Baby House in Winter

2010-01-10T21:02:00.003-05:00

The late evening sunset is reflected in the old clapboard siding of the historic Duff-Baby house in Olde Sandwich Towne. Today I decided to stop and take a shot of this old place, as it apparently is the oldest house in Southwestern Ontario. It was the headquarters of an army general during the war of 1812, and as the story goes, it is full of ghosts. There are ghost tours featured every week during the summer months. I for one will not be going, as these days, reality itself seems much too wierd.

Harbour Lights

2010-01-10T19:11:00.002-05:00

Winter has arrived here in Windsor, Ontario, and I haven't gotten out too much to do any photography for a while now. Today, I decided to take a little time and go exploring along the Detroit River front. I had taken a few shots around Sandwich, but nothing that really fired me up too much. The wind was strong, and bitterly cold, which made my eyes water, and it was difficult to focus the camera. But before I gave it up as a lost cause, I decided to drop by the Riverside Marina, and after talking a while with another local Nature Photographer, Gerald F. Peltier, who likes to photograph birds, I stopped to shoot this scene. It was getting dark, and I braced my left shoulder against a parked car, and with the assistance of the in body antishake feature of my camera, I squeezed off a couple of hand held shots with my 75 ~ 300 zoom lens attached. Then I headed home.
By the way, Gerald F. Peltier's site can be found at www.MyBirdingPlace.com, and I am sure he would enjoy your feedback on his bird shots.

Northern Ontario Revisited......

2010-01-03T15:18:00.004-05:00

This area of the South Shore of Lake Nipissing, in Northern Ontario, was one of my favorite places that I used to like to go to when I needed to be alone. This photo is from a Medium Format negative, that I shot with my Mamiya RB 67 camera. The negative was scanned on an old Epson film scanner, and edited in Photoshop CS3, and Corel Paint Shop Pro X2. It was kind of fun to scan a negative again, and after about 3 tries, finally got all of the dust removed that had become embedded in the emulsion. I like to drop a tip or two from time to time in this little blog, and here is how I clean my negatives. Go out to the garage, and get that gallon tin can of Coleman Camp stove fuel. It is straight naphtha, and it evaporates immediately. Then after putting some on a soft cotton ball, wipe both sides of the negative until clean. I used to buy "proper" negative cleaning solutions in little 3.5 oz bottles, for $9.99 each. Now I buy it by the gallon can, for about $4.99 each, and use it to light my Coleman Lanterns as well. So there you have my first tip for 2010. Happy shooting to everyone, and I think I shall be shooting more of that strange stuff called "film" this year.......

Thinking of Yesteryear......

2009-12-24T16:24:00.004-05:00

Well, I got it done again for another year, and it is time to sit back and reflect. One of my favorite recollections goes back some 58 years ago when I was eight years old. Christmas morning, as I came downstairs between my two brothers, I was able to see the tree in the front living room, and there under the tree, Santa had left a gray pearloid coloured button accordion. I leaped over the stair rail, and landed on my behind on the floor below. After picking myself up, I scrambled to the tree, and latched unto the instrument, and it could not have been pried out of my hands with a crowbar, I'm sure. All other presents under the tree went unopened for days, as I drove the entire family nuts, because I was determined to teach myself "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star." I recently acquired this very rare Hohner Corona lll RS diatonic accordion that now sits under the tree, as a sort of reminder of a time and place when the world was a much different one than it is at present. Occasionally, when I visit my grandchildren, like tonight, I will get to play "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star" once again, and remember the good old times......Merry Christmas Everyone!

A Christmas Card ......

2009-12-19T18:14:00.004-05:00

With less than a week left before Christmas, it looks like once again I will be a last minute shopper. I always promise myself that next year, things will be different, and I will get ahead of the game. But circumstances always seem to get in the way, and relegate me to being one of those wild eyed people rushing about the malls with just a very limited amount of time get it all done. So with that in mind, I post this card to everyone, everywhere. I may not have much time between now and Christmas to do much in the way of new posting. Hope everyone has a Very Merry Christmas, and a Happy New Year!

Welcomed Visitor

2009-12-18T16:54:00.005-05:00

Everyone has a day now and then, when nothing seems to be going as you expect it to. The universe is just not unfolding as it should. Well, today was one of those, and since copious quantities of coffee did not seem to be working, I was amazed at the difference that this little Cardinal made in my day, as he decided to visit our feeder just off the back deck. He stopped me in my tracks, and suddenly I realized that his goings and comings were just as important as anyone's in the overall scheme of things. The birds here in southern Ontario are not what I had been used to while living in the North. Yesterday, we had a Red-bellied Woodpecker visit the feeder, and I had never seen one of those before. I hope it will return again, as hopefully I can get a shot of it as well. This Cardinal was photographed from inside the house, through the kitchen window, and as such is somewhat hazy, and not as sharp as I would have liked it to be. But it sure did lend a much needed splash of colour to brighten the day.

Fare Thee Well My Friend......

2009-12-08T23:15:00.005-05:00

It is with utter sadness that I re post this photo of Dent Peever and Jack Shepherd on the sidewalk in front of Railton's Camera Shop on Main St. in North Bay. When I started to read my e-mails yesterday, I was informed by two members of the Photo Group that I used to belong to in North Bay, that Dent had passed away at his home. He responded to my previous posting as the "Guy on the Left", and it was so good to hear from him again. On my last trip north in November to visit family, something was telling me over and over on the way back down Hwy. 11 N, to stop in and say Hi to Dent. It was a 10 hour drive back home, but I did stop, and as he was quite busy with customers in his shop on Oak St., I only stayed and chatted with him for about 5 minutes, but told him that I would stop by again on my next trip north. I sure am glad that I took the time to stop in, as I regarded Dent as my brother almost, and he was indeed the consummate camera salesman. For about 35 years, several times a week, we would get together at the camera store, and there was always a friendly banter between us. He was always poking fun at my Minolta cameras and lenses, and used to say that if you looked closely at my pictures, you could see, "bottled by Coca Cola" on them, as a result of using Minoltas. According to him, I would be a much better photographer if I switched to Nikon or Canon equipment. It was all in good fun, and I loved him for it. So it appears now, that Dent has gone to join Jack. That must put a twinkle in Jack's eye for sure. My condolences to his son Shawn, and all the rest of his family that I never had occasion to meet. Fare thee well Dent......I sure will miss you my friend........'till we meet again......

Beside Lake St. Clair

2009-12-05T12:47:00.006-05:00

After visiting our son, we decided to take the scenic route back home along Riverside Drive. The leaves have all fallen from the Maple trees, and the others as well, so things are starting to look quite bare now. This Weeping Willow, with its golden leaves against the blue sky, had such a visual impact that I had to pull over and get out of the car for this shot. It is situated on the shore of Lake St. Clair, just before the lake empties into the Detroit River, that flows out into Lake Erie. Hope you enjoy it as well.

In recent days and weeks, Paul Daniels, Product of Newfoundland, Jason Sparks, Majid, & Frank & Bev, have all joined my little blog. Welcome aboard to everyone, and just when I thought that I was hollering into an empty cyberspace, you all show up from India, USA and Newfoundland and Windsor, Ont.. I appreciate it. Thanks muchly.

Relics of the Past....

2009-11-24T19:30:00.002-05:00

This scene, converted to sepia tones, gives a more realistic ambiance of the weather yesterday, and the times from which these relics were gathered. It speaks of a troubled time, in the past, where it belongs....

Naval Yards, Amherstburg, Ont. Scene

2009-11-24T17:33:00.005-05:00

Yesterday was a gray overcast day, and I decided to take a jaunt down along the Detroit River to the town of Amherstburg. The Naval Yards are located along the riverfront, and this white winch at one time would have been used to draw the ships up against the wharf, or whatever structure was there at the time. Now it is an ornament to remind of times gone by. Not too far away, I was quite startled to find a plaque that amongst other Regiments, mentioned the action by the Royal Newfoundland (Fencibles) Regiment during the Battle of Lake Erie in the War of 1812.
I "Googled" to find out more and was informed that: Many of the regiment's soldiers were expert boatmen, and five companies were sent to Upper Canada in 1812 to serve as marines on the Great Lakes. They fought as such throughout the war, suffering heavy casualties at the Battle of Lake Erie. When not serving aboard ships, the regiment was split up into garrisons and detached companies throughout Upper Canada. It had never occurred to me that my fellow countrymen had parcipated in the affairs of Upper Canada at that time, but then I am certainly no history expert. They had helped keep the ground I was standing on from becoming foreign soil. With Rememberance Day not so long past, I decided to use this as my tribute to the fallen soldiers in all the conflicts, past and present. We owe so much to all of them.

Autumn Decor

2009-11-21T17:09:00.003-05:00

Today I finished raking the last of the leaves from the big old maple tree in my back yard. In the midst of it, there was this leaf which had become entangled in one of the wrought iron sections of the fence that I had built earlier in the spring. It was beautifully back lit by the sun, which has a very nice slant to it this time of the year. So it was time to get out the 75 ~ 300 mm lens and grab a shot before it made its way unto the ground below. Afterward, I sat back and was able to enjoy a nice coffee with Terri and Henry and my wife on the deck/pergola, that I had built after erecting the fence. The temperature reached to about +16 C here in Windsor today. You gotta love that this time of the year.

For Mom & Dad

2009-11-02T16:47:00.002-05:00

October 31st was the 8Oth Wedding Anniversary of my parents. Of course, they are both elsewhere in the spirit realm now, but I still remember them fondly. He used to come home from work, eat supper, and then have a nap on the little daybed beside the old wood stove in the kitchen. Often times when he awoke, he would just lay there and sing to her. One of the songs that he loved to sing was the old Scottish tune,
" My Love is Like a Red Red Rose" and she would grin as she did the ironing. Usually, I would be doing my homework on the kitchen table, and pretending not to notice........

For Mike

2009-11-02T14:11:00.001-05:00

As Mike suggested, here is a re post of the cemetery shot below, only converted to sepia. It gives it a very old look, which is very appropriate for this, given the dates on many of the tombstones back to the 1800's.

Old Cemetery

2009-10-31T18:15:00.004-04:00

Sometimes when I go out to shoot photos, I will use a lens that is not designed for what is being photographed. This day, I chose to use my 100 mm Varisoft Portrait lens on the tombstones in the old cemetery in Sandwich. It is often a good exercise, and the resulting photos somewhat unusual. It lent an eerie glow to the back lit scene. But I have always found cemeteries to be restful and informative places. Some of the tombstones date back to the 1800's, and give a bit of history of the times. However, this is the one night of the year that such places supposedly offer up ghoulish creatures. At least that's what we are fed by the various media these days. Television is full of so called paranormal activity shows, and they seem to be quite popular. I have watched a few, and find them quite comical actually. Hopefully everyone will have a safe Halloween, and I am glad that I used the soft focus lens on this day, as it helped create a somewhat ghostly aura effect..... and that folks, is about as spooky as I will get this year! Happy Halloween!

Transition Time

2009-10-27T20:52:00.002-04:00

Out beyond the breakwater, there is a horizon, but today, the water and sky just melded into one colour. It reminded me of the words to an old song from back home, about in the morning on the bay, there are 40 shades of grey. It is the time of year when everything changes. There is a flourish of colour, and then there are these scenes of quiet bleakness. Nothing is moving and the only sounds are the squaking of the gulls in the distance. This scene is at Belle River, on the shore of Lake St. Clair, and is a stark contrast to the colours of Olde Sandwich Towne. Hope you enjoy it also....

Beside the Cemetery

2009-10-27T12:34:00.002-04:00

This deserted sidewalk with the sunlight filtering through the leaves overhead made for a very peaceful walk. It runs beside the old cemetery in Sandwich.