Always Darkest Before Dawn

As I continue my little trip through the archives during this little period of everything being closed, I found this photograph in the same folder as the 'Lockdown' photos of our last update  They shouldn't be far down the page, but feel free to follow the link to see it.  A nice sunny blue sky is fine to look at, but I've always been drawn to the bright lights of the big city.  The 'big city' in question is going through a tough time right now, so how about a little reminder of how good looking it can be.  I took this photograph from the observation deck on the Jacques Cartier Bridge.  The photograph was taken at f/20, 20sec, ISO 100 at 68mm.  Patience is necessary when taking photographs on a busy bridge.  You have to wait and make sure that there are no big trucks about to pass by as they made the deck I was standing on shake quite a bit.  Patience is also key in these times, but like a series of rumbling 18-wheelers, this too shall pass.

Before The Big Bang

Our little trip through the archives continues with this little photograph taken a while back.  Long time followers of the blog know that I've been photographing the annual fireworks displays over Montreal for several years now.  Going back to before the creation of the blog even.  In order to get a good clear view, I often show up a couple of hours before the explosions begin in order to get the spot that I want.  Once set up, I periodically snap off a photograph or two while waiting for the big bangs to begin.  About a half hour before the show begins there is often a test shot that goes off, with a second one shortly afterwards.  Knowing this, I kept my eyes on the sky, waiting for the first test shot so that I would be ready to get the second.  My timing was perfect on this one as not only did I get the explosion, but the little fire trail as well.  The photograph was taken at f/14, 20sec, ISO 100 at 43mm.  If you'd like to see the photographs of the fireworks that came later, just follow the link.

Lockdown

We're into the second week of forced quarantine in this part of the world.  It is estimated that about 80% of the population is on lockdown.  Which reminded me of a couple of photographs that I took a few years back and were hanging around in the archives.  These were taken during an evening walk on the Jacques Cartier Bridge.  I had wanted to take a photograph of the light steaks of the passing cars going through the superstructure portion of the bridge.  Feel free to go back in time to visit that photo by following the link.  As I was walking back, I noticed how the lights from the bridge were glowing against the bars and creating some ominous looking shadow.  Like something out a film noir movie of the 1940's and 50's.  With the bars overhead and the harsh lights, it really felt light walking through a cell block...not that I would know the feeling personally. Both photographs were taken at f/2.8, 1/13sec, ISO 1600 at 24mm.  If I could go back in time I'd probably use a smaller ISO and smaller aperture.  I know that I had a tripod with me because it would have been impossible to get the shot of the streaking car lights without one.  It must have been one of those times when I adjusted my ISO to try something and then forgot to put it back.

Pretty In Pink

The arrival of Spring is usually met with a great deal of fanfare.  A chance to look forward to warmer times as we shake off the last of the Winter cold.  This has taken a bit of a backseat this year as the planet deals with something a little stronger than a winter chill.  Seems like a good time to remember why I enjoy the Spring.  I'm a big fan of flowers as I love their bright colours and interesting shapes.  They tend to make interesting photographs, and excellent models as you can pretty much move them around at will with nary a complaint.  This little fella was photographed in my Mom's garden a few years back and was dug out of the archives to try and bring a little colour to these grey days.  The photograph was taken at f/8, 1/250sec, ISO 100 at 60mm while using a macro lens.  Hang in there, some more colourful days are hopefully just around the corner.

Back To The Future

It's a kind of interesting time right now.  Everything is shut down as the planet deals with the virus that's going around.  As I watch the world go by from the comfy window seat of my couch, I figured I'd take a dip into the deep end of my archives.  I found this guy in a folder dated 2015, so I guess after 5 years of waiting, it was time to play with it a bit.  I cropped to a nice wide format in order to get as much of the downtown skyscrappers into my shot as possible.  There are even a couple more that have sprouted up since I took the photograph.  It was taken at f/5, 1/250sec, ISO 100 at 55mm.  There are still lots of photographs floating around in the archives, seems like this might be a good time to dig some of them out.

Pi(e) Day

While the world is going  little bit crazy right now, how about we all calm down for a minute and have some dessert.  Today is March 14th, and in math circles it is Pi Day.  Pi being one of those never ending numbers from math class to measure the circumference of a circle, but the first three numbers are 3.14, thus the reason why it is celebrated on March 14th.  I don't have any numbers to photograph at the moment, so I figured this tasty creation My Lovely Assistant would fill the void.  It certainly filled our tummies.  She always tells me that I spend more time photographing her creations than she does making them, and that is probably true.  She has some good presentation ideas too.  It was her who though that adding the apples to the photograph would be appropriate and a good use of the empty space.  She know what she speaks of.  The photograph was taken at f/6.3, 1/200sec, ISO 100 at 50mm with some flash bounced off of the ceiling to get some better light.  It was also cooked in the oven, but for any more cooking information, you'll have to convince My Lovely Assistant to open her own cooking blog.  Maybe one day.  I hear she knows a good photographer.

Cotton Candy Clouds

It was kind of a grey day so I decided to take a little stroll through the old archives to see if I could find a little bit of colour.  That's when I stumbled upon this photograph of a sunset that I took last Spring.  This photograph was taken a few minutes after a photograph that I featured here last year and which got a little bit of publicity thanks to CTV Weather Specialist Lori Graham and the La Presse newspaper.  While you're here, click the link to check it out.  I was happy with the orange glow of the original, but I hoped that the clouds would get a little colour on them as well.  They didn't quite get as red as I had hoped, but the little bit of colour that was added did give them a kind of cotton candy look.  The photograph was taken at f/5, 1/200sec, ISO 100 at 70mm.  I always stick around my shooting site a little bit after I've taken a photograph.  If I may speak photographically, you never know what might develop.