Tag Archives: nature

Spring has sprung – Alexandria, VA

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Despite the snow showers that kept spitting in my face, it appeared Spring had arrived on the East Coast of the United States…or at least, it had according to the birds in the area.

A few images from a wander around the Old Town section of Alexandria, VA.

Travel within and without – British Columbia

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It may sound ridiculous to say, but wherever and whenever I travel, I find symbols of my inner journey, the personal transit that extends beyond airline tickets, overstuffed luggage, and souvenir shops. And it’s often not until I arrive home to look at the images within my camera, that I see the patterns.

Am I imprinting meaning where none inherently exists? Does it matter?

Whether inherent or imposed, the imagining of a pattern changes me and the pattern becomes true.

The following are a selection of images from my travels last year through British Columbia, a break before I began on the next great journey of my life, and one I take alone.

The Guardian

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She stands in the yard,

the centre of her universe,

an observer of her time and place.

Barren arms reach into the air,

fingers scratching at the sky,

grasping at the breeze.

She stands alone.

 

Her skin is deep ebon,

in stark contrast to the piles

of snow at her feet.

Once, it was smooth

but now bears the deep

crenellations and scars

of her many years.

The pliancy and suppleness of youth

have been replaced with the

inflexibility and roughness of maturity.

 

Her age has brought many visions,

scenes of an over-full life

flooding her existence.

She has seen the passing

of innumerable families

in her neighbourhood;

The birth of children

who have played in her yard,

enjoying the welcome

of her open arms.

Children who develop

and change their surroundings,

having children of their own,

growing old and passing on.

Yet, she outlives them all.

 

She will live forever.

For her, the years are minutes,

decades but hours.

Who knew, those many years ago,

when that small grey squirrel

prepared his forage for winter,

that such beauty would surface

from the cold, damp earth

pressing down upon her infant self;

to shade her yard in summer;

to return fertility in the Fall with humus

from her dead and dying leaves.

She is the immortal,

timeless and carefree.

(One of the autumn immortals from Toronto’s High Park.)

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Waterfront wanderings – Toronto

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The summer of 2012 was an amazing time to walk the streets of Toronto, camera in hand. The weather was gorgeous–most days providing incredible sun–and the temperatures never got uncomfortable for human or beast. Life abounded in profusion.

The following are some shots I managed while meandering my way along the Toronto waterfront. I didn’t have to wander too far to get some interesting photos.

Birds of Costa Rica – Tarcoles River

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Considering the Tarcoles River was filled with very hungry crocodiles, I was amazed at how relaxed the birds were as they wandered the shoreline.

(This is also my first attempt at using the Gallery format for my photos.)

Woods you believe – British Columbia

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There is something amazing about the serenity of a lush forest. Even as you follow a trail through the woods with other tourists, I find everyone takes a slightly more hushed tone, as though in reverence to what is around them.

Here are some woodsy photos I took on my trip to British Columbia.

The variegation of the light and shadows, and the richness of the undergrowth take me to a place before time. (China Beach, BC)

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On the shoulders of giants grows the next generation. (Shannon Falls, BC)

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A carpet of green warms the forest floor. (Brandywine Falls, BC)

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Where did that elephant suddenly come from, leaping from the mountainside beneath the moss. (Brandywine Falls, BC)

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And some images express irreverence…I believe the tree on the far left is the men’s. (Chilliwack Lake, BC)

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Bees of Costa Rica

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There is something about the impossibility of bees that truly grabs my attention. Their bodies are so fully compartmentalized, like beads on an invisible string, and their wings can appear so fragile and yet manage to maneuver the insect to any food source anywhere.

While waiting for my brother to return from the gift shop after our crocodile tour, I spotted this guy on the railing of the cafe. I thought the silhouette was so simple and therefore so powerful. (Tarcole River near Jaco)

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Just outside our cabana in Montezuma was a banana tree. I’d taken plenty of photos of banana flowers before, but as I approached this one, I noticed that it was like Grand Central Station.

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Not far from our Montezuma cabana, I spotted some activity around this yellow flowering plant. On the first image below, I love the way the bee’s feed descend, like a plane’s landing gear, although helicopter might be a more apt analogy.

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It is funny how despite the wondrous diversity of my vacation spots, I often end up taking my favourite photos within feet of the front door of my hotel or cabana. In this case, these guys had set up shop in a pillar on our front porch and I could only imagine this massive beam being filled with honey. (Playa Samara)

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Taking wing in BC – Chilliwack

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As some of you have already discovered, I am a sucker for anything that creeps, crawls and flits, so it should come as no surprise that while I wandered the paths of Minter Gardens, outside Chilliwack, BC, that my eye was tuned to the slightest movements among the myriad flowers.

Here are some of the photos that came through.

It wasn’t until I blew up the photo that I saw the small flowers that explained her interest.

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I like the way the petals practically mirror her wings as she works so intently.

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How one walks on this flower I have no idea, but she seemed to have no trouble.

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These guys always looked like they were on their last legs…a little too ragged to get off the ground.

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On flowers like this, it was almost impossible to see these butterflies at first glance.

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The angle couldn’t have been any better for this shot from my perspective.

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The purity of his white next to the satin-like red of the flower was just amazing to me.

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I wanted to capture some of the chaotic nature of the garden with the butterfly…could have done better, but it’s nice.

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Just hanging out, taking 10.

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Snorkeling in Costa Rica – Isla Tortuga

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I love to snorkel and am constantly amazed at the variations in colour and texture found in the ocean. Unfortunately, I’ve never managed to get my act together sufficiently to capture any of these visuals. Until my recent trip to Costa Rica.

Determined to come home with snorkeling photos, I bought myself a small camera that if I lost it, would not represent a great financial loss, but if it took decent photos would be a nice addition to the family.

I opted for a Kodak Sport model, which although not technically an underwater camera, was water resistant to 3 metres…I was going to test the limits of “resistant”. (mine is not the model in the link, which is much nicer, but you get the idea)

A brave fish that gets out of your way, but doesn’t rush, so you typically have time to take its picture.

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Shifting currents were a bit of an issue, and I often found myself twisting in the “breeze” while trying to take a photo.

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I’d seen the larger fish below in Hawaii, as well, and was amazed both by the vividness of its colours and that it could maneuver at all with those tiny fins.

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I am near sighted and the camera viewer was hard to see underwater and through my mask, so the fact that any of the photos were on target and focused is amazing.

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Thank goodness for schools of fish…it dramatically increased the likelihood of me getting something in the shot.

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As someone who burns easily, I normally avoid the sun…thank goodness it showed up today.

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Those little blue guys are everywhere, but they are extremely skittish…I don’t know that I ever managed a clear shot of one.

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This was like swimming through a cloud of liquid silver…this was a huge school and shimmered so much that I swear they generated light.

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Unfortunately, the strong currents tended to cloud the water, so the photos aren’t as pristine as I would have liked. (I cut myself some slack, however, as this was my first time.)

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Feels like a double exposure of one fish.

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These photos were taken off Isla Tortuga in the Gulfo de Nicoya near Putarenas.

If you get the chance, GO! It is magnificent.

 

Loathe to sloth

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I have to be the only person I know for whom the mammal sloth and the deadly sin sloth are seemingly unrelated.

As I traveled Costa Rica recently, my eagle-eyed brother spotted an amorphous blotch in the tree tops at the side of the highway, so we stopped.

After a few clouds parted, the blotch slowly unwound and took the form of a sloth…a very active sloth, in fact…wait, two very active sloths.

The following photos were taken between Volcan Arenal and La Fortuna.

Man, who woke me up? I took lots of photos of a bundle of mossy fur, only to suddenly have her unfurl and make a move up the tree.

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Mom, why is it suddenly so bright? We were astounded when we realized it wasn’t just one sloth but a family.

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Hey you, with the camera, bugger off! Look at that face…for an animal that usually looks dead, this one is pretty animated. Wondering if baby has something to do with it.

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Who you yelling at, mom? I can only imagine how large the baby’s claws are and what they would do to mom if she didn’t have that thick shag.

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Snack time.

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The great thing about photographing sloths is once you have a good angle, you have all day to click away. They move, but not very quickly, and given their roost about 50 feet off the ground, they don’t really have to.