ANOTHER SNOW IMAGE

This was the view when I went to pick up my morning paper. I posted this additional image because Nonie had asked me for information about my Summer course on Photoshop Elements. The course will run from July 13 until July 17. Check the link on the right for more information.

MAY SNOWFALL

What a surprise. We woke up to a snowstorm early in the morning. It was quite a sight to see snow covering the plants and flowers. I had to go and look for my snow brush to clean my car of about five centimetres of snow but its what you can expect here in Northern Ontario.

ALMOST FINISHED

Today's picture is an image of light and shadows. As I explained earlier, I have not have much time to concentrate on my photography. But there is light at the end of the tunnel. This week all the downstairs renovations will be done. Of course now I will need time to sort and move all the "stuff" back into its place. That will take another few days.

CHIPPEWA CREEK SPRING WALK

This morning I went for a walk along the Chippewa Creek trail here in North Bay. I could not resist photographing this almost iconic Spring scene.

SPRING BLOSSOM

Again I am back on line. Last Monday I returned from a nice Victoria weekend in Ottawa and discovered that my brand new computer had given up the ghost. It took till today before I was able to get it fixed. The motherboard was defective so it was replaced and working great. The renovations are going well. Next week we hopefully see the end of all the construction.

RENOVATIONS

Just a little explanation why I have not been posting more pictures. At the moment we are doing some major renovations in our house. It has been going on for the last four weeks but hopefully will be finished by next week. Obviously I have not been spending much time on my blog or on taking pictures.

SPLIT TONING

Anonymous asked if I had used the Virtual Photographer plugin to manipulate the image Back Again. No I did not but I used the Easy.filter curves filter. Again this is a free plugin which is an excellent curves filter. Try it. In this image I used another set of plugins, Grant's tools. These tools offer curves, channel mixer, colour channels and masking, features normally not available in Photoshop Elements.

THE BAMBOO SHADOW ON THE BOARD IS DARK AND CLEAR

Thanks for your comment Jo-Ann. Yesterday afternoon I noticed this paint and shadows abstract on the side of my neighbour's garden shed. It reminded me of a Chinese ink drawing so I used a line from a poem, On the Lake, by the Chinese poet Bai Juyi (772–846)

BACK AGAIN

At last I am able to post again. Last week my computer stopped working altogether. I ran a virus check but the software could not find anything. Actually I think there was a virus because the computer slowly died down. One program at a time. I had been thinking for some time that I should get another computer so this was the clincher. This morning my new toy arrived. It is quite a bit faster than the old one of course I still have to load most of my programs on this one so that will keep me busy for the next few days. By the weekend I will be fully operational.

SPRING BIRCHES

Yesterday was a beautiful Spring day. Of course there are no leaves on the trees yet but we also don't have the blackflies either. So here a simple image of a stand of birches along a nature trail.

MAPLE SYRUP FESTIVAL, POWASSAN, ONTARIO

Yesterday my wife and I visited the Powassan Maple Syrup Festival. It was a very enjoyable event. I like these country festivals, where you will meet friends and others you had not seen for awhile. In the last decade or so Mennonite families moved into the area and are now quite prominent around town and have become an integral part of the community. I photographed this group of young women who were watching some of the events. What attracted me was the shape of the traditional hats. While the Mennonites live a very traditional lifestyle, I thought it interesting that the clothing was made of polyester rather than wool or cotton.

BLUE AND YELLOW, NEW YORK

The blue tire and yellow painted scribbles on the pavement made an interesting abastract image.

BROOKLYN BRIDGE, NEW YORK

This morning I downloaded the updated version of the VirtualPhotographer plugin. It is an excellent plugin which offers an almost unlimited amount of effects. Here is a sample I made using this amazing free filter set. Try it you will love it.

ANOTHER VIEW

This is just another view of yesterday's landscape. I like the dark brooding atmosphere of this scene. It reminds me of some of the paintings by Turner.

EARLY SIGNS OF SPRING, LAKE NIPISSING

The first signs of Spring start to appear. The ice is still on the lake but is rapidly disappearing with the first warm days of the season.

OLD CEDAR TREE OTTAWA

Time to post again. It is a very busy time around the house. last week we had to move all kinds of "stuff" from the basement. This morning the contractor came to start some extensive renovations. At least the weekend was very enjoyable with all the family celebrating Easter. Hopefully I will get a chance to get out to do some photography but I suspect that the next few weeks will be chaotic.

CRABAPPLE TREE, PINNEYS POINT, OTTAWA

It is still Winter here. Over the weekend we received lots of rain, which changed to snow. It feels like February again. So I thought let me post this graphic image of the still bare crabapple tree. Enjoy.

CEDAR TREES, PINNEY'S POINT, OTTAWA

Another picture of my rainy walk along the Ottawa river. Its a simple image of just textures and colour.

RAIN, OTTAWA RIVER

Spent some time in Ottawa again. Last Monday I went to Pinhey's Point on the Ottawa river. It was avery wet and dark day but I like walking in that kind of weather. The colours are rich and warm. Ochers and dark blues are the predominant hues.

MINIMALIST VIEW

This image of Lake Nipissing is a very minimalist view of the lake. It reminds me of certain paintings by Christopher Pratt.