Monday, October 31, 2016

All Hail to All Hallows

This is it, whatever you choose to call it: Halloween, Hallowe'en, Allhalloween, All Hallows Eve, or All Saints Day. But I will spare us all, me included, the full-fledged Wikipedia rundown of the day ... or night.

Instead, I will do what I do.

Share some photos/

Most were taken at last years Maskeraid Parade. Too bad they didn't run it this year.

Enjoy.












Friday, October 28, 2016

Downtown After the First Snow

Believe me! It wasn't the excitement of the first snowfall that got me out of bed at 4:30 after less than five hours sleep; that's just the way my life goes.

And I certainly didn't go out to take photos at 4:30, but I did eventually go out to take some photos. I went downtown (not far) to try and get some pics of reflections on the wet pavement. They weren't much to shout and holler about, but a few were okay. Different anyway.

I snapped a few right from the municipal parking lot near townhall.

This is the back of the Moore House: the original log home. It was located elsewhere in the town but moved here a number of years ago. Townhall looms in the background.


Still in the parking lot. looking toward townhall. That's the former Paterson Funeral Home and Furniture store on the left. Presently, it is a beauty parlour and apartments.


From the street, I took this shot of the Moore House from the front. As you can see from the signage, it now serves several functions.


The photos of reflections that I had most wanted to take were just okay. Here is one.


Finally, here is a shot of the Halloween themed display in The Granary window.


The walking was a little slippery, so I turned back sooner than I had planned, but it was fun to get out and do a different kind of shooting than my normal.

As for the snow, it will be gone tomorrow when the temperatures will climb to 14°C/57°F. But there will be more in due course.

Thursday, October 27, 2016

Clay Girl Recommended

After posting of autumn colours for post after post, I have fallen a little quiet for a few days. I had hoped to post of the gradual decline of colour, but with three days of rain followed by four days of high winds, I didn't quite manage. I did notice that a few late-turning trees that I wanted to shoot, changed and largely fell during the recent turbulence. Darn.

Meanwhile, Heather, my author, sister-in-law, whom I have posted about several times over the summer has been on her book tour on the American West Coast. She is now back in Canada, but still touring and visiting out west.

I bring Heather up again because I have just read this post by Vikcy Lane, a blogger and published author, which is a great review, in which she "Highly, highly" recommends The Clay Girl. Why don't you head on over to Vicky Lane Mysteries (click here) and read the post for yourself?

I am also reminded of the trailer that Heather put together for the book that I have somehow neglected to post until now.  It's quite amazing to me that she did this herself.

Saturday, October 22, 2016

Colours in Decline but Still Pretty Good

I thought that I might be done with autumn colour, but it was still okay when I rambled through our nearby trail the other day: definitely in decline but also still looking good to me. I opted to take the little camera (ostensibly Sue's camera but we share from time to time) and was pretty pleased with the results. I can still shoot in RAW format, which is a big plus for me, compared to most compact cameras. The results are more than satisfactory although not as sharp as I would get from my DSLR and very good wide angle lens. But I don't always want to carry that kit around on a regular old walk.

The water is still very low due to the drought. In fact, it is getting dangerously low, and people upriver who rely on well water are getting worried about its quality. These rocks would not be visible in most years, or if partially visible, I certainly wouldn't be able to scrabble around on them.





That part of the trail is open although you have to get off the path to actually get to the river. Farther along, it is woodsy. Once again, although many leaves have been dropped and expose plenty of bare branches, good colour still remains although not for very much longer.




At the other end, the view opens up once again, but just briefly before turning inland into a park. Once again, we wouldn't expect to see the foreground rocks being exposed, or at least  not very much.


Edit: Found this map of water conditions in southern Ontario. We are in the heart of the red zone.


Friday, October 21, 2016

Jonathan's First Game

Jonathan had his first hockey game of the season on Saturday (as well as his second on Sunday, but it was out of town and we didn't attend). He is doing very well and having fun, which is the important thing.

I never know where he's going to be, and many of my shots were fro the back, but he is breaking down the left wing in this photo, which I decided to post in mono.


Here's a head-on shot: not the best focus, but it's still a good moment.


He drives toward the net on a bit of a breakaway.


He had two breakaways but didn't score. Goals were hard to come by; there were only 3 in the whole game, 2 by his team. His over-skated the puck on this one, but it was a good try.


His position was defence, which is what he was guarding in this photo.


He has his eye on the puck carrier.


.A few more times with the puck.



It was fun to see. He's made amazing progress in the two years since he began, not being able to skate.

Thursday, October 20, 2016

The Last Hurrah ... Maybe

On Saturday, after JJ's game, we didn't want to waste what may be the last very good day of the season. We were expecting rain the next day, but on this day, the sun was shining, and the trees were still very colourful, So, we decided that a drive into the country was what needed to happen.

We headed out to Wheeler's Maple Sugar Camp for a late-ish lunch and saw many beautiful stands of colour on our route. I finally managed to find a spot to take a roadside photo.


Wheelers was busy with both cars and motorcycles. Thankfully, the motorcycles weren't Hells Angels but a group of armed services vets.


Pointing the camera in the other direction, the old shack was well framed by the trees.


After lunch, we took a short but glorious walk on the trail in the sugar bush. It was lovely with leaves both underfoot and overhead. In some of the photos, you can see the boulders on this Precambrian Shield bedrock. They were deposited here near the end of the ice age. You can also glimpse the maple sap lines in some photos.





As we are wont to do, we took the long way home driving on some pretty rural roads that weren't always paved.

The next few shots are of the little hamlet of Watsons Corners.



Finally, one more shot from the roadside.


The colour will soon fade as we go into two poor photographic months. The trees will be bare, and there will be very few pretty sights before the snow falls. What is an outdoor type of photographer to do?


Tuesday, October 18, 2016

Riverside Park on TG

I know that I have been posting photos galore lately. But dreary times are coming, so make hay while the sun shines and all that.

On Thanksgiving Day, before the trad turkey dinner, Sue and I went for a stroll in our little park. It was a bit windy and brisk, but it was a delight nevertheless. The trees were not in their full glory but glorious enough for me.

There is one central, tree-lined path through the park




A golden tree back from the path.


 Someone had moved a picnic table to beside the river, so I got Sue to sit there briefly, but it was a windy day and bad for the hair.


Walking back to the car, you couldn't ask for much more of a display from these trees. The building in the background is the high school.



Canada's oldest operating canoe club is located on the edge of the park. We went up onto the deck for a few shots up the river.



I feel as though I may be done my fall foto extravaganza, but perhaps I will get out a few more times between now and the day for which I have pre-dated this post.