Day 272 - Frozen at Sunset

Not just the river, but also my fingers!  I always pick the wrong day for staying out.  It was freezing cold at - 22 deg Celsius when I left work, but I am certain by the time I got to the pedestrian bridge next to the highway, it was much colder.  I couldn't stay out in the freezing cold for more than 20 mins or so, and that included my walk up to the bridge, which takes a good 5 - 7 mins. from the bus stop.

I will probably have to drop off the radar for the next couple of days, because I have another cooking class coming up.  However, I know I will have to do some food photographs again, so maybe I will be back sooner, who knows!

I didn't have my long lens, and I was pretty far from these giant reeds, and couldn't zoom in with my 18 - 55 mm.  Therefore, I had to compose with the taller ones silhouetted, as opposed to only the shorter backlighted ones, which was initially my plan for this image.

The river is completely frozen!  I loved the reflections of the setting sun on the icy parts.

Day 175 - Rise and shine!

I didn't get to post over the last few days as I was in a photography workshop that I helped organize for my photo club at work.  It went off pretty well, although there are no photos from the workshop - it was mostly aimed at complete beginners, but being one of the organizers, I had to be present.

However, on one of the evenings, I took some nice shots of the night lights as I was waiting for the bus back home.  And when I went out this morning, I accidentally deleted all of them! :(  I was really looking forward to seeing how they had turned out, as the preview looked pretty darn good.  Oh, well!

I saw a few wisps of clouds last night and decided that we might have a nice sunrise today.  So, I was out of the house by about 6:30 am, since the sunrise was supposed to be at 7:19.  It was chilly at -1 deg. C, with the chill factor at -5.  But the moment I stepped out of the building, I realized that I was going out for nothing - not a cloud in the sky!  We'd have a normal sunrise, with nothing to add interest to the skies.  I know the birds are mostly gone already, except a few chickadees and starlings.  I almost half-turned to return home to my warm bed.  But then I told myself - "Rise and shine!  'Tis the dawn of a new day!"  And with that, my mood lifted dramatically, and I headed for the riverside.

I set up and took a few shots as the red glow smeared the horizon - alas, nothing inspiring; nothing spectacular.  And I'm a little tired of the same locations.  I definitely need to find some place more inspiring, but the problem is getting there before dawn.  I really have to start doing some early morning driving.

I picked up my camera and tripod, and headed into the thick brambly bushes along the shore.  I knew there was a canoe that I had found lying under some trees, and I figured that the first rays of the sun would hit the boat lying in the underbrush.  I saw the sun peaking out from below the horizon, and I stumbled over some roots and almost fell with camera et al.  Fortunately, I grabbed a tree-branch and steadied myself and also got a shot at the sun, although the image is too cluttered! :(  I could not move around for a cleaner shot of the precise moment the sun popped up.

And then a little ahead, I found the boat! And exactly as I had hoped to find it.  Here are a few of the images from different angles.  

I have a few other shots of birds and squirrels, and some more leaves (I just couldn't resist those leaves!), but I think I will take some time to process them later.  

However, considering the number of times I stumbled over roots, and twisted my ankles (fortunately, not severely), I think for next year, I will buy some good hiking shoes to get into these parts of the terrain.  I can't afford to break either my photography gear, or my mobility gear (read feet, ankles, and other appendages). 

À la prochaine! 

Day 164 - A wasted photo op

I have been working very late every day and therefore getting home after it gets dark.  I left a little early because I had a technical problem that can't get fixed before tomorrow morning.  So, I left work thinking I would walk the last 3 kms home since I have been extremely stressed over the past few days.  I was exhausted but needed the exercise.
As I left the office, I observed the sky was gorgeous with the clouds hanging low looking like the smouldering ashes in a wood-burning fireplace.  I had wanted to enjoy the view, from my favourite part of the island where I live.

However, I lost time on the bus, then I lost time getting to the spot from where I thought I would get a nice view, only to realize that the path was blocked off by construction.  Then as I sadly walked home, I saw the last bits of the beautiful sky.  I had decided not to use my phone camera again since it delivers such poor results.  But I couldn't let myself give up and one optimistic corner of my heart led me to take a few shots.  The clouds in the sky seemed on fire, and the blue parts peeking out from behind the clouds reflected on the river.  It was breathtaking, yet what a waste without a camera.

This is the only shot that came out clear - the rest are horribly grainy.  But even from this poor quality image you can probably tell what I meant about the blue and the sunset colours reflected on the river.

Day 154 - Fly me to the moon

Day 153 - Boulder Bay

While on another walk by the riverside, I discovered this boulder in the river, and then as I got closer to it I found a little inlet (if I can even call it that) by the shoreline.  So, now my name for that little hidden cove (my imagination does make it sound exotic, doesn't it!) is Boulder Bay!  

So, I stood by boulder bay just breathing in the cooling autumn air and scents and realized that the moon was reflecting on the tranquil waters of the St. Lawrence.  I have very rarely seen the water as tranquil as it was this evening.  Since I was only armed with my 18-55 mm lens, I stood there and tried different perspectives.  I have a few other shots that came out pretty well, but I will have to take my time to sort through them.

Day 151 - Abandoned boat

I found this canoe next to the river, in a really deep part of the woods on my evening walk.  I processed this in Lightroom 3.

Day 119 - Up with the birds 'n' the butterflies

And I also made a new friend while I was out shooting the sunrise.  

Day 103 - Forster's Tern

This was the first time I saw one of these.  The tern was fishing and flying around for a bit before I realized it wasn't another seagull.  When I finally prepared to take some shots, it decided to take itself elsewhere.

These cute little ducklings are most probably Gadwalls.  It's difficult to tell by the females if they are Gadwalls or Mallards.  The mother was a few feet away from these duckies, but I wasn't able to figure out the id.

Day 100 - Yay!

Celebrating 100 days of my photo 365 with a big splash!