Tag Archives: Outdoors

Photography

When The Mood Is Right

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CameronFalls224

For the type of photographic work that I do, I am reliant on Mother Natures many moods. When everything comes together it sure is a treat. The right lighting, calmness of the wind and also the view that is presented before you. The above composition was located at the bottom of Cameron Falls on the Aux Sauble River North of Massey. The sun was now below the horizon. Darkness was descending quite rapidly. The color and detail of the surrounding rocks was immaculate. The rock structure in the background created a canyon effect. This in turn added immensely to the depth of the photo. With a slow shutter speed I was able to show the water flow of the river. I placed a small part of a rock structure in the foreground that emphasized my theory of flow in flow out. I had to be quick as time was important here with darkness coming on fast.

On of the coolest things is to be standing there and watch as the changing lighting effects your surrounds. The colors take on a more vibrant look. Detail becomes more pronounced.  Then there is total darkness as if a switch has been pulled. The golden moment of light. Thank you Mother Nature.

While that is it for now. Until next time happy trails

Photography

The Power Of Rock

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BassfinLake_2491

One of my favorite lakes last year was Bassfin Lake on Matagamasi Lake Road. This lake has unique rock structures along its shoreline that makes for great photographing. The rock formations are quite colorful in that you have pink and a very strong reddish color. If you wait until dusk that reddish color really stands out. The above photo was taken in a back bay on the West end of the Bassfin Lake. The wind had now calmed down with the approach of dusk.

I was situated on a small rock island. I set the tripod up low to the ground. The reason for this was to eliminate the expanse of water before me. I wanted to show the detail of the rock in front of me. The angle of this rock drops from top to bottom. By doing this I am able to tie in the composition with the reflections on the water. There is a bit of sparse vegetation to break up the rock color. The other thing is the beautiful rusty red colored rock that makes this unique. There is just enough sky to give a hint of dusk. So with my Canon 7D, I captured this lovely composition.

I live in a country of rock, trees and water. It is just wonderful to be a part of it and to be able to capture these special moments. While that is it for now. Thank you for stopping by. My hope is that I can give you peace of mind when you observe my work. So until next time happy trails.

Photography

A Quiet Place To Be

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DavidLake_12x44a

This is a scene I captured at David Lake, Killarney Provincial Park. The clouds were fast moving here. The wind was kicking up a fuss here and there. It was one of those trips where  photographing was very sporadic. On the left is a point of land that I placed to the left of my composition. A small rock outcrop in the front adds a sense of depth. Two rock islands with vegetation in the middle ground. Then in the background is the far shore that is just starting to show Fall colors. The sun is rising at the far left corner.

There is a touch of mist on the lake’s surface for added affect. The reflections tie in the composition nicely. This is a place where one could sit on a rock by the shore and enjoy a morning coffee. At the same time absorbing the surrounding landscape.  A few minutes later the wind picked up and the effect was gone.

Well that is it for now. Until next time happy trails.

Photography

Something Unique

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_MG_2984_

Walking the beaches at Pukaskwa National Park on an August evening 2013 turned up some interesting subject matter. With the lowering sun creating warm and interesting lighting on the surrounding landscape. I came across this  rock just out from the beach. The waning sunlight brought out the colors on this particular rock along with the intricate patterns on the rock surface. The constant pounding and flow of water over this rock creates smoothness and patterns. The water was not calm that evening. But with the lowering light comes slower shutter speeds to give that dreamy effect of the flowing water. You can see the light touching the back right corner of the rock bringing out the colors. These are the little things that I look for when looking for subject material.

Photography

Ice And Rock

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GrundyProPark_ClearLake_0097

This composition was taken on my last trip into Grundy Provincial Park. Maureen and I had walked in from the main gate. The hike to Clear Lake that afternoon was very enjoyable. The temperature was warm enough to be comfortable. Clear Lake had ice forming on the surface here and there. The above location was  the South shoreline of Clear Lake. The rock structure along here was unique for its patterns. The vegetation was a rustic color. The ice had patterns. The ice in the foreground had blue reflection from the sky.

2014 3rdAnnual “Seasons” Art Competition

http://www.lightspacetime.com/seasons-art-exhibition-january-2014/

The gallery received 399 entries from 13 different countries from around the world, including Australia, Canada, France, Hungary, India, Italy, Ireland, Kazakhstan, Netherlands, New Zealand, Spain, Switzerland, United Kingdom and Ukraine.  In addition, the gallery received entries from 31 different states.

My placings as follows.

Overall Winning Artists Category – The overall winning artist’s category consists of the 10 Best Entries received from the Painting & Other and Photography & Digital categories.

4th place finish.

The Photography & Digital Category

2nd place finish

Special recognition

Happy New Year to everyone. Until next time happy trails.

Photography

Among The Pines

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ParadiseLagoon_2077

As I drove along the Matagamasi Road, a swampy pond was soon sighted. There was a gentle slopping hill in the background. A growth of young Pine trees covered the hillside. The vegetation on the forest floor was in the early stages of decay. Fall was in full swing. It was a cloudy day with a stillness in the air. It had rained the night before. The Pine trunks had a starkness to them. The earth tone colors consisted of greens, yellows, reddish brown to shades of grey. There was a sense of tranquility about this scene. There was the softness  to the earth tone colors. A feeling of peacefulness and placidity to be had.

I set up my tripod in my selected location. I had to shoot across a small body of water. I fastened my Canon EOS 7D to the ball head. I set up the camera for a vertical shot. Thus I would be in harmony with the vertical Pine trunks. There were two objects here that appeared to me. The small outcrop of rocks. The rustic reddish-brown of the ferns. With that in mind, I placed two Pine trees in the foreground. The Pine needles in the upper left greatly added to the depth. The small rock outcrop was now in the middle to offset some color as well as more depth to the scene. The Fall turned colors of the fern circling the larger Pine tree in the background create that added touch.

This is a scene created to give that sense of restfulness and harmony to be viewed upon after a chaotic day. A day in the woods brings a sense of peacefulness and solitude. This is the quiet side of Mother Nature. The majority of my work is meant to create those moments for people to view.

Christmas is over. My wife and I had a great Christmas with my youngest grand kids,   2,4,6. So until next time happy trails.

Photography

The Creative Side of Me

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CameronFalls0019

You take a small waterfalls. Then some lovely textured rocks. Wait for the right lighting. Shoot from a low angle to give the waterfalls the illusion of height. You then can create a magic and mystical place. Yet all in all this scene is only three feet high, depth about six feet and maybe five feet wide. There is not a whole lot of water cascading over the rocks. Thus a shutter speed of one second and the f-stop set at 22 for that added depth. Looking at this photo, you say to yourself, wow I would love to sit on those rocks to let the water cascade over and around me. But you will discover that you are bigger than the scene. This is what I call a micro landscape. Many scenes can be found within the big picture. In this location we have a large waterfall with water flowing where ever there is a path to follow. This is due to the erosion of the rock formation over time. At this particular waterfall the water drops in a series of drops. So you have your main waterfalls along with a host of mini waterfalls to work with. You wait till late summer for the water flow to decrease and expose more of the rock structures.

When shooting this close you will discover the intricate detail in the rocks. Depth is very important here to give the scene some dimension front to back. Another important factor is to shoot the waterfalls at an angle, not dead on. This allows you to create more dimensional depth to the waterfalls. Remember your photo is two dimensional, thus you need to give the illusion of three dimensional.Nature provides the material. It is up to you to make it happen. This is also a scene that requires the right lighting. Be able to recognize that. Be patient and wait. Enjoy the environment and then you may get your chance.

I would like to wish all my friends who come here for a visit a very Merry Christmas and be safe. So until next time happy trails.

Photography

A Collection of Rocks

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Killbear_2861

Exploring the Georgian Bay shoreline in Killbear Provincial Park on a cool Fall evening, a series of small rocks appeared before me. I thought now this would make an interesting composition. The rocks were of different color and texture. The sloping rocky points in background gave depth along with added color. It was still early evening and I decided to keep on exploring. I would return later when the lighting would be much improved.

Returning just after the sun had lowered to the horizon, the above scene was captured with much warmer lighting to enhance the color of the rock structures. I set my tripod up very low. I was on my knees to get the effect I wanted. With a slower shutter speed I was able to smooth out the water to a nice pleasing ripple. The setting sun created a nice yellow glow on the water. The lichen scattered on the slopping rock adds a nice touch. It is all the little things that add up to a good composition. This is a place to just sit and relax to enjoy the view before you before darkness sets in.

I would like to share with you the work of Carole Rodrigue. Carole is  a still life artist specializing in contemporary realism. She is a proud member of the International Guild of Realism.

To view still life art at its best, check out Carole’s Facebook page.

https://www.facebook.com/CaroleRodrigueartist

It is getting cold in my part of the country. Christmas is coming. I have to get my Christmas shopping done. I am working on another book to be published next year. I have been accepted at the American Juried Art Salon’s 19th International Art Contest. One of my photos received a perfect score. More to come later.

For that unique Christmas gift check out my Fine Art Print Page.

https://kenben.org/fine-art-prints/

Or maybe a book of photos and poetry of Northern Ontario wilderness.

https://kenben.org/books-2/

Thank you for stopping in. Until next time happy trails

Photography

Killbear Provincial Park – West End

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Killbear_2900

 

The above photo was taken on my last trip to Killbear Provincial Park. I had been exploring the West end of the park when I came across the scene above. It was just a matter of waiting for dusk to come. This is a tight shot going to infinity. I wanted to emphasis the boulders here. There is a touch of Fall to be seen in the trees flowing down to the water. The background has beautiful color from the setting sun to give a nice touch to the clouds. There is a tremendous detail to be found in these boulders.

Photography

Getting In Tight

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ChutesProvincialPark_2695

The flow of water. Unique rock structure with strong earth colors. Ferns turning a rusty red in the bottom left. Touch of red from a Maple shrub in bottom right corner. This all adds up to a beautiful composition. I came across this scene on my Fall trip to Chutes Provincial Park, just North of Massey, Ontario. As a matter of fact, I first discovered it on my original trip along this stretch of the Aux Sable River a few years back. The passing of time alters a scene.

This is a very tight composition. It allows for more creativity. You have water flowing in, then flowing out at bottom right. I maintained my f22 with shutter speeds set at 1.3 sec. This allowed me to capture detail in the water. That is very important to me as I like water to have character and life.

Check my Fine Art Prints section. I have added a new composition to the selections. It is titled Paradise Lagoon. I received an honorable mention at the 2013 Landscape Exhibition by MyArtContest

http://myartcontest.com/index.html

This is a very beautiful location. The water is turquoise blue. There are a series of waterfalls in an approximately half mile of river.  It is located North of Sudbury, Ontario in the Wolf Mountain, Wolf Lake locality. If you are looking for an unique composition to hang on your wall, this could be it.

I would like to bring to your attention the outstanding work of wildlife and pet portrait artist Colette Theriault. Colette has won many awards for her work. She resides in the Greater City of Sudbury. Check her website to view her work.

http://www.colettetheriault.com/

I will be at the Annual Christmas and Gift Show this weekend. It is located at Confederation Secondary School in Val Caron.

Saturday from 10 to 4

Sunday from 11 to 3

Well I must go and continuing packing. Thanks for stopping by. Until next time happy trails