Torngats 20 - Saglek Fjord Rock Face

Folds and Deformations Exposed in the Cliffs   

On the boat ride up the Saglek Fjord to North Arm...  

...the height of the peaks is rivaled by the folds in the rock layers.   

The sight of mountain peaks plunging 3,000 feet to the sea on either side of the Saglek Fjord is stunning, while the awesome display of metamorphic rock processes in the cliffs adds to the drama.

   

Torngats 19 - South West Arm in the Morning Light

At the Head of South West Arm  

In the Early Morning Sunlight...  

...the hills are so high that the valley is still in shadow.    

The river that runs through this canyon reflects the bright sky in the depths of the shadows. It will be a while before the sun clears the crest of these peaks. 

Torngats 18 - Helicopter view through Mountain valley towards the coastline

Look Up, and Look Down, and Look Straight Ahead  

Only with a helicopter could you fly through a mountain valley...  

...with peaks above you and below you.   

A helicopter ride is an unbelievable experience. You can fly close to mountain walls, low enough to skim the water or the crest of a hill, and hold position to observe a waterfall or rock formation. Our pilot is a photographer himself and he flew us to some spectacular locations in the Torngat Mountains.

   

Birches and their Neighbors - Day 7

Birches on the Riverbank

Riverbank Birches at Sunset  

- with a thin sliver of moon

Sunsets on the river are worth seeing. Depending on the weather, the sunset can range from brilliant reds, pinks and oranges in the clouds, to a lone pale disc dropping into an overcast void. Depending on the season, the river can be a reflecting mirror, or a flat white field of snow and ice, with fringes of birch and alder on the riverbank. And depending on its cycle, the moon shows as a pretty-shaped decoration hanging over the scene. It's transient, though, a sunset is. So it's really worth taking a few minutes to look at it.

Birches and their Neighbors - Day 1

Frost on Squashberries
- a process of satisfaction 

I love photography – I love how it happens. 

First I find something that catches my eye. Then I work through what I consider attractive about it, and then I look at it again through the camera viewfinder, and if it still looks good, I take the photograph.

Afterwards, when I look at the image to edit it, I may be seeing what originally caught my eye, or I may find something completely different. Maybe what I find is better than what I wanted. Maybe I can enhance the image in the editing process.

In the end, making a good photograph is a process of satisfaction. At each step of the way, I have to be satisfied in order to continue working on it.

And so, looking at the finished photograph is also an experience of satisfaction, for me the photographer, and also for the viewer who I hope enjoys what satisfies me.

Art Every Day Month - Nov 30 -

Broken Ice

Broken Ice - early season ice melt  

Source photo

Unseasonably mild temperatures and strong winds have combined to weaken and loosen the just-formed river ice upstream in higher terrain. Masses of slushy frozen water and brittle sheets of thin ice have broken away from the shore and are being carried downstream, pulling more melting ice along with them as they float past.

Art Every Day Month - Nov 29 -

Red Sky in the Morning...

Red Sky in the Morning  - sailors take warning. 

Source photo

Weather traditions that enhance our ability to predict our day come from generations of observation, and are a form of practical knowledge. The weather proverb "Red Sky in the Morning, Sailors Take Warning" means there will be wind or stormy weather coming during the day. "Red Sky at Night, Sailors' Delight" is the concluding part of the verse. In this case, it is a red dawn, and yes, there is wind.

Art Every Day Month - Nov 28 -

Snowy Birches

Snowy Birches  - an overnight accumulation

Source photo

This time of year, with the temperature hovering around the freezing mark, some precipitation falls as rain and some falls as snow. Rain and drizzle make for dreary weather, but November snow is a novelty and it's quite attractive to look at, so we put up with the inconvenience of slush and slippery conditions underfoot.

Art Every Day Month - Nov 27 -

Blanc Sablon Surf

Blanc Sablon Surf - high winds and heavy storm surge beat surf onto the exposed shoreline  

Source photo

Yesterday's forecast for high winds was accurate, and the predicted storm took all day to blow itself out. Here on the exposed shoreline, it was difficult to stand upright, let alone walk outside the vehicle, but the brilliant sunshine and the intense blue colors in the sea and the sky were worth the effort.

Art Every Day Month - Nov 26 -

Crepuscular Rays

Crepuscular Rays - Jacob's ladder, or light scattering through broken clouds?  

Source photo

Myths and legends accounting for atmospheric effects exist right next to scientific explanations about light, optics and meteorological physics.The weather forecast on this day was for stormy conditions with wind, and the sky was darkening as moisture-rich clouds were pulling together and obscuring the late-afternoon sunshine. Somehow it's more reassuring to look at the sky and think that the sun's rays are reaching to touch the ground and making a connection between earth and the heavens.

Art Every Day Month - Nov 25 -

Snowy Contours

Snowy Contours - velvety textures from many snowy trees  

Source photo

These hills beside the river are thick with uniformly sized and shaped black spruce trees, and the branches of every tree are heavy-laden with deep mounds of snow. Close-up the trees are a dramatic contrast of black, dark green and white shapes, but in the distance, their collective surface softens and the trees define the contours of the terrain.

Art Every Day Month - Nov 24 -

Sunrise Reflections

Sunrise Reflections - why are reflections in still water so calming?  

Source photo

I'm a sucker for a good reflection photograph - and this morning's sunrise gave me one of the nicest picture taking opportunities I've ever had.
What is it about a mirror reflection on a still body of water that makes us feel so calm and peaceful? Is it the horizontal and diagonal lines repeating harmoniously throughout the image? Or is it being able to see the tranquil color scheme twice over? Or maybe simply resting our eyes and taking a break to view this quiet scene?  

Art Every Day Month - Nov 23 -

Sunrise Start

Sunrise Start - a beautiful sunrise to start a road trip 

Source photo

"A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step," said Chinese philosopher Lao-tzu. It's a good start when the view you are traveling through is as lovely as this, and the weather is as agreeable. Just back from a road trip of just over a thousand miles out and a thousand miles home again, I am pleased to have carried this view with me along the road. 

Art Every Day Month - Nov 22 -

Break of Dawn

Break of Dawn  - light emerging from darkness

Source photo

It's not so much getting up early that makes photography at dawn an adventure. The real thrill comes from watching as hidden hills and trees emerge from the background, when the strangeness of a darkened location becomes familiar again as day takes over from night.
Changes in the early morning landscape are intensified by changes in color, like this morning's sunrise with yellow-orange shafts of light cutting through a break in a cloud-bank into violet-blue shadows. And then, just as quickly, the sun went behind the clouds, and the quality of the light changed again.

Art Every Day Month - Nov 21 -

Winter Fireweed

Winter Fireweed  - a pioneer species waiting for its time

Source photo

Fireweed is called a pioneer species, because it establishes itself rapidly in areas where the ground has been burnt-over or where the soil has been disturbed.
In summer, the fireweed sports bright magenta flowers on a straight tall stalk, and in winter, the fireweed's leaves dry into curved hooks which mat together and trap the plant's fly-away seeds in with other wind-borne material. Fireweed seeds remain viable in the ground for years, waiting for conditions to be right for a new plant to spring into blossom. A pioneer indeed!

Art Every Day Month - Nov 20 -

Pearlescent Early Morning Light

Pearlescent Hills and Clouds  - early morning luster

Source Photo

Early morning light shining at a low angle gives an iridescent luster to the hills and clouds. The sheen of these distance-smoothed surfaces is reflected on the ripples of the river as broken patches of pinks and purples on a dull gray background. A quiet start to the day.

Art Every Day Month - Nov 19 -

Alders for Winter

Alders for Winter - food for overwintering birds 

Source Photo

Alders, birches and poplar trees provide food for birds and small animals during the winter. It's fun watching the red polls and chickadees peck at alder cones like this to release the seeds hidden inside.  It's a natural bird feeder.

Art Every Day Month - Nov 18 -

Shoreline Reflections

Shoreline Reflections - a quiet moment

Source photo

Sometimes it's the close, quiet moments that become the most important. To take a photograph only requires a fraction of a second and some camera gear, to make a photograph requires some thought, some "reflection" to consider what needs to be represented in the image.

Art Every Day Month - Nov 17 -

Snow on Distant Mountains

Snow on Distant Mountains - patterns of snow shape the mountains in the distance

Source photo

The contrast of sunlit patches of snow against shaded blue terrain enhances the three-dimensional appearance of the Mealy Mountains in the distance. Close-up, the snow is mounded on the branches of trees growing on the slopes. The next windy day, the trees will release their loads, and this early-season visual effect will change.

Art Every Day Month - Nov 16 -

Mist on the River 2

Mist on the River 2   - an  atmospheric effect in the distant landscape

Source photo

In the distance, clouds of mist add definition to the river landscape. Currents of water are strong here and a great volume of cold water flows, condensing thick patches of fog and mist out of the warm, moist air. The mist rising from so far away adds to the drama of early morning light.