Winter Solstice Sunrise with Olivia

 

   

 

 

Make no mistake, the main reason for making some photos at this time of year was for the latest sunrise possible, and therefore the most forgiving call time. I'm not afraid to get up early for something I love doing, but I had to consider everyone else. Rae, my invaluable assistant for the day, probably would've been up, anyway. Olivia, well, she did an incredible job but was on her Christmas holiday break from school so I didn't want to ask her to get up too much earlier than necessary. Her dad, Paul, who is better at getting up earlier than I am, was her transportation and I had to make sure he had enough time to be properly ready for the day.

 

   

 

 

We didn't get a stunning sunrise, as it was overcast, but that wasn't going to stop us from making great photos. The temperature was brisk and the wind was enough to definitely affect how it felt, but we have a couple of more vehicles for our brave people working outside to pop in and warm up in. For me, by wheelchair with all of the snow accumulation in the parking lot well, it was obvious that it would be easiest for me to get the most angles and stay the safest by shooting from my van. So, that's what I did, getting a few different looks with different focal lengths.

 

   

 

 

There's no question that without the help of an able bodied assistant, none of these would have happened. Sure, we could have taken some snapshots, but would not have been able to continue working on refining my use of my two new flashes. I still have a little ways to go with the automatic exposure refinement, but I'm getting there. I learned manual and still am most comfortable using it when the environment is reasonably static. I've often thought of how it compares to learning to aim a rifle with open sights, then learning to use a scope. When it comes down to, I still prefer to target shoot without a scope and I still prefer to use off-camera flash in manual mode.

 

   

 

 

It was good to do something that I have wanted to do for a while, now. It took getting out of bed a little earlier than I might've liked, on a cold morning and asking people to sacrifice their comfort along with me. They did and I am thankful for that. It was far more rewarding than the backup plan of skipping the photos and just going for a hot beverage somewhere.

 

   

 

 

The same can be said for the amazing 90s punk rock shoot I participated in this past Sunday afternoon. I fought an embedded cold, a lousy night's sleep and a degree of inaccessibility but I went. When all was said and done, enhanced significantly by the 90s music that we listened to, I found myself rating it in probably the top five most fun things I've done in my life. I will leave you with a teaser photo from the shoot and get back to editing the rest of the other great shots from the day.

Model: Kymm Wright (Kyki Wright of Infinity Management)
Hair: Laryssa Scott
MUA: Caitlin Wiklun

I'm Dreaming of a Brown Christmas

 I like the beauty of snow when I am able to hunker down and watch it. What I enjoy more is the freedom of independent movement at the end of December! From the ease of getting to doctor appointments to shopping to checking out the sunrise on the shortest day of the year, this dry start to winter has made my life so much easier.

Solstace Sunrise ar the University of Saskatchewan - 3 by Jay Scott

I used to be so excited about a cold, dry start to winter which brought the possibility of ice fishing on Boxing Day. Due to too much snow on the ice for a lowered floor minivan in the past few years, ice fishing was not going to happen. Now with a shiny new van I do not care to risk damage to it. You may not believe my concern about it as dirty as it is, but with the melt and road spray it seems pointless to wash it. We will see what January brings and how the snow accumulation is on the ice at that time and maybe there will be a few fish caught by us this year.

Solstace Sunrise ar the University of Saskatchewan - 1 by Jay Scott

I was pleased to have the freedom to venture out in a comfortable -12, with camera and tripod on my lap, and get to where I wanted in relative ease. It surprised me how cold it felt for the first few minutes until my brain and autonomic responses managed to signal my body to send forth some blood to my extremities. Once I passed that point and began shooting I was fine, much like when the fish are biting the cold is irrelevant. However, due to limited lower extremity coverings I was cautious to be aware of the temperature of my legs.

Solstace Sunrise ar the University of Saskatchewan - 2 by Jay Scott

I was surprised how slow the sunrise was compared to the opposite time of year. I feared I may miss the optimum light as I travelled to the university but once set up I realized the slower changing of light. Unfortunately, some signals from my body indicating pain made me shut down sooner than I wanted. Turns out I didn't need to warm up, but find a washroom. Much better than frostbite, but I did miss the best light. I went out on Wednesday without expectation aside from the appreciation of the beauty of God's creation and thankfulness of the conditions that I could enjoy it outside of a warm building or vehicle.

A hot coffee with a close friend, right after shooting, warmed up more than my body.

Merry Christmas, everyone. Be safe and enjoy the holidays.

Jay