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Friday Night

I took this picture one evening as I watched the Pelicans fly by Robinson Preserve in Bradenton Florida. What impressed me was that all the Pelicans seemed to be going in the same direction. As a rule, creatures in the wild are fairly smart, more so than I give them credit for. After quite few flew by my lens, I theorized they must be going somewhere specific. Maybe this is the appointed time that fishing boats come in, or maybe they just have a favorite place to sleep for the evening. Whatever the case they all seemed to have the same appointment in their calendars. After I took this picture I followed their lead and headed home for an appointment to eat supper and call it a day. Great minds think alike.

I took this picture one evening as I watched the Pelicans fly by Robinson Preserve in Bradenton Florida. What impressed me was that all the Pelicans seemed to be going in the same direction. As a rule, creatures in the wild are fairly smart, more so than I give them credit for. After quite few flew by my lens, I theorized they must be going somewhere specific. Maybe this is the appointed time that fishing boats come in, or maybe they just have a favorite place to sleep for the evening. Whatever the case they all seemed to have the same appointment in their calendars. After I took this picture I followed their lead and headed home for an appointment to eat supper and call it a day. Great minds think alike.

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End of the River

This is indeed the end of the Manatee River where it opens into the Gulf of Mexico in Manatee County Florida. My father was an eye doctor who warned me not to look at the sun, so naturally I hear this in my head whenever I take a sunset. Basically my process is to line up my camera, push the shutter button and hope for the best. I suppose we all do that, right? Anyway, when the sun is at this position there’s no time left as it quickly sinks into the horizon, it’s click time or go home. In effect, this is a picture of the sun while I was squinting, clicking away like paparazzi and hoping for the best. I suppose this is another thinly veiled metaphor for life; point in the general direction, squint, execute and then hope for the best.

This is indeed the end of the Manatee River where it opens into the Gulf of Mexico in Manatee County Florida. My father was an eye doctor who warned me not to look at the sun, so naturally I hear this in my head whenever I take a sunset. Basically my process is to line up my camera, push the shutter button and hope for the best. I suppose we all do that, right? Anyway, when the sun is at this position there's no time left as it quickly sinks into the horizon, it's click time or go home. In effect, this is a picture of the sun while I was squinting, clicking away like paparazzi and hoping for the best. I suppose this is another thinly veiled metaphor for life; point in the general direction, squint, execute and then hope for the best.

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Navy Pier Fisheye

This is what the world looks like through a fisheye lens. I’m not sure why but I enjoy pictures with strangeness like this, I get drawn in. A little distortion changes the perspective, small things seem big, big things small. Visual art. This is my winter version of Navy Pier in Chicago. I took my normal lens off and put on the fish eye lens and at this exact spot, lost my lens cap. I’ve not seen it since. So, if you’re ever here and you find a Nikon lens cap, give me a shout. Or maybe I should just fuhgeddaboudit.

This is what the world looks like through a fisheye lens. I'm not sure why but I enjoy pictures with strangeness like this, I get drawn in. A little distortion changes the perspective, small things seem big, big things small. Visual art. This is my winter version of Navy Pier in Chicago. I took my normal lens off and put on the fish eye lens and at this exact spot, lost my lens cap. I've not seen it since. So, if you're ever here and you find a Nikon lens cap, give me a shout. Or maybe I should just fuhgeddaboudit.

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Favorite Fountain

Last year I spent a bit of time in Vancouver and my favorite place to go is Stanley Park. I’ve posted pictures of this fountain before as it’s hard not to get a good picture of it. Aside from this I have a lot of favorite subjects in Vancouver which is an amazing city to be sure. Four years ago the winter Olympics took place here and the Olympic fountain where the flamed burned is another favorite subject. After seeing the opening of the games in Sochi, I think I may have to add that fountain to my list as well.

Last year I spent a bit of time in Vancouver and my favorite place to go is Stanley Park. I've posted pictures of this fountain before as it's hard not to get a good picture of it. Aside from this I have a lot of favorite subjects in Vancouver which is an amazing city to be sure. Four years ago the winter Olympics took place here and the Olympic fountain where the flamed burned is another favorite subject. After seeing the opening of the games in Sochi, I think I may have to add that fountain to my list as well.

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Loss of Words

Is it any wonder that sometimes I run out of words? At the end of Emerson Point in Manatee County Florida is where a few of us locals go to watch the sunset. Sure, the beaches are good, but there are a few secret places like this that, well, leave me at a loss for words. So perhaps I’ll just leave it at that. Have a great weekend everyone.

Is it any wonder that sometimes I run out of words? At the end of Emerson Point in Manatee County Florida is where a few of us locals go to watch the sunset. Sure, the beaches are good, but there are a few secret places like this that, well, leave me at a loss for words. So perhaps I'll just leave it at that. Have a great weekend everyone.

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Fog

The last few days here in central Florida have been foggy which means the light is soft, something I love. Everything is mysterious and the mood is completely transformed. This was taken at St Petes Beach which is just south of Clearwater. Earlier, at around 6:30 in the morning I was in another location near my home taking photos of a pier. As I walked back to my car a very well dress couple approached me, apparently they had a ministry and were out spreading the word. I politely smiled and suggested I didn’t need the pamphlet but thanked them anyway. They continued on in the early morning light and I glanced back as they disappeared into the fog. I was dumbstruck by this powerful metaphor of searching for lost souls in the fog, it played on my mind for a while after. Why where they there so early on such foggy morning? That, at least to me, was a bit of a mystery, and as ephemeral as the fog.

The last few days here in central Florida have been foggy which means the light is soft, something I love. Everything is mysterious and the mood is completely transformed. This was taken at St Petes beach which is just south of Clearwater. Earlier, at around 6:30 in the morning, I was in another location near my home taking photos of a pier. As I walked back to my car a very well dress couple approached me, apparently they had a ministry and were out spreading the word. I politely smiled and suggested I didn't need the pamphlet but thanked them anyway. They continued on in the early morning light and I glanced back as they disappeared into the fog. I was dumbstruck by this powerful metaphor of searching for lost souls in the fog, it played on my mind for a while after. Why where they there so early on such foggy morning? That, at least to me, was a bit of a mystery, and as ephemeral as the fog.

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Property Value

Florida is emerging from the crash of the US real estate market. Near where I live is an abandoned development where all the roads and utilities where built but not a single house. I’ve never been on the property myself, but I took this one morning from a spot that looks over the mangroves along the river onto the abandoned development. Folks in my town of Palmetto expect that someone will revive the project at some point. And when they do, some lucky homeowner is going to wakeup to a sunrise like this each morning. I’m thinking that’s probably worth a penny or two in property value. Just a guess.

Florida is emerging from the crash of the US real estate market. Near where I live is an abandoned development where all the roads and utilities where built but not a single house. I've never been on the property myself, but I took this one morning from a spot that looks over the mangroves along the river onto the abandoned development. Folks in my town of Palmetto expect that someone will revive the project at some point. And when they do, some lucky homeowner is going to wakeup to a sunrise like this each morning. I'm thinking that's probably worth a penny or two in property value. Just a guess.

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Walk in the Forest

Last summer I took this picture early one morning on a trail in Jasper Alberta. It was on this same trail that I met a elk bull the night before. I had come out at night to capture an image of the moon reflecting on the lake. As I walked past this spot I saw what I thought was a tree, only it pivoted right in front of me. A small digression. When in the forest at night and something big moves in front of you, you discover your adrenal glands. Back to the story. I stopped dead in my tracks, every fibre in by body as still as stone while my eyes tried desperately to focus. After what seemed an eternity (likely only five seconds) I recognized papa elk sitting on the trail with his full rack extended up like a tree. Big papa. I slowly took a step back, then another, and then slowly turned around and walked away pretending to be calm. So the next morning I captured this photo of the trail to remind me of the encounter with papa elk. Like I need a reminder.

Last summer I took this picture early one morning on a trail in Jasper Alberta. It was on this same trail that I met a elk bull the night before. I had come out at night to capture an image of the moon reflecting on the lake. As I walked past this spot I saw what I thought was a tree, only it pivoted right in front of me. A small digression. When in the forest at night and something big moves in front of you, you discover your adrenal glands. Back to the story. I stopped dead in my tracks, every fibre in by body as still as stone while my eyes tried desperately to focus. After what seemed an eternity (likely only five seconds) I recognized papa elk sitting on the trail with his full rack extended up like a tree. Big papa. I slowly took a step back, then another, and then slowly turned around and walked away pretending to be calm. So the next morning I captured this photo of the trail to remind me of the encounter with papa elk. Like I need a reminder.

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The Trail Up Mt Edith Cavell

Okay, I’m about to get serious on you. A couple of weeks before I captured this one of those little chunks of ice known as the Ghost Glacier fell off and landed in a pool below creating a fifty foot wave which damaged the parking lot and road below this trail. I felt a little unsettled as our guide who walks these trails everyday was still shaken from the enormity of the event. It’s hard to grasp the scale of things from a picture, but you can try. Fortunately it happened around five in the morning before hundreds of people arrived for a hike and sightseeing. I was more than happy to hike from a vantage along the top of the moraine in case another chunk decided to come off. I’m a city slicker and I need to be reminded of mother nature’s power every now and then. This did it for me.

Okay, I'm about to get serious on you. A couple of weeks before I captured this one of those little chunks of ice known as the Ghost Glacier fell off and landed in a pool below creating a fifty foot wave which damaged the parking lot and road below this trail. I felt a little unsettled as our guide who walks these trails everyday was still shaken from the enormity of the event. It's hard to grasp the scale of things from a picture, but you can try. Fortunately it happened around five in the morning before hundreds of people arrived for a hike and sightseeing. I was more than happy to hike from a vantage along the top of the moraine in case another chunk decided to come off. I'm a city slicker and I need to be reminded of mother nature's power every now and then. This did it for me.

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Another Old Pier

I’m not complaining but, …it got a little chilly here the last couple of days, about 50F/10C. I got so stoked I dressed up for the occasion with a sweatshirt, socks and shoes. My sandals took a well deserved day off. They were calling for snow in the Florida panhandle so I was hoping against the odds we might get a whiff, no such luck. Had to recycle the makeshift cardboard sled, maybe next year. This is another broken down pier busy protecting white sand on the beach from washing away. You know, white sand. No, not that stuff you sled on. But I digress, …what was I talking about?

I'm not complaining but, ...it got a little chilly here the last couple of days, about 50F/10C. I got so stoked I dressed up for the occasion with a sweatshirt, socks and shoes. My sandals took a well deserved day off. They were calling for snow in the Florida panhandle so I was hoping against the odds we might get a whiff, no such luck. Had to recycle the makeshift cardboard sled, maybe next year. This is another broken down pier busy protecting white sand on the beach from washing away. You know, white sand. No, not that stuff you sled on. But I digress, ...what was I talking about?

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