Last Thursday we reached 31 degrees and I spent four hours at the Forestry Farm and zoo. More than one hour was spent under an ornamental crabapple tree just enjoying the breeze and butterflies, setting up lights and photographing the apples.

Yes, I got some nice photos, but watching the people enjoying the garden, taking in the air and peacefulness and feeling a certain sentimental melancholy about the fading summer that wasn’t certainly made better use of the day than sitting at home.

I will return to update the post once the publishing process has reached a point of certainty. Until then, I’ll just say that Lyn had a great idea for a children’s book and had her talented daughter illustrate it. It sounds like a great story and she has more in mind for the future.

I hope only the best for them and their book.

Renowned Saskatchewan nature photographer Courtney Milne has died at the age of 66 following a prolonged battle with cancer.

Milne, who was born in Saskatoon, had spent his final days at home in Grandora near Saskatoon and died on Sunday.

A prolific photographer and author or co-author of more than a dozen books, he explored sacred sites and landscapes around the globe.

via CBC News

I do not remember exactly who first told me about Dr. Milne, but I began looking at this website and decided to contact him. His reply was incredibly encouraging and a wisdom that he imparted in just a few e-mails probably would’ve taken me 10 years to learn on my own. Ideas that he put into my head for stories that someone in my position could tell better than any able-bodied person (he said himself that he tried to tell the stories of people brushed off his idea) still linger and I wait for the right time to begin working on those ideas all thanks to him.

As it says in the article, waiting for the right light, and appreciating the countless photographic opportunities within your own home area are what I try to keep at the forefront of my mind. The opportunity to travel and to shoot is not to be diminished but to miss the opportunities all around you would be a mistake as well.

Little more do I need to say other than I had hoped to meet him one day. It seemed like a possibility as a friend at church was related to him and had somewhat seriously planned on having Angie and myself out for dinner and inviting Courtney and his partner, Sherrill.

Rest well, sir. You will be missed.

Full article here.

Though they have some nice artwork inside their business, I think I may see if they would be interested in having me provide more intricate photos, of which these cupcakes are very deserving.

I suppose the positive side is the much lower power bill as the air conditioning ran very little in our house.

I did make the most of our, potentially, last +31 day yesterday. Four hours at the Forestry Farm and zoo was time well spent.

I have seen some trees turning yellow already this year, but they were either very young or damaged limbs on mature trees.

One little leaf hiding didn’t bother me too much:

But when I came around a corner to find many trees fully turned and dropping leaves, the reality set in.

More from yesterday to come soon.

Just me messing with physics. Must’ve divided by zero or something.

And that concludes the first leg of our summer vacation. Next, after a brief rest at home in Saskatoon, being greeted by a very excited little puppy, we headed south to Swift Current and Lac Pelletier.

I would hardly say that I got my fill of photography after holidays, because I don’t think that’s possible, but I had taken a lot of photos, processed those photos and had a lot of work to catch up on after returning home from holidays and time at the lake. Many of the photos I took on the second leg of our holidays I will not post until a later date. The reason being that the ones I’m happiest with will be entered in photo contests in and around Swift Current. Though they are and will remain my photos after the contest concludes, I don’t know that I want to give ideas to other local photographers, who have much more time available in the area than I had to shoot. They would be able to return to perfect the minor imperfections or details in their photos that I now see I would have done differently in mine after seeing the photos on a computer monitor. They are still decent shots, and I stand by my ability to get the shot every time in non-repeatable situations, but those little LCD monitors in the back of the camera don’t always tell the whole story especially when you’re working in bright sunlight and don’t have a proper environment to view those photos on site. Maybe I’m being picky but I like my work to be as perfect as I can possibly make it.

After processing those photos and being somewhat empty on ideas, as my photography thinking had been almost exclusively devoted to holiday shots, I didn’t shoot much after returning home. Then a friend with whom I have a bit of a project idea with in touch with me and we resumed work on it. I’m afraid it’s at another standstill to the point of possibly being held off from for quite some time. It’s always the way things go with projects. At the start there is that initial excitement and enthusiasm, little bit of that wanes as you try to figure out the logistics, organizing the actual execution of the project can be demotivating or even mundane, executing the project can renew the enthusiasm, another slump can hit while the data collection or photographs or whatever was produced from the execution is compiled, but as the end draws near and presentation becomes a reality the excitement can return. Unfortunately I believe that we might be very stuck with a lot of logistics, timing and details that need ironing out before organizing the shoots. Add to that the end of the optimum shooting season drawing near as Duncan, the partner in this, returns to university and time will grow even scarcer.

However, I have been devoting a lot of time to refining and preparing for this year of the photography ministry team at our church. Last year it did not develop the momentum I had hoped for but certain details have been adjusted or perfected, I have prepared much more information for anyone interested to equip them, and prepared advertising for the various newsletters and communication resources in the various programs and ministries in the church. I’m much more hopeful that there will be a lot more work produced this year and a better turnout. The first year was a good learning experience and now that I feel like I have more direction I hope I will be better able to lead and guide people how to best accomplish their goals in this area.

A few days ago I received an e-mail from a young man currently attending a film school in Vancouver. Part of his classes involved a project where they were to rebrand a company. He had chosen the Muttart Conservatory in Edmonton. His search led him to my website and my gallery from our trip to the Conservatory last summer. Part of his rebranding involved creating posters, brochures and other documentation for distribution. He requested to use some of my photos and I was happy to oblige. He told me that there is the possibility that the Conservatory may use some of his final work, or portions of it, and that credit would be given where credit is due. Though it is not my primary goal there may also be a source of income from the Conservatory if they do use my photos and part of his work. That would not be so bad because last Saturday I found my most expensive deal on Kijiji.

It is a hard pill to swallow but my 30th birthday is coming up. I’m just joking. Age is only a number. Some days I can’t believe I will be 30 as it seems like I’m stuck somewhere around 23 or 24 other mornings, crawling out of bed, I feel more like sixtysomething. But, I have had in my mind that it would be reasonable to upgrade cameras pretty soon and, disregarding what I just said about age being just a number, 30 seems like a pretty significant milestone, or should I say excuse, to spend a little more on a birthday present. I was thinking about waiting for the next Pentax flagship camera to be released in the hope that it has some of the specifications I, and other Pentaxians, desire in the camera. The next model is supposed to be announced at Photokina in Australia in September and then probably released by Christmas. The problem is as with anything electronic you know it will be way over priced, especially here in Canada where we get fully ripped off on our electronics. With the only exceptions being seasons of The Simpsons on DVD and two video games, I have never been the type of guy that needs to have the latest thing as soon as it is out (actually, Starcraft II came out a few weeks ago and I did grab it. That would be a significant potion of one week of my hiatus). So I’m maybe half a year behind everyone else electronically. I simply do not derive enough additional pleasure out of having that piece of technology earlier for the extra 30 to 40% it will cost me to buy it immediately versus waiting a few months.

From the Kijiji ad I ended up buying the K-7 with two lenses (that I will be selling because they are unnecessary for me and of a consumer level quality) for about 15% less than buying the camera body alone. It only had 400 photos taken with it and still has 18 months of warranty so I feel confident in my purchase. The lenses were both in perfect condition without a hint of use, still wrapped in bubble wrap, in their original boxes. The cords for the camera were still tied with twist ties in their original bags and taped shut straight from the factory. This camera had been taken care of thoroughly.

I have given it a thorough testing and used it already for a portrait session for a friend and her mom who needed photos for a children’s book they are self-publishing. The photos produced by this camera are very pleasing to me and I feel like I made the right move even if it was my traditional purchase of my birthday present a month or more before the actual birthday. Not something I am proud of but it just seems to always happen that way and I know a good deal when I see it. The most interesting part of the purchase was that it was from a family who it moved here from the Ukraine only a year ago. Communication was not terribly difficult but definitely interesting. I’m glad that I was the one who purchased it from them because I fear that the possibility of them getting ripped off by someone would have been greater than your average Kijiji seller. They were very nice, decent and trusting people and I hope they don’t have any bad dealings with the untrustworthy people in our country.

Yesterday I had a good outing to the zoo that I desperately needed. The physical activity and clearing my head after putting in a 12 hour day of nonstop work on Wednesday was good. It was a good day except the lion, who has now run up to me in a friendly manner 20 consecutive times, got spooked by something when I turn my camera to take a picture of him behind the glass (I think it may have been the long lens swinging his direction) and he lunged at the electric fence, scratched at the ground and had a very aggressive look on his face. I actually still feel a little bit disturbed by it because before that I felt like he was glad to see me. Perhaps he has matured into an adult, lost some of his cub playfulness and now views me as that extra layer of fat keep warm this winter instead of his friend who comes to take his picture every so often. Then, as I was about to leave the zoo I stopped at the fox exhibit because it seemed quite active, coming right over sticking its snout through the fence to sniff my bubblegum that I was chewing loudly to get its attention. That was until I popped a bubble and he jumped back, crouched down, ears laid flat, tail down watching me cautiously. I popped one more bubble and he was long gone. Not the best day for making friends at the zoo for me.

Tonight I will be shooting a concert put on by my friend, Dave Hildebrandt, whom I did the photography and design for his CD covers, and I’m quite excited about the opportunity.

If you’re still with me after all that, I say thank you for reading and let you know that I am still working over here and should soon have some new posts of something other than mountains shortly.

Next Thursday evening is a Saskatoon photographers meet up at the River Landing at six in the evening. It will simply be head shots taken by other photographers for use wherever you may be able to use them. Great chance for networking and meet other local photographers and simply have some fun. The original post and coordinator’s website can be found here.

This weekend we are off to Regina to see the Universe Within exhibit at the Saskatchewan Science Center, watch an IMAX, have supper with friends and then attend their second son’s baptism the following morning. Sunday evening our church is having an outdoor pool baptism and if I am able to make it there in time I’d like to shoot some photos of that, too. My camera has been and will be busy and I expect a regular volume of sharing in this space.

Thank you again for reading and I hope to have more for you soon!

It still felt surreal to be looking so far down trying to grasp the scale of it all.