A cloud bank at dawn in Punta Cana
It was quite a while ago when we went to the Dominican Republic for a week of sun and sand. I went out photographing most mornings. As the day brightened ahead of the sunrise, this cloud took shape out of the night, slowly brightening from its head down towards the horizon. A 15 second exposure and a wide aperture helped to create a dreamy feel to this seascape.
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Layering dusk from sea to sky in San Pancho
Sunsets on the Mexico’s west coast can be spectacular. We were able to enjoy a couple of them when we were in San Pancho last week. Ribbons of cloud were first painted gentle shades of rose and violet above the blue ocean as it stretched out towards the sky. It was a muted palette but whispered a suggestion of what may come.
A few minutes later, as the day slipped away, twilight deepened those colors. Deep purple and electric pinks growing from their soft predecessors. The foamy water of the Pacific blurred and reflected some of the color across the surface.
Increasing darkness allowed for longer exposures. The colors revealed were now beyond what my eyes could see. A glow coming into the photographs along with smoothing in the clouds and the water. The town’s lights caught on the breaking surf.
A couple of minutes later, the sky was much darker to the eye. The long exposures continued to reveal the rich colors of this beautiful evening’s sunset.
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Aurora Prairialis
The Northern Lights have been increasing their activity into the southern Canadian latitudes lately. After what seems like close to a year of quiet night skies, it is wonderful to enjoy them again.
We found these dancing lights on the prairies south of Cochrane near the end of September. It was a calm display but hopefully a harbinger of things to come.
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Cat Creek Waterfall
We started the September long weekend with a family hike up Cat Creek on the southern side of Kanananskis. It’s a short walk through the forest that offers beautiful views down the Foothills and more intimate scenes in the valley. It was late afternoon and we enjoyed being in no particular rush. The trail has signs about the area’s history as main trail into Kananaskis last century as well as a short-lived period as a coal mining hotbed. We arrived at the end of the main trail shortly after 5 o’clock and had the pond below the waterfall to ourselves.
Cold but not bitterly so, the youngest kids all had turns jumping in and taking short swims. Desiree and I climbed up the cliff beside the waterfall and explored further upstream for a little while. Above the cliff edges were striped with thick moss and the stream had several small drops. However the waterfall at the end of the trail was rightfully the star of the show. It is one of the prettiest that I have seen in Alberta. That comment may be influenced by the company I was with – most of my very favorite people. Nonetheless, it was a great location to take a few photos.
The walk back in the evening light was just as beautiful. We finished with most kids sleeping on the way home. A great day.
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Sea spray and the setting sun
I visited Second Beach on the Olympic Peninsula in April. It was my first visit to this picturesque stretch of the Pacific Northwest. Heavy waves rolled in with sunset and I had a great time framing them amid the sea stacks, along the beach and against the rocks. When the sun was sinking into the water, one wave exploded inside the keyhole. The silhouette of the spray had me imagining figures and forms. It was a cool moment to recall a great evening on the ocean.
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Port Angeles – the ocean in motion
When I was on the west coast a couple of weeks ago, I spent one morning photographing along the Port Angeles shoreline. It had been a little while since I have been on the ocean and I was hypnotized by the ebb and flow of the waves along the beach. I always am.
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Winter at Elbow Falls – water, snow and ice
There is a beautiful balance of running water, ice forms along the river’s edge and drifts of snow at Elbow Falls right now. Following an early start, photographing the waterfall before dawn, I stayed for a long time playing with these elements. This is one of my favorite waterfalls and was happy to find a few new ways to photograph it on this visit. A couple of American dippers kept me company and I eventually turned my attention to them as splashed around hunting for breakfast in the fast-moving water. I look forward to sharing those images soon.
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Dawn at Elbow Falls
The early light worked well with a few interesting clouds hanging above Elbow Falls on the day I was up there this weekend. The soft pink ahead of sunrise shared the sky with the waning full moon early. As the clouds turned to a deep peach color I moved just above the waterfall. From there the reflections of colour on the excited water were beautiful and I watched the morning open up.
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Wedge Pond Mists
With the early snows of the past week, I was eager to get into the mountains to see how things looked up there this weekend. I went up to Wedge Pond which sits below Mount Kidd in Kananaskis. This small, shallow pot lake is a great location in the fall as it is ringed by a variety of trees and catches the mountain’s reflection in its quiet waters.
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It was overcast when I headed out but the sky was more promising in the mountains. Before dawn, the mist started to rise off the water. It was cold and seemed to be perfect conditions for the creation of low clouds and heavy mist. That worked for me and I enjoyed photographing along the shoreline through sunrise.
The leaves on the deciduous trees are just starting to change color so I will make sure to return in a couple of weeks to catch their golds and oranges. The elk rut should start around the same time so I’m looking forward to hearing their bugling in the forest surrounding the pond then too.
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Ashnola River
This is a short section of the Ashnola River in British Columbia’s Cathedral Provincial Park. I saw a wonderful diversity of riverscapes as I went up and then back down the gravel road that runs closely to the water. This section drew me in but I look forward to going back with the luxury of more time to explore them.
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Elbow Falls Dipper
Canon 5DIII + 500mm lens: 1/640 of a second at f/4 on ISO 1600
I went up to Elbow Falls last weekend for the sunrise but I stayed for the American Dippers (Cinclus mexicanus).
Canon 5DII + 70-200mm lens: 1/1000 of a second at f/8 on ISO 1000
I love watching these aquatically adept birds stalking, diving and swimming in the middle of the rapids. On the last visit to the waterfall, there were three Dippers flitting about moving between the bottom of the waterfall and the rocks at the top.
Canon 5DIII + 500mm lens: 1/640 of a second at f/4 on ISO 4000
Canon 5DIII + 500mm lens: 1/1000 of a second at f/4 on ISO 1600
Canon 5DIII + 500mm lens: 1/1250 of a second at f/4 on ISO 2500
They chased each other down river a couple of times but spent most of their time fishing alone. On a quiet morning in Kananaskis, it was nice to spend my time watching them.
Canon 5DIII + 500mm lens: 1/640 of a second at f/4 on ISO 1600
Canon 5DIII + 500mm lens: 1/640 of a second at f/4 on ISO 1600
Sharing this post is welcomed - but please do not use individual images without permission from Christopher Martin in advance.
Rippling on the water
From a small pond in Granville Island where a light rain was falling. The circular ripples created by the raindrops hitting the water distorted the reflections of trees above.
