B&W Project 52 - Week 7

I thought I liked this shot, till I uploaded it to Flickr.  Now I don't, but I have to keep it since I don't have anything else to post for this week.

Cedar Waxwing (Bombycilla cedrorum)

Please check out the new post on my birding blog.

B&W Project 52 - Week 6

Here's my beautiful model again!  And I swear I'm not cheating - she actually sat for a second photo shoot with me this past Saturday.

B&W Project 52 - Week 5

New Post on My Birding Blog - Great Blue Heron

Long overdue again, but I finally did it!  Please check it out and do feel free to share it as well: http://shinydewdrop-birdwatching.blogspot.com/2011/09/great-blue-heron-ardea-herodias.html

B&W Project 52 - Week 4

I did a photo shoot for my friend last evening, and it was one of the worst disasters I've had thus far.  She got late arriving, so we were working in fast-fading light.  But I had already prepared myself for it, and had my flash at hand.

However, on reaching the park where we were supposed to have the session, my flash refused to fire!  I had no idea what had gone wrong with it or the triggers, and then it  starting firing very unpredictably once I started using my pop-up flash to trigger it.  I ran a number of tests this morning, but it's still not doing it's job as it should.  Maybe it's the sync chord that needs replacement?   Anyway, the entire session was a nightmare, and I didn't end up getting many nice images.

I added a selenium filter to this one in post.

The following image is technically very wrong as there's too much shadow in the face, especially around the eyes,  but there's something about it, that I really like, and therefore decided to post.  Please let me know if you think I'm crazy for posting this. :-S

Charming Charlevoix - Part 2

Parc National des Hautes Gorges de la Riviere Malbaie

On the first day after arriving in Charlevoix, we drove up from La Malbaie and visited this breathtakingly beautiful park.  We had chosen to stay at La Malabaie only because it would be in close proximity to the few places we had planned to visit; the ride to the Hautes-Gorges Park took about an hour and a half.

The drive was really lovely, and we passed through a number of fields of wildflowers and some really quaint and picture-perfect villages.  Something we observed was that each village had it's own landscaping  theme.  I particularly remember a couple of villages where one had put puppets/effigies in their front yard that ranged from an Elvis Presley doll, to a nun in her habit sitting and swinging.  Another village had small sets of the Nativity scene or little altars of worship at the front of their houses.  Unfortunately, they were country roads, and too narrow for us to pull over and take pictures.  Now I'm regretting not having attempted a few shots from the car itself.  Maybe I'll have the opportunity of going back again, if only to take pictures of these villages.

The park is surrounded by mountains, and the River Malbaie rushes through this gorge.  There are hiking trails, fishing activities, as well as canoeing and river boat cruising.  I managed to only hike on one of the shortest trails, because my friend and I were too busy taking photographs!  We were stopping after every two steps, and it`s a wonder we even made it to the summit.  The view from there was absolutely stunning!

There was one little patch of pretty pink Sheep Laurel and I just had to photograph them.

And some very interesting cones

Canoeing seemed to be a popular activity at the park.  Although I didn't experience it first-hand, I think it might be a great experience to be out there boating on the river, taking in the beautiful views. 

... or participating in a group activity

It was a memorable day, and if I am ever to go back to Charlevoix, I want to visit this park again.