Photo of the Week 2018-12-31

A lovely stone house once stood on this location ... that is until a troubled soul decided to torch it along with numerous other structures in the Guelph-Eramosa-Puslinch-Erin area. 

It has been demolished and a favoured subject for my lens is no more ...

phantom homestead

I had visited this location a number of times, always keeping a respectful distance. In the beginning, it looked as if someone might still be living there. Then later the windows were boarded up.

And then the unthinkable ... it was torched.

Twice an image of this quaint stone structure graced a page in my annual calendar ... and I suspect it may again for the 2020 edition.

First an image from 2012 when I caught it sitting ever so peacefully in the mist...

Next from 2017 after I learned that it had succumbed to flame and freshly boarded windows made it look as if the lights were still on ...

A suspect has been arrested and charged with 7 counts of arson, but not for the fire that destroyed this favoured subject. In all over 20 suspicious fires were recorded through 2016,17,18 and several other structures that I had enjoyed photographing no longer stand

from Guelph Mercury October 30, 2017

What a shame ...

DJE

Photo of the Week 2018-12-24

Wishing the very best for the Holiday Season and a Very Happy New Year to those following my blog.

CHEERS!

DJE

Photo of the Week 2018-12-17

My love of the Bruce Peninsula Landscape began several years ago with a visit for some winter photography. The plan for the first 'Bruce' trek likely sprouted from numerous photo outings to sections of the Niagara Escarpment closer to home. Niagara Falls, Hamilton, Dundas, Burlington, Milton, Limehouse etc. all cultivated my fascination with the limestone cliff that stretches hundreds of kilometres.

The winter 'Bruce' trek became an annual event and perhaps because those memories, winter remains a favourite time to be on 'the Bruce'. Though Mother Nature has yet to lay down this season's winter blanket, encountering some of those earlier images on a journey through the photo library brought back that crisp, quiet fee of winter mornings on 'the Bruce'.

Winter Morning at Little Cove - IV

Avisit to Little Cove back in December 2010 provided the "crisp'. A tripod and slow shutter speed calmed the waters.

DJE

Photo of the Week 2018-12-10

"The woods are lovely, dark and deep,.

But I have promises to keep,.

And miles to go before I sleep,.

And miles to go before I sleep."

                           - Robert Frost -

invitingly mysterious

There is a spot along the edge of the forest, an opening that calls to me whenever I walk by. Invitingly mysterious, it spurs me to imagine that which is beyond as the woods close in, darken and deepen.

DJE

Photo of the Week 2018-12-03

Keady Trees - 2018-11-30

A recent question on a photography social media page prompted me to think about my own choices when it comes to aspect ratio. With that prompting, I decided to more thoroughly evaluate one of my my recent images using a variety of aspect ratios.

"Aspect Ratio ? What is Aspect Ratio?" you ask. Well here is the explanation of Aspect Ratio according to Wikipedia.

In responding to the question online, I commented that in choosing an aspect ratio, it obviously it begins with the aspect ratio native to, or selected on the capture device. Since I shoot primarily with a DSLR, my initial compositions start with 2:3 and I change in post processing to suit my vision for the image, either preconceived or determined after evaluating in computer screen.

There are any number of factors that can enter the decision process of what aspect ratio to use for a particular image. Since I begin with 2:3 in camera and compose accordingly, the majority of my work remains at this ratio. I also print a good amount of my work and have standardized on this ratio as a matter of economy considering printing and framing materials. When I decide that an image will significantly benefit from another ratio, I'll crop to suit, though I seldom if ever crop to arbitrary ratios, it's just how I roll. If I use a "custom" ratio, it's usually based on the "golden ratio". The panoramas I shoot are all cropped to suit the scene after images are stitched together.  

In the end, it's the personal preference of the photographer and what they select to represent their vision.

Below are examples of this week's image cropped to various aspect ratios. The main image above is custom and presented in the "golden ratio" that is somewhat less in height than the 2:3 crop. This allowed for removal of what could be considered an excessive amount of empty sky, and still allows for emphasis of the wider expanse of field around this croup of conifers, which is what always catches my eye when I drive past.

aspect ratio 2:3

aspect ratio - custom

aspect ratio 5:7

aspect ratio 4:5

aspect ratio 1:1

Looking for another perspective on this topic, here's a short article from DPS you may find interesting:
Aspect Ratio: What it is and Why it Matters - Andrew S. Gibson 

DJE

Photo of the Week 2019-11-26

Huron Shores - Huron Skies

While on reconnaissance in advance of visiting MacGregor Point for skating on their woodland trail this winter, there was time for a hike along the shoreline. The overcast day and placid waters contributed to the overall muted feel of this week's image ... so much so that I think the result is quite painterly without any "help" in post processing.


DJE

Photo of the Week 2018-11-19

A recent visit to Ottawa offered the opportunity for the first snowy winter hike of the season (although it's still technically fall) and the chosen location was Parc de la Gatineau / Gatineau Park across the river in Quebec.

Freshly fallen snow painting the landscape in marshmallow white and crisp cold air tingling exposed skin awoke familiar sensations. We set out from the Meech Lake head of trails (P11) with the idea of a short outing to enjoy the fresh air. Along the way, a side trail sign indicating "ruins" piqued my interest and just had to be explored ... and what a treat was in store.

Wilson Ruins

We came across the "Willson Ruins" at the end of Little Meech Lake where the water flows out and tumbles down a steep sections of rapids. The impromptu encounter provided an intriguing opportunity to learn about yet another tidbit of Canadian history. You can follow the link above to find out more for yourself if you desire.

Subsequent reading on Parc de la Gatineau has placed it on my list of "must return to" sites. Fantastic fall colours, wonderful waterfalls and the MacKenzie King Estate all remain to be explored ...

DJE

 

Photo of the Week 2018-11-12

Last in a series of 'Fall Tamarack' images from Singing Sands, BPNP that I've been releasing on social media over the week. I saved this for the finale as I think it's the best of the bunch ...

'Fall Tamarack VIII'

Go back through the D J England Photography Facebook page, to see the previous images and let me know what you think.

DJE

Photo of the Week 2018-11-05

A recent post by a friend, sent me into my library catalogue to search images from 6 years ago. I knew I had photographed the same location and wanted to check dates and other specifics before commenting on their post ... but while browsing the library, as often happens, some images now speak to me more powerfully than they did initially, those years ago.

I found it difficult to explain why the image below had been sitting, just sitting in my library without being shown ... until now.

standing in the mist

I recall the experience of making this photograph, as vividly as if it were just recently. The silence of a lonely road, interrupted periodically by the sound of an approaching vehicle. The dampness of the mist floating over my bare hands in the cool morning air, seeing the steam from my breath and feeling the loving embrace of nature.

DJE

Photo of the Week 2018-10-29

Memories of a Forest Walk

 

The colours of fall are fast  disappearing

Winds tear the remaining leaves off branches.

Memories of walks amongst the glowing fall forest,

Soon too will fade ...   

DJE

Photo of the Week 2018-10-22

Photography featured prominently in my plans as I approached retirement, as did the cottage and enjoying the outdoors. For me these are year round pursuits. Fortunately the cottage is a 4-season structure and I'm not yet phased by rainy days or the winter here in Ontario.

So when planning to replace having a company vehicle (for 33 of my 35 year working career), I decided on a 4x4 truck that would let me haul 'stuff' to the cottage, you know wood for odd jobs, tools and such, in addition to hauling me and my photo gear anywhere I go. It is also great for exploring back-roads Ontario Spring, Summer, Winter or Fall ... ahhhhhh Fall ...

On a recent solo trek north for some fall colour photography, there were many stops, some U-turns and when the sign said "This road not maintained", how could I resist?

Now I had barely started down this one-lane dirt 'road' when the sun came out and the colours just exploded.

Off the Beaten Path I

The road itself was in decent shape with just water puddling in the low spots here and there so the truck was a convenience as opposed to a necessity, but it sure let me forget about whether I should keep going or not.

Off the Beaten Path II

While stopped at one point, I made a couple of shots with the truck in the frame ... it was barely even dirty from this adventure, but then I wasn't blasting through the puddles, mud and gunk ... this time.

DJE

Photo of the Week 2018-10-15

With a 'fall colours' outing planned by the local photography group, there was a solid option of staying closer to home over the weekend ...

... but points north were calling, and though unsettled weather dumped rain frequently enough to seemingly catch a photographer whenever they were out of the vehicle, I managed enough images to feed this and a number of future blog posts. 

Such it is that the autumn season has to offer outdoor photography. The greatest challenge proved selecting a single image for this week's post ... and so I decided on one from the first planned stop from the trek north.

Rocky Saugeen - Autumn Mill Pond

I'd been wanting to stop and visit this location again ever since capturing the scene in winter several years ago with an image that long time followers may recall.




I'm glad I finally made plans to stop on this trip, and the sun even worked hard to make an appearance to cast some golden glow while I was stopped shooting. This is one of those locations that begs for a return visit to capture the scene through the seasonal changes, certainly fall and winter to my eye anyway.

I'll be revisiting my library of images to screen for other locations that deserve return visits to capture changes through the seasons or over time. I'm sure there may be a few I've overlooked.

DJE

Photo of the Week 2018-10-08

Fall colours arrived quickly on the Bruce Peninsula this year and they're not done yet, not even at their peak.

orange overhang

Regular treks on the 250 km route from home to cottage in Tobermory provide an opportunity to watch the progression as hardwoods change into their fiery colour ensemble while birch, aspen and poplar take on their autumn yellow tones to contrast against the rich dark greens of the cedar, pine and spruce.

A foggy fall morning was perfect for a detour on along side-roads with a mind to photograph the essence of this time on the Bruce. Along Emmett Lake Road, there were maple beginning to blaze orange among the mixed forest at roadside.

With windows down, a slowed pace and numerous stops, taking in the ambience set the tone for my day on the Bruce.

DJE

Photo of the Week 2018-10-01

Weather always makes for interesting photography, images and experiences ...


As a recent system pushed through the province, it was severe enough to batter some areas with thunderstorms and a number of reported tornadoes. In Tobermory though, high winds were the main feature.

My objective, as gusts up to 90kph whipped up spray off the whitecaps on Hay Bay, was to make images capturing the feel of the storm. With late day sun providing sidelight from the right, the spray was nicely highlighted and I used a 100-400 zoom to narrow in on a series of small islands and the far shore facing the brunt of the wind off Huron.

windswept waters

2018-09-21

DJE

Photo of the Week 2018-09-24

Adding a human element in a photo can provide a point of reference, a connection that helps convey mood and emotion. The lone figure in the image below was intentionally included for just these purposes.

'watching sunset'

Even an image comprised of 15 separate captures, merged in Lightroom to create a sweeping panorama of the view from Singing Sands as sun sets out over Lake Huron can benefit from the inclusion of a lone, unidentifiable, solitary figure, sitting contemplating the wondrous view.

I waited until the person, who had been walking along the shore, sat back down on the picnic bench at water's edge so they would be in the same position over multiple frames before staring the capture sequence. Small as they are, when the viewer notices them, the image takes on new meaning.

DJE

Photo of the Week 2018-09-17

Happy Anniversary My Love

Thirty-Five Years ago today, I married the most wonderful young lady. I'm so very happy to have spent all of those years together. Where does the time go ?...

Happy Anniversary My Love

 
... I was reminded the other day, when I ran into a long time friend on my morning walk. We talked in general about time and how it passes quickly when we are happy and things are going well. Judging by how fast 35 years have passed, I'm very, very happy and things are going very, very well.

DJE

Photo of the Week 2018-09-10

Always on the lookout for a storm coming in off Lake Huron, I find it somewhat of a challenge given that our cottage is set back into the trees and faces south, south-east. Monitoring the weather forecast and keeping a eye to the west as much as possible and of course being up on the Bruce Peninsula had yet to prove successful.

I'd seen many images of storm fronts coming in across Huron from locations further south on the Bruce, Oliphant, Southampton, Port Elgin and further down to Goderich. I wanted something from further north where I spend a lot of time ... and then Lynn came back from picking up some things in the village saying "you should see the black sky heading this way!"

... I ran for the camera.

Just approaching the tip of the peninsula and about to pass right over us was a dramatic shelf cloud at the storm front. I made a large series of images capturing the various stages of the storm from slightly different points of view around or shoreline. Above is a collage of select images in sequence that shows the passing storm.

DJE

Photo of the Week 2018-09-03

I like to learn new techniques and/or tools and regularly try something new to feed my creativity. Lately, it's been some actions and presets for Adobe CS that have had my attention. I've been learning and experimenting with a number of multi-layer actions for Photoshop that produce an artistic interpretations of photographic images, watercolour effects, vintage effects, sketch effects mostly.

Here for your comment or critique are some of the results ...

vintage effect

urban sketch effect

urban sketch effect

 

vintage effect

watercolour effect

watercolour effect

DJE

Photo of the Week 2018-08-27

After hearing about the annual Monarch Butterfly migration and seeing some images online, I decided to make the couple hour drive from home to Goderich ON, where they were congregating as a rest stop on their way south.

There were reportedly thousands at this location just a few days ago, but when I arrived they numbered in just the hundreds I'd say. Still, it was a sight to see and a unique experience.

I'll definitely be adding this to my annual photo outing calendar and hope to make the trek at peak next year.

Here are some other images from the outing ...

 

 

DJE

Photo of the Week 2018-08-20

For this week's photo, I chose to do a photographic study on a unique bottle of Mezcal delivered by special courier (my son) early Friday morning (when I picked him up at the airport). Ilegal Mezcal, Anejo, Special Edition, a smoky distant cousin of Tequila, is something I took a liking to while on a recent trip to Guatemala, so I asked Matt if he would bring me back a bottle.

Using the strong afternoon sunlight diffused through the sheer curtains of the living room, I set the bottle on an antique wood surface to provide a warm tone that would compliment the golden amber of the nectar inside.

Shot with a combination of a 24-105 f/4 zoom lens and 150 f/2.8 macro lens, I assembled these six shots into a 'tych' collage ... before the bottle was opened 'cause things could have gotten a little blurry ;-)

Here are a B&W and distressed versions of the tych. I prefer the straight colour version.

Your thoughts?

Think about it while I have another shot ...

DJE

Photo of the Week 2018-08-13

In a post two weeks ago, I wrote about having the patience to stay with it when conditions are changing. Continuing to explore the changing light and mood of a scene to capture more of what it has to offer can result in wonderful images, not imagined at the outset.

silken sunset

Having completed capturing the Chi-Cheemaun ferry arriving and departing Tobermory through a dense fog bank, my reason for venturing into the village one evening, I could have simply packed up and headed back to the cottage. Deciding to stay for whatever developed allowed me to let myself drift into the creative process. Constrained only by how the scene evolved while there was enough light to photograph, I explored compositions cropping in, pulling back wide, and anything between as the sun fell, light dissipated, fog shifted.

Apart from the satisfaction of getting some nice moody images, it was soothing to get into that so often elusive state of creative flow ... to spend more time there *sigh*

DJE

Photo of the Week 2018-08-06

arching

In some locations, weather patterns change quickly and what may not look promising at the outset can turn around to provide dramatic or unique scenes.

Such was the case the other evening when it looked as if sunset was going to fizzle out after showing promise earlier. Making the decision to head out in the kayaks proved the point and I was able to get a wide variety of sunset shots as the cloud rapidly changed over no more than 40 minutes.

I usually target evenings with calm waters, allowing me to work with the reflection of the setting sun and cloud on the smooth surface. While not particularly rough, the bay was far from still as I set out. Some may know that I'm not fully at ease on the water, but it's the ability to capture scenes like this that have me working to expand my comfort zone with each and every outing.

Finding a spot off a point of land where the waves off Lake Huron and their reflections from the far shore were creating a sort of dead area, eddy, I set up and worked to manoeuvre the kayak to obtain the composition I wanted. Trying to keep the scene framed in camera while rolling with the waves is a little like having your buddy constantly bumping you in the shoulder as he talks to you while you try and photograph (except you can't punch him back).  You just have to persevere and keep shooting until you have something you can work with.

Just to take it to another level though, I thought I'd try a hand held panorama, shooting multiple images that would be stitched together later in post. The sky was showcasing an arch formation of clouds that needed wider than my 24mm (equiv.) to get in the frame and I didn't want to miss it. On the first attempt, I managed 7 images rotating as much as I dared in the seat of the kayak without overturning it.

Not a bad result eh?

DJE

Photo of the Week 2018-07-30

Conversation with other creatives is inspiring and rejuvenating, a great way to rekindle the fire and often providing a shot in the creative arm.

So it was recently when a friend dropped in for a visit while in my 'neck of the woods'. She brought along a couple of her travelling companions and we spent an evening reconnecting, getting acquainted and sharing thoughts on a number of subjects, some artistic. At one point, my friend brought up the subject of this blog and was very complimentary regarding my writing (thanks Sheila) and I admitted to her that some of my recent posts were getting short on writing content and I felt I was getting lazy with my posts..

While this blog is mainly about showcasing my photography, it is also a journal of sorts, a collection of  thoughts and experiences from my journey, Our conversation reminded me of this and comments by some who have enjoyed my ramblings. It's been good for me to, so it's time to put time back into the writing aspect for those followers and for me. Those who just want to see my images, well they can just look and don't have to read.

---

This past week I decided to spend some time up north at the cottage by myself, something I'd been looking forward to as the "retirement chapter" of my life opens. Up there It's always easy to slide into a easy pace, even more so I wonderfully found with weekend or vacation confines no longer whispering in the margins.

When fog rolled into the bay in front of the cottage the scene changed constantly, from light mist diffusing the view to the far shore, to a thick fog curtain, sun, then no sun. After watching throughout the latter part of the day and after dinner, I decided to head into the village for the evening arrival of the Chi Cheemaun anticipating I might catch it arriving through a fog bank and that I did, staying until it departed again ... but I found myself compelled to stay even further, to watch and continue photographing as the sun dropped lower and lower behind the bank of fog ... this ended up being the most creatively satisfying part of the shoot.

day into night

Moving along the shore, looking out over the water as the light, colours and reflections morphed as the sun dropped further and further, I shot wide then tight, I framed landscape and then portrait. Always seeking that magical combination and finally I found it, something different that I had initially set out to capture but more.

In retrospect, I am again reminded that the act of getting out to shoot, more often than not, leads from one vision to another and takes me further on this journey.


DJE

Photo of the Week 2018-07-23

A selection of images from my trip to Guatemala last month ... starting off  with this cheeky one of a local street dog in Antigua Guatemala.

Around Every Corner

 

Click here and link to an online gallery of select images from the trip if you are interested in looking at more.

DJE