Collin Orthner - Photographer

New Blog

2009-03-27T01:10:00.003-06:00

I have started a new blog on WordPress as it gives me more flexibility and I can now upload sound and video clips. All the content from this blog is on the new one. You can find me now by clicking here. See you there.

Venetian

2009-03-20T21:16:00.004-06:00

The $1.5 billion Venetian Hotel. Absolutely mind boggling 5013 rooms! The Grand Canal Shoppes is an extensive 500,000-square-foot themed, indoor retail mall. The area features cobbled walkways, a reproduction of Venice's Grand Canal complete with real gondolas and a replica of St. Mark's Square. The Guggenheim Hermitage Museum, the 65000 square foot Canyon Ranch SpaClub, and 19 remarkable restaurants, all waiting to make your visit a great one. Seems a bit over the top to me. Even if you aren't staying there you must at least go see it.
[Panasonic LX3]

Grand Canal Shoppes -

Valley of Fire Moonrise

2009-03-18T22:50:00.003-06:00

Another image made in Nevada's Valley of Fire recently. I had to quickly scramble over rocks to get to where I could line up the moon just how I wanted. It was only after getting back to the car that I remembered I'm not in Alberta anymore. Things like big spiders and scorpions could easily be hiding in those same rocks. So needless to say I was quite a bit more cautious from that point on.
[Canon 5dMKII, 24-105mmL ]

Rogers Spring

2009-03-13T23:12:00.002-06:00

Rogers Spring is one of several natural springs that occur near Lake Mead in Nevada. It is a hot spring caused by geothermal activity deep within the ground at the base of the hills nearby. A small stream flows from the spring towards Lake Mead watering a few palm trees and undoubtedly some wildlife along the way.
[Canon 5dMKII, 24-105mmL]

Valley of Fire State Park

2009-03-12T21:51:00.004-06:00

Looking back east towards the entrance of Valley of Fire State Park in Nevada, I remember the completely exhilarating and yet panicked feeling I had because it was all so beautiful and foreign to me. I had no idea what to expect and wanted to see it all. The problem was I had only maybe 20 minutes of sunlight left. Where does one pull over to make an image? Maybe if I was to just go around one more bend just ahead, maybe that's where the most spectacular part of the park is!! Maybe I'm already looking at the best part and should just stay put. It does get better than this image shows, in fact the further we drove into the park heading into the sunset, the more spectacular the scenery became! We headed up one of the roads in the park well after the sunset, where my exposures were getting into the 10 seconds at 500ISO range when the ranger put his lights on and told us the park closed at sunset and we would have to turn around. If you get anywhere close to Las Vegas and can afford the afternoon to take a short drive(1 hour each way), do stop in to see this place. It really is special!
[Canon 5dMkII, 24-105mmL]

MGM Grand Hotel

2009-03-11T00:10:00.002-06:00

After returning home on Sunday from Las Vegas, I haven't had much time to process my images. This is one of the first few done. There is definitely no shortage of the "WOW" factor in that town! One's sense of scale is completely out of tune with your mind most of the time. Everything is done on a grand (pardon the pun) scale.
[Panasonic LX3]

Turdus migratorius - not!

2009-01-01T21:27:00.008-07:00

We just returned from spending New Years with my brother's family in Calgary. I, of course, took a couple hours off from visiting to walk along the Bow River in Carburn Park. I cannot visit my brother and not go for a walk through this beautiful park which stretches for about a kilometer or so along the Bow River. You are virtually guaranteed to see a lot of wildlife, including deer, numerous species of ducks, Bald Eagles, and Canada Geese. You might even see an owl or porcupine if you look real hard. Well this afternoon I even saw two robins who, not living up to there scientific name, have decided to brave an Alberta winter! They let me approach quite close and you can see it's puffed itself up for insulation.
[Canon 5DmkII, 100-400mmL]

Light Pillars

2008-12-30T22:37:00.004-07:00

We had a beautiful display of light pillars this evening. It was about -21C and virtually clear out when these crystals formed. They only lasted maybe 45 minutes or so and I managed to get an image with the crescent moon along with both Jupiter(the brightest "star") and Venus(down from Jupiter). The two planets and our moon were best viewed on December 1st as they were then closest together. Unfortunately that night Red Deer was clouded over.
[Canon 5DmkII, 24-105mmL]

Christmas Lights

2008-12-30T22:33:00.002-07:00

We spent Christmas day at my in-laws near Spruce Grove this year and they had lit up a few trees along their driveway.
[Canon 5DmkII, 24-105mmL]

Bower Woods

2008-12-11T21:39:00.004-07:00

After getting my new 5D MkII camera I have had precious little time to be out shooting. Monday I forced the issue and played quite a bit with the HD video capabilities, which I am very impressed with. Of course I have no idea if I'll ever figure out how to post a sample video to my blog(maybe somebody can help me with that!) and so far, and I doubt ever, Adobe is not supporting this camera for RAW conversions in CS3 and so have used the medium size jpegs to process these images. They were both made in the Bower Woods along Piper Creek here in Red Deer. We have only had a very tiny amount of snow so far this winter, just enough that the coyote tracks are visible in the snow covered ice.
[Canon 5d MkII, Nikkor 55mm f1.2]

Liquid Silver

2008-12-04T21:47:00.005-07:00

Water has a special place in my heart. I just can't get enough time to sit and admire the infinite possibilities that reflections of light play on the tiny waves of a creek!! The smallest change in your viewing angle can make for a completely different mood and feel to the water. How often we zoom past these tiny marvels of creation without a second thought as to the processes and unbelievable beauty that surrounds us!
[Canon G9]

Summerland Ornamental Garden

2008-12-03T21:05:00.003-07:00

Each year in fall we try to visit the beautiful garden at the Agriculture Canada Research Center in Summerland B.C. A slow leisurely walk among the towering ponderosa pines and along the edge of the canyon makes for a wonderful time and I always come away wishing I had more time to spend there. [Canon G9]

Precarious

2008-12-01T15:45:00.005-07:00

It would only take a tiny bit of a breeze to topple this tree! Beavers have been working feverishly to knock it down, and maybe were scared away by our approach as there was frost on most of the leaves surrounding the tree but not on the wood chips. I was out for a walk with my sister and brother-in-law a week ago and found the tree along the edge of the Red Deer River downstream from Red Deer.
[Canon 5D, 16-35mmL ]

Fringe of Winter

2008-11-25T21:27:00.003-07:00

You shall ask
What good are dead leaves
And I will tell you
they nourish the sore earth
You shall ask
What reason is there for winter
And I will tell you
To bring about new leaves
You shall ask
Why are the leaves so green
And I will tell you
Because they are rich with life
You shall ask
Why must summer end
And I will tell you
So that the leaves can die

Nancy Wood
from Many Waters

[Canon 5D, 24-105mmL]

Icyness

2008-11-24T21:08:00.002-07:00

My sister Marlene and her husband Dave were up from Lethbridge this past weekend and we managed to get out for a few walks, on one of which we found a great little stream that hasn't frozen over completely yet. I could spend hours following along streams like this listening to the sound of the bubbling water and photographing the wonderful shapes and textures! These images felt better as square images and as black and whites.
[Canon 5D, 24-105mmL]

Pilot Mountain

2008-11-12T22:36:00.003-07:00

Pilot Mountain is a mountain in the Bow River valley of Banff National Park in Alberta, Canada. It is located southeast of Redearth Creek and directly west of the Trans-Canada Highway. The mountain was named in 1884 by George M. Dawson, for its location is where the Bow Valley changes direction, thus affording distant views of the mountain all along the valley. Pilot Mountain can be scrambled on the northwest face by someone with good routefinding skills.(Wikipedia) This image was made looking south from Moose Meadows along Highway 1A.
[Canon 5D, 16-35mmL]

Storm Remnants

2008-11-05T20:30:00.002-07:00

I made this image in August at Dinosaur Provincial Park in southern Alberta. A very large, and threatening looking, thunderstorm sprung up on the western horizon early in the afternoon, but by the time it got to us it gave us some light rain for about an hour and moved on to the east. I rushed back out into the badlands, careful not to fall on the now very slippery bentonite clays, to catch the sunset as it illuminated the last remnants of the storm.
[Canon G9]

CP Rail - Red Deer Sub

2008-10-22T21:57:00.003-06:00

I waited a good half hour to catch this train which travels right beside the Queen Elizabeth II Highway (Hi-way 2) as it travels to the west of Red Deer. I had a one in two chance of getting it coming towards me and wouldn't you know he came from the north instead!! The light was really nice just before the train showed up at sunset (second image), but unfortunately the sun had dipped just below the horizon as the train passed by during this long exposure, which blurred the train as it went by. [Canon 5D, 80-400mm OS Sigma]

Medicine River

2008-10-01T23:02:00.002-06:00

I made this image a couple of evenings ago looking north along the Medicine River in Red Deer County. It is composed of three separate images stitched together for an incredibly wide-angle view.
[Canon 5D, 24-105mmL]

Dim your Headlights

2008-09-30T23:26:00.003-06:00

I've already dimmed mine, but how often does it happen that the oncoming vehicle has to blast you with their high beams just as they top the rise before they decide it's time to dim them. It's usually rather obvious that there is an oncoming vehicle especially if it's foggy or dusty. Just my little rant - sorry.
[Canon 5D, Tamron 300mm f2.8+2x]

John Deere 568 Round Baler

2008-09-29T11:33:00.003-06:00

Another image from the other night in Red Deer County. I'm not sure which model of tractor it is.
[Canon 5D, 70-200mm f2.8L]

Alberta Gold

2008-09-25T20:05:00.002-06:00

This image was made last evening while touring around Red Deer County. It looks like a small rig, but I have no idea if it is a service rig or one going for the gold.
[Canon 5d, Tamron 300mm f2.8]

Nightfall - Red Deer County

2008-09-23T20:44:00.005-06:00

Another image from last night. This time a bit on the interpretive side. I simply pointed the headlights of my car across the field and made a two minute exposure. Simple as that. I really like the way the cloud shapes echo the swaths. A little bit of fog moved in as well.
[Canon 5D, 24-105mm f/4L]

Autumn - Red Deer County

2008-09-22T23:41:00.006-06:00

Autumn is definitely upon us, as the warm hues of the harvested field attests to. I was out photographing in Red Deer County tonight and captured a murmuration of starlings(I think) passing near this farm. No joke, that is what a group of starlings is called!
[Canon 5D, 70-200mm f2.8L]

Harvest time

2008-09-16T22:31:00.012-06:00

Yes, it has been too long of a break between posts. I've been real busy shooting stock images again for Lacombe County and of course harvest is going in full swing. Then, of course, there is all the editing work to be done and some more city images as well. Oh yeah, I am still working full time and putting in a few hours of volunteer time too. Whew!! Can't wait for indoor soccer season to kick off then I can add in some chauffeur time as well.

Enough complaining already - it's all good!!!

Doesn't this image just make you start feeling itchy. The amount of dust is just amazing. I turned the fan in our car on today on the way back from work and all the dust that got into the car last night came flying out the vents. Laura was none too pleased with me!!
[Canon 5D, 70-200mm/2.8L]

Canadian Pacific Railway

2008-09-06T21:40:00.007-06:00

When I was a kid of ten my family moved to Rosedale, in the Drumheller valley, and for quite a few years literally lived across the street from the main CN line running from Calgary to Saskatoon. The trains coming from Calgary used to sit and wait on a sidetrack right in front of our house for the oncoming trains from Saskatoon before proceeding, sometimes for hours. They would idle quietly and every now and again drop a car off on the siding by shuffling back and forth. Eventually a big freight train would come thundering through town shaking our house, with their horns blaring, pulling heavily laden cars full of prairie grain heading for the coast. Once it had passed, the big diesel engine of the train that had been waiting, would grumble to life with a low growl as the engines strained to pull the massive weight stretched out behind them. On some summer nights with my bedroom window open and with just the right wind and weather conditions, you could here the train rumbling slowly along for at least half an hour as it climbed out of the 400 foot deep Red Deer river valley.

This image is neither the Drumheller valley or a CN train, but I like it. This is one of CP's AC4400CW engines made by GE and was delivered to CP in 1998. This guy has a massive 4400hp engine, weighs in at 415000 pounds, and can hit almost 113 km/h. It has just arrived in Field, B.C. after coming down the BIG hill from Lake Louise and passing through the spiral tunnels.
[Nikon S3]

Lorette Ponds

2008-09-05T22:03:00.002-06:00

Another image from Lorette Ponds. This time a colour image showing off the rich and vibrant green tones of the algae growing in the ponds. The texture in the stones really contrasts nicely with the ambiguity of the green algae. I stitched together 7 images to make the panorama.
[Canon 5D, 70-200mm/2.8L]

McDougall Memorial United Church

2008-09-02T19:56:00.002-06:00

Another image from our trip south. This one made on the Stoney Indian Reserve at Morley, Alberta. The church, which overlooks the Bow River, was established in 1875 and named after George McDougall. This church is the second oldest building in Alberta still standing on it's original frame. Another image done in the 5:8 ratio.
[Canon 5D, 24-105mmL]

Kananaskis Country

2008-09-01T21:47:00.003-06:00

We decided to take a spur of the moment trip into Kananaskis Country last night. We got as far as Cochrane in the evening and this morning headed into the mountains. This image was made at the Lorette Ponds immediately next to Highway 40 which surprisingly enough is immediately behind the trees. I have also tried a new format in a 5:8 ratio. I really like the dimensions and can see myself working more with it in the future. Unfortunately this image has a technical issue and can be printed to a maximum of only 20 inches across. I would love to be able to res this one up to a really big print. Just a good excuse, I suppose, to go back and visit again!!

Verdant Valley

2008-08-27T23:33:00.005-06:00

This image was made a year ago in July. We visited the small country school, about fifteen kilometers east of Drumheller, where I grew up until I was ten. Verdant Valley School was a two room, two teacher school with maybe 35 or so children attending from the surrounding farms. After school was out us kids had the whole schoolyard to ourselves. This included all the playground equipment, skating rink, etc. Many a time I remember watching big thunderstorms roll across the farmland until at last the rain, hail, and lightning would come at us like a freight train. There was nowhere to go, so we just had to hunker down and wait them out. I recall one memorable storm when my dad and uncle were attending a class at the University of Calgary and so the rest of my family, one brother, two sisters and my mom, along with my two cousins and aunt got to watch a spectacular light show! My mom and aunt didn't want us kids to get scared and kept us busy drawing what each of the lightning strikes looked like. Once my dad and uncle returned they told us that many of the power poles near the yard had been struck and damaged during the storm. The phone would ring every now and again when the telephone lines got hit.
[Olymous E-410, 14-42mm]

Mill Creek - Triptych

2008-08-26T21:07:00.003-06:00

We spent a short half hour visit to a great spot on Mill Creek in southwest Alberta in early July. I borrowed Laura's point and shoot digital so I could work as quick as possible. This triptych is the fruit of my labour. The possibilities in this kind of situation are really endless and searching out for just the right balance of colours and shades and textures is a complete riot.
[Fuji F40]

After the Storm

2008-08-25T11:48:00.002-06:00

After a thunderstorm passed in Dinosaur Provincial Park, the clouds started to break up and the setting sun provided beautiful orange light.
[Canon G9]

Fractured

2008-08-24T20:37:00.002-06:00

Ice is likely the culprit for these large cracks in the stone. Slowly creeping into the smallest crevices, water, once frozen forces the rock apart, which over many years slowly breaks the rock into tiny pieces. this image was made in Dinosaur Provincial Park a few weeks ago.
[Canon G9]

Rills

2008-08-23T17:19:00.002-06:00

A rill is a narrow and shallow incision into soil resulting from erosion by overland flow that has been focused into a thin thread by soil surface roughness. Rilling, the process of rill formation, is common on agricultural land and unvegetated ground. Some rills will continue to grow, as they are widened and/or deepened by the runoff which flows through them. Other rills may decline in importance as sediment is deposited within them. Eventually, a hydrologically efficient rill network will be formed. The development of such a network is an example of self-organisation. In a few cases, rills may continue to grow and become gullies or rivulets then streams and so on to form a river.(source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rill )
[Canon G9]

Soft Light

2008-08-21T21:24:00.002-06:00

The beautiful soft light of evening is completely wonderful and should not be missed. It doesn't matter if you're tired or you want to eat your supper. Who cares if it'll be dark right away and the coyotes will start howling. We aren't scared of the dark are we? It's just a short walk back to the campsite. You really need to experience this light and the last few minutes before sunset, or a few minutes after sunrise for that matter, are just sublime. One of the best ways to really see this light is up close. Observe the blue shadows cast by those tiny stones and rills which on a sunny afternoon are not even evident now showing off river valleys on a scale that is hard to understand. The clay, normally gray (nice rhyming going on there),takes on an orange/red glow that is mixing ever so subtlety with the blue shadows to what looks deceivingly like magenta. I find so many things happening in images like this that I can just start to imagine how the water slowly carves it's way through the clay each and every time it rains, erasing all evidence of tiny insect tracks and human footprints at the rate of about half an inch a year.
[Canon G9]

Fading Light

2008-08-20T19:05:00.005-06:00

While I wait for some of my large format transparencies to show up I will post a few images from Dinosaur Provincial Park made with a small digital camera. These images, over the next few days, were made using this small camera as a tool to scout out possible compositions before committing to a large sheet of film. The image above was just that, except that the light was changing so fast with the sun just on the horizon, I didn't even have time to unload the large format camera before the light was gone.
[Canon G9]

Lightpainted Hoodoos

2008-08-08T21:47:00.004-06:00

A ventured a bit further away from our campsite to make this image, compared to yesterdays post. I had a tiny flashlight with a single AAA battery which I light painted the hoodoos with for about half of the 91 sec. long exposure. A few clouds were present which is obscuring a few of the stars on this image.
[Canon 5d, Sigma 15mm Fisheye]

Milky Way Galaxy

2008-08-07T22:10:00.005-06:00

This past weekend my family and I along with our good friends Bill and Diane Zurawell and their two boys as well as Laura's mom and dad, visited Dinosaur Provincial Park near Brooks Alberta. At night the skies, beautiful and clear for the most part, displayed for us the magnificent spectacle of the Milky Way Galaxy. I heard, or read somewhere that the human eye can only detect about 3000 stars on a good night. I don't know if it's true, because when you look up on a perfectly clear night with almost no source of light near you and see so many stars......it's not true because I'll bet you can see tens of thousands. I went out for a walk on my own one night for about an hour, quite a distance from our campsite, where my eyes could adjust to the darkness after about ten minutes and I'll tell you it makes you feel tinier than a grain of sand. Our Milky Way can put on quite a show! Now multiply that by a few hundred trillion or more and you come up with our universe - WOW!!

You can even see some very faint green and red aurora borealis which my eyes could not detect, but that the minute long exposure brought out. Remember to click on the image to make it larger.
[Canon 5D, 24mm f2 Nikkor]

God, brilliant Lord,

I look up at your macro-skies, dark and enormous,
Your handmade sky-jewelery,
Moon and stars mounted in their settings.
Then I look at my micro-self and wonder,
Why do you bother with us?
Why take a second look our way?

Psalms 8:1,3-4 (The Message)

Evening Light

2008-07-31T21:22:00.008-06:00

My good friend Dwight was kind enough to point me in the direction of these beautiful red flowers growing alongside a slough just a few kilometers from Red Deer. I have no idea what they are and have gone through all my wildflower books with no success and suspect that maybe they aren't wildflowers at all but escapees from a nearby garden. [Update: August 18 - I found out these are really escapees from a local garden called different common names such as Star of Jerusalem or Maltese Cross. Scientifically they are known as Lychnis chalcedonica] I arrived with about ten minutes of sunlight left with the sun skimming the flowers and grasses.

As the cool of the evening took over from the heat of the day the reds of these flowers seemed to glow in the fading light.

And then the mosquitoes came out en mass which convinced me it was time to vacate the area.
[Canon 5D, 16-35mmL, 24mm Nikkor]

Lacombe County

2008-07-31T21:06:00.005-06:00

I have been shooting stock imagery for the county over the last few months and had a chance to get some showing off the canola crops in all their glory.
[Canon 5D, 70-200mmL, 24mm Nikkor, 15mm Fisheye Sigma]

Trout Stream

2008-07-23T21:49:00.004-06:00

I can't tell if this is a Rainbow or a Cutthroat Trout. I don't see the red on the chin so am thinking Rainbow. All that aside, it was a real treat to watch these fish jumping up Castle Falls in Castle Wilderness of southwestern Alberta in early July!
[Canon 5D, 16-35mmL]

"...the things fishermen know about trout aren't facts but articles of faith."

John Gierach
Trout Bum (1986)

Sweetgrass Hills

2008-07-22T20:57:00.010-06:00

A closer look at the storm that descended on the Sweetgrass Hills in Montana recently.

[Canon 5D, 24-105mmL]

At that time they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory.

Luke 21:27 (TNIV)

Writing-on-Stone

2008-07-18T22:37:00.007-06:00

My family drove south for a short vacation recently and visited Writing-on-Stone Provincial Park which is virtually as far south as you can get in Alberta. In fact the distant hills in this view are the Sweetgrass Hills in Montana. This park is also known as the Áísínai’pi National Historic Site of Canada. Áísínai’pi in southern Alberta is one of the most important spiritual sites for the Niitsítapi or Blackfoot People. The Niitsítapi associate spirit powers with the weathered hoodoos and cliffs of the valley and with the nearby Kátoyissiksi (Sweetgrass Hills). Áísínai’pi, known in English as Writing-on- Stone Provincial Park, contains the largest concentration of rock art images on the Great Plains. These images are an expression of the meeting of this spirit world with the physical world of the Niitsítapi.

As my youngest son Alexander says "If it doesn't rain, then it isn't a vacation". As I enjoy rain very much I would have to agree.

[Canon 5D, 16-35mm]

Thunderstorm Warning

2008-07-10T01:06:00.004-06:00

Red Deer had a fairly decent light show last night. Unfortunately, because it was a cluster of storms and not just a single cell, which makes it virtually impossible to predict any pattern to where the lightning could come from, I didn't feel safe getting out of my vehicle to set up my tripod. It was also raining and seeing how my camera doesn't like rain very much I felt it best that it stayed in the vehicle with me. So I made hand held images. I didn't worry about blurring anything as it was dark out and the flash of lightning is so fast it freezes my motion just like an on camera flash would. This was one of the better images I got from just east of Red Deer.
[Canon 5D, 50mm]

Flooding

2008-06-17T23:12:00.004-06:00

What a spring for flooding! This image goes back a few years when British Columbia was experiencing very high rainfalls. I can't remember the year just now, but it was probably about a fifteen years ago or so. This normally tiny creek just south of Wells Gray Provincial Park near Vavenby, was roaring after a week of heavy rain. This small creek entered the North Thompson River just behind me as I made this image. I recall the river being extremely high and Laura and I could here huge boulders, being pushed along in the turbulence, slamming into a massive rock in the middle of the river.
[Zone VI 4x5, 210mm Schneider Repro-Claron, Tri-X]

Verdant Valley

2008-06-16T14:48:00.004-06:00

I grew up looking at this scene at Verdant Valley, about 10 miles ENE of Drumheller, Alberta. While watching the clouds shadows moving across the grain fields, I noticed the nice overlapping shapes of shaded and sunlit areas. The Wintering Hills are in the background.
[Canon 10D, 28-135mm]

Dry Island Buffalo Jump Provincial Park

2008-06-11T21:06:00.002-06:00

I know it's been a long time since I posted. I apologize for that. My computer is sorrowfully done it's duty and packed it in. I cannot work on images for the time being, so I have pulled a scan out of the archives. I made this image two years ago near the Tolman Bridge along the Red Deer river.
[Anba Ikeda 4x5, Fujinon 125mm, Velvia 100F]

Lacombe County

2008-05-21T21:06:00.006-06:00

Spring seeding in Lacombe County is now complete and the rain has started in earnest. Soon the small seedlings will spout in the always beautiful spring green! Can't you just smell the freshly turned soil? That is an all time favourite smell of mine. I recall living at Verdant Valley and just loved when each spring a local farmer would come to the country school yard and work the soil all along the windbreak. Then my brother Brad and I would get down to business building roads and bridges with our Tonka trucks and graders. What a blast! I think I could still play among the trees there so long as no one was watching a 43 year old playing with toy trucks.
[Canon 5D, Sigma 80-400mm OS)

"He will also send you rain for the seed you sow in the ground, and the food that comes from the land will be rich and plentiful."
Isaiah 30:23 (TNIV)

Lethbridge

2008-05-06T22:16:00.007-06:00

I had the opportunity to spend almost the whole of last week working in Lethbridge. In the evenings I went for walks along the Oldman River along nature trails with my sister Marlene and brother-in-law Dave. They were likely just entertaining me each night, but the walks were great. Actually I think they enjoyed the walks just as much as me! Of course I dragged a bit of gear with me just in case - you know - maybe there would be something of interest for me to photograph, possibly even some trees! The Helen Schuler Coulee Centre is at the start of some wonderful trails though the floodplain of the Oldman River. This is a superb example of a riparian zone with some rather large cottonwood trees along the trails along with many birds and mammals like the porcupine and deer. We even saw a raccoon a few years ago along the trails here. The first image was made within a stone's throw from the nature centre where there is some very tall grass and some shrubs for the deer to almost disappear into. The next two images are very representative of what you will see along the trails in the park, the last one made well after the sun had set over the coulee rim to the west.
[Canon 5D, 70-200mm f/2.8L]

"Let the fields be jubilant, and everything in them;
let all the trees of the forest sing for joy"
Psalms 96:12 (TNIV)

Badlands and sysconfig

2008-04-14T20:16:00.003-06:00

My apologies for the delay updating my blog!! Our computer crashed last week beyond the "Blue screen of death". this one was black and said something about sysconfig and corrupt etc. etc. Not exactly my language of preference! Anyway, I think I've managed to retrieve all but my e-mail archives, but we have a good friend in Ken Higgins who is looking after us and is confident in a full recovery. Yeah!!

The images above may look completely crazy for colour and contrast as I worked on them with our laptop. It's what I have, so it's what I'll use. If these are really bad, I'll rework them and post them again as an example of proper colour calibration on ones computer.

All that said - these images were made last July in Dinosaur Provincial Park near Brooks, Alberta. The park is a UNESCO World Heritage Site which puts it on par with sites like the Taj Mahal, Petra or Kakadu National Park in Australia! It is a fabulous place for a visit! Getting up a 5am was necessary to capture the sunrise and was worth every second of sleep that was lost. Being 36C during the day, all that we did during the heat of the day was relax anyway. I am looking forward to one or two visits again this year again.
[Olympus E410, 14-42mm)

HDV Stills - Piper Creek Evening

2008-04-06T15:57:00.004-06:00

Took out the little HD video camera again the other night close to home along Piper Creek. This is definitely not the camera for me as it is just too hard to navigate the menus to get what I need for the image. I think the Canon XH-A1 will be much better in this regard as it has a great many more buttons on the camera and so requires far less menu cruising and more time shooting. More time shooting is definitely the direction that appeals to me.
[Canon HG10]

Sunset HD Video Stills

2008-04-02T21:06:00.007-06:00

Last weekend we were up at my in-laws place just north of Spruce Grove, Alberta. I decided to take along a small HD Camcorder to put together a few images that I might have shot as still images to see if they might make a nice film clip. I pulled a few images as stills from the video that show the story of the sunset on Saturday evening over a period of half an hour. Of course I know virtually nothing about video editing and will try my hand at it once I figure out how to make it work and post a clip hopefully with some music to go with it in the future.
[Canon HG10]

Lightning

2008-03-19T18:28:00.002-06:00

As one of my all-time favourite things to photograph, lightning can get me pretty excited at anytime. So here is my first lightning image of the year!! A little tongue-in-cheek maybe, but this image brings back memories of my Uncle Alfred's trailer from a long time ago. Besant, Saskatchewan comes to mind as does Buffalo Lake not far from Red Deer.
[Canon 5D, 24-105mmL]

Church Architecture

2008-03-14T18:54:00.005-06:00

A second image of the same church I blogged about back in February. A crescent moon was doing it's best to peek through the thin clouds.
[Canon 5D, 24-105mmL]

Construction

2008-03-14T18:45:00.007-06:00

We are getting a seven story high(low?) rise in Red Deer and a crane has been installed to facilitate the construction. I was out shooting it the other day for some stock imagery and came away the the standard shots of cranes and these two which are a bit more on the interpretive side.
[Canon 5D, 70-200mm f2.8L & Sigma 80-400mm]

Big Hill Springs Provincial Park

2008-03-06T19:28:00.003-07:00

A couple of images made in Big Hill Springs Provincial Park near Cochrane, Alberta. It is quite a small park and yet it yields some great images to to a nice variety of scenery. Of course in winter you virtually have the place to yourself except maybe a few deer and the birds. The small creek is spring fed and runs year round. A previous post from last August has a bit more info about the park and a couple more images.
[Fuji GX617, 90mm lens, Fuji Velvia 50]

Eclipse

2008-02-20T20:52:00.006-07:00

Tonight was a near perfect night to watch the lunar eclipse. Nice clear skies and only -2C. Our next chance to view a total lunar eclipse won't be until December 2010. If you click on the image you can see a few more stars which just get interpolated out at low -res.
[Canon 5D, Sigma 80-400mm}

Tulips

2008-02-17T11:57:00.003-07:00

Yesterday at work we got to enjoy a wonderful bouquet of tulips brought in by Cheryl. I could see them from my office all day way across towards the back. Before the day was out I needed to make a photograph of them!
[Canon 5D, 180mm Macro]

Architecture

2008-02-11T22:40:00.002-07:00

I made this image tonight as I waited for my boys to finish their music practice. The days are finally starting to get slightly longer and around 6-7pm there is still quite a bit of light in the sky. The image is quite unique as the colour of the sky has taken on a mix of the deep blue after sunset and the red/orange of the street lights creating a nice mauve tinge. The structure itself, which really is white, is being lit with street lights and shows as a great complimentary colour to the sky. There was a small window of opportunity of maybe 5 minutes where the two colours mixed just right to give it this nice shade. Any sooner and the structure was still lit by brighter daytime light and was white and the sky a pale blue. Any later and the sky went a terrible red/orange as though I was photographing a firestorm.
[Canon 5D, 24-105mmL]

New York City

2008-01-30T02:27:00.000-07:00

A quiet corner near the entrance to the New York Public Library and a detail of the Manhattan Bridge. Colours, lines, and format all play a part in making us feel that some things belong together.
[Nikon D2X, 12-24mm & 18-200mm]

Adams River

2008-01-30T02:06:00.001-07:00

Roderick Haig-Brown Provincial Park, British Columbia. The Adams River famous for the largest Sockeye Salmon run on the west coast. Many salmon can be seen in the image immediately above. Click on the image to make it larger.
[Panasonic LX2]

Minimalist

2008-01-24T23:39:00.000-07:00

An very minimalist image I made yesterday that really shows what the midday sun in winter can look like - BRIGHT!

Brick Wall
Snow
Tree Shadow
Light

[Canon 5D, 24-105mmL]

Tourist

2008-01-22T22:25:00.000-07:00

Being a tourist trying to take-in and absorb as much about the place we are visiting can be difficult to accomplish fully. Sometimes it comes together in a collage of things all at once, on one level, all together. Lately I have been listening to the Quiet American (Aaron Ximm)and his superb recordings of sounds made into collages(my words - not his). I can identify with them easily, even though I have not visited in person any of the places he has recorded, and yet I feel I am there while listening.

Hard to explain, but every now and again, usually involving a window with it's transparency and reflections, an image comes to me that explains my visit somewhere. This particular image was made on a visit to Manhattan, specifically the financial district of downtown Manhattan. The more I think about this image and my memories of the trip, the Quiet American's way of using sounds helps me remember many of the sounds from my trip enriching my memories that much more.
[Fuji F10]

Aurora

2008-01-18T23:02:00.000-07:00

Solar cycle 23 comes to an end and solar cycle 24 has started, which means we are headed towards a much higher abundance of Aurora borealis. The last major storms occurred around 2000-2003 and the next maximum should be in 2011-2012. There were many great opportunities to witness this phenomenon at the last maximum and I'm sure the next will be as good or better!
[Pentax 67II, 35mm fisheye, NHG800]

La Boheme

2008-01-06T22:32:00.001-07:00

Laura Lee and I were up in Edmonton on the weekend with our friends Judy and Gerard. We stayed at a wonderful bed and breakfast called La Boheme on 112 street. The two bedroom suite we were in was called the Vivaldi Suite. Built in 1912, it still sports original plumbing and many layers of paint to go along with the requisite creaky floors.
[Canon G7]

Twilite Lounge

2007-12-28T23:26:00.001-07:00

Delia, Alberta
[Olympus C-5060]

Lethbridge Documentary

2007-12-28T22:51:00.000-07:00

These images, from Lethbridge, Alberta, were made one very hot(36C) July day in 2004. I enjoy documentary photography that isn't perfectly straight ahead documentary. What I mean, is that the images many times still have a bit of the artistic side of me present. People are sometimes present and the creative placement of shadows may even play a compositional part in the image.
[Canon Powershot S410]

Dusk

2007-12-12T21:27:00.001-07:00

God called the light "day," and the darkness he called "night." And there was evening, and there was morning ....

Genesis 1:5 (TNIV)

Triptych

2007-12-03T15:12:00.000-07:00

Three images made along the Bow River in Calgary which show the same subject from three slightly different vantage points.
[Panasonic LX2]

Full Moon

2007-11-25T22:26:00.001-07:00

I know you may well see this any month of the year, but the full moon that rose above the horizon a couple of days ago was one that was laid back, and not one that screamed "look at me!" It peeked through a thin opening in the hazy clouds, only to disappear again just seconds later behind the thicker band of clouds above.
[Canon G9]

"When I consider your heavens,
the work of your fingers,
the moon and the stars,
which you have set in place,
what are mere mortals that you are
mindful of them,
human beings that you care for
them?"

Psalm 8:3-4 (TNIV)

November's Palette

2007-11-25T22:15:00.000-07:00

All the beautiful colours of summer flowers are gone now and many years the November palette would be mostly white. This November,however, we have received very little snow and left with what I think as one of the most gorgeous palette's nature has to offer, just subtle and soft browns, grays, and golds.
[Canon G9]

The grass withers, the flowers fall,
but the word of our God endures
forever.

Isaiah 40:8 (TNIV)

Waskasoo Creek

2007-11-25T22:06:00.001-07:00

This creek runs only about a two minute walk from our door at work and so I visit it quite regularly on my lunch breaks. It's wonderful having a place like this that allows me to relax and let my mind wander. Abstracting designs in the ice can be a challenge and at the same time my idea of a good time!
[Canon G9]

Architecture's colours

2007-11-15T22:24:00.001-07:00

Some bold colour combinations from near work the last two days which caught my eye.
[Canon G9]

Abstracts

2007-11-15T22:16:00.000-07:00

I discovered a few abstracts on a short lunchtime walk the other day. In all reality, these images were all made within about 30 meters of the door at work. Abstracts, especially macros, can completely absorb me for long periods of time, and all my earthly worries just disappear. Searching for tiny patterns, textures, and rhythms, is to me absolutely fascinating.
[Canon G9]

Cutoff Creek

2007-11-01T21:56:00.000-06:00

Out travelling the Forestry Trunk Road west of Caroline with my friend Gerard one day, we decided to take a turn towards the Cutoff Creek Staging Area.
[Olympus E-1, 7-14mm, 35-100mm]

Mitchell Lake

2007-11-01T20:48:00.000-06:00

Mitchell Lake Provincial Recreation Area near Rocky Mountain House, Alberta.
[Olympus E-1, 14-54mm, 50-200mm]

Remnants

2007-10-26T21:45:00.000-06:00

I suppose I could have called this part of my tree series, bit there are no branches - small technicality. Laura Lee and I were out for a walk and caught the last few remains of fall colour here in Red Deer. Only a block from home along the sidewalk and what a find!
[Panasonic LX2]

Wind on the Water

2007-10-26T21:14:00.000-06:00

One of the challenges I give myself is trying to explain the action of wind with a photograph. It's not very often that I feel I have been able to capture the right effect. Here is an example of a chinook wind blowing over the Bow River in Calgary. This one I feel works nicely. I did need to play with a few different lengths of exposure and wait for a fairly strong gust of wind to catch just the right amount of movement.
[Panasonic LX2]

Late evening

2007-10-22T17:12:00.000-06:00

I went out for a short walk with my son Thomas last night close to dusk. It was perfectly still and without the slightest breeze which allowed for fairly long exposures. This area along Piper Creek here in Red Deer is one of my favourite areas to go exploring if I don't want to go far from home.
[Olympus E-1, 50-200mm]

Waskasoo Creek

2007-10-18T21:18:00.000-06:00

Alright, two more then! I forgot I had this image ready for the web as well. I made this image a couple of weeks ago before we left for B.C. on our vacation as I wanted to familiarize myself with the little Fuji F50 camera before leaving. The image was made along Waskasoo Creek here in Red Deer.
[Fuji Finepix F50]

Mount Robson

2007-10-18T21:10:00.000-06:00

OK, just one more for tonight. I'll have to start digging through the files again as all the new images are posted tonight - oh well.

What a magnificent mountain is Mount Robson! I don't remember actually seeing the top of this mountain before as usually, at least when I've been travelling there, it's covered in clouds. We just had to stop and document it. A little bit postcardy maybe!
[Fuji Finepis F50]

Fun, Fun, Fun

2007-10-18T21:02:00.000-06:00

If photography was just to document things, although likely important, I would have to think twice if it was really worth pursuing. Start playing around and count me in! I made this image in Penticton last week and then played a bit in photoshop. this is definitely not a document of said building.
[Fuji Finepix F50]

Forest Fire

2007-10-18T20:47:00.001-06:00

Thanksgiving is when my family goes on our annual trip out to Kelowna, B.C. to visit my parents and usually end up driving through the Kicking Horse Pass and Rogers Pass to get there. This year however, due to some other commitments in Edmonton, we ended up going through Jasper and Kamloops along the Yellowhead Highway instead.

Just a bit north of Kamloops lies the small town of Barrier where a devastating fire rolled through in 2003, nearly destroying the town . It took out huge areas of forests as well of which these images show.
[Fuji Finepix F50]

Autumn Too

2007-10-18T20:35:00.000-06:00

The day before the big wind and we still had a fair bit of colour as you can see. One day later it and it looks like the end of November. I caught the sun just breaking through the tops of the trees as it lit up the yellows in the background. I literally had time for two images and it was all changed. My plan was to explore this scene for a bit with the digital and see if I could find a composition worth setting the whole rig up for. I searched alright for two quick snaps and that was it. I'm still quite pleased with this image as it feels really complex and yet has some order to it - just the way I see. Remember you can click on the image to enlarge it - there is quite a bit of nice detail and colour contrasts that show up when this image is enlarged. I especially love the way the bottom of the foreground tree trunks, being in the shade, are reflecting the pure blue sky from above, while the tops are warm from the rising sun.
[Fuji Finepix F50]

Autumn

2007-10-05T21:16:00.000-06:00

Well wouldn't you know it, autumn has arrived in full fury. What was with the snow this morning!! Granted the colours are spectacular now and honestly autumn is my favourite season. The smells, colours, and change are about the most dramatic of them all. I especially like to capture the change of seasons - not quite autumn, not really summer anymore either. You know, a little green is still around, it's raining(mostly, except for last night!), not snowing yet, but definitely a chill about. Makes for a rather cool ride to work on my bike, and what better way to observe the seasons than to ride the trails in Red Deer 5km to work from April to November(if that snow stays away - how can you tell I think winter should wait a while?).

This image was made in a light rain at the Chikakoo Lakes Recreation Area just north and west a bit from Spruce Grove, Alberta. When this image is enlarged, thousands of tiny raindrops can be seen hanging from all the branches and leaves.
[Anba Ikeda 4x5, Fujinon 300mm C, Fuji Velvia 100F]

Abstracts in Geen and Blue

2007-09-20T21:08:00.000-06:00

A bit of a departure from the regular for me, but what a riot!
[Panasonic LX2]

Abstract Diptych

2007-09-20T19:42:00.000-06:00

I found some interesting shapes and lines while on one of my lunch break walks during the summer. Presented this way they make a nice diptych.
[Panasonic LX2]

Frank O. Gehry - EMP

2007-09-20T18:59:00.000-06:00

It has been awhile since I last entered anything here and being that I was just in Seattle lately, I thought it might be appropriate to include some images from there. These images are of the EMP (Experience Music Project) designed by architect Frank O. Gehry. He is from Toronto originally but now resides in Los Angeles. He uses warped forms that are so original it is hard to keep your eyes from them. Check out the link I've provided as there is an abundance of information about the man and his world famous designs.
[Panasonic LX2]

Athabasca Falls

2007-08-21T20:50:00.000-06:00

My wife and I travelled to Jasper some years ago in January for a weekend of cross-country skiing and sightseeing, including a stop at Athabasca Falls. This image was made in pouring rain which was a bit difficult, but the effort seemed worth it. I have seen these falls many times(OK a few times) previously, but hadn't seen them with the natural ice bridge. The colour of the water added a beautiful contrast to the ice.
[Pentax 6x7, 105mm, Fuji RDP]

Big Hill Springs Provincial Park

2007-08-15T21:45:00.001-06:00

Big Hill Springs Provincial Park is a short drive, to the northeast, from Cochrane, Alberta. The park is located between parkland and foothills natural regions; the main attraction is a series of small waterfalls that flow year-round over rocky terraces covered with a lush growth of shrubs and grasses; the park is also the site of an historic fish hatchery and Alberta's first commercial creamery. There are many hiking trails leading through this small park making for some great site seeing opportunities. Because of a constant breeze and the need for quite a long exposure it took great patience and the better part of a complete roll of film to get one image where the grass is still.
[Mamiya 7II, 50mm, Fuji Provia]

This second image was made a different visit the fall previous from 5 individual images and stitched together creating a panorama which encompasses close to 180 degrees vertically. My feet are just outside the image at the bottom and you are looking nearly straight up at the top. This was the first digital camera back I owned, in 1999, with a whopping 1.3 MP sensor!
[Canon A50]

Trees 6

2007-08-14T19:56:00.000-06:00

Staying with the theme of trees - again, I have this image I made back in January in Calgary along the Bow River. Carburn Park is a wonderful place for a hike any time of year and lucky for me, it's close to my brother's place, so virtually every time we're there for a visit, time is taken for a stroll in the park. Our family had been together for New Year's celebrations this past year in Calgary and my brother-in-law Dave and myself went for a walk and discovered this gorgeous cottonwood growing only a few metres from the river. All I had with me was a little digital point and shoot which actually did a pretty decent job. We did go back down and I hauled the 8x10 camera down and set up a shot, but unfortunately it's still a bit new to me and I didn't allow a small enough aperture to cover the depth of field required for the image. next time I'm down there you can bet I'll be re-shooting this image on a rather large piece of film! I made the image in colour and converted it in Photoshop to a B&W. The quite like the colour image but feel the forms presented work better in B&W.

This second image is another one from the same day which is very representative of Carburn Park and lets you know what you can expect to see there, in winter at least.
[Panasonic LX-2]

Dry Island Buffalo Jump Provincial Park

2007-08-06T11:21:00.001-06:00

One of my longtime dreams was to photograph using an 8x10 camera with transparencies. I purchased a Wehman 8x10 camera and some boxes of Fuji Velvia 50 film. Using a camera this large requires a concerted effort and takes far longer to set-up than any camera I've ever used. This can be good and bad. Good, because it forces me to slow down and really examine the scene in front of me , and it's worthiness of making an image. Many times I have gone through the ritual of setting the camera up and making all the adjustments necessary, only to discover that the scene doesn't cut it for me, or the light has disappeared. With a digital, 35mm, or medium format, I would likely make the image anyway, but when looking at the expense involved with 8x10 transparencies and development costs, I sometimes think that pressing the cable release isn't worth it. The size of the camera can be bad too, as transient light doesn't wait for me to get set-up, and I miss the image only because I am still fiddling with the camera. Practice is helping me speed my times and I'm sure I will become more proficient with more experience.
[Wehman 8x10, Schneider 240mm G-Claron, Fuji Velvia]

Looking at an 8x10 transparency on my light table is amazing, and the level of detail stunning. The image presented here is a 4x10 crop from an 8x10 and the smaller detail below is what a print would like at 60". This small detail is taken from the mid left side of the image. Remember, you can click on any photo on this blog to make it larger.

Abstract

2007-07-31T21:04:00.000-06:00

Abstract paintings have always grabbed my attention, and I am gradually starting to see this way myself. It is my aim with this type of image to alienate the viewer a bit, almost making them uncomfortable, because they can't identify immediately what it is they are looking at. Many abstracts grab our eyes simply due to interesting patterns and colours and it doesn't have to be anything, or it can mean anything we want it to.

Dogrib Creek Burn was a massive forest fire back in 2003 along the Forestry Trunk Road west of Sundre, Alberta. Gerard(good friend) and myself were out exploring as many small forestry roads as we could without getting stuck and after travelling maybe 10km along one particular road happened on a dead-end. We got out and hiked up to the nearest ridge to explore a bit and here was this amazing pattern created from a devastating fire. I zoomed in to eliminate all the surroundings that helped make this an easy interpretation.
[Canon 10D, 100-400mm]

Leach Lake

2007-07-25T22:13:00.000-06:00

Leach Lake along highway 93A in Jasper National Park is so small it doesn't show up on any but the largest scale maps, but what a gem! A perfectly calm evening with loons calling and a beautiful sunset, you think you are in a dream. Whirlpool Mountain is reflected perfectly and thankfully a few clouds joined in. A perfectly blue sky would make for a rather bland sky. This image is made from three images which were stitched together in Photoshop(Thank-you Dan)
[Hasselblad 501C/M, 50mm, Fuji Provia 100F]

Cool temperatures

2007-07-18T21:36:00.001-06:00

I thought I would dig up an image of cooler days. I am writing this about 9:00 pm and the humidex(the opposite of wind chill) is around 36 C. The image presented was made on a day trip with my friend Gerard along the forestry trunk road(734) near Seven Mile Flats after traversing Corkscrew Mountain. It was quite a trip and one we both fully expected to be digging snow after getting stuck, but Gerard managed to keep the vehicle on the two hard packed tire tracks and thankfully no one came along driving in the opposite direction. The image was originally made in colour and converted to a B&W.
[Pentax 67II, 55mm, Fuji Provia]

Snow Dome

2007-07-16T13:24:00.000-06:00

Located on the continental divide on the Columbia Icefield between Dome Glacier(centre) and Athabasca Glacier(off left side of image). The mountain's summit is entirely covered by the Columbia Icefield. The glacier is about 30 m thick.

Norman Collie named the mountain "The Dome" in 1898. In 1919 the name was modified to "Snow Dome."

The day after climbing Mount Athabasca, Norman Collie and his party ascended the right side of the Athabasca Glacier and bivouacked for the night. Setting off at 1:30 the next morning they headed for the chisel shaped, glacier draped mountain (Mount Columbia) they had seen towering above the opposite side of the icefield. At noon, when they seemed no closer to their goal, they turned back, more aware now of the size of the icefield they had discovered.

Collie and Hugh Stutfield later wrote, "To the eastward of where we stood, and almost on our way home, rose a great white dome, and we determined to ascend it. After a hot and very tiring climb through snow that broke under our feet at every step, we finally reached the summit at 3:15. We have named this peak The Dome."

The broad, smooth summit of what is now called the Snow Dome is the hydrographic apex of North America. This means that water from this point flows to three oceans; through the Saskatchewan and Nelson Rivers to the Atlantic, through the Columbia to the Pacific, and through the Athabasca, and eventually the Mackenzie to the Arctic.
[Olympus E410, 14-42mm]

William A. Switzer Provincial Park

2007-07-16T08:32:00.000-06:00

I found this unique view of the small lake called Kelley's Bathtub in William A. Switzer Park. At first glance it appears to be the sky behind the trees until you realize you are looking down. Really it is the reflection of the sky on the lakes surface.
[Olympus E410, 14-42mm]

Another image from William A. Switzer Park showing the complexity and beautiful subtle colouring of nature. What really grabbed my eye was the strong circular motion of the branches working their way up the trunk of the foreground tree .
[Olympus E410, 14-42mm]

Lakeview

2007-07-16T00:27:00.001-06:00

It's been a few weeks since my last post simply because I was on a holiday through Jasper National Park as well as a few other destinations. This image was made in William A. Switzer Provincial Park just north of Hinton, Alberta at a place called Kelley's Bathtub.
[Olympus E410, 14-42mm]

Bald Eagle

2007-06-27T22:01:00.000-06:00

Otherwise known as Haliaeetus leucocephalus, this eagle was photographed along the Nicola Valley, in the grasslands of British Columbia. There is an interesting story to go along with this image. We watched an eagle snag a fish from a small lake, but unfortunately for it, by only one claw. As the eagle climbed in flight, the fish, obviously, was squirming to get away. When the eagle was 50 meters or so in height, the fish finally squirmed loose, and with a bittersweet turn in the story, it fell the 50 meters to the ground. This story doesn't end here though. Prowling around on the ground was a coyote who saw the fish fall, ran a short distance to it, and had lunch.
[Nikon F4, 600mm, Fuji Provia]

Rockies

2007-06-26T21:34:00.000-06:00

A view of the Rocky Mountains of Alberta along the Icefields Parkway. The highway parallels the continental divide, traversing the rugged landscape of the Canadian Rockies. It is within Banff and Jasper National Parks, linking Lake Louise and Jasper. You pretty much can't go wrong on this highway if you love mountain scenery. I would rate it near the top, maybe even at the top, of my list for scenic road trips. The beauty here can be overwhelming and the possibilities are endless for making beautiful images. There really isn't a "must see" along the highway, it's all fantastic!
[Zone VI 4x5, Schneider 210mm, Kodak VPS]