Tag Archives: Reflections

Photography, Poetry

Sitting on a Moss Covered Rock

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Superior_2064

 

 

 

 

Sitting on a moss covered rock

Surrounded by Black Spruce

Squashing a skeet now and then

The pesky critters would dive-bomb

To sting the back of my neck

 

A well beaten moose trail

Traverses the swamp edge

A scene of stillness

The open water quiet and benign

The ghostly dance of mist

Transforms the summer morning

 

The sun not yet risen

A channel leads one’s eye

To the far hills

The Black Spruce dark and ominous

At the shore’s edge

Protruding rocks break the shoreline

A cliff rises in the channel

 

The sun’s rays slowly creep

Over the shadowed land

Light filters through the mist

The far hills unfold

In the morning light

Fingers of light creep

Through the dark shadows

 

The mist is still swirling

A pair of Loons appear

Dark shapes in the mist

The warmth of the morning sunlight

Chasing the night shadows before it

The mist now dissipating

Exposing the Boreal Forest

 

Rising from my moss covered  rock

I quietly trudged  up the hill

With one last look

As I crested the hill

Another memory to preserve

Photography

Wolf Lake Part 4

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WolfLake_1440

 

Monday morning dawned with no photo opportunities available.  Toasting bagels for breakfast with a steaming cup of coffee sure started the day right. It was a relaxing morning. But all good things come to an end. Thus we packed up, loaded the canoe and made our way to the landing. Pulling up on shore a young couple pulled in behind us. Tim and I quickly unloaded to give them room to pull in. This was a young couple hailing all the way from Pennsylvania USA. They were on a one week canoe trip here. The  lad had ripped his knee open on the rocks somewhere. He was toughen it out though. Tim and I soon had my Ford Escape loaded with the canoe tied down. Before long we  where  at Highway 17E . Tim loaded his gear into his SUV. Shaking hands and saying our goodbyes we parted once again. A great trip. I told Tim I was stopping at the first Tim Horton’s for lunch.

I ordered a soup and chicken salad sandwich.  As I was busy eating my lunch, I noticed Tim standing there with a very worried look on his face. Tim asked me if I had seen his camera bag in my Escape. Saying no, I headed out to check. We were worried that the camera might be back at Wolf Lake. A quick search did not reveal his camera bag. Tim then checked his backpack and there was his camera bag. So all ended well and we parted once again.

I first saw this scene from our campsite. I love it when you can find side lighting as such. It  adds such magic to a composition. What you really have to watch here is that you do not blow out the highlights on the rocks. With the rocks a light grey and the lighting being a little harsh this can happen.

This concludes my first trip into Wolf Lake. It was very enjoyable. I hope to be back soon. So until next time happy trails.

Photography

Wolf Lake Part 3

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WolfLake_1367

 

With breakfast over and drinking tea made with blueberry leaves and a couple cut up strawberries, the canoe was soon gliding over the calm waters. We headed towards the landing. Tim and I had decided the evening before to haul the canoe over into Dewdney Lake for some bass fishing. I walked to the truck for our fishing gear. I saw a bag that had spices in it. Opening it I spotted the coffee and tea there. Wow that was so good.  Launching the canoe, slowly paddling the shorelines we were soon casting our fishing lines towards shore. In the process we caught and released 30 to 40 Smallmouth Bass. Most were not of any size, but a pleasant diversion for the day. After a couple hours it was time to head to shore for lunch. There was not much wind and it was getting hot. Tim commented that the sun was getting to him and I was beginning to have a headache. Not to complicate things we headed back to camp. At the campsite I laid down in the tent for a nap while Tim went for a swim. When I woke up and met Tim at our chairs we both had cooled down. Tim spoke about how cold the water was and as he dove deeper it got colder.

Evening arrived and photographic wise you could not ask for better. The wind became calm, lighting became great, just an awesome time for a photographer. We set up among the islands to capture the compositions. The one above is one of the results. Finally the wind came back, but that was okay as it was becoming dark and time to head back to camp.

Photography

Wolf Lake

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WolfLake_1345

 

I met my cousin Tim Bennison at the Kukagami Lake turn off at 8:00 am Saturday morning. While I was waiting for Tim I was able to have a good discussion  with a local gentleman who has spent his whole life in this part of the country. We talked about Wolf Lake and surrounding lakes in the area. He mentioned travelling with his grandfather to the various lakes as a kid. We spoke about the damage that Inco and Falconbridge  had done to the lakes back in the fifties with the acid rain. He confirmed to me that Wolf and Sylvester Lake were now fish sanctuaries. The MNR have planted Lake Trout in these two lakes over the past two years.

With Tim’s gear now loaded into my Ford Escape, we were soon heading North to Wolf Lake. Upon arrival we soon discovered that Wolf Lake is a popular destination for canoeing and camping. As a matter of fact there were even a number of American folks here. A couple of older gentlemen were hauling there gear to the road. We managed to have a chat. They told us where they had been camping. With that in mind we waited until they were finished hauling there gear up. Tim and I began unloading and carrying our own gear down to the lake. It is about 100 foot trip to the lake shore. Pretty easy compared to what we usually do. Heading out on the lake surface we certainly had an awesome view before us. Lots of rock structures and small islands. A spattering of cliff faces. Very nice. The rocks are light grey in color that really glow in the low light.

We headed the canoe across the lake to were the parting gentlemen told us that they had camped. Beaching the canoe in a shallow indent on the far shore, we walked the trail up to the campsite. This turned out to be a wonderful location with a gorgeous view over the lake. We were to be camped on a low ridge over looking the lake. I will take a moment to tell you how clean this campsite  was. There was no garbage to be found anywhere. For an unsupervised area this has to be impressive. The campsite and trails are very well used. Which would mean a lot of campers come here. We discovered the boom box behind the campsite. It was in very good shape. All in all you can not ask for better. I have been at other lakes where the garbage is slewing everywhere. So hats off to the many people that travel here. Keep our wilderness clean.

I will continue this journey in my next blog. It has been a long day. So until next time happy trails.

 

 

Photography, Poetry

Early Summer

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_MG_6861_1180

 

It is early summer

In the Northern wilderness

Of the Boreal forest

A clear blue sky

Not a cloud in sight

The sun is descending

On a quiet evening

 

A small swampy lake

Surrounded by Black Spruce

That are stunted and dense

The lake shoreline abounds

With white clustered flowers

Of the Labrador Tea

 

Cup shaped yellow lilies

Perched on long stems

Above the lake surface

Are found in clusters

In the shadow lake

Two quaint  islands dot

The lake’s South end

A beaver house hugs

The smaller island

 

Dragonflies skim the surface

Feeding on the mosquitoes

That are abundant here

Small birds hurry everywhere

Feeding just hatched young

A small sparrow alights

On a grey branch

A momentary perch

Before arisen to flight

 

A Wood Duck hen

Glides along the shoreline

Then rises in flight

Landing near the far shore

 

A Ringed-Billed hen

A rich brown coloration

Appears from a cove

Soon joined by its mate

Gleaming black, grey, white

In the evening light

She dives from sight

While the alert male

Keeps a constant watch

As the hen feeds

They have soon passed from sight

 

A bull moose emerges

From the forest shadows

Its antlers flattened and tined

Are covered in velvet

To stand knee deep

In the calm waters

Eating submerged aquatic plants

The shadows are becoming long

The sun behind the western horizon

The lake is reflectively calm

Darkness descends upon the land

 

I spent a wonderful evening along the shores of a lake in Lake Superior Provincial Park. Just sitting there observing life happening around me.

 

Until next time happy trails.

Photography

A Unique Rock

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BassfinLake_1013

My daughter Maryjean and I spent  last Sunday evening canoeing Bassfin Lake, off the Matagamasi Lake Road. She fished and I photographed. The bugs were there, thus requiring a bug jacket. The wind was here and there. Never totally calming down. I was dropped off on the largest island on the lake. As I walked the shoreline, I spotted this reddish colored rock in the shallow waters. It was ringed with Pine pollen. It has a face effect to it. The blue water gave me good contrast with the reddish rock. You can just observe the lake bottom on the left side of the photo. I utilized the water vegetation to create the odd number of objects.

It was a nice evening canoeing and photographing. It was a fitting way to finish off Father’ Day with my daughter enjoying a couple hours outdoors. I am off to Lake Superior Provincial Park for a week of photographing. So until next time, happy trails

Photography, Poetry

Art by Nature

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Killarney_0553

 

The forest in shadow

Beside a small lake

On a Spring morning

Dawn is now breaking

The sky is brighter

A trickling of sunlight

Coming unexpectedly

Through the dark  Pines

Edging the boughs gold

The rippled lake surface

Creates a colorful abstract

Of gold, green and black

Of the forest reflection

A dazzling array of color

Radiant before your eyes

Mother Nature’s own art

For those who see

Soon lost in time

 

We can be totally overwhelmed by the grand scene before us.But if you were to look within that scene, you will find small things happening around you. The lighting is ever changing. Look for the small details of what that lighting is doing. Many times I have gone out to photograph a scene and as I am capturing that composition  my eyes pick up on another possibility. Train your eyes to be constantly on the move. Lighting is fickle. So be prepared to work quickly. Make light and shadow work for you.

That is all for now. Until next time happy trails

 

Photography

Creating Depth

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GordonChutes_0252

 

This composition is about combining rocks with with water to create depth. By using rocks in the foreground, middle ground and a waterfalls in the background I was able to achieve the effect I was looking for. The rocks have a variety of color along with the ever present lichen found on the rocks. Using a slow shutter speed creates patterns in the water for the eye to follow. There is some greenery to add a little more contrast. Another important factor is the time of year and the volume of water flowing has a big impact on what type of composition you will get.

Sitting by flowing water is about listening to the flow of water around you and the sense of peacefulness. That is what I attempted to capture when I shot this photo.

That is it for now. Happy Mother’s Day to all the wonderful Mothers out there. May your day be great. So Until next time happy trails.

Photography

Morning at Cave Lake

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CaveLake_5651

 

On my trip to Cave Lake I had hiked there on my own. I spent the night in my tent alone. It actually went better than I expected. A person seems to develop acute hearing during the night and I am deaf. You can start hearing sounds that are real or imaginary. But all in all I survived the night. I woke up to a beautiful morning with the local black fly population waiting for me. They were thick.

Walking along the shoreline I came across this small rock point jutting out into the lake. There were no clouds in the sky as per usual. I set up my tripod and Canon 7D to place the rock point to the right in my composition. By chosen to have the rock point angled to the center of my composition you can get more of a 3D  effect in your work. It also allowed me to eliminate some of the lake surface.  I showed just a touch of shoreline in the foreground bottom right. There were some small rocks and grass there. The small rocks allowed for a comparison of boulder size in relationship to the rock point. There is a lot of detail in the rock structures to be found. The reflections allow for an almost 3D effect of the rock point. There is a piece of broken wood on the rock edge for added interest. The green vegetation breaks up the rock color for a better appeal.

I was able to have the far treeline angle down into the center of the composition from the top left. I kept the sky to a minimum here. You can notice the fresh green of the Maples among the evergreens. You get this effect well into June. This gives you various shades of green for better contrast. One of the things you have to be aware of is that you have to disturb the blackflies in front of your lense. If not you can get a nice looking blurry spot on your photo.

Well that is all for now. So until next time happy trails.

Photography

Cave Lake, Killarney Provincial Park

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CaveLake_5635

The above scene was taken at Cave Lake, Killarney Provincial Park. This was the only trip I had made so far. It requires about a 2 hour hike to reach with two campsites available. I hiked here in June of 2012. The bugs were very bad. Mosquitoes on the rampage in the evening, then dawn I was assaulted by Blackflies. This is not a big lake. The East shoreline is completely forest covered. It appears to be fairly good incline from the top of the La Cloche Range to Cave Lakes water edge. But there is a small section of rock protruding among the evergreens down to the water’s edge. The neat thing about it was that when the lake’s surface calmed, you would swear there was a cave at the base.

This was a dawn shot that I composed. I put some rock surface in the foreground to eliminate so of the water and to add depth. There is some green vegetation in the bottom right corner. Very nice detail of lichen on the rock surface. At this time of year everything is fresh looking. There are some Pine boughs along the edges to add more depth. I wanted to create the feeling that you are standing on that rock and looking towards that hole in the rock on the far shore. With the dense forest across the way there is a combination of low morning like striking the evergreens plus the lighter green of new growth. This will give you beautiful contrast and effect. Plus this is all reflected into the water.

CaveLake_5644

I created a close up shot of that rock structure and was rewarded with the tiered effect going diagonally to the water. An interesting bent Pine is growing on the bottom part of the ridge. Now we can get a better view of the cave effect. Again utilizing the low early morning light and new growth for contrast and break up the all green effect.

Well that is it for this time. So until next time happy trails