Skunk

This is probably the last sequence of photos from the Shubenackadie Wildlife Park in Nova Scotia. If you missed the other photos of animals check them out on my blog - Photo of the Day Blog.

This was the first time that I had seen (and photographed) a live skunk and, while I was not surprised at the markings, it was interesting to see them as they moved constantly around the fairly large enclosure looking for food.

It was a challenge to photograph the skunks because they are black and white, the bright mid-day sun was filtering down through the canopy of leaves, and they never stopped moving. I chose to share three photos that show the markings on this interesting animal.

Birds

I photographed several birds at the Shubenackadie Wildlife Park but did not get the names of them all. In addition, shooting the photos through a wire fence with small openings made it very difficult to make images.

I am not sure what the last two are, but have identified the first three as:

• bar-headed goose
• blue-eared pheasant
• golden pheasant

If you know the names of the birds, feel free to let me know.

Sail Boats

While in Nova Scotia, I was treated to a couple of days on St. Margaret's Bay in my friend's boat. I photographed boats of all shapes and sizes as they travelled around the bay.

I took many photos and am planning to add them to my Boat Pics site: http://lanephotography.com/boats/boatpics/boatpics_intro.htm

Many people wondered if I had stopped sending my Photo of the Day, but I uploaded photos to my Blog most days since I left of August 13. Feel free to check it out. Photo of the Day Blog

Bald Eagle

In order to photograph animals through a wire enclosure, you need to use a telepohoto (or zoom) lens and ensure the animals are fairly far away. You probably noticed that the animals were very close to the enclosures in the photos I sent yesterday so the wires were visible. The eagle was about 20-25 feet away so I was able to make images in which the wires were nearly invisible.

The three photos of the bald eagle were cropped from originals taken with my 70-300 mm zoom lens at maximum zoom. I had the ISO set on 400 and the camera set on Program (P). I focused on the eyes of the eagle and the made the photograph at f7 at 1/400 second exposure. Of course, I was shooting very quickly and did not pay attention to those details until I checked the information on my computer later.

Many people ask me if I shoot my photos using manual settings, but 99% of the time I use the P setting on my camera. I tested the Automatic (A), Program (P), and other settings (including Manual) when I first purchased the camera and found that there was very little difference. I use P because it gives me much more control than fully Automatic.

Wildlife Park

For years I refused to photograph animals in zoos and wildlife parks because I hated seeing the animals in cages. In fact, I remember that during my first visit to the Shubenacadie Wildlife Park back in the early 70s that the animals were kept in small cages. I am happy that animals are kept in much larger enclosures these days. I still don't like to see animals that are caged, but realize that the animals kept at many parks were injured and may have died if they hadn't been brought there. In addition, I have been able to view (and photograph) animals and birds that I would never have seen in the wild.

The photos today show wolves, bears and a river otter that were looking through the wire fences of their enclosures.

Woodchuck

I photographed two woodchuck at the Shubenacadie Wildlife Park and am sharing 4 photos this morning. I tried to eliminate objects that indicated the photos were taken in an enclosure. There were no wire fences to shoot through so it was fairly easy to make it look like they were taken in the wild.

Deer

Yesterday we visited Shubenacadie (pronounced "Shoo-ben-ack-a-dee") Wildlife Park which is located between Halifax and Truro in Nova Scotia. I remember visiting this park during my first trip to Nova Scotia in 1971.

There are two types of deer in the park and I am not certain which type of deer I photographed. The first photo shows a large, healthy-looking stag with a large set of antlers. The second, smaller stag wandered by and the two of them were curious about the people who were photographing them. The mother and fawn stopped browsing the grasses and also had a look around.

The openings in the wire fence were large enough for me to photograph the deer without having to worry about wires getting in the way.

Hands

A group of South American musicians were just beginning to play as we walked along the boardwalk at the Halifax Buskers festival, and I was able to get close enough to get a few photos because a crowd hadn't gathered yet.

The first photo shows the band playing their first song. As you can see, it is difficult to make a good image because the microphones, tent poles and equipment are in the way. However, with my zoom lens, I was able to capture "musical hands" playing instruments I hadn't photographed before.

Boats, Halifax

Halifax Harbour is a great place to photograph recreational boats. I was there on a beautiful Sunday afternoon and there were many boats in the harbour. Of course, I took lots of photos of the boats as they travelled around the harbour.

Halifax Buskers

I visited the annual Busker Festival in Halifax a few days ago. The waterfront was very crowded and it was difficult to see the shows unless you got a seat early and waited for the performances to begin.

As I walked along I saw a bunch of people looking at a statue and I got my camera ready to take a picture. To my surprise, when I looked again, it had moved and I quickly realized that it was a person, not a statue. It was amazing how still the person was and how smooth and fluid his movements were when he did move.

I chose four photos which show a few views of this "living statue". It was fun to see kids trying to make him move and how surprised they were when he actually moved towards them.

Belloram

Today's photos were also taken in Belloram, located on the Connaigre Peninsula. I really liked the blue and white house and photographed it from several angles as I walked around the community. Years ago, multi coloured houses were common around the outports of Newfoundland and Labrador, but these days they are not very common at all. I was also surprised to see how close the house was to the water.

The second image shows the same house in the background, but I included part of a boat in the foreground to add another element to the image. I chose to make a vertical composition because there were items on the wharf that would have distracted the viewer. By eliminating the objects, viewers only see what I want them to see.

Dory

As I stated last week, the sky was overcast and lighting dull when I visited the Coast of Bays last week. I have been taking you on a virtual tour of the communities, but this morning I am sharing three versions of the same image.

The first photo shows a dory (A dory is a small, shallow-draft boat, about five to seven metres (15 to 22 feet) long. It is is a lightweight and versatile boat with high sides, a flat bottom and sharp bows.) floating in Belloram Harbour about 20 metres offshore. Because of the lighting and composition, the photo is rather dull and boring.

I converted the image to b & w, increased the brightness and contrast, then cropped out most of the water. I liked the result for two reasons: the position of the boat and lack of dull colours made the image more interesting.

Next, I used a special effect in my photo manipulation program to emphasize the contrast. I also cropped it differently so the boat was positioned in the left third of the image.

In my opinion, both cropped images are more interesting than the original.

Clotheslines

There has been much controversy in cities across North America about clotheslines. Many places have banned them, while others are beginning to promote their use in order to save energy. Here in Newfoundland and Labrador, clotheslines are still a common sight.

Today I chose two photos taken in Belloram during my trip to the Coast of Bays on the Connaigre Peninsula. The first shows a clothesline just beneath the deck of a house that faced the ocean. There were a couple of people there and they were curious about why I would want to photograph a clothesline. When I explained that in some places clotheslines were banned, they laughed and thought I was joking. They explained that drying clothes outside is part of life in rural communities in this part of the province. I photographed quite a few clotheslines there during my trip.

The second photo shows a clothesline with codfish drying instead of clothes. This is a new phenomenon that I have seen in a few communities. Years ago, when there were lots of fish, people dryed them on "flakes" (A fish flake is a platform built on poles and spread with boughs for drying cod-fish on the foreshore of fishing villages and small towns in rural Newfoundland, Canada. Spelling variations for fish flake in Newfoundland include flek, fleyke, fleake, flaik and fleack. Its first recorded use in connection with fishing appeared in Richard Whitbourne's book Newfoundland (1623, p. 57), but these days, there are few fish and fisherpersons have found new ways of drying them.

I have a gallery of clotheslines photos at: http://lanephotography.com/clotheslines/clothes_lines.htm

As well, if you search for clotheslines in my blog, you'll find a few more photos including another with cod drying.

Wreck Cove

Over the past few days I have been sending images of my trip to the Connaigre Peninsula (Coast of Bays). As you can see, there are many tiny communities in this part of the province. Today I chose a couple of images I made in Wreck Cove.

The first shows a wide view of the harbour showing wharves and boats. The second photo was taken from the wharf in the background.

Again, I was impressed with the care and pride in the wharves and stages in all the communities I visited during my trip to the area.

I'll let you know when I create photo galleries for each community in that area of the province.

Coomb's Cove

Coomb's Cove is a tiny, scenic community located in the Coast of Bays. Settled by a a man named Coomb's in the 1700's it remained a fishing community for over 300 years.

As in most communities I visited in this area of the province, most houses are white. The first photo was taken with my 70-300 mm zoom lens and shows houses at the end of the road. The second image shows a wider view that shows the protected harbour, beach, wharf and buildings.

When I return home, I will creae a gallery with more photos of this community.

Doors

One of the towns we visited during our trip to the Coast of Bays was Boxey. It is a strange name that is believed to come from the shape of the wood that grew there when the community was settled in 1830.

While in Boxey, I photographed the doors of several sheds including the two I am sharing today. I liked the blue siding and faded red door, a combination of colours not commonly seen in outports around the island. I composed the second photo to include part of the building including a window and door. As well, the lobster pots in the background provide a clue to viewers that the shed is related to the fishery.

I have more photos of this community and, when I return to Newfoundland, will update my web site to include the images I made in Boxey.

I have more photos in my Windows and Doors Gallery at: http://lanephotography.com/windows_doors/windows.htm