SUBWAY STATION, NEW YORK

 Again an old image but this is a picture from my New York portfolio. Revisiting your older picture is a very interesting journey because you see the image from a new perspective. The black and white interpretation is a much more abstract view than the original colour version.

QUEBEC CITY, PQ

 

Still not traveling far, so I am simply traveling through my files. When visiting Quebec City I was intrigued by this simple note scribbled on a wall in the old city. Looking at it again I have to wonder what is the story behind this note. You can feel the anguish and perhaps anger expressed by this simple message. A simple image but the words give this picture a powerful meaning. 

TREE SKELETON, RESTOULE PROVINCIAL PARK

Every year we go for a picnic with our friends Bob and Pat. So yesterday we decided to go to the Restoule Provincial Park. We found an empty picnic table next to the river where we enjoyed a wonderful outdoor lunch. 

Right across the water I noticed this dead tree, which was almost bleached white. The background was a dense pattern of very green trees, which obscured the shape of the old tree. My first idea was to turn the final picture into a pure monochrome image and yes, I did like the result but then started to add a duo tone to the image and again I enjoyed the final picture, which I decided to post.

OUR GARDEN

 

Our garden or actually I should say, my wife’s garden, because after all it is her beautiful creation. I simply get the enjoyment out of her hard work. The garden also inspires me in making my photographs. This image is a interpretation of the evening view just when darkness gives this mysterious view of the textures of the different plants and the light dissolving into the darkness of the forest.

SOUTH RIVER, ONTARIO

Last Friday, our first photo trip since lockdown. What a great day. We, Gerry, john and myself decide to drive to South River and we had a wonderful time. Good discussions on a wide variety of topics, a great lunch and above all some fine picture taking. I stil like working in black and white.
 This time I added a sepia tone to this image, which I think  strengthens the visual impact of this landscape.

MAINSTREET, NORTH BAY 1974

 

Now this is a trip back in time. This morning I came across some old negatives I took in the seventies. Quite a trip through memory lane.  Downtown  North Bay had three movie theatres, Mainstreet was the primary shopping centre until the new malls opened. That was the end of a lively downtown. Of course there are still some great stores on Mainstreet but it is a far cry from the busy shopping crowds you would see on Saturdays in the seventies when we just arrived in the city.

KITCHEN, PAUL REVERE HOUSE, BOSTON

 

I took this picture a few years ago when visiting the Paul Revere house in Boston. It is a picture reflecting the period. The warm tone of the image accentuates the antiquity of the house and its furnishings. It is worth visiting this 18th century building , which contrasts with the modern architecture of downtown Boston.

WALKING

 

It has been quite some time since my last posting. But I had some technical problems with my computer. Eventually I solved the problems and gained some more knowledge in computer repair. Today’s posting is an image I took this morning when going for a walk along the waterfront. It was fun to see the various creations people made along the water’s edge. I particular enjoyed this sculpture, which appeared ready to cross the lake.

DRIFTWOOD, BASIN HEAD, PEI

 A gray, wet day along the beach in Basin Head. I came upon this piece of driftwood which had texture but its spidery shape resulted in an image with impact. I scanned  the original colour negative in monochrome, which made for an image with a stronger emotional impact. Finally I always add grain to my final pictures, because to me grain  defines the photographic image.

OLD GLOVE

 

Walking around the Maritime beaches and shoreline, you will find quite a few discarded rubber gloves. I photographed this old glove somewhere in New Brunswick. In this image I like the different textures, which work well with the intriguing shape of the glove. As I mentioned in my last posting, I am interested in the process of duotoning. The overall blue tone adds to the visual impact of this composition.

BASIN HEAD FISHERIES MUSEUM, PEI

 

Recently I rediscovered a neglected book hidden on my bookshelves. The title of the book is From Darkroom to Digital by the British photographer and writer Eddie Ephraums. While the photography software has greatly improved since this book was published, I still think that the Eddie’s ideas about traditional black and white photography versus digital are still relevant. I agree with him that the computer has greatly enlarged the technical possibilities for black and white photography. I especially got interested in his ideas about toning and I have been experimenting with duotoning photographs. It is one aspect I am exploring and enjoying. 

CUMBERLAND HERITAGE VILLAGE MUSEUM, ONTARIO

 

Again a picture from my files. This time an image from the station master’s office of the old Vars railway station. This old station was moved to the open air heritage museum in Cumberland. Old railway stations remind me of the times when the main means of transportation for the small towns in the rural and especially the communities in the North was the train. The irony is that the same small towns have lost, with the exception of the private car, their various forms of travel. The train has been gone, now airlines and busses have closed their various routes. The only bus company here in North Eastern Ontario is the Ontario Northlander. Al in all a very sad situation,

THE OLD AND THE NEW

Yesterday was the first time, after many weeks, that I went on a small photo excursion around the city. I came across this view of the old Dionne Quints home which was moved to downtown North Bay. I particularly liked the strange contrast between the old homestead and new construction behind it. 

SPRING FLOWERS, TROUT LILY

 

Spring has definitely arrived here in Northern Ontario. The last few days have been exceptionally warm for April. So to celebrate Spring I scanned several older negatives of wild flowers, which I took on my nature walks along my favourite nature trails. The film I used was either Kodak or Agfa colour negative film. I prefer negative film because it allowed me to make colour prints. I always enjoyed working in the darkroom and now I continue making prints digitally of course. 

THAT’S HOW THE LIGHT GETS IN

We are living through dark and anxious times but looking through my files I came across this picture, which I took one Summer visiting Baie Saint Paul in Quebec. I think it is an image, which reflects the words from the poem Anthem by Leonard Cohen .

“There is a crack, a crack in everything

That’s how the light gets in.”

STORMY LAKE, ONTARIO

I certainly have procrastinated lately but here anew posting of an old picture I took many years ago of boats on the shore of Stormy Lake in the provincial park in Restoule, Ontario. However I am certain that if you would go to the park, you could photograph an almost identical scene. It is still a very peaceful, quiet 

place with many photographic opportunities. When I took this picture it was a very nice early sunny Spring day. After scanning the negatives I did not find the picture visually very interesting. So using photoshop an onOne I added drama by changing it to a night scene. This added drama to an otherwise rather boring image.
 

DUCHESNAY FALLS, NORTH BAY

 

We are still in lockdown here in North Bay, so I am still exploring my negatives files. It is a voyage of nostalgic memories. When I scanned this negative I wondered why I never printed this image. It is one of many I took on my regular excursions to Duchesnay Falls. It is close to my home and is one of my favourite photo spots. I still like it but , getting on in age, makes it more difficult for me to walk the trails and clambering the rocks.

FOR DAVID BROWN

Another image from my negative collection. I dedicated this image to David Brown, a passionate photographer and , just like me and I am certain many other photo artists , miss working in the darkroom. A unique place to work quietly on creating your images. Of course we follow the same processes while working digitally but we miss the unique intimacy of working in an almost dark environment experiencing the magic of seeing the image appear in the developer tray. 

WINTER LANDSCAPE, SUDBURY

 

Another image from my old files. I took this picture on a little photo excursion to the Sudbury area before the the great landscape restoration. Before the changes the area around Sudbury was quite barren. Actually it looked quite grim and desolate. It is amazing how, since the nineteen eighties, the landscape has been transformed to the point that it will be difficult to find areas as this one I photographed in the mid seventies. This truly is a historic image. 

SNOW LANDSCAPE WITH ABANDONED HOUSE

 Another rediscovered pictures. This time an old house I photographed a few times. The old elm trees are all gone and actually so is the house. I am at an age now where you realize that your camera was really the magic memory box. Every day I discover new forgotten memories. After scanning in these old negatives to can re-interpret these images again.