Highway 1A: West to East

A few days ago, instead of taking the usual Trans-Canada Highway 1, we decided to take "the back road" to Calgary.

It started when we turned off H1 at Castle Mountain onto he 1A, and followed that slow, winding road for about an hour. No wildlife to be seen, besides a few crows and a pair of suicidal squirrels, but the speed limit is very low so it was an enjoyable ride watching the scenery trundle by. It was pretty heavily treed, so not many scenic opportunities until we popped back onto H1 just before Banff:

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I also took a panoramic series from the lookout here - it's currently the banner image on my photography Facebook page, so pop across and have a look! (I'm running a contest over there, if you're interested in a chance to win a pet photo shoot!)

At Canmore, we (after a short unscheduled trip around one of the neighbourhoods) got back onto 1A, also known as the Bow Valley Parkway. The scenery was pretty but I knew the "must have" shots would be on the way back, with the Rockies in the background. We did find a small herd of horses, though, so had to spend a few minutes there ...

One of the Herd Stallions

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View more of these horse photos in the horse gallery on my website.

After a hectic time finding our way around the city, country bumpkins that we are, we headed home. The plan was to do the 1A in reverse, but we ended up in one of those darned "right turn only" lanes that pop up with no warning in Calgary. After navigating around the university district for about 20 minutes before landing back on H1, by which time we (or rather, I, the driver) were too stressed to try to find the Bow Valley Parkway, and decided to head straight home.

On our way back through Kootenay National Park, this black bear crossed the road right in front of us, so we had to stop to watch it for a while:

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I confess, I have saved the best for last, so I hope you kept following along! About 8.30am, literally minutes out of Radium Hot Springs, in Kootenay National Park, less than an hour after we left home, we come across this grizzly sow:

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This is only the second time I've seen a grizzly in the wild - and she had twins with her!!!

View more of these bear photos in the bear gallery on my website.

Next time, the BVP will definitely be driven east-to-west! And this wasn't the last time that it was driven west-to-east, either!  ;-)

May Views

The end of another month, means another "time lapse" blog entry!

This time the first part of the month we were on Maui, so the view I chose is the view up Haleakala from the gardens of the Maui Vista complex where we were staying.

Then, after we returned home, I noticed buds showing on the evergreen outside our kitchen window, so thought a series illustrating the new growth of spring 2014 would be nice!

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Hope you enjoy the view ... and that your winter's finally over! (I'm still not convinced about ours - we had a fresh dusting of snow down into the tree line a few days ago!)

April Views

Something a little different this month, because on the 18th we traveled from home to Calgary (by road through the Rockies with rain, sleet, snow, slush and about everything else, too!), and then on the 19th, from Calgary to Maui via Seattle, for our holiday!

I wasn't sure if I could do it, but I managed to maintain a "view a day" - this time, though, it has a major change of scenery about halfway through!

Click Image To View Slideshow Full Size

See you next month ... maybe ... if we ever return from our bliss on Maui ...

Colour, or Black & White?

In September 2013 I asked the same thing. This time, though, it's about dramatic light on an alpine scene.

Last week we had an evening when beautiful early evening light was giving us gorgeous views of the snow-capped peaks across the valley and impressive clouds filled the skies!

I am thinking about making a series of greeting cards with these images, and am hoping you'd give me some feedback on which version to offer - should I do both?

Click To See Larger Version

Click To See Larger Version

To see the whole series of six images in colour, please click here (then click the arrow-right to see the next image).

And to see the monotone series, click here.

Thanks - I hope to hear from you!

March View

Here's the view for March - 31 images, taken on 31 different days but not necessarily at the same time of day, at approximately the same spot!

A bit of everything this month, as Old Man Winter slowly relinquishes his hold!

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April is going to be "different" - watch this space!

Country Roads

It must be spring! Yesterday I took my first unplanned shooting safari of the season: I turned off my usual route and followed a road I'd never traveled before - dirt roads are always the best!

Good light, no traffic, new points of interest! As always, click on the images for a better view.

First stop, the long-forgotten longdrop ...

I loved how the light was catching the outhouse. And can't decide if I like the image more in colour, or black and white! What do you think?

Then the barn on the hill:

The island in the reservoir:

The Canada geese who arrived a bit early for the spring thaw:

       

 The abandoned tractor at the end of the road:

It is nearly the end of March, so watch for my "March View" edition in the next few days!

Premier Pet Set!

Last year, my friend and colleague at ICAN, Lana, purchased a Pet Set from me - the package was made up of four short sessions with your pet over several months, with your choice of favourite images to be printed regular size, plus one large print - as it turned out, Lana was my first "pet" client, too!

Lana rescued her Airedale, Shanti, from a terrible life of neglect and abuse. It is a long and unhappy story, but the way Lana tells it, Shanti chose Lana! They've been together several years now - and are inseparable!

I am deeply honoured that Lana chose to treat her 9" x 12" print so well, by having it beautifully matted and framed! Here she is with the final product:

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Thank you, Lana and Shanti! It was fun working with you both!

If you'd like to have photos of your pet taken, please email me for more information!