Content-Rich Update

Technology is great when it works, isn't it? This post was long overdue a few days ago, and some of the excuses are good excuses, while others are pretty weak. The last delay though was technologically related. It always seems that when something is working just fine and I am satisfied with it, that's when something goes wrong and upgrading or replacing is necessitated. Maybe a new C drive and a bit more RAM is in order before this perfectly fine computer decides to bite it to the point that it needs replacing. But, I digress.

This is going to be one photo-intensive post and I won't waste your time with long-winded stories. Maybe just a sentence or two for each one.

 

  Family by Diefenbaker Centre by Jay Scott on 500px

The first photo in this post we are very grateful for as it was made by our good friend, Amanda and her great guy, Garrett, from over at Renditure Photography. I wanted to test out my latest investment and it performed exactly as I'd hoped. No more pushing my speed lights to the limit. I have a flash capable of some heavy hitting, when it is called for. We didn't quite make our hats look like cowboy hats, as an earlier photo of Fiona that many people were very fond of, but we thought it looked pretty good.

 

  Saskatoon 2015 Fireworks Festival by Jay Scott on 500px

Soon I will speak about some excellent work that I have been doing in collaboration with the Canadian Paraplegic Association and Saskatoon City Hospital Rehab Department. We've been working to create a database of accessible homes in and around Saskatoon. The purpose being to provide newly injured people a resource to help them decide how to best renovate or build their home following a spinal cord injury or similar disability. It also could be used for someone looking for good ideas to include in a future build. I know that I have seen a number of very affordable and reasonable options that I would like to incorporate into our existing house. A few of those have already been implemented, thanks to my dad's hard work.

During the process of this project, one of the condos that I photographed was overlooking the river from a seventh floor balcony. What an unbelievable view. The homeowner and former CPA employee/board member, offered me the opportunity to photograph the upcoming Potash Corp. Fireworks Festival. How could I say no?

 

  Saskatoon Before 2015 Fireworks Festival by Jay Scott on 500px

While I was up there I wanted to get a simple basic cityscape from a perspective I may not have the opportunity to get to very often.

A few weeks ago I led another accessible photo excursion at the University. We had a better turnout this time and, despite some unexpected heavy rain and a little bit of lightning and thunder, we had a good time, made a few photos, and enjoyed a coffee afterward.

A little bit of creative framing and you'd never know that Emma was dry and standing in a doorway. The way it was rumbling at that moment I thought we might just get a flash of lightning in the background. I must admit that it was very exhilarating to be making a nice portrait of someone I'm very comfortable photographing, while it was raining and lightly storming.

It was nice that Fiona's nap time worked out so that she and her mommy could join us. Even if we were inside, it was nice for them to get out on a bit of a rainy and windy day with me. She was in a great mood and the pictures are proof.

It's no Reptile World but our little Geology Building is certainly a fine place to go for a look at whenever animals they might have there and to listen to the relaxing trickle of some water. I think it would be nice if they had a designated area for people to sit and enjoy the atmosphere.

Finally, I took the time to make a photo I've had brewing in my mind for a little while, now. A fresh order of coffee arrived from Matchstick Coffee Roasters in Vancouver (just two days after I ordered it!) so I used the ample amount of beans to put together the photo I had envisioned.

 

  Raw Energy by Jay Scott on 500px

It has been awhile since I posted, but now that I found time there has certainly been a lot to share. With the summer seemingly coming to a close I'm in a bit of a hurry up and get it done mode for a few of the photos that I need to do outside. If the weather forecast holds I should have one more quite elaborate photo to share within the next week.

That photo does belong to Challenging Reality. I know there has not been much for updates there for some time but this one will be worth it. Moreover, I feel like as much as those pieces of technology are important, the accessible home photo database has the potential to help more people in a much larger way than what I've done to this point on Challenging Reality. As well, I have been selected to participate in a photovoice project the health region is putting on where chosen individuals photograph the barriers they face in the community because of an acquired injury. My injury may have been some time ago but these photos, and the conversations that will follow, will make it to some pretty big decision-makers. I hope that my efforts there and the quality of my photos will help them to understand the importance of proper and safe accessibility, and even the discrimination of inaccessibility. I may have to make a few trips down Broadway to prove a point. But that won't be until after my stop to photograph the very steep and dangerous curb cuts just outside City Hospital.

Finally, there is an organization by the name of Barrier Free Canada that that is working hard to have a Canadians with Disabilities Act legislated. Regardless of your political stripes, now is the time to be asking hard questions of candidates to see what they think about something like this and if they have any clue about how far behind Canada is on accessibility compared to the rest of the first world. I encourage you to check out their website and, if you believe this is something that Canadians with disabilities deserve, to participate.

Thanks!

Zoo 2014 - 8

No, the year in the title of this post is not incorrect. These photos were made in 2014. It just took me this long to dig them up as I was cleaning and sorting to make room for this year's shots.

It's not that so much was being missed by not sharing these but it would bother me if I didn't finish off the year, as it were.

I said before, but I certainly have become dependent upon lists. It may be the age, it may be the new baby, there may be other factors. Whatever the causes, neglecting posts like this are exactly what happens when I don't have itemized tasks.

The snow-like seeds in the air were lovely because they were combined with warm sunshine, not frosty wind chills.

The first blooms of the season always go too quickly. Thankfully they make room for the next round. This year we've noticed our lilies have popped up much earlier than usual. Maybe we will see their beauty before the end of August this year.

As you saw this winter, you can always count on the loveliness of pine trees to keep a bit of colour around, any time of year. I try not to neglect them during the warm seasons when they are overshadowed by the vibrant colors around them.

Final Winter Drive and More Fiona

 

  Boffins Club Gazebo in Winter HDR by Jay Scott on 500px

Optimistically I included in the title of this post the word final. The last couple of days of warm weather, bright sunshine and receding snow and ice has made a lot of people feel a lot better about the eventual spring. As Angie has cautiously pointed out, we certainly could get more snow and another good dose of winter but at least the next week of highs well above zero should mostly clear off the roads and start the shrinking of the snow banks around the city.

 

  Innovation Place Pine Cones by Jay Scott on 500px

This last photo drive was actually a photo walk/wheel as I braved about -10°C to actually get out of the van, make some photos even with a little auxiliary light and breathe the fresh air. It felt good to be out and it didn't even take all day for my legs to warm back up. What caught my attention most of all was how absolutely quiet it was. How much time have I spent in this exact spot enjoying the scenery, the sounds and smells of this place? A lot but almost all of it was in the spring, summer and fall when many of the nice water features and wildlife sounds are consistently impacted by the running of air conditioners on the roofs of all of the big buildings around the area. It was very refreshing to get out by myself, not see a single person and just smell the smells of winter and the pine nearby.

 

  Innovation Place Pine Cone by Jay Scott on 500px

In past years when I've wanted to get out and do some photos during the winter I've often shied away because of the great limitations I have of where I can get by vehicle, but especially by foot/chair. After finding what I had found this year I feel a little bit braver and have a few more ideas of where might be suitable, and safe, for me to go independently next winter. I'm not certain I want to think that far ahead as I have spring on the brain but getting out and just giving it a try got my wheels turning in my head.

My good friend, Paul, and his girls made good use of the pond-turned-rink this winter. The one time they were there entirely by themselves in the evening, spotlights on the ice and classical music playing overhead. If we get a nice warm evening next winter I would really like to have a photo shoot down there, by that ice with some people having a blast skating under the gazebo and around the island. If it isn't that warm we could fire up the fire pit they always have stocked with plenty of firewood and include that as part of the shoot.

Finally, what post would be complete without yet another of our lovely daughter? Her hair is coming in so nicely, so soft and fuzzy. I knew I had to make a creative photo out of those glistening golden-red strands. So, making the most of the smiles she had available to me we made a nice creative photo of her with some purple hair. I was reminded that this photo might be enough precedent for me to not be upset if she decides to die her hair purple when she is a little bit older. All I will need to do is to remind her how in style vibrantly colored hair was when this photo was made and that should squash her idea. :-)

 

  Fuzzy-Haired Daughter by Jay Scott on 500px

Second Winter Photo Drive

My second photo drive of the winter brought me to the University campus. It was not long before I realized that nothing on the actual University campus was going to be very photogenic from my available vantage points and there certainly was nowhere to quickly pull over to make a photo. It really is a busy city of its own when in session.

So, I made my way over to Innovation Place where I knew of a few spots that I could stay comfortably safe and warm in my van. Tucked away at the back of Downey Road, I found a place that I could pull up right next to some evergreens.

I'm not saying anything I photographed that day was a masterpiece but at least I got out, got some fresh air, found a peaceful place to just do what I love to do and make a few frames.

Finally, since I was not thrilled with what I had photographed already, I decided to try a few more abstracts. Love them, hate them, it doesn't matter. At least I gave it a try.

Winter Photo Drive

Most of my favorite work is done in a controlled environment, with auxiliary lighting and highly preplanned. Sometimes, though, you just need to get out, photograph what you can see and enjoy the process along with the satisfaction of using the technology at your hands to create something nice.

Unfortunately, much like the arbour above, I don't get to see much at this time of year, with this much snow. Even the roads plowed at the forestry farm were a little bit deep if you got just slightly off the cleared portions. I did leave the plowed parts, in the interest of getting the best angle possible, and was very grateful that I had my winter tires on the van this year. They sure can chew through a lot of snow.

Speaking of snow, it was a nice day when I made these photos but there was something ominous in the forecast. After this little photo drive I met some friends for a meeting of the minds. It was at Moka Coffee Bar in Briarwood. Paul and I each parked in the handicapped spots in front of Shoppers Drug Mart, about a 75 meter wheel on cleared sidewalks to get to the shop. By the time we were done our meeting the snow was coming down heavy and the wind was blowing hard. The last 20 meters was blocked by deep snow banks thanks to a gap in the buildings and the wind whistling through. We plowed as far as we could, got stuck, but thankfully a nice little old lady, using a walker herself, was inside the drugstore, saw us struggling and sent the staff out to help.

Normally I'm not too concerned about getting too cold, being that close to my vehicle, but my thumb actually hurt for a few hours afterward because it got wet from pushing while we were stuck in that brisk wind for just a few minutes. I got pushed to the van and let my ramp down only to realize that it settled on yet another snow bank and, because of my wet rims, couldn't get up onto it. Once I was on my hill climbers would have made sure any progress I made was not lost. The one employee popped back out and got me onto the ramp. Otherwise I might've been a bit of a quad-sickle.

It was nice to just get out and photograph whatever I can find without too much forethought. I decided to do that again following week but, surprise, surprise, we got another huge dump of snow that started just hours after I was done shooting on my second winter photo drive.

Those photos will be coming soon. I hope spring is not too far behind because I'm feeling that ready-to-be-done feeling with this winter.

Boffins Club - Last Warm Evening of 2014

I know the possibility exists that we will have another few warm evenings this year. But warm evenings, that are calm and comfortable enough for a couple of quadriplegics? I'm not so sure.

I'm not sure that the photos I made that night with Paul's company are that breathtaking but it was just great to be out in such a nice area, so nicely lit and populated by such nice people. It would've been nice to just sit down by the pond but to be chatting while the long exposures were being made just fit my description of a perfect evening.

I have seen some really nice work by a fellow local photographer in this area. I communicated with him a bit and determined that they do not close the gates at the Boffins Club at night. Maybe they do later on, but they were still open would we left there after 9 PM.

Seeing his work made me decide I needed to get there before the end of the nice weather but I needed to arrive with an idea. An idea that I hadn't already seen him capably execute. If you are on Instagram I highly recommend following him. His handle is @thecinnamon. Some great work with some aerial photography thanks to his quadcopter and a clear creative and technical understanding of what he's doing.

 

  Boffins Club Koi by Jay Scott on 500px

Of course my idea involves defaulting to what I'm good at, off-camera flash. It took a little bit of tweaking but I managed to get a few shots with the Koi in the photo, illuminated by the flash I had aimed at the water. I even forgot to bring the bread crumbs I was going to to lure them into the right spot. I think enough people have fed them this year that when they see humans they come looking and expecting treats. It sure was interesting to watch them shoot away every time that flash fired. That's one of the reasons  you will see the streaks in the water from the leaves that were moving the entire time of the 20+ second exposure, while the slow-moving fish were not to be seen as streaks because they took off so very quickly.

The last shot was just simply taking five minutes to move the tripod 10 feet one direction (Paul and I were pondering our jealousy of how quickly an able-bodied person could have picked that tripod up, rotated 90°, and set it down where they wanted it while it took us five minutes) to make a photo he thought looked like something out of Hansel and Gretel.

 

  Boffins Club on a Hot Autumn Evening by Jay Scott on 500px

I must say that I've been enjoying doing some more scenic type photography. In my mind I feel optimistic about trying to do more of this in the winter but we will see what happens. There may be a few more less inspiring shots made out of the window of my van where it's a little bit warmer, unless getting around is easy and I'm feeling motivated.

Oh, Autumn.

 

  Robin Smith Memorial Garden HDR by Jay Scott on 500px

You're so lovely. But today is our likely last day above 25 and one of the last days that our house will get warmer without help from our furnace. Enjoy the weather and the beauty while it's easy to get out and enjoy it without a 20 minute clothing application process. That said, I'm planning on trying to find more locations to safely shoot from my van this winter. Try to stay safely warm, but still make something interesting. One shot in particular, I have in mind. I'll let you know if it gets made.

 

  Robin Smith Memorial Garden Double Exposure by Jay Scott on 500px

Above I was trying to continue with the abstract by making a double exposure of the tree in the photo below and the path in the top photo. Like it? Hate it? Let me know.

 

  Robin Smith Memorial Garden in Full Autumn Beauty by Jay Scott on 500px

It was a very comfy day for Fiona's first-of-many trips to the Forestry Farm.

Sunset at the Saskatoon Zoo

It has been my intention for some time to go to the zoo at sunset with the plan to make a photograph off of the dock overlooking the pond. I'm not talking about the fishing pond but the one tucked way off in the corner that most people don't know about. Unfortunately, the path leading to it is made of a very fine clay or gravel and not very wheelchair friendly unless we have had a long stretch of heat. In addition to that, the access to the dock was down a pretty sharp drop that was manageable without a camera bag on my lap but with that bag, and possibly a tripod, it was going to be something I would need a hand with.

I knew that they had rebuilt the dock, and the photos I saw online looked really good, but I had no idea what a beautiful job they had done re-landscaping it so that getting onto the dock was as smooth of a transition as there is. The path leading to it is still very soft after it had rained but before our trip there last Wednesday we had had weeks of significant heat and I trusted that the path would be dry. Irony defined, there was a bit of a rain shower a few hours before we went. I did not believe it enough rain to make the path impassable. Despite the heat, it was still a bit soft but nothing I couldn't manage.

 

  Zoo Pond HDR 1 by Jay Scott on 500px

The above photo was a simple HDR made through some trees while still on the path leading to the dock. It seemed a nice vantage point and Bruce made an HDR portrait of me while I was making mine of the pond. We were waiting for the light to be right so at this point we were just playing though I have no problem with the photo I made. It was nice that both Bruce and I have our typical techniques but it was nice to learn something from each other that we can both incorporate in our toolkit for the times that what we've learned is appropriate.

Seeing the lovely covering of seaweed and algae on the water, it seemed like a good time to continue my attempt at some abstract work. Like it, or hate it, I thought it was an interesting texture and contrasty subject.

 

  Zoo Pond Algae by Jay Scott on 500px

The first HDR landscape photo was facing east, this next one was facing north. If you click on the link below each photo that takes you to 500px, you can see the pinpoint location of where I was. From that you could see on Google Earth the aerial view of where we were, both for if you want to visit there yourself at some point or just to see the vantage point we had.

 

  Zoo Pond HDR 2 by Jay Scott on 500px

This next photo was facing south, overlooking a lot of the algae that was the subject for the abstract photo above.

I will admit that I had envisioned the dock facing a different direction. The winding path, combined by the 90° turn onto the dock had me turned around from which direction I was facing. The sky was still cooperative but I have other ideas for what I would like to see of a photo made on the dock with different weather conditions.

The operational hours of the zoo change based on the time of year. About the time of year that sunset is a convenient time of day is about the time of year that they back their hours off to closing at 7 PM, instead of 9 PM. That means for a few weeks each year you can be in the zoo after sunset. Right now is that time and I hope that I will have another opportunity to be there after sunset to try some twilight shots. However, as of the time of this posting, I expect to be photographing our baby and have little concern for scenery. It will come back, and I'm not going to give up great outings and opportunities but I have a feeling that there's going to be a captivating new little family member that will have the majority of attention of me and my camera for a long time.

 

  Zoo Pond HDR 3 by Jay Scott on 500px

Finally, and I know if this is not something everybody enjoys, is the piece I was most happy with. I've always wanted the opportunity to have some ethereal and moody photos shot after sunset. My ideas are numerous but my evening schedules, hatred of insects and lack of great places that are wheelchair friendly often dominate my motivation. I guess that's all the more reason to try little harder but I am quite pleased with the emotion my final photo from last Wednesday evokes. I would love to hear your feedback, whether it gives you the creeps, you love it, hate it, or whatever emotion it raises in you. I think the old ragged dock would've worked better, but whattayagonnado?

 

  Saskatoon Zoo After Dark by Jay Scott on 500px

Dock Walk

In an effort to make the most of our short summer, and get out before the long stretch of forecasted rain arrives, I headed down to the river this morning behind the Mendel art gallery. It was a very comfortable morning and the sights and sounds, minus the construction sounds from the Kinsman Park, were very soothing.

Click on the photo to enlarge it and see the full picture.

I thought we had seen the last of the fruit trees blooming, especially after the wicked wind we had last week that blew away any but the heartiest blooms. Then, on my way back up the river bank I spotted this vibrant tree. I must have missed this while focusing on slowing my descent so I didn't go for a swim.

A few of the winter berries that did not get picked off by the birds. I find it so interesting that it wasn't until a few years ago that I realized, thanks to our tomato plants, that the ugly dried-up parts of the bottom of the berry were what once was the blossom which grew into the berry. We probably learned that in elementary school, but the things a person does not think about on a daily basis are sometimes the simplest.

One more shot from the top. One of the things that frustrates me the most on the days like this when my intention is to get some exercise is that the pain I feel is not in my muscles. Most the time it is the seams in my gloves, where the thumb is sewn to the main body, that digs in to my toneless webbing between my thumb and index finger. After a number of hard pushes up a steep hill it feels like someone is jamming a hot fork in there. The dust and grime on my gloves and push rims prevent me from moving forward using a different group of muscles because there is a greater risk of my hands slipping off, losing my forward momentum and even hurting myself.

Not the strength training I was hoping for on a nice day like this. However, I did take the time to stop in at Museo before I left. Enjoy a top-notch coffee, have a look at the photos on my camera, read a few articles and then head home.

The rainy forecast has eased from what they were originally calling for so maybe it will miss us all together.