Continuing with the theme of rocks and water started yesterday, here is another offering from Niagara-on-the-Lake. After scrambling around town trying to find somewhere to photograph the rapidly disappearing glow on the horizon I had scrambled down to the shores of Lake Ontario and was pleased to find some interesting rocks to provide a bold foreground for a few different photos.
I’ve had a few questions about what camera equipment I use so I’ve put together a “My Gear” page outlining what I use and what I like. I’ll update it with more bits and pieces as I get them.
Setting out on a cloudy day to attempt to photograph Somerset Bridge was never likely to work out well. It did provide opportunity to scout out the area. Upon arrival, it became clear that photographing the smallest drawbridge in the world may not be as easy as expected. It’s beautiful and in a beautiful area but portraying this on camera may not be as easy as it seems. It was high-tide and one conclusion that can be made is that it will be best to go at low tide, to wade out more in front of the bridge. This would not be possible.
After scouting out the area I went to check out a couple more locations. Unfortunately, as it turned out the researched spots were all on private property. After wandering a bit lost in Hog Bay Park I arrived here, the beach covered by the tide. I snapped a few photos, well after sunset, not really expecting to make anything of them. However, I did get today’s photo. It’s simple, but I like it.
First, a quick note on this. In case you’re wondering why I haven’t posted any photos from my successful sunrise at Horseshoe it’s because I wasn’t as successful as I’d thought. For some reason I had my ISO cranked right up. This has resulted in too much noise in the original images for me to merge them to HDR. Always keep your ISO as low as possible!
So, I’m starting again. Tomorrow I’ll be checking the weather reports and picking a few days I think will be good for the sunrise down there. Tonight though, I’ve used the Photographer’s Ephemeris to realise that it’s a good time to photograph the smallest drawbridge in the world. So, I’ll be heading up there in about an hour. Using this tool has also allowed me to spot a few other areas nearby that should be good at sunset.
A friend of mine mentioned that the moon is currently appearing larger than usual, so I’ve also identified a spot to capture the moonrise from, something I’ve never done before. I just hope the sky’s clear for long enough.
Rwanda’s landscape really is stunning. Every corner leads to breathtaking views. Here you can see the typical Rwandan terraced farming in front of one of the volcanoes that gives Volcanoes National Park its name. It’s also pretty clear here why Rwanda is known as the Land of a Thousand Hills.
Mike has commented on a few of my posts and mentioned on Tea Time that this intensive level of farming must result in massive pressure on local reserves/wildlife. One thing I found interesting, while driving through the hills, was just how defined the line between the farmland and the national park is. If you look at the volcano in this image, just below the cloud level, you can see this line.
Scenes like this are common place as you drive through Grey County. As I crested the top of a hill I came across this one. The sun was low to the left and just lit the scene in a beautiful golden light. So, I quickly whipped the car around to park at the top of the hill.
The drive from Toronto to Niagara is pretty interesting. You exit the city and gradually surround yourself by countryside. The Niagara is full of vineyards. I only wish I’d been there while the vines were growing!
I arrived at this waterfall shortly after sunset. After parking at the top of the falls I went about looking for a good view. I came across a path but a sign said it was closed. I came across this a lot as I traveled around Ontario in March. They were closed due to the danger of ice, but the conditions could only be described as summery. So, I quickly slipped around the sign and found this vantage point.
That’s right, I’m posting yet another photo of the fishing canoes used on Lake Kivu, Rwanda. I love them. they remind of two days of absolute relaxation reflecting on the most amazing, tiring, action packed, three weeks getting a taste of three very different versions of Africa: Cape Town, Zambia, and Rwanda.
The boat here was left behind by the fleet, which can just be seen on the horizon. At night, you could look out to the horizon and all you would see were the lights of the fisherman’s lanterns against the dark sky. These guys go out rain or shine (100% rain while I was there). Although, I guess I’m assuming they go out rain or shine, as I did not see them fishing under any beautiful, starry night skies.
This photo is a combination of 7 exposures, ranging from -3 to +3. The boats actually moved around quite a lot so the ghosting tool in Photomatix was particularly useful.
My original plan to head down to Horseshoe Bay for a week didn’t really pan out due to a couple of alarm clock errors. I went down this morning and got exactly the conditions I was hoping for. I shot the photo I’d been picturing based on the Photographer’s Ephemeris and went about taking some more creative images. I now have so many shots from the 40 minutes I spent down at the beach that I don’t know where to start.
In the meantime I’ve decided to upload this cute cheetah today. I’ve been reluctant to upload it as I’m not sure how good a photo it is. The composition isn’t particularly interesting. It certainly doesn’t measure up to the other cheetah cub photo I uploaded here. But, in the end I decided that this cheetah is so cute and has such amazing eyes that I had to upload it. At this point in time one of the cheetahs’ handler was preparing a ball on a rope for the cheetahs to chase.
The first time I was in Prague I wandered down an interesting looking street and stumbled upon what is probably the strangest fountain I’ve ever seen. The last time I was there, I went through a similar process and happened upon it again. This time I decided to get a photo of it. It’s in the courtyard of the Franz Kafka Museum. It’s animated too. Their hips swivel and their “gentleman parts” move up and down. It really is odd.
Sorry I didn’t get a photo up yesterday. Went out for lunch with my co-workers and it turned into a long lunch… a very long lunch. We actually wound up having dinner together and I didn’t get home until about 11:00. Knowing that I had to get up early today to head out on Paradise 1 for a full day of fishing I was completely focused on getting into bed.
As a bonus, getting up at sunrise allowed for a couple photo opportunities as we made our way off shore. It wasn’t the best day of fishing ever, but we didn’t come back empty-handed. Some people got bigger fish than others, though. Paradise 1 is a great fishing boat though. It’s massive, and really comfortable. It’s also really stable, though that didn’t prevent one of the group getting seasick.
