the outlook is sunny

jungle cat

He likes to climb this one does. His route to our neighbour's balcony (they don't mind) is to start on the yard to our townhouse's right, climb up on the fence between the units via a shed and woodpile; leap from the fence top to the pergola in our yard and waltz around it to the other side; take a flying leap from there to the balcony above - we have a walk out basement and the balcony is off of our main floor living room; and from there, after sniffing the bean plants, make another flying leap onto the railing of our neighbour's balcony.

We should have named him Ezio...

the cat, on his way onwards and upwards

He is also able to safely reverse his route down to the ground.

Birds and squirrels had better look out.

camping on the bruce

Spent the weekend up on the Bruce Peninsula camping with the family. Ahhh bliss.

I am not a camper, so the very fact that I had a good time is a border line miracle. The problem has always been that I don't sleep worth anything while camping. This makes me cranky, stiff, and sore. Oh, and not great company.

We solved that with a cot that fits inside the tent. This thing is padded, gets me off of the ground, and is very very comfortable. Problem solved.

I slept, and had a great time.

Pictures follow.

in quest - a photo that moves

Perhaps it would help if I explained my process to you.

The first thing which I do when creating a moving image is to pick a subject matter. Lately, the subjects that move me most are people. I am naturally shy, and find shooting people in a manner which will result in the picture I want to be very daunting. I prefer to observe rather than be in someones face. But people are so varying, and endlessly interesting, and therefore make compelling subjects for photographs. Their faces tell stories and sometimes, given the right expression, a simple picture of someones face can speak volumes. I like photographing people because I like to tell their stories with a visual medium and through that, hint at my own.

In the case of the picture above, I was not specifically seeking out this musician to take a picture of her, but since I was at the 2013 Hillside Music Festival taking pictures of musicians, I was in a sense there for this shot.

When I see this picture, I remember her music. She has a beautiful voice, and throws herself into what she does - the goal with the pictures I took of her was to convey the depth of emotion I heard in her music into a visual medium. Somehow I wanted to capture the essence of her performance in a way that would move the viewer a fraction as much as her music moved me.

Having a suitable subject matter (in this case a musician playing her music) is all well and good but so what? There are literally millions of subjects out there that would make good to excellent photographs. But a photograph which has the power to move is one in which there is more to it than simply a good subject matter and well executed photographic technique. Remember, well executed photographic technique has little to do with how "sharp" a picture is or any other such measurable metric, but how well the photographer's intent in making the picture in the first place is conveyed to the viewer.

When I photograph musicians, I look for musicians that are doing more then just mechanically playing their instruments and singing their songs. This is also true, incidentally, when I look at other forms of creative expression. I seek ones which put their very being into the creation of their art. This does not mean that they are falling to pieces all over the stage, or dropping dead at the end of a set (but it can), but rather that they lay themselves bare somehow on stage and show a bit of their real selves to people watching and listening.

Once I find such a musician, I stay and focus on how they move, how they communicate with the crowd, and once I find that, I take multiple photographs from different angles until I get what I am looking for.

Get close, and that communication becomes two way, between the musician, and you, via a camera lens. Done right, someone seeing the photograph will feel as if they have locked eyes and are a part of the performance, as if they are in the picture. That is a good thing from my perspective.

Back home, at my desk, I am then faced with the daunting task of sifting through the day's shoot. Much of what is taken is discarded. As my technique has improved over time, fewer and fewer photographs are discarded due to technical or compositional flaws and more are discarded because they simply do not communicate what I want to communicate with that picture.

I try and distill the picture collection down to ones that make me feel like the woman in this picture does:

Moved.

in quest

Never have we ever had available to us more pictures, more recorded images of the world around us. We have never had more ways to make and share images that matter personally. We are, via social media oriented around the photograph, being bombarded with images that others have taken of their commonplace. Our own voice gets lost in the shuffle.

It is unprecedented.

It is like writing a blog that nobody reads.

Image making tools are ubiquitous with modern life, particularly in urban settings with cctvs - public and private - cell phones and tablets to say nothing of actual cameras. We are constantly being recorded and constantly being photographed and most people don't think anything of it - if they even notice - or of what is being created.

I keep finding pictures which speak to me. There is something in them that reaches deep into my psyche and touches a nerve and I say, wow. I pause. I look. I am transported.

I feel driven to do this for others. To others. I have no idea if any of my images touch someone like this. I hope they do, but I have no idea. I do know that it is rare that an image of mine does this for me. I know it too well. I created it. Thought of it. Went out and found it. And then made it. There is no wow, no wonder, no thrill beyond the immediate pleasure of making an image.

I don't feel transported by my own work.

In part, this is why I am still taking pictures. Why I am trying to perfect my vision.

In quest...

morning has broken

That, folks, is why I got up extra early this morning. What a beautiful dawn!

the chair

a run around fergus

sometimes a picture

wandering about elora because

There was some art on the streets today. These artists kindly let me photograph them at work. Thanks guys!

I am having a hard time with all the anger

Read this, and then read the comments from the "general public" underneath.

http://www.therecord.com/news-story/3912413-cyclist-uses-helmet-camera-to-capture-bad-drivers/

I simply do not get it.

Why is it that people are so pissed off with each other about the other's transportation choices?

Most people driving cars on the road make mistakes and most of the time these mistakes are minor and do not harm anyone. It is true. So over reacting by people riding bicycles is silly.

Most people riding bicycles make mistakes and most of the time these mistakes are minor and do not harm anyone. This is also true. So over reacting by people driving cars is just as silly.

I know I really do not like it while I am riding my bicycle and a person driving a car gets too close. It is illegal, inconsiderate, and down right dangerous. It also does not happen all that often. I am very good at communicating with other road users in an appropriate way and move as predictably as possible. It is pretty obvious when I do this to other road users what I am trying to accomplish and rarely is there a problem. Predictable safe cycling goes a long way towards me having few issues per 1000km travelled. Basically, not being a dumbass goes a long way to keeping me safe. So too does an attitude that drivers, just like me, are people too.

So do I therefore think then that all people driving cars are bad? Nope.

However, some days I admit I have to wonder. But I would be wondering that whether or not I was on a bike or in a car.

Consider the following notions for a minute or two:

Frustration and anger about traffic is, I think, a reflection of a few things. The general stress that people are under can lead a lot of people to feel trapped and this can manifest itself in inappropriate ways while driving. As well, cars can make a person feel powerful and in control, and are heavily marketed to create those feelings, which can lead to a sense of entitlement around who has the right to be on the road. Frustration when reality does not match up to that expectation can do strange things to behaviour patterns in some people. I think the problem is that some people simply do not want other people to be"in the way". People like to be in control and like to feel free, and sharing space on crowded streets hampers that sense of control and freedom. It does not matter if the person who is "in the way" is in a car or on a bike. The point is that they are there.

People complaining about traffic and getting angry about it amuse me (even when I am the one doing the complaining) - do they not realize that they are, themselves, traffic and the source of other people's complaints and are therefore the problem that they are bitching about?

High gas prices also feed into entitlement as one commonly held belief is that people on bicycles are freeloaders on the roadway because they do not pay for gas and it is gas taxes, goes the argument dontcha know, that pays for roads. Actually, it is property taxes. But that little bit of reality does not matter to someone frustrated and angry about the costs of living in an oil based economy when oil gets expensive. So traffic can peak people's stress, thwart their perceived power, and when that happens some people react poorly and direct abuse on those around them.

(If you think this is bad now, just wait until the increase in oil costs sky rocket the price of food and THEN watch people's blood pressure soar. Gasoline for personal use will be the least of people's worries... It is already starting to happen, notice your high grocery bills lately?)

Lest anyone think I am letting people riding bicycles off the hook, these same stressors induce foul behaviour in people riding bikes as well as they buzz people on trails, run red lights, blow stop signs, and in general break the law. And no, taking a lane in traffic when it is not safe to pass is NOT breaking the law - just today, because I took a whole lane in Uptown Waterloo, I avoided a trip to the ER or a longer trip on a slab because I was able to easily avoid an opening door from someone who threw their door open into traffic without looking. Had I been hard against the parked cars and about to be passed, it would have been ugly. Two summers ago, a young woman was killed in Ottawa in exactly this situation.

People walking on multi-use paths who refuse to share the path are just as bad as a person riding a bike buzzing people walking...

Notice I am talking about people, not cyclists and motorists. It is people who are creating this havoc on our roadways, not a demographic group. Calling someone a cyclist or a motorist and therefore labeling them an "other" is a great trick used by people who wish to dehumanize other people. Well, I am a human whether I am on a bike or in a car. So are you.

Anyhow, people on bicycles are by their very nature a lot more vulnerable to abuse, and are an easy target for a person who is wound up and acting badly. But they are not the only target. Try the following for two weeks and see what I mean:

I challenge you to drive within the letter of the law while out in your car. Do not speed. Do not roll stops. Stop before turning right on a red before the stop line. Actually stop. You know the drill.

Take note of how many people behind you throw a fit. How many tailgate. How many tell you to fuck off or pass you illegally. How many almost ram you when you stop for reds and at stop signs.

Now mentally put yourself on two wheels and think about what a person on a bike must feel like when they encounter someone like those who for the past two weeks have been making your blood pressure rise.

And then try to, like I try to, not be that person.