CRUMBLING MEMORIES

I was out and about exploring a couple weeks ago as the sun was going down. I did shoot a house on my list, found another that I had forgotten about until now and found some places I had stumbled upon last summer.

I have to admit it was just what I needed. Out by myself, turning which ever way I wanted and stoping for whatever I wanted without anyone asking “are you done yet?” They were worried though. I got one Snap from Colton asking if I had fallen down a well and two from Cade asking if I was okay. See, they do love me. They just don’t love being dragged around doing what I love.

I took this photo in BC and liked it but hated the background.

One of my goals this summer was to start learning Photoshop to help with my photography screw ups. Well, a little bit of you tube and viola.

This easy process got me thinking about all those photos o deleted over the years because I didn’t like the background.

While I have to admit, patience while learning new techniques is not my strong point, this was well worth it.

Have you ever had the sensor in your camera cleaned? Have you ever tried to clean it yourself?

If you do not have the proper equipment, don’t. And don’t EVER put one of those micro eye glass cleaning clothes in there.

Just before my BC holiday I could see a hair and speck of dirt in my view finder but it wasn’t showing on my photos.

Turns out that as a result of my effort the sensor on my camera is severely scratched and “one of the worst” he’s ever seen. I may never notice those scratches but that remains to be seen. I did buy the camera used but I’m going to say I am likely the guilty culprit.

The sensor in my camera cannot be replaced therefore I would have to replace my camera if those scratches were ever to affect my photos. The current replacement value is $780.00.

Spend the money!

Last week after training Colton and I headed to the zoo to check out the stingrays.

We did not check out the entire zoo, just the bears and the stingrays and the gift shop.

We have pet stingrays in Minneapolis before so we knew what to expect. The stingrays at the zoo were not as sociable as the ones in Minneapolis.

As you may have heard, earlier this year the mating stingrays, who are apparently aggressive during their season caused the exhibit to be shut down until the could figure out a solution and prevent further deaths and injury.

The separated the males and females in the large pond – for lack of a better word – with a plastic type grate.

On our way back to the bears I thought the sky looked good and for this shot of the Inukshuk at one of the entrances to the Journey to Churchill.

Traditionally, Inukshuk’s were used by the Inuit in the north as directional markers. An Inukshuk is designed in the shape of a person signifies safety, hope and friendship. Inuksuit have been transformed into a symbol of hope and friendship that transcends borders to reach people all over the world.

When Colton and I went to Vancouver this summer my Mom showed me a family heriloom she was gifted from my Great Aunt Louise.

This little bible belonged to my Great Great Grandmother, who then gave it to my Great Grandmother, Mary.  Great Grandma recorded the births of her children in the back of it.

My maternal Grandmother, Nancy, whom my little sister was named after was their first born.  They were born in Eriksdale, Manitoba where my Great Uncle and his wife still live.

Lately, the moon is the only thing that I get the camera out of the closet for. And I guess it’s a good thing cause you never know what you’ll learn when you post a photo.

This photo was taken on the 9th (of August). I thought it was pretty good but couldn’t figure out why I could not get more of the graters, etc. Now if I zoom in and crop, yes you see more but I love the blackness that surrounds the moon and makes it pop.

This was taken last week in Headingley in the hotel parking lot. More lights around and while you can see the whole moon, still not the ideal shot.

Why? Cause at its fullest, the moon is too bright to photograph to get all those fine details. I knew there was a reason I followed all those photography/lens pages on Facebook.

Just a short jaunt off the highway and close to the road.

No trespassing required.

Many moons ago I met Grandma & Grandpa Phillips for the very first time. We went out to their home out Henderson Highway where they had lived since the 60’s.

In the dining/living room was what I thought was a gorgeous cross stitch of a bowl of poppies. No one else shares my enthusiasm. The Phillips’s have many grandchildren, etc so I figured the chances of Cade ever being gifted that art was slim to none.

Many years later my BIL and I were clearing the belongings from the care home where Grandma was living when she passed away. Low and behold, there it was. My BIL looked at me and said, that thing is not coming to my apartment! I couldn’t believe it was now mine.

It must have been important to Grandma too cause of all the things in their large home, this was one of the personal effects she chose to take with her.

For many years it has hung on my walls, dusty and dated. A large part of my hesitation was what would happen to the cross stitch when I opened it. Would it fall apart? Every framed item in the Phillips’s home was done at Eaton’s, where Grandpa worked for many years in the shoe department. I should have known it was framed well.

Yesterday I took it apart and it came apart easily with no damage. The glass was very dusty but easily cleaned. I decided though that the frame needed to be changed and so, out came the chalk paint, again.

This piece was something Grandma started when they moved into the house in the early 60’s. My MIL figures she finished it a couple years later.

For sometime I have been contemplating the purchase of this lens for many reasons.  First off, eventually I am going to run out of abandoned homes in this area, secondly, I love wildlife and thirdly, I wanted it.

I have been seeing all sorts of photos online of these amazing bird shots and I developed a severe case of lens envy.  I know that its not the camera and not the lens that makes the photos!

I found a good deal on one before I left for B.C. and decided that I did not want to go there without it in case I saw whales in the ocean or bears while up on the gondola.  I had it shipped to my parents place and it was there when I got there on Saturday evening.

I did a lot of searching when I decided I was going to take the plunge.  No one is selling these lenses.  I tried to rent one while in B.C. but most of the rental places were to far and the rental rate was a little high.

Its heavy but not heavy enough that you cannot hand hold it, which I did with my first day out with it.  I will need to buy a monopod to get the best I can out of it though.  I also need to purchase a new camera bag.  While it does have its own case that fits inside the bag I’ve been using, its not ideal.

And not only that, it comes with its own manual which is okay for days like this when its too hot to go out.  Good day to read and get ready.

As I get aquainted with it and learn how to use it properly, I’ll write more.

Its so big I feel like I should name it.

We’ve spent most evenings down along the Fraser River, fishing.

There are a lot of tugs. Busy, busy River.

There’s an eagle that flies around but he’s to fast and once we spot him he hides.

So instead I take photos of the tug boats, this once towing a HUGE barge.