Legends of the Fall

Enjoyed shooting some vivid early autumn colors this weekend.  To my eyes it seems that we've had a longer shake at this than normal; usually the leaves drop soon after they turn resulting in a fairly bleak pre-winter landscape.

Not so this year.  Or maybe I'm just paying attention this time out.  Had me stopping the car along the side of the road to shoot across the river for a little Seasonal Rorschach action...

...and then pausing to catch some nicely backlit wildgrass along the banks...

Trees in the Exchange District framing some of the architecture...

And even some uber-color uber-close to home...

And another traffic stop - this time on the way to the arena for the now seasonally-ubiquitous ringette practices.  Had to pull over and snap these.  An odd combination on the download with sports action soon to follow.

Was a great way to enjoy some beautiful weekend weather that can turn ugly in a heartbeat this time of year.

No Balls

Gotta enjoy comedy whenever and wherever it presents itself.

More Power

I have no doubt spectators at tonight's girls soccer game were wondering what the hell I was shooting in between halves.  But this power structure formed an interesting graphic against the warm evening sky.  Couldn't help myself.

Memorial

Ottawa.  Catching some air and looking for inspiration.  Unfortunately all I worked was a memorial of war.  The tomb of The Unknown Soldier.

Need to find something bright and lively tomorrow.

Riding Musically

I barely remember how to create a post it's been so long and so erratic.  Still have a backlog of lake and travel shots to process, print, and share.  Anyone interested in dropping a big bag of money at my feet to allow the time for such things?  

Dreams aside we had the opportunity to take in the RCMP Musical Ride last weekend.  It's a pretty cool display of synchronization, timing, and precision.  Difficult to shoot from a fixed position as it moves pretty quick.

Below is a small gallery of images.  Why black & white?  For starters, everyone else saw color; this offers a more distinct look.  Secondly, it gave me more liberties in processing to bring out tones and textures that would like like an acid trip if left in color.  Third, they make for a more unified set in this format.  I just rolled off my last print of this series and they look quite nice together.  I may revisit some of these au naturale in the future but for right now I like them Chromatically Challenged.

Tip for anyone attending this (or similar) event - stay upwind.

Cool Blue

Three days in to the annual lake sojourn and I was finally compelled to grab the rig and shoot. I'm disappointed that I am currently unable to think of something original so at best this is a variation on past themes.

Had a friend's son in tow as he's getting into photography. Above all else was a lesson in patience as this was a 4-minute exposure which came as a surprise to him.

Was cool to have someone so young have the interest. Fitting that this frame is rendered cool as well.

Travelog I: Seattle

June was fairly busy for travel and I did manage to get out and shoot.  And all of that has been languishing on my hard drive since.  Little time to do anything with them.  Starting to peck at it and it appears I'm moving in reverse.  Starting with my most recent trip to beautiful Seattle.  Always enjoy it there.  These were taken during gaps in company meetings.  No rhyme, or reason, or structure.  As usual whatever caught my eye while getting some fresh air.

There was some interesting architecture...

Some interesting people...

Of note with that last one is this was taken at Monorail Espresso downtown.  A fixture among the coffee-mad Seattle community.  It's literally a hole-in-the-wall, walk up service only.  But their espresso is amazing, as is their legendary "Chubby" cookie.  Aptly named.

Some things that have absolutely no relevance but looked cool through my lens...

The view from my room was typical urban jungle, but looking across Union Square (at least that what I think it is, according to Google Maps) one morning the sun slicing through and selectively highlighting the scene was worth a shot.  Or rather several, waiting for the flag to catch a breeze.

And while cool enough it was nice to "trade-up" my view from a mid-level room downtown up to the top of the Space Needle one evening...

This is looking west over the Puget Sound across to the Olympics.  The structure in silhouette at the bottom (I learned afterwards, again via Google Maps) is a shipping station.

And finally, from the peak of the Needle to the grounds below...

The Experience Music Project is a mind-bending structure that could keep a photographer busy for days.  Offers a unique blend of psychedelic visuals.  This would be an amazing place to set up with a heavy ND filter.  Which I brought on this trip but never actually used.

Next up...  Vancouver.