Princeton

A few years ago I travelled to several communities in Bonavista Bay, one of which was Princeton.

The first photo today shows a fairly large building that is built on a foundation of logs. I photographed the design of the foundation under the building.

Feel free to check out additional photos of Princeton at: http://www.lanephotography.com/places/Princeton/princeton.htm

Fires

Since moving to Holyrood in 1982, I have been having bonfires in the woods behind my house. Because there are many dead trees in the forest, I have never had to cut one live tree in twenty-six years of having bonfires. I burn old boughs and trees which helps clean up the forest floor and make room for new growth.

From the time my sons were old enough to get outside, the three of us spent many an afternoon sitting around campfires. There is something very peaceful about sitting by an open fire on a wintery afternoon.

Today's photos were taken during the first brush fire we had after we started clearing the lot for our new house. We have burned a lot of wood here over the past year and there is still lots more left to burn.

Sunset

A few nights ago I photographed another beautiful sunset from my front deck. My view is limited by the number of trees all around me, but I still managed to get a few nice shots.

The first photo shows a wider view of the sky with a larch tree leaning into the frame. I zoomed in as far as possible to get closer views, then cropped the tree branches out later.
Have a great day!

I have more Sky Photos at: http://www.lanephotography.com/sky/sky.htm

Waterfalls

As I drive and hike around the province of Newfoundland and Labrador, I often stop to photograph rivers and waterfalls.

The first photo was taken just off the Trans Canada Highway near the eastern entrance of Terra Nova National Park. I have stopped here in different seasons and have several photos of this river.

The second was taken on the Manuals River Hiking Trail very close to the Conception Bay Highway. In the spring, the little waterfall has much more water, but I haven't been able to photograph it at the right time.

The third photo was taken in Cape Broyle on the Irish Loop.

I have more photos of rivers and waterfalls at:
http://www.lanephotography.com/rivers/rivers.htm, and
http://www.cdli.ca/~blane/water.htm

Ghost Town

In 2004, My son Mark and I, travelled to Labrador to photograph Battle Harbour.

We were sitting on the deck after dark enjoying the peace and quiet when I had an idea for an interesting photograph. I set up my tripod and camera and asked Mark to take my flash and walk down by the nearest old house. I used a long time exposure as he moved from place to place, firing the flash by hand.

The image was as I hoped it would be; mostly dark with three "Marks". After we arrived home I added a "ghost" to the scene. It was actually taken from a life-sized photo of fishermen splitting fish.

The first image was cropped from the second to give you a closer view. I added the third photo to show the original photo from which I made a ghost.

Feel free to check out my photos of Battle Harbour at: http://www.lanephotography.com/battle_harbour/battle_harbour_01.htm

Humpback Whales

Each summer hundreds, if not thousands, of humpback whales migrate to Newfoundland and Labrador for the rich feeding grounds just off shore. I have been fortunate enough to get pretty close to these majestic animals a few times.

Two years ago, I photographed two whales travelling together just off Bauline East on the Irish Loop. Since one was a lot bigger than the other, I assumed it was a mother and young one. The smaller one put on quite a show; slapping its tail on the surface and swirling around the boat.

If you have photographed whales you already know that once they go under the water there is no way to predict where they will surface. I was very lucky to have captured the first image because I was holding the camera just above my waist while waiting for one of the whales to surface.

Luckily, I was using my 17-40 mm wide angle lens because, all of a sudden, the whale jumped out of the water no more than 10 feet from the boat. I didn't have time to look through the viewfinder so I shot several images without raising the camera to my eyes. If I had my telephoto lens, I would have missed this shot. In fact, I think this was the best photo I made that day.

The show continued until our tour boat operator had to get back to port. After we left, the two whales continued on their journey. It seemed like they actually put on a show especially for us!

As usual, I have Whale Galleries on line at:http://www.lanephotography.com/whales/whales_main_01.htm

Seagulls

Last year when I was in Florida, I noticed a large flock of birds heading towards me as I walked the back roads taking photographs. I watched the birds with interest and when they got right above me they began to fly in a circlular formation. They seemed to go higher and higher with each rotation.

The two photos this morning show a couple of views of them circling directly overhead. They were really high (the photos were taken on maximum zoom with my 70-300 mm zoom lens). They seemed to be feeding on something - I assummed it was probably some type of insects.

Every year in Holyrood, Newfoundland and Labrador, I see seagulls feeding on insects high above my home. I have seen them actually picking "something" out of the air. It always happens when "flying ants", which are future queens of Carpenter Ant colonies, are on the move.

I am not sure what the seagulls in today's photos were eating, but it was probably some type of insects.

If you are interested in Birds of Florida, feel free to chek out http://www.lanephotography.com/birds/birds_of_florida_01.htm

Seascapes

Today, I have chosen 3 photographs of seascapes taken in Trinity and Conception Bays. I spend quite a bit of time photographing seascapes and trying to capture the perfect wave.

My comments will be shorter this week because I don't have access to the programs I normally use.

Feel free to check out my Seascapes Galleries:
http://www.lanephotography.com/seascapes/seascapes.htm

Lily

Lily

Happy Easter

I am sharing 3 photos of a different type of lily. I liked the close-up views of the anthers, the reproductive parts of the flower. The photos were taken inside without a flash or tripod. I placed the flowers in front of our living room window where there was plenty of diffused light.

Easter Lily

Happy Easter everyone.

Several years ago I visited a local nursery and photographed most species of plants growing in the greenhouses. It was part of a project we were doing in school - every classroom was growing a different species of plant.

The Easter Lilies were in full bloom and the light filtering through the greenhouse was perfect for flower photography. The growth and sales of Easter lilies is a multi-million dollar business, especially this time of the year. According to one website I visited: The beautiful trumpet-shaped white flowers symbolize purity, virtue, innocence, hope and life - the spiritual essence of Easter.

I created a gallery with 9 photos of Easter Lilies. http://www.lanephotography.com/plants/Easter_lily/Easter%20Lily_01.htm

If you want to brighten your day with images of flowers feel free to check my Virtual Tour of Holland Nurseries, click the link below. http://www.mqp.k12.nf.ca/holland_nurseries/

Loggerhead Shrike

You have probably guessed that I am not in Florida this Easter. I am missing friends, hot weather, and photo ops! Unfortunately, we waited too late to make reservations because everything was booked and we could not get off the island of Newfoundland. There were lots of seats from Toronto to Florida, but getting to Toronto was impossible.

The first day I arrived in Florida last year, I photographed a nest with young loggerhead shrikes. I was able to get very close to them and get quite a few close-ups with my 70-300 mm lens. The following day, the birds left the nest and never returned.

These young birds were difficult to identify because my identification book showed two types of shrike that were very similar. The only way to identify which species of shrike I had photographed was a map which showed that only one of them winters in Florida.

It is funny that I have been living in the forest for 26 years and I have yet to find a bird's nest around my home that had young birds in it. Yet in Citrus Park, I was able to photograph this nest less than 30 feet from the place I was staying.

I have created a gallery with 15 photos. Feel free to check it out. http://www.lanephotography.com/birds/loggerhead_shrike/loggerhead_shrike_01.htm

Winterton

Winterton, Trinity Bay holds a special place in my heart because my mother was from that town and I visited it often as a young boy. I still try to get there for a visit at least once a year as I still have quite a few relatives still living there.

I remember the summer of 1961 when there were forest fires burning all around that area of the province. I remember walking around the community with my Kodak Hawkeye camera taking photos. It is interesting for me to look back at the types of photos I took at that time.

Feel free to check my Winterton Galleries on line at: http://www.lanephotography.com/tbs/winterton/winterton.htm

Twinflower

After 2 or 3 days of storms in the past week, people in this part of the world are wishing for Spring and, even though tomorrow is officially the first day of Spring, it certainly doesn't seem like it around here.

As a result, this morning I chose three photos of twinflowers. Actually, these are the first photographs I ever took of this species of wildflower. I was walking through the woods near Holyrood in July 2002, and saw these tiny, delicate, beautiful flowers growing in the moss on a large rock. I remember being surprised that I had never noticed them previously. Since that time, I see them every summer. They bloom in late June to early July around here.

If you want to see other flowers, feel free to check my thirteen PLANTS Galleries on line at: http://www.lanephotography.com/plants.htm

Ice - Shapes and Textures

Thanks for the positive comments on my Photo of the Day A-Z series. A few of you have made suggestions for future themes and I will consider them in the near future.

Last weekend I spent a while photographing ice in the little brook behind my house. The lighting was perfect for the type of images I was trying to capture. The bright sun, blue sky, and light reflecting off ice formed by running water was perfect for photographing textures and shapes. Believe it or not I took over 250 photos in the 12 minutes I spent making images.

I have chosen 50 and made a slide show with quiet music. Just play the video on this page.

Feel free to check other ice photos on: http://www.lanephotography.com/ice/ice.htm

Z - Zebra

Today marks the end of the alphabetized Photo of the Day. It was the first time in the 5 years I've tried it, and I have to say it was interesting. I thought it would save me time, but it actually took much more because it forced me to edit or create Galleries. Tomorrow, I'll return to my more "random" choices for my daily photos.

The photographs of the Zebra were taken in Naples Zoo when I visited there last year.

Y - Yard Art

Yard Art/Lawn Ornaments are common around Newfoundland and Labrador and the styles range from paintings to driftwood and all combinations in between.

The first photo shows a house in Victoria, Conception Bay which has hundreds of pieces of yard art. This particular house has been photographed by thousands of people and has appeared in magazines and books.

The realistic-looking lighthouse was in a yard in Heart's Content, Trinity Bay. Miniature lighthouses are common in yards around our province.

Feel free to check 18 more photos of Yard Art at my updated site: http://www.lanephotography.com/lawn_ornaments/lawn_ornaments.htm

X - Xyloglyphy (wood-carving)

As expected, it hard to find a photo that represented the letter X. My first thought was a xylophone, but I couldn't any photos that were good enough to share.

Next, I resorted to looking up words beginning with X and came across Xyloglyphy - wood carving. I remembered a few photos I took in the mid-80s at the Corner Brook Folk Festival, found them, and am sharing today.

Those of you who have been on my Photo of the Day list for a while, know that I like photographing hands, and these are no exception. When I took these photos over 20 years ago, I was adding to my collection of Hands photos, not realizing I would use them to show Xyloglyphy.
I had never heard of the word before last night when searching through X words. I wonder how many people knew this word before today.

Feel free to check more photos of Hands at: http://www.lanephotography.com/hands/hands_01.htm

W- Wood Stork

While visiting Florida last year I saw (and photographed) wood storks for the first time. I wasn't sure of the species until I checked my identification books.

I liked the first photo because they were standing back to back - almost like they were avoiding each other. I liked the contrast between the bird and "dark" water in the second photo.

Feel free to check 18 more photos of Wood Storks at my updated site: http://www.lanephotography.com/birds/wood_stork/wood_stork_01.htm

I also have photos of 17 species of Florida birds. http://www.lanephotography.com/birds/birds_of_florida_01.htm

V - Vultures

I sent a couple of photos of black-headed vultures last November and received a few comments about the "gross" photos of the birds feeding on a dead alligator.

This morning I chose 3 photos of black vultures that were gathered around, and on, a house in Belle Villa, Florida. I wondered what would attract so many vultures so I had a look for something dead nearby. I couldn't see anything that would be attracting them, but didn't walk into the yard.

I added a photo of the king vulture to let you see that vultures can be bright and colourful. Feel free to check more photos of Vultures at my updated site: http://www.lanephotography.com/birds/vultures/vultures_01.htm