Classic Lines (Toronto, Ontario)

Digital original

While walking through the Distillery District in Toronto, I made this image of a rusty old truck; it was the combination of line and form with the beauty of rust that drew me in, but the chromed Dodge face of the truck was equally engaging.

Digital original

While I was working, the sun came out, changing the feel of the truck completely.

An Early Coastal Barrens Session (Polly Cove, Nova Scotia)

Digital infrared original

Whenever I can, I seek to make portraits of the people I photograph; while A_ and I spent the first part of the day working in a forest, I never found a setting that worked for portraiture, but as soon as we arrived on the glacial barrens, I immediately asked her to stand in the shade of a large erratic, and made a series of portraits.

Digital infrared original, three frame stitch

This is by far my favourite image from this session; it takes full advantage of the strong angular March light, and A_'s pose is a perfect for the setting. The infrared camera really pushed the image to the next level, with the model's luminous skin against the dark rock, below the dramatic sky. I was really happy that we could realize such a striking photograph on her first day of figure modeling.

I really enjoy documentary images such as this; without it, it'd be hard to understand how close I was to A_ as she posed on the rock - with the 17mm tilt-shift, I often am incredibly close to my subjects, but am able to make images that are full of space.

Digital infrared original, 2 frame stitch

The last images of the session were of L_ lying on the bedrock, overlooked by glacial erratics; again I was enthralled with the low angular light, and thoroughly enjoyed how deep and dramatic the sky above her went in infrared.

An Early Outdoor Woodland Session (South Shore, Nova Scotia)

Digital infrared original

This was one of the first photographs from this session, which was also S_'s first time posing Nude, and only the second time we'd met. I've always felt there is an advantage to working with first-time models; they have no preconceptions about how a session should proceed, and so are open to just letting it unfold naturally.

Digital infrared, 2 frame stitch

Prior to this day, the easiest I’ve ever worked outdoors with a model (comfortably) was late April, but today was a record breaking 30 degrees Celsius! I’d met a week before with S_, who was interested on trying figure modeling, so rather than stick to our original plan, and work indoors for a first session, in late March, we headed for the great outdoors!

This documentary photo gives some idea how spartan Nova Scotia can look in March...though there was no snow, and the day was plenty warm, there still was a feeling of winter in the air.

Digital infrared, 8 frame stitch

My favorite image of the this session, above, takes full advantage of the early date of the session; normally, in infrared, the forest around S_ would be bright and luminous, with the leaves of the brush and trees reflecting all sorts of infrared radiation; with the session being so early in the year, the trees were bare, and the only luminous element is S_'s figure.

An Infrared Beachwalk (Halifax, Nova Scotia)

Digital infrared original

On the last Photo 101 fieldtrip of the winter, I made this infrared photograph of seaweed on the shore of the North West Arm.

A "Little" Field Trip (Halifax, Nova Scotia)

Digital original

I have always loved simplicity, and while waiting for students to show up for the field trip, I caught sight of this leaf on a metal access hatch, and had to make an image of it.

Digital original

Within feet of the first image's location, some metal had been welded onto the plate, and the weld-lines ground down to the underlying stainless steel. With my 150mm macro lens, I was able to get in close enough to abstract the grinder lines and create a less literal image of the metal.

Digital original

As the students and I roamed about with cameras, close-ups and details continued to be the focus of my camera - the above image is the bottom of a canoe dragged high and dry for the winter.

Windhorse Farm Day #3 (New Germany, Nova Scotia)

Digital original

  A morning cup of OJ, freshly poured with a perfect bubble in the middle.

Digital original

Though I have now been using digital cameras for over a decade, I still find colour surprising, and hard. That being said, as soon as I drove past this barn, I knew something could be done with the red roof.

Digital original

A soon as I saw this board, holding the barn door shut, I knew exactly what I'd do with it!

Windhorse Farm Day #2 (New Germany, Nova Scotia)

Digital original, 7 frame exposure blend, 3 image stitch

My favourite image of the three days spent at Windhorse Farm is above; the light on the snow and lake was lovely, set below a beautiful winter sky.

Digital original

The view across to the other side of the lake was breath-taking - snow lightly dusted the hillside and gave beautiful highlights to the bare trees.

Digital original

The three mouse catchers on watch at the barn. I have never seen such plump cats.

Windhorse Farm Day #1 (New Germany, Nova Scotia)

Digital original

As the winter has been so mild, this horse was enjoying an afternoon out of the barn, in an open field. Made while waiting for students to arrive for the first annual Winter Photo Retreat.

Digital original, 8 frame focus blend

I was curious about the possibilities of focus stacking with a long lens (in this case, 400mm); after some experimentation, it turned out eight images at f/8 were enough to provide infinite depth of field, from the post on the left to the trees in the distance.

A morning Waterfront Field Trip (Halifax, Nova Scotia)

Digital original

The early morning light was bright yellow, which immediately I connected to the colour of the rope on this dock.  I inverted my tripod head to get my camera right down to the dock level, and then used my 17mm tilt-shift lens to ensure my depth of field extended from the very front of the image to the bollard upon which the rock was tied.

Digital original

Whenever I find myself at a loss for things to photograph, I fall back upon composition as a way to create an image - I look for lines, shapes and forms which I can use to construct a composition, regardless of content.

Digital original

I have always loved the look of worn paint, and in this image, set against the new and pristine canvas cover, it became even more of a contrast in textures.

Vanessa in the Studio (Halifax, Nova Scotia)

Digital infrared original

This portrait is actually a "test" image from this session. I'd asked Vanessa if she'd be interested in helping me make some images for a digital composite I was working on (for a series of fortune telling cards); she was more than happy to assist, and once the lighting was set up, I made some test images - including this really pleasing portrait.

Digital infrared original

At the end of the session, after creating the images I was seeking, I made a couple of images of Vanessa's tattoo - in infrared, tattoo always look far darker and more dramatic.

Digital composite

The final digital image, which was the real focus of this image, wasn't completed for a year!