MIRVISH VILLAGE, TORONTO, ONTARIO

I visited Toronto last weekend. It rained but I did get a chance to walk around some of my old favourite neighbourhoods. One of these araes is the Mirvish Village right behind the famous Honest Ed store. It was quite colourful as you can see in this image.

TEEPEE, CANADORE COLLEGE, NORTH BAY

Canadore College here in North bay has many first nations students. This teepee is used by the students for a variety of events and ceremonies.

REFLECTION

It was Victoria Day weekend. In Canada we still celebrate Queen Victoria's birthday. It is also the weekend when the avid gardeners start their pilgimage to the nurseries. I walked through the garden ornament section with all the various ornaments, sculptures and pots. I liked the reflective sphere and the flower pots. A simple image of colour contrast and circles. I think what makes the picture is the reflection.

MAPLE TREE SEEDS

I photographed these seeds yesterday in our backyard.

CONTAINER AND CARTS, NORTH BAY

went shopping for plants and noticed this container with carts waiting for customers. It is still a litte cold but this weekend the place will be packed with eager gardeners geting their fix.

MAKING BREAD

Its a very wet and cool day. So I made some bread this morning. I always have to cut one slice and try it of course. I love the tast of freshly backed bread.

SASKATOON BERRY

This Saskatoon berry in our backyard is in full bloom. Just a simple celebration of Spring, which I had to photograph.

GARDEN PLOT, DOWNTOWN NORTH BAY

This empty spot on Mainstreet North Bay is a garden plot maintained by volunteers who grow vegetables for the foodbanks. This week I think the beds will be made ready for the Summer. I will post another image in a few month time to show you the changes.

CROCS

I see them everywhere. Adults and children are wearing the latest fad in shoes, crocs. I think they are fun and are quite convenient.

SPRING GARDEN, NORTH BAY

Yesterday was the first day of the photo manifestation "Camera Frontera" here in North Bay. Many of the exhibits are very good. I one of the galleries I could not resist photographing the garden with the first signs of the season. Its still early here but I think this week the trees will all of a sudden start showing theier leaves. It is a lovely time of the year here in Northern Ontario.

NEAR BRADFORD, ONTARIO

Yesterday we visited the McMichael gallery in Kleinburg to see an exhibition of the BC artist Takao Tanabe. The show is very good even though I think it could have been better curated. His landscapes from Alberta and BC are impressive. Large panoramic views of the prairies and the Pacific coastal areas. Driving back home I kept thinking about his work and reducing the landscape to very simple but visually strong elements. That is what I try to bring into my own pictures.

CLOUDS AND TREES

The clouds and trees made for a good contrast between the stark lines of the trees and the free shaped forms of the clouds. The image works best as a high contrast black and white picture.

SPRING HAS ARRIVED

I guess its time for some less comfortable images. I took this picture last week just before going on the trail to Duchesnay Falls. I think it shows that the concern for our environment is not as great as we believe because this is just one tiny example of what people leave behind. Most of the garbage is coffee cups, water bottles and plastic bags. Maybe people think that it is other peoples responsibility to look after the planet but I guess we have to start doing our own personal bit.

BEAUTIFUL SPRING DAY

Today turned out to be a very beautiful Spring day. We have had some cold and rainy weather but when I felt the sun this afternoon I had to go out and look for pictures. I did not get many images but just walking in the country was a great pleasure after the dark wintery days.

DUCHESNAY FALLS, NORTH BAY

Its very wet today but for the gardeners I guess welcomed the rain. I decided to go out to make some pictures at Duchesnay falls, a very popular hiking spot. Today was quiet so a good time to photograph. I like taking pictures in the rain. it makes the colours much more vivid.The only problem is trying to keep your camera dry.

CHINATOWN, OTTAWA

Chinatown in Ottawa is quite small but its one of my favourite spots to visit when I am in town.

SPRING, OTTAWA, ONTARIO

Thanks James for your posting. Here is a simple picture celebrating Spring and to remember a very enjoyable weekend.

NATIONAL GALLERY, OTTAWA

The main reason for my visit to Ottawa was to see the exhibition of the work by the Australian artist Ron Mueck. The show was great and could have offered an opportunity for some very interesting images but of course taking pictures was not allowed. The building however always impresses me and I can't resist taking pictures even though I have visited the place numerous times. I have learned though that a subject never appears the same, that is why trying to redo a picture is nearly always impossible.The walkway into the museum is very impressive. The play of light and shadows made a great abstract image. I posted this image image because I thought it worked better in black and white than colour.

SOMMERSET, OTTAWA, ONTARIO

Visiting Ottawa this weekend. I noticed this sad face peeking from behind an old container. I guess the eye and then the colour of the scene attracted me to the subject.

COLLEGE RESIDENCE

Today I photographed the very effective logo for Canadore College on one of their residences. I thought that this image is a good excuse to again promote my artsperience course on how to realize the full potential of your digital pictures with Adobe Elements 5.0. You can check out the link for Artsperience or simply email me for additional information.