Forging In The Rockies 2014

I missed this event last year, so was determined to get to it in 2014! And determination is what it took - but it was very much worth the effort!

It took about an hour to get there, about 20 minutes of highway driving, then almost 30km on forestry roads - sometimes rough, sometimes not so much - I was very grateful for my beloved Subaru's awd even though he doesn't have huge clearance!

View from the Cabins towards the Lake - click to enlarge

But then we arrived at the Cabins at Whitetail, a gorgeous lakeside destination that offers both camping and cabin accommodations along with year round back-country guiding services, set beside a crystal-clear lake surrounded by mountains, and knew it was time well spent!

The Forging in the Rockies event is an annual get-together of farriers from all over the region who have a hot-shoe contest. I've been involved with horses for years but have never actually witnessed hot-shoeing before - including the actual creation of the horse shoes from a blank piece of steel!

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I was delighted to see both women and men participating:

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Not everyone was intrigued by the proceedings:

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After the morning's excitement, we sat on the dock of the bay to enjoy our delicious lunch of smokies hot off the barbecue:

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Even if you're not horse-oriented, this friendly, down-to-earth event is definitely something you should visit if you get the chance! I was assured by the organizers that hot-shoeing is not a dying art - in fact, it seems to be a growing industry - but it's definitely not something you you have the opportunity to witness every day!

Here's the link to the whole gallery: Forging in the Rockies 2014

Puppies!

A few days ago, ICAN asked me to photograph five puppies that are awaiting adoption! I was really excited to do it, but also a bit nervous - I'd never photographed a puppy before, let alone a whole litter!

It was a fun and fast-paced session - the pups had just come from the vet where they'd had their shots plus plenty of additional stimulation (as if they needed it!) from new people and other pets! It took them a while to slow down to light speed so that I could get some photos. Posing was out of the question - I just had to predict their movements, be in the right place at the right time, conjure up a lot of luck - and avoid getting mugged by the gang (which happened once - happily no-one was quick enough with their cell phone cameras to capture that hysterical scene)!

Last I heard, the pup with the red collar, Louis, the only boy, has been adopted and will go to his forever home once he's been neutered. If you'd like to meet the girls with a view to welcoming one into your family, please contact ICAN - they'd love to hear from you!

I'm delighted with how the photos turned out! Here are a few of my fav's (as always, click to enlarge the photos):

Here's the link to the whole gallery of these puppies, and other ICAN dogs.

Until next time, enjoy the last few days of summer!

Lakeside Event 2014

It was a long day. Over 7 hours of continuous shooting. On top of that, about 30 minutes of steep uphill hiking, followed by over an hour of steep downhill, with two cameras/lenses, water, food, etc!

It was a wonderful day, with an awesome bunch of people!

The Lakeside Event is Canada's longest-running gliding meet - it's been running since 1975. These days, paragliding has largely superseded hang gliding, but there is still a handful of the fixed-wings left!

Conditions dawned fine with a forecast for hot, sunny weather. The tape beside the landing zone beside Lake Windermere tells the tale of the flying conditions: Light and variable!

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Also visiting, and not often seen here due to heavy summer recreational boating use of the lake, was a floatplane - a true Canadian icon!

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The paraglider and hang glider pilots launched from the bald peak you can see behind the aircraft. This is what it looked like from aloft - the lz was at the right-hand end of the left-most body of water:

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Here's one of my favourite photos so far:

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I'm still working on getting the photos processed and posted, but the first batch is up - here's the link to the gallery - I should have the whole set up by the end of the day Tuesday, at the latest!

Painting!

I was recently inspired by my multi-talented friend and artist, Sara at Sara Therese Photography, to try some digital painting!

In this case, I'm referring to exploring the ways in which I can use Photoshop CS6 convert a photograph into something more painterly-looking.

Here are my first two tries:

Marley - Painted

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Marley - Original Photo

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A Rural Scene - Painted

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A Rural Scene -Original Photo

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What do you think? Please let me know!

Oh, and don't forget that I have a series of blank-inside photo greeting cards available on Etsy - click to check it out!

Spectacular Storm Clouds

It was the kind of evening you can't plan for - you just have to be ready for it when it presents itself!

Before the sun started to set, the drama started with some eye-catching clouds billowing above the Rocky Mountains across the valley from us, and what looked a bit like steam above a volcano ...

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Hang on a sec, is that smoke beneath that updraft? Yes!

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Not much came of this cell, though. A couple of hours later, however, we noticed this bundle of business trundling up the middle of the valley (wish I had a wide-angle lens - this is a 3-shot panorama):

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Just look at those "bubbles" of cloud, and the golden light bouncing around the peaks of the Fairmont Range!

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Believe it or not, no wind, rain, or lightning in our area from that!

The golden light soon faded from the cloud bank, but the light that flooded the sky after the sun sank behind the Purcells was spectacular!

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The first thing I noticed this morning, when I awoke, was the smell of smoke. I was ready for the sunrise but there was little to see - except, when I turned around, the cloud-tops above the Purcell Range burned pink:

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Today, the valley's smoky again ... won't complain, it's the sign of summer!

Two Winners!

You may remember that, in June, I ran a Lucky Draw Contest through Facebook, in which the winner was awarded a 30 minute pet photo shoot, along with an 8x10 print of their favourite image from the shoot, and a web-ready copy of the photo for social media.

The winner was Alex Wilson, a local business owner here in Invermere - she and her family operate Nature's Floors.

Alex's dog, Dexter, was the subject of her photo shoot. Dexter is Alex's constant companion, particularly on the long road trip between Calgary and Invermere, which Alex drives round trip every single week, come rain, shine, or snow!

Dexter is a tall, handsome black-and-white boy, said to be a Karelian Bear Dog mix-breed. He's very friendly and energetic, listens well, he is obviously devoted to Alex - and he shows signs of being a good guardian for Alex's two young daughters and their friends, too!

Here's my favourite shot from the session yesterday evening:

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If you'd like to see more, Dexter's gallery has been loaded onto my website.

Thanks again to everyone who entered the contest - better luck next time!

The second winner of which I speak, is the delightful Marley. She's the newest guest at the ICAN companion animal rescue facility where I volunteer - and she's a winner because she won the lottery by being found by a caring soul, and turned over to ICAN for care!

As always, I was called in to take some photos of Marley for the ICAN website. What a sweetie she is, so eager to please and characterful, a pleasure to work with! Marley's photos have been loaded onto my website ... but this is my favourite:

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Marley is currently being fostered by Sylvia, a wonderful long-time ICAN volunteer, until she's ready to go to her forever home! Marley's introduction to ICAN was nothing short of harrowing: 

Marley was found by a caring person in the middle of the highway. Marley had neither the will to get up and move, nor the gumption to realize the danger she was in. Marley is now in ICAN's care and is looking for a new home. We suspect that she has never been inside a house before and although she likes human attention, she is trying to figure out what we want from her. Her spirit is a little broken right now, but we are working on that with her. Marley is being treated for mange (hence all the hair loss and redness), which will take about 6 weeks. We will keep you updated on her progress! She is a total sweetheart though and so far just ignores cats and other dogs.

The vet said she's between 1 and 2 years old - and she's already had at least one litter of pups!

I'm happy to report that over the past two weeks, Marley's made improvements in leaps and bounds, learning to trust humans, and having her medical issues addressed and assigned to her past.

She'll be spayed early next week and, as soon as she's ready, will be going to her forever family, which is already waiting excitedly to welcome her to their home!

Don't you love a happy ending?!

Christmas In July

I believe the concept came from the southern hemisphere countries that experience seasons opposite to those in Europe and North America, so that they can have a cold-season Christmas, too! (Not that this stops them from celebrating "real" Christmas on December 25th, as well!)

So why not spread the goods around a bit, eh?!

In recognition of this special season, I'm offering everything in my Etsy shop at 20% off!

Everyone is allowed to take advantage of this deal - not just those of you who're south of the Equator!

It's for one day only, July 25th, so mark your calendar!

Here's the coupon code you'll need: CIJ2014

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Click here to go directly to the greeting card section of my shop - I'm looking forward to "seeing" you over there, browsing around!

Merry Christmas in July to you all!