View from the Lake

 So today's images were taken on Lac d'Annecy. We took a boat cruise along the length of the lake from a jetty on the edge of the town.

As you can see it was dull and overcast and it was very windy but that made for  quite a dramatic image, especially with the Chateau de Duingt in the foreground. This is a private residence but I believe there are tea rooms there and the venue is used for concerts and weddings.

The peninsula which houses the Chateau was once an island and has been occupied for 1000 years and was the site of a medieval fortress known as Chateauvieux. If you visit https://chateaudeduingt.fr you will discovery more of the history of the place as well as find some beautiful photos captured when the weather conditions were more favourable.

The third image was one of just a handful of wildlife pictures I took on the road trip and is of a Red Crested Pochard. It is probably quite easy to tell how it got its descriptive name.

Glenridding Pier (2)

When I first arrived here at Glenridding Pier on Ullswater it was -6 degrees and the fog rising off the lake meant there was virtually no visability as you will see if you check out my post Glenridding Pier from 1st December.

Stopping for another look just after 11am the scene was completely different and some of the lake steamers were out taking day trippers out for a tour of the lake.

I like the stillness in the first image and the clear blue gives a sense of how cold it was, however I think I prefer the second image; I like the composition and I love the colouring and the low mist lingering in the valley in the distance.

An Early Start

I set out from home just after 5am and set off for the Lake District hoping to get some early morning winter sun. It was -2 C when I set off from home but when I arrived at Glenridding on Ullswater it was -6 C, my hands where painfully cold as I walked long the shore trying to get some good shots.

By now it was 8.30am and the sun was up but here the "steam" rising off the lake formed a thick canopy closing everything in. 

Despite the cold and gloom I think I managed to get some nice atmospheric shots, including these two of a small sailing boat sitting calmly at anchor.

I have used long exposures to enhance the eeriness of the low cloud/fog.

I came back a few hours later after the sun had burned off the clouds and it was a different scene altogether. In time I will share some of those but I have lots more to share from my first proper day out for ages

Light As A...

Feather

Now that the Christmas festivities are over I am back to posting here.

I spotted this feather floating on the gently rippling surface of Marie Louise lake in Sleeping Giant Provincial Park. I love the way it rests on the surface held up by the surface tension and it could blow away so easily without leaving a trace.

Marie Louise Lake

Northern Ontario in the autumn and the leaves are changing colours rapidly. By now they're a riot of reds, yellow and gold, but on the day that we visited this spot on the lake the colours were not so vibrant although they were beginning to change. I thought that this image looks better in black and white because you can appreciate the contrast much better. I used a preset in Lightroom to add a little more warmth which the scene deserves and I think you will agree this is a lovely shot.

I chose to photograph this spot because a couple of years ago we camped here, about half way along this shore line and I had so much fun canoeing on the lake, getting up close with an otter family and watching a bald eagle fishing. It was really quiet here on this particular day because the season was coming to an end, but even during the summer it is a great place to get away from it all. There is no phone signal right here so you get a sense of being "off the grid" which is refreshing although I confess that there were times when I sneaked off to the other side of the park in order to call friends/family back home. 

Across The Bay

So I haven't been posting quite as regularly over the past two weeks and that is because I have been out in Ontario along the north shore of Lake Superior. The purpose of the trip was to spend time with old friends in Thunder Bay but of course I never leave my camera behind and so I have captured loads of varied images. There is a real mix of wild Landscapes and Industrial Landscapes, a few random street photos and then an abundance of Wildlife and Nature pictures. With our trip leading into the start of autumn I got lots of shots of the autumn woodlands with the wonderful colours of the changing leaves up high and the myriad of different fungi on the forest floor. I have so much that I want to share.

I know now that my favourite pictures from the trip are of a beautiful red fox and I know that when I get round to sharing them you will be blown away by them just as I was with the experience. Then there are the beavers that were another unforgettable highlight of the trip but you will have to wait for those too, be sure to look out for them in the days ahead.

For today however I wanted to start off with some of the first photographs I took on the first full day of the trip. I went down to the water front in Thunder Bay. I have a number of good shots from my last visit but although the landscape is still the same the changing light and the different moods of the lake means that every day gives opportunities for new images of the same scenes.

I really like this wooden lighthouse at the end of the break water which protects Thunder Bay's marina. When the light catches it right in the early morning or in the evening it glows.
In these shots the small yacht is using the lighthouse as a marker to ensure it stays safe within the breakwater. 

I like the sky in both images, in the first it reminds me a little of the swirl patterns that can be achieved by dropping coloured inks or dyes onto water and using a stick or other implement to create abstract patterns, but I think the sky in the second image is even better with the lines of cloud leading the eye towards the horizon. The waves of cloud in some way mirroring the surface of the lake.

Down Low

Tamron 150mm - 600mm f/5 - 6.3

ISO 400   600mm   f/6.3   1/640 sec

When I first spotted this beautiful male Great Crested Grebe from my favourite hide at Mere Sands I thought that it might have been sitting on a nest but actually he is just sitting really low behind the reeds.  He's really beautiful and I hope that he found a mate although he didn't appear to be doing too well on this particular day.

Sleepy Duck

Tamron 150mm-600mm F/5-6.3

ISO 400  600mm  f/6.3  1/250 sec 

ISO 400  600mm  f/6.3  1/640 sec

These are male tufted ducks spotted at Burton Mere Wetlands. They have lovely plumage and even though they are just black and white the markings are really quite striking. This is set off by the bold orange eyes, which stand out all the way across the mere.

You can see that the bird in the first shot sleeps with his eye open, not a bad idea I guess although I am not sure what predators might pose a risk in this spot.

In the second image you can clearly see how the duck gets its name.

Juvenile Loon

Here in the UK these birds would be called Divers but in Canada they are Loons. They are quite beautiful when fully grown and just cute as downy chicks like this one. They have the most haunting cry which can be heard from miles away.

I was out on the lake in the canoe when we came across an adult and this juvenile and as we paddled closer so that I could get a clear shot the adult bird tried its hardest to distract us and lure us away from its chick. We got as close as we dared without being too close and then we allowed ourselves to be lured away by the adult. I couldn't get a proper shot of the adult bird though because it was constantly on the move and kept diving below the surface and popping up in a different spot and then when it was satisfied that we were no longer a threat to its young it flew back to where the young bird was swimming and they paddled off together. Although it was slightly frustrating and I couldn't get all of the shots I wanted I was really impressed to see such good parenting.

Old Miners Cabin

Another early morning shot for today, this one shows an old miners cabin on the shore at Silver Islet. I shot this in black and white because I think it gives a sense of how old the place is. Silver Islet is known as a ghost town and is mostly holiday homes now. In camera the shot was slightly over exposed with the sky and lake being a little washed out. It gave the effect that I had originally wanted making this look like a really old photo but I decided to make a slight adjustment in lightroom to bring out some of the detail in the early morning sky.

Also just to follow up on my announcement the other day I now have my new website up and running showcasing some of my wildlife and nature shots so please check it out, you will find it here. I would love to know what you think so please leave a comment or contact me using the contact form on the final page of the site. Thank you.

Intrepid Adventurer

I thought long and hard before posting this picture as I tend not to post images of my family but although this is a picture of my daughter she can't be identified from this shot so I decided it was OK to use it. 

It is one of my favourite photos from the trip for a number of reasons. I love the sunburst and its reflection, I love the colours, I love the stillness of the water, I love the view of the Sleeping Giant and the reflection of the treeline on the far shore. I think it is a fantastic image.

Most of all though I love it because this was such a special moment. Setting off in the late evening to explore the lake we approached the island and we saw a family of otters swimming off to the reed beds and later a family of Loons, we experienced complete calm and it was wonderful bonding experience, creating some wonderful memories. 

As we paddled back to camp the sun had dipped below the horizon and we returned in the dark guided in by torchlight. It was such a wonderful evening and sharing my love for the outdoors with my daughter is a moment from the trip that will always be precious to me. And on a day when I remember my father and the many things we did together it seems fitting to share a picture that sums up in part why I love being a dad.