CAR SHOW, NORTH BAY

Again, it has been quite some time since my last posting. The reason is simple I am busy with a few other photo project, so I have neglected my blog. Well this image is for Bob, who, like me, is still interested in the old autochrome photographs. He sent a very interesting link with autochrome pictures from the twenties. Yesterday I took this picture at the annual car show on Main Street here in North Bay. I thought this would realy look great as an old colour image from the beginning of the last century.

PATTERNS, TROUT LAKE, ONTARIO

Today a posting of a straight monochrome image I took yesterday along the shores of Trout Lake. Its always a challenge to come back with interesting images from an area, which at first glance, does, visually,  not look very promising. But I managed to get a few nice pictures like this richly patterned water shot. It reminds me of some very early landscapes by the American photographer Edward Steichen.

OLD DELIVERY VAN, KINGSTON, ONTARIO

I photographed this old van, or maybe I should call it an antique van but I am not sure how old it is, in downtown Kingston. Iam still interested in the old colour processes and decided give the image a visual twist by recreating the aged photograph look. Yesterday I mentioned the pictures by Marie Cosindas and she used Polacolor film to get the same aged effects.

BEGONIA II

Still experimenting with Autochrome images, but then I remembered the work of the American photographer Marie Cosindas. She became quite famous in the sixties and seventies with images, which very much looked like the Autochrome pictures of the early twentieth century. Of course she did not use the original autochrome plates but her colour palette was very similar.

CALLA LILY

Victoria weekend has come and gone and what a glorious weekend it was. The weather was perfect for most of the weekend. Last week at our photo group get together, Dianne showed a picture reminiscent of an old autochrome image. The picture sparked an interesting discussion about the autochrome process and how to reproduce the quality of this early colour process digitally. I am still interested in working on the iPAD and found a autochrome app, which does a nice job.The only problem I found is that the grain was too overpowering but you can easily reduce that effect. Using this as a starting point I ended up with this image of Calla lilies.

TRANSFORMATION

Very seldom will I use two pictures in one posting. But this time I simply like to show what happens when an image, the picture of the building, is used as a basis for further experimentation. I am still using my iPad and am amazed with the infinite transformations of a simple image. Is this something I like to pursue further? I am not sure I think that I prefer the straight photographic image, either blank and white or colour, to the manipulated print. of course I where this type of experimentation can lead to new visually great and interesting images.

MAPLE TREE

I am still enjoying working on my iPad. It is like going down an unknown track leading from your normal pathway. The effects you can achieve are very startling at times. you never know what is going to happen when you start playing with the various apps. This image is quite reminiscent of some of the drawings from the past. Some of you thought that I paint or draw on the iPad but no I simply use a photographic image, which I then transform using different apps.

BEGONIA

Still experimenting with my iPad. This time I made some images of a begonia. The plant is predominantly colour and texture unlike the tulips I posted earlier, which have in addition to colour interesting, strong shapes. Using a few different apps I ended with an almost abstract interpretation of this plant.

EARLY MORNING LIGHT

Enjoying my early coffee, I noticed the beautiful light on a vase with tulips on the table. I made a few images then transferred these to my iPAD and started to play with these pictures using a few apps. I then again I copied them to my computer and using my favourite program OnOne prefect photosuite made some refinements. The final result looks like an old 17 or 18 century still life painting.

CITY BUS, NORTH BAY

Looking at a very simple mundane subject, you see how the different elements combine to give you an image with strong visual stopping power. The scene here is almost a monochrome blue picture because of the colour of the sky and the bus. The horizontal lines of the window shades and the vertical lines of the metal window frames are the other elements, which are important to the overall design.

BOOTS, CATTLE AUCTION, STURGEON FALLS, ONTARIO

A few weeks ago I showed an old portfolio with pictures I made in 1976 at the weekly cattle auction in Sturgeon Falls. My friends enjoyed the images and urged me to scan the negatives, which I started doing. It is a tedious job but I ended up with a great collection of over four hundred pictures. Now before people write me and ask where and when this auction takes place i am sorry to say. The auction has become the victim of the computer and internet. It simply does not exist any more. Al;l that is left are the memories and these pictures.

COLOUR, OAK STREET, NORTH BAY

 Today I just like to add some colour to my posting. Spring has not arrived yet. I took this picture last Sunday. I liked the abstract quality of the image accentuated by the strong primary colours. It actually looks more like a street you would expect in South American town rather than cold Northern Ontario.

MATTAWA RAILWAY STATION, ORIGINAL PICTURE

Linda wondered about the original picture of the Mattawa railway station, which I used as the basis for yesterdayès image. So here it is.

MATTAWA RAILWAY STATION

This Easter weekend was very busy. We had family visit us during the last few days so I did not have time to post new images. Last week my friend Gery and I made a little trip to Mattawa. of course wehad to go to the old railway station, which looks as if it it is ready to be demolished. sad actually because much local history will disappear when the building is gone. I took a few pictures and using my iPad I created this view of the station. Just recently I downloaded a new app and it is truly amazing what you can do with this small program. Anyway her is the result.

ANTHURIUM

Again I used my iPad to manipulate a simple image of a very beautiful Anthurium. I should admit though that using some of the apps on the iPad, I did some further work on the computer. The various filters gave this image an old painterly quality, which added to the visual impact of the picture.

EARLY MORNING COFFEE

Occasionally I like to use my iPad to create pictures. A few days ago I had to upgrade some apps and, after downloading, got a renewed interest in, what is referred to as mobile photography or also iphoneography. Artists and photographers use their iPhones and tablets to create their images. So here is one I made after taking asimple picture of my early morning coffee sitting on a little glass table next to my chair. What attracted me first of course was the light and shadow pattern and I should say it worked well in a traditional black and white rendition. But then I started to play with a few apps and I ended with a rather painterly image, which I liked.

SNOW LANDSCAPE, POWASSAN

I have never made a print from this negative. It was shot on 400ISO film which I had overdeveloped at the time, my mistake, but yesterday I had scanned the negative and simply loved the result. The grain added to the feeling of a snowy day, while giving the image an almost charcoal drawing effect.

WINTER LANDSCAPE WITH BARN

Another cold landscape. I hope Linda will like this as much as the one I posted yesterday. It was a beautiful Winter day with ice all over the trees. The light was beautiful and of course I had to photograph this very Wintery and romantic winter scene.

WINTER LANDSCAPE NEAR POWASSAN

This is a more traditional landscape photograph. I still enjoy these old images reminiscent of the old pictorialist tradition of beautiful black and white prints.

DUCHESNAY FALLS, SUMMER VIEW

Today a classic black and white print of Duchesnay Falls in the Summer. In the Spring and Fall of course the view is very different but at the height of the Summer the falls are dry. So this is a different view with the strong textures and patterns of the exposed rocks.