ERMA'S REVISITED

Rita McCauley asked if I could post my picture of Erma's Coffeeshop. Well here it is Rita. yes I took this picture a long time ago, in February 1986. I remember it well. I was on my way home after class and it was bitter cold.I parked the car and quickly took a few pictures with a 28 mm lens. Now of course I am glad I did because I still like this image. So enjoy.

HOUSE, SUNDRIDGE, ONTARIO

We made a trip to Sundridge yesterday. It was a very pleasant day. I did not take many pictures but I particularly like this image of this house, which for me displayed character. It turned into a fine Winter picture. 

JUST TEXTURE

Another view of the discarded plastic shopping bag, which I titled just texture. I simply like the folds and dirt of the subject. Some of the most innocuous objects, when photographed, can translate into some very interesting images.

JUST A PLASTIC BAG

Photographed this flying ghost just this afternoon in a parking lot. I couldn't pass up photographing this old plastic bag. It resembles some flying monster but what I liked most was the beautiful texture.

REEDS IN THE SNOW

I took this picture while walking along the La Vase river. The subject reminded me of the work by some of the European Tachist artist like hans Hartung and George Mathieu. I simply like strong rhythmic  rhythmic quality of this abstract style of art.

WINTER LANDSCAPE, NORTH BAY

It was a pretty cold walk yesterday but I think this picture shows the starkness of our Winter. By choosing the right angle it makes this landscape image look as if it was taken somewhere in the Arctic or Antarctica instead of right downtown Nort Bay.

LEE PARK, NORTH BAY

This time a straight black and white image. The scene looks to me like a stage where the trees perform some intricate dance. 

ALONG CHIPPEWA CREEK

On one of our walks this week I took a picture of the skull graffiti along the creek. Its a straight photograph but I liked the contrast of colour in this image.

WINDOW, NORTH BAY

I have often walked past this house. I am not certain if it is empty, but I have made pictures of the place before. Yesterday I saw this window with the curtains stuck to the glass. The reflections of the bare trees, the colour of the dirty curtains and of course the pattern of the folds made a great, almost abstract, composition.

WAITING FOR SUMMER

This pub patio looks a little grim but of course its mid Winter so it would not be that comfortable sitting outside with a pint of cold beer. Of course the view in the Summer would look more inviting.

PATTERNS AND TEXTURES, NORTH BAY, ON

A beautiful Winter day, so we walked downtown to the library. The light striking the front of the buildings on Oak street made a nice abstract pattern of lines, shapes and strong textures.

CROSSWORD DICTIONARY

The last few days i have been busy with some other photography projects so I neglected posting pictures for the last few days. So this morning when I saw my wife's crossword dictionary lying on the table, I noticed the the pattern of the pages. Of course I had to photograph this very simple object and, after some work, here is an image  of my little photo session. 

FUNGUS

After my photographs of the wasp nest, I looked at an old fungus which I had in my work room since 1973. I liked it but never used it in photographs so then I thought lets work with this object and see if I can get some interesting images. So here is the result of my photo session yesterday afternoon.

WASP NEST DETAIL

As promised Larry, here is another view of the wasp nest. This detail reflects I think the violence of the tearing apart of this nest by the ravens. For the photographers who are curious about the colour and about my workflow, I give a very short explanation. The photograph was made with available light, daylight and tungsten, which gives you a colour mixture of red and blue. Then, using onOne's PerfectEffects 4, I simply intensified the colour.

WASP NEST

Last Summer I observed how two ravens attacked and destroyed a wasp nest in our back yard. It was quite a spectacle. Of course I did not get too close because the wasp were buzzing  around trying to protect their nest. Of course the ravens simply pulled it from the tree and simply destroyed it. I kept the nest in my work room so today I made some pictures of the object. I got a few interesting images so tomorrow I'll post another view.

WINTER BARN

It is still miserably cold outside so I am using this time to scan more of old negatives. I remember photographing this barn. It was a beautiful snowy day. An old friend and I were on a Winter photo safari to Port Loring. We noticed this old barn, and by the way its still there, on  highway 522. I always liked this image with its beautiful Winter atmosphere.

RYE, ONTARIO

It is still very cold, too cold to go out and wander around looking for pictures. So these days are great for doing things like scanning old negatives or experimenting with different techniques. I found this old negative of  a photo trip I made in the late seventies to Rye, an old  ghost town.  These buildings have disappeared a long time ago but it was a great place to take pictures. I decided to make the image look like a nineteen century print.

WINTER CITY PANORAMA

Winter of course is the season for strong graphic black and white images. I am still interested in the almost playful lines of the city trees. they remind me of Chinese and Japanese calligraphy.

WINTER CITY

I guess Winter has arrived. This morning the thermometer outside showed a reading of -32º C.
Not exactly a nice temperature to go out and do some photography. But yesterday afternoon I just did that. Of course I did not stay out too long but did manage to get a few images like this Winter city view.

UNFINISHED SHED

I am starting to discover the possibilities of the new program. The results can be quite different from the image with which you started initially. I photographed this shed because I liked the perspective but also the very subtle colours of the back wall. So when I began to play with this picture I liked this very painterly effect. Of course it lost the photographic quality but that is the fun of experimenting. You don't know where the creative path will lead you.

BARN, BURKS FALLS

Another image from our visit to the Screaming Heads. In addition to the various sculptures, another interesting part of the property of course are the various buildings, barn, house and a few sheds. I particularly like the barn with its variety of textures, surfaces and shapes. Again I experimented with my new program and start to get a feel for this new tool set.

CLOUDS, LAKE BERNARD, ONTARIO

I could have named this picture "Ice Fishing, Lake Bernard" but the dominant feature of this image is the cloudy sky. The colour image was too blue so, using my newly bought program Perfect Effects, I ended up with a almost like a cross processed picture. So here you have the result. 

SCREAMING HEADS REVISITED, STONE CIRCLE

This stone circle looks like an old meeting place. The image looks fine in B&W but I prefer the colour interpretation because of the rich tones in the rocks.

SCREAMING HEADS REVISITED, BLUE PYRAMIDE

Yesterday my friend Gerry and I revisited the screaming heads site in Burks falls. Actually it was Gerry's first visit. We took quite a few pictures. Luckily for us the layer of snow was not very deep so we could move around without much difficulty. In addition to the various concrete sculptures there are also quite a few large constructions of domes and pyramides like this one.

NORMA JEAN'S ROADSIDE DINER

After our walk yesterday, we stopped at a North Bay diner for a hot chocolate. I liked the framed poster and of course had to photograph it. 

ICE FISHING HUTS, LAKE NIPISSING

Another picture of my photo walk along the lake. The weather changed overnight with quite a bit of snow. But I liked this image with the dramatic skies and reflections on the lake. This time I preferred the black and white interpretation. It definitely has a more dramatic impact.

EARLY THAW

The last few days we had an early thaw. It rained though the day and night till almost noon. Then the sun came through and for a few hours we had some sunshine. A fog developed over the lake and with all the puddles of water and the dramatic skies it was a good time to take some pictures. here is an image from my photo trip at the waterfront.

WINTER VERTICAL

This time I made a "vertical" panorama. Of course I am still playing with my new program. Slowly I am discovering how to apply the various filters to my images. It will take me awhile before I am comfortable with the program but the first results are encouraging. 

WINTER IMAGE

The weather is dreadful today. Instead of snow we are getting rain. What a mess. So this is a good day to try out a new, well new for me, program. I have to say that I am quite impressed with the wide variety of creative solutions the program offers. of course I just started finding my way through all the different effects. 

SUMAC, ALONG CHIPPEWA CREEK

Still interested by the painterly effect of very busy patterns and tones, I noticed this growth of sumac along Chippewa creek.I liked the contrast of the red seed pods against the dark background texture.

WINTER COLOUR

Again a very austere composition of lines and shapes. I decided on a black and white interpretation to emphasize the Winter hues of grey, white and black. 

WINTER CONTRAST

A simple composition with just a few elements but I liked the contrast between the bare skeletal outline of the maple tree and the green pine tree, which colour holds the promise of the coming Spring.

WINTER, OLD BUILDING NEAR OTTAWA

Its too cold today to wander around the city so here is another picture I took on Christmas day in the country side near Ottawa. I have no idea what the purpose of this building is but I just liked the simple architecture and the touch of colour in the Winter landscape. 

WINTER

I simply titled this picture Winter. It shows the bleak empty space along the old railway track in the city. I added a hint of colour to this otherwise monotone image.

FOR BOB MORTON

Thanks for your thoughtful comment on yesterday's image Bob. Yes I am interested in this type of rather abstract subject matter. The strong graphic quality of the black lines, which look like paintings and drawings by the German French Artist Hans Hartung, another one of my favourite painters.

WINTER ABSTRACT

Lately I started to be interested by the dense patterns of bare trees and shrubs, which are part of our urban landscape. This image reminds me of some of the work by Jackson Pollock. 

NEW YEAR'S FLOWER

My first posting in the new year. Our flowering amaryllis was backlit by the bright Winter sun. Of course I had to take some pictures because it is the first sign of the coming Spring. Yes I know we still have a few month to go so maybe I simply liked the shapes and colour of the flower.

HAPPY NEW YEAR 2013

Its New Years Eve so I wish all my followers of my blog and all the members of the North Bay Photo club, who have commented on my pictures a Very Happy New Year. 

BARN, OTTAWA

Behind the abandoned farm, there were some very beautiful old barns. The snow was very deep so it was not easy to get around the property. I particularly liked this barn, which I prefer to present in a traditional sepia toned image.

ABANDONED FARM, OTTAWA

Just returned from another Ottawa visit. This time on the West side of ottawa near Ashton. Of course I did not get a chance to spend too much time on taking pictures because first of all it was Christmas and secondly the weather was terrible. Two big snow storms within days of each other. However on Christmas day I spent a few hours taking pictures and thats when I saw this old beautiful abandoned farm. The light was fading fast but I did get some very good images. It is a great site and I certainly hope to get back to this farm.

WINTER BIRCH

Again it has been quite a few days since posting a new picture. well I guess the holiday season is to blame. In the last few days i have been busy with other activities like everybody else at this time of year.  Yesterday we had our first big Winter storm. I took some time to go and take some pictures close to home. I particularly liked this picture of a small birch tree in our front garden.

A WET WINTER DAY

The weather has been rather miserable the last few days. Luckily I have been busy with some other projects but I did get a chance to walk along the lake shore and made this almost monotone image of the lake. 

SUSSEX AND RIDEAU STREET, OTTAWA

This picture is for Gerry and Bev, who liked my previous posting. I am still working with the iPad but, as I explained, I take my pictures with a regular digital camera. Then I transfer the pictures I want to develop further to my iPad and, using a variety of apps. Get the result I am looking for. I did pre-visualize this picture but my initial idea was to make a black and white version. However, after playing with a variety of choices I selected this version as my final image. Hope you like it.

REFLECTIONS, OTTAWA

Since our return from Ottawa, I have not been able to go out to take some photographs. The days before Christmas are always busy of course but I still have some images I can experiment with. As I explained yesterday, I have been working with my iPad and various photo apps. I don't take pictures with the iPad because I find that the quality is still not right if you are interested in printing quality images. So I take pictures with my regular camera and simply transfer the images I want to work with to the tablet. By the way there is a very simple app, which makes transferring pictures between the tablet and my main computer very easy.

INUIT SCULPTURE, NATIONAL GALLERY, OTTAWA

Today I have again returned to learning more about the various apps now available for the iPhone and iPad. These apps have increased creative possibilities by giving the photographer an enormous wide range very powerful tools. I photographed this sculpture under rather poor lighting conditions but by using three different apps I made a visually expressive image.

OTTAWA RIVER, OTTAWA

We just returned from our Ottawa visit. The weather was rather miserable. On Sunday we went for a hike along the Ottawa river. Grey skies and wet snow made the landscape look rather dismal but I did manage to get a few pictures, reflecting the early Winter season mood. The starkness of the landscape with the driving snow and the limited colour palette reflects the season's atmosphere.

WINTER LANDSCAPE WITH BIRCH TREES

This is another image from my files. I like the busy pattern of the branches and then a view of the group of trees in the distance. its a classic composition but the picture is an effective reflection of the Winter season with strong graphic elements. For the next few days I will not be able to post. I will be back next Tuesday with a new image.

WINTER, SUNSET PARK, NORTH BAY

Rain and fog today but yesterday I scanned this snow landscape, which I made on November 23, 1986. Its a very traditional landscape but, for me, it symbolizes the feeling of Winter.

WET PAVEMENT REVISED

The weather in the last few days did not inspire me to go and look for pictures. Also I have been busy so today I started to go through some of my old negatives and slides. One of my Winter projects is starting to scan some of my older images. This picture is from a series I did one evening a very long time ago on light reflections from the downtown streets. At that time some stores  still had neon store signs. The reflected light was very primary and when photographed made pictures look like very abstract fluid paintings. I should add that when I did these pictures it was raining very hard. So it was difficult to get a sharp image because of the water running over the pavement surface.

BARN, TROUT CREEK

I have not been busy this week so I did not take many pictures. So here is an image from last week. I made this on the same day as the earlier posting of the barn in Powassan. This image is not as dramatic but I still liked it enough to post it today.