Bernard's View

Here is a shot that I guess would qualify as the MVP of my recent photography exhibition.  I took it this past July during the annual La Ronde Fireworks Competition.  It's also a shot that has a fun story to it.  One of my "photography hero's" is Bernard Brault, who is a photographer for the La Presse newspaper in Montreal.  I first started to follow his work during the 2008 Summer Olympic Games as he had a daily photography journal featuring shots he took not only during the Games, but also regular shots he had taken during the day, complete with the information about what camera settings he had used.  It was a daily must read for me.  Two years ago, he took a photograph of the La Ronde Fireworks to mention how the latest competition was beginning and I immediately realized that I live about five minutes from where the shot had been taken.  It became my mission to get out there and try to take a similar photograph.  I had to wait a year as the pedestrian bridge where this photo was taken was closed for repairs, and then I had to return three times this year because my first attempt was marred by the smoke from the fireworks being blown in my direction.  The second attempt was ruined by strong winds that kept causing my camera to move, but finally, the third time was the charm.  This shot was taken at f/14, 11sec. at ISO 100 at 140mm.  I also cropped the final image to make everything a little more tight.  I personally love the fireworks in the sky above and the light streaks left by the passing cars below, but I was surprised to learn from people who bought this photo that they also liked the street signs as much as anything else as they reminded them of familiar locations.  While trying to come up with titles for my photographs to be used during the exhibition, I felt it was natural to name this one after the man who has not only helped me to learn more about photography, but someone who's work I enjoy as well.

Frelighsburgh Treasure

As I've already mentioned, I have family who live in the region of Quebec known as the Eastern Townships.  I head down there every once in a while to visit, and sometimes I stumble upon something really cool to photograph.  This isn't really one of those times as I knew that I was going to be invited to take pictures inside of the Bishop Stewart Memorial Church of the Holy Trinity.  I came upon this good fortune thanks to my father's cousin, Geraldine, who was also nice enough to purchase one of my photos during my recent exposition.  She and her husband, Norman, have the keys to this wonderful building.  Originally built in 1808 and then reconstructed in 1884, this church is decorated by several wonderful stained glass windows, which when the sun shines onto them, give off unique reflections all over the interior of the church.  It was a great honour to walk inside of the building as it also holds much significance to my own family as my Grandfather had been baptized there.  It was quite dark inside of the building as the only light inside came from the sun coming through the stained glass windows as I had asked that all of the interior lights be closed. I didn't want to have the interior lights get in the way of the reflections.  As a result, that meant we'd be using low f-stops and a higher ISO.  Ofcourse, having mentioned that I now get to say that the first photograph was shot at ISO 100, but also at f/2.8 for 1/60 sec while at 24mm.  There was still enough light coming into the church to allow me to keep the ISO at 100.  I wanted to capture how sharp the light being reflected from the stained glass windows was against the brick walls of the building.  I got up real close, focused on a nice pattern and then backed up just enough to catch the reflection.  The second shot presented here was also shot at ISO 100, though I assure you that I did use ISO 400 and all the way up to ISO 1600 over the course of the afternoon.  To complete the necessary information, the second photograph was shot at f/2.8, 1/50 sec at ISO 100 while at 24mm.  For this one, I really liked the image of the stained glass window behind the cross which was on the ceremonial table.  By focusing on the cross, but exposing for the window, the cross becomes a darkened silhouette while the window becomes very soft due to the focus being on the cross and my chosen aperture.  I was kind of taking a chance because it is not recommended to shoot handheld at anything past 1/80 sec. as there is the good chance to camera shake causing problems for your photos, but I guess the Big Guy above approved of my being there.  The third photo was taken at f/20 with an exposure time of 1sec. at ISO 100.  The sun was still kind of bright at that point and I wanted to capture not only the stained glass window, but the reflection it was casting on the old wooden roof.  I took no chances with camera shake on this one, I made sure to use my tripod.  I'm going to continue working on some of the shots I took while there on Friday and you'll probably be seeing more shots over the coming weeks.  I'm starting to build up a good stock of fresh photos which should help me to keep things fresh here over the coming winter months when I head out less often.  I also hope to have the good fortune to visit this church again in the future.  Thanks, Norman & Geraldine.

***UPDATE 1/13/2013

I recently learned of the failing health of a family member who found this site and my work through the above pictures I had taken of the Bishop Stewart Memorial Church of the Holy Trinity in Frelighsburgh, QC.  In her honour, I'd like to post another picture from my day at the church as she continues her fight against a terrible disease.  Through family connections, I learned that we may have actually met while I was younger, but that was many years ago.  This shot was taken at f/2.8, 1/50sec, ISO 100 at 24mm.  My thoughts are with her and her family.

Five For The Price Of One

 I'm not the biggest fan of Photoshop, though I'm also not against the use of it either.  When it comes to photography, I try to adhere to the words of my professor as much as possible.  "If you get it right in the camera, you don't have to waste time at your desk."  Words to live by.  However, when it does come to using Photoshop, I generally stick to two different functions.  Levels and Cropping.  I don't really even use the Levels function all that much as a) I have more trouble with it than I do success, and b) it doesn't always improve the photograph.  Cropping, though, is a whole other story.  Sometimes due to either location issues or not having the right lens with you, cropping becomes a great tool in turning a regular photo into something much more interesting.  By the way, 'not having the right lens with you' is never a good excuse.  That's why back rubs were invented.  The first key in order to do successful cropping involves making sure that the original file you're going to be cropping is large enough to survive the procedure.  Whenever I shoot, I make sure that my camera is set to the highest possible quality.  In the case of my Canon 30D, that's 3504pixels x 2336pixels. By photographing at such a large size, you can freely crop away without any fear of losing picture quality.  Personally, this frees me up to take pictures from a location where I can't get close enough either physically or with the help of a lens.  Such was the case here as the original shot was taken at then end of a bicycle path on a wooden dock.  So, here are five photographs to try and help me show you what I mean.  The first photograph is the original image.  It was taken at f/7.1, 15sec. ISO 100 at 70mm.  I'm not going to lie, I like the original photo on it's own, but I also knew that once I got it home and on the computer, I'd be able to cut out a few different views from this one.  I generally try and stick with a crop of 2"x3" as it's the regular size that will allow me to print at 4"x6" or 8"x12" without losing anything from the image.  However, I've recently started trying to crop my images at other sizes, and had success with the 20"x8" crop of Montreal that was shown at my recent exhibition.  This photograph seemed like the perfect candidate to try a similar crop.  When all is said and done, I managed to create four different photographs from one original shot.

Lest We Forget

Remembrance Day has always been important to me as I feel it is important to remember the sacrifices made by soldiers and their families over the years.  My family was fortunate to have not lost any members in battle, but my Grandfather and several other members of my family did serve in World War II.  I took this photograph a bit before the service held in Mercille Park, Saint-Lambert.  There were several photographs being taken, and one day I hope to have the courage to actually go up to the front of the cenotaph to photograph the placing of the wreaths, as one such photographer did.  However, I'm not there yet as I find that particular moment of the ceremony to be a bit to sacred to have Eric Mahannah standing front and center.  Seems like that photo would be better served getting with a telephoto lens to me.  In any event, this shot was taken at f/14, 1/80sec. at ISO 100.  I also shot this photo in full Manual mode which is a change for me as I try and shoot in AV mode as much as possible.  However, the camera AEB was jammed at -1 whenever I tried to shoot in AV, so I was happy that I was able to adjust.  Ofcourse, as soon as I got home the problem cleared up.  Be sure to take a moment to think about those who sacrificed their lives today and thank a veteran whenever possible.  It's thanks to them that we enjoy the freedom we have today.

It's Just A Suggestion

The show is over and it's time to dust off the old tripod and camera.  Back to getting on the road and taking some pictures.  I had the idea for this shot a few weeks back, but I originally wanted to use a speed limit sign that had a relatively low speed, like 30 KM/H.  Problem was, I couldn't find any such signs that were positioned low enough for me to catch the light streaks of the passing cars.  Then, when I was out this evening with plans for taking another photograph, this opportunity caught my eye.  Funny how often that seems to happen.  This stop sign is actually on a bicycle path, meaning it is positioned lower than regular stop signs.  As a result, the sign was low enough for me to accomplish my goal of finding a seemingly ignored road sign as the passing light streaks make it look like nobody is bothering to stop at all.  It's actually better off that this was a bicycle path sign as there were no excess light bumps from the cars actually having to stop.  This image was shot at f/8 for 31secs. at ISO 100 using a focal length of 40mm.  I'm also glad to report that I didn't cause any accidents while taking this photograph, which is quite the accomplishment considering all of the turned heads I caused from curious drivers who were passing by.  I was even stopped by a curious onlooker who seemed quite impressed when I showed him one of the many shots I took during this session.  I hope that some of you out there are too.

Come On Down...For The Last Time

Sadly, my month long exhibition at the Greenfield Park Library is coming to an end.  Your last chance to see my photographs will be this coming Tuesday, November the 6th as they will be gone the next day as I make way for another talented artist.  For those of you who haven't had the chance to visit and would like to have the full experience of a guided tour by yours truly, you're in luck.  On Sunday, November 4th from 2:00PM - 4:00PM I'll be at the library for anyone who wishes to stop by say hello.  Feel free to stop by and chat, though in a low voice (we are in a library after all).