Multicoloured

I took this just a few minutes before supper last night.
I was busy in the kitchen and one of the guests pointed it out to me and as luck would have it...I had my camera with me....just the S3IS but better than nothing so i grabbed a shot..just before it disappeared forever.
This shot was actually taken right out the kitchen door....I'm lucky we face the river and the sun was in the right place.

9 petals on this Black eyed Susan

Slowly eking out the last of it's life this Black eyed Susan is showing it's age.
Taken a few days ago the fringes of this lovely flower have already started to show it dying back.
Everywhere on the sides of the roads this hardy and tough little beauty will definitely be back to thrill me next year.
For now, it's bright colours and vibrant green leaves belie it's soon to end existence.
Ah well....such is the cycle of life.

Coiled

I looked LONG and HARD for a prime rattlesnake to put up for this theme but apparently they're aren't that many around here....then I got REALLY lucky!!!
There....just sitting on the ground for anyone to see was a coil of barbed wire!!
WHAT A FIND...and darn near perfect for the theme so there it is....in all it's rusty glory.
Knowing full well about it's sharp edges and dangerous reputation I stayed well back....using the distance of my 200 mm lens to put me in a safe location and despite it's ferocious reputation I managed to grab a bodacious close-up shot for your pleasure.

Letter "V" in nature

WOW!!
I've been working steady and haven't been out 'sploring for nearly a week....and almost 1 more to go so I've had to resort to using a picture I took a few days ago.
Not too inspired it nonetheless fits the bill in terms of themes.
It's the letter V and since nothing was really needed...I did nothing to it.

Dusk...the other night and it REALLLY did look like this!

I took this picture about 3 days ago but I've been fairly busy at the lodge and had to use a pic not taken today.
This picture is EXACTLY as it came out of the camera except I cropped it smaller...as usual ....on account of my dialup...darn it.
We're supposed to be getting high speed....sometime but I won't hold my breath...just in case.
Northern lights look very close to this but this is just a VERY late sunset. Hopefully I'll see some northern lights when/if they arrive.....and IF they're nice this year 'cause they're not always that spectacular.
I just checked the camera information and it was taken at 7:42.....almost sundown here....hence the rich colours.

Lovely bright RED

It's that time of year in the north.....fall, and the leaves are changing colour.
Most striking and dramatic are the Maple trees but all the deciduous ones change colour to some degree.
The Aspen, Birch and Poplars turn mostly yellow while many others turn brown.
I have lots of maples in my bush and this bush Maple is a bit of a show-off..having completely changed virtually overnight while most of the others are just beginning.
One observation I've made is the trees that change colour earliest are usually the young ( small ) ones or those that have been damaged in some way....often the very old that have limbs missing.
I guess it's nature's way of letting them take the spotlight....for a while...much like young people and injured people.
P.S. The term 'bush Maple' is what we refer to the smaller scrubby Maples....usually thin and thin and never obtaining much girth they are nonetheless STILL useful for Maple Syrup and firewood.

Water.....one of my favorite pastimes.

This is from the shore of a tiny nameless lake about 1/2 k m from my home.
At the top of a dirt road going to a selection of summer homes belonging mostly to out-of-towners that I see very little of and NEVER during the winter....or really the fall.
Kept plowed because of 1 or 2 locals on the road it's an IDEAL place to walk with Jack and my camera.
The lake is only about 3 or 4 acres in size so there's not much in the way of fish in it and subsequently nobody is much interested in it.
I use it as my exploring place and where I will drop my canoe in for a quick evening paddle.
I tried to purchase the lake and the land around it a few years ago ( it would have been VERY cheap ) but it's crown land and therefore NOT for sale.
Too bad for me.
Good for recreation for me however as I've NEVER seen anyone else on it....ever!
P.S. Crown land is land owned by the government in Canada and USUALLY is not for sale.
I call it Lake Wayne...LOL

Today's theme is orange and believe it or not this image is nearly honest in the colours although I did punch it up a bit.
The sky the other night was particularly lovely and as I expect some northern light fairly soon but this isn't it.
It reminds me of what my vision of the African Veldt looks like.

Kitchen Utensil

This Krinkle or Wavy cutter is my new favorite in my kitchen.
Take otherwise ordinary vegetables and they transform into interesting and texturally enjoyable pieces.
I had seen old versions of this tool from the 40's made by Huot but this is a much more practical stainless steel and LARGER version...which I appreciate....especially for potatoes.
Let me know if you are familiar with these or if you have some kitchen tool that is YOUR favorite.

GLOWING......way up there.

I took this picture about 2 hours ago and I promise you I have done ABSOLUTELY nothing to it at all....except reduce the original quality because I have dialup and uploading large pictures is both nearly impossible ans usually results in a half-picture distorted.
I would imaging most of you see these many times every day but up here I probably don't see even 1 a day most days.
The sun was very low and I took several of it coming, overhead and as it was leaving ( this picture ).
When I reviewed them I was ABSOLUTELY enchanted by the almost magical glow it seems to have.
I often think of who is on the plane and where they are going and how strange it is that I am here...watching their progress and they are completely unaware of me.
Let me know what you think of it....good or bad.....I want it ALL!!!

Raindrops Keep Falling..

Rainy days are fun IF you don't have to spend much time outdoors...OR if you like being out in the rain.
I LOVE being out in the rain so as long as the camera is well protected that's where I'll be,
This is the last of the summer...'sorta-fruit'.....as choke cherries aren't everyone's cup of tea.
My mum used to make DELICIOUS jams and jellies out of both the red and the black ones.
I don't.....BUT I still love their lovely look and i managed to get a snap of some drops of rain on probably the last of the crop this year.
I can't see them without remembering my mum and her jellies.
MUMS.....where would we be without them eh?

Thriving......despite incredible odds.

I'm sure there are MANY of these kinds of trees everywhere around the world where soil is scarce and the elements harsh.
I have no idea how old this tree is but we see lots of sheer-sided rocks on the edge of lakes around here with trees clinging to even the smallest of cracks..
It probably has something to do with the passage of glaciers millions of years ago and there are some very interesting features I will photograph next summer.
Unfortunately the lack of a deep and/or secure root system means shallow and long roots that can't stand up to much wind or snow weight so they rarely attain a great height...still...they ARE interesting.

Black and white conversion.

This is a long abandoned farmhouse not far off the road in a tiny town-no-more called Ouellette.
I made a trip out there the on my day off as it was VERY sunny and I wanted some high contrast pictures of it.
Within my memory here...about 25 years I can not remember it being occupied in any way.
It's actually amazing that this building, probably about 100 years old, is still standing and surviving the often harsh snow-laden winters without falling down.
I hope there aren't the last pictures of it but I know it will fall some day.
This colour image was modified using software that 'tries' to recreate it as a lithograph rather than a true B/W but bending themes is what we're all about eh?
Let me know what you think of it please.

HEAD PARTS.....One ...Two...Three

I saw this model # on an old VCR in our local dump and it inspired me.
This is ACTUALLY one of the MAIN features of a head.....in this case apparently 4 heads.
On the top is DUH Hair
On the bottom are DE eyes
And in between......well....you can work that one out for yourself.
Just thought I'd inject a bit of levity into the photo blog.....sometimes we forget it SHOULD be fun !

Challenge.....what the heck are they?

I took this picture yesterday afternoon.
Just a normal scene around here....huge flocks of Canada Geese in a field.
Stopping over for a rest I presume for the upcoming long flight.
Today I cropped and examined it and discovoured something unusual. It is in the insert picture....just a blow-up of the top left section of the other picture.
Heavily cropped from the original it isn't as clear as I'd like it to be but what it shows IS interesting.
Along with the geese are some other birds...further away and yet larger....and keeping in mind that a Canada Goose is quite large these things must be VERY big.
Some sort of Crane and what we have a lot of here are Sand Hill Cranes...with a red cap on the top of their heads.
I don't see that colour in the picture so I'm guessing they are Blue Herons....slightly bigger at about 5 feet tall or more.
If anyone knows from this so-so picture let me know....that is just my best guess.

One Lonely tree.

I took this picture today out quadding after work.
I took 5 in the series with 1 EV between them and processed them into an HDR with Dynamic Photo HDR.
It didn't come out quite as 'dynamic' as I wanted but I'm fairly happy with it.
Any suggestions or critique is welcome as I am still pretty new to HDR.

Standing on guard.

Anyone who is familiar with crows will know the common story about how to trick a crow.
You need to go into the woods with 6 people and 5 come out...leaving 1 behind because....apparently, crows can't count higher than 5.
I have no idea how true this is but I do know it's VERY hard to sneak up on a crow and across the road from me is a stream/wetland area in which they often gather and hunt.
There is ALWAYS a sentinel on guard while the others do their thing and usually he skedaddles when I approach...this time i got a picture of him/her.
This has, obviously been heavily cropped as he was quite shy but aside from that and a little 'bluing' of the sky it's as I took it.
Naturally they are usually at the top of the highest tree in the area although this one selected a 'slightly' lower branch for his perch.
P.S. Let me know if you are getting sick of all these 'critter' pictures and I'll focus on the high-rises around here instead.

S.W.A.T. Team callout narrowly averted.

The other day I was off to see my buddy 'cause his dog had gotten sick with something and at that time the prognosis wasn't good...( it has since improved ).
Just before I reached his house the road was blocked with these dairy cows belonging to his father-in-law who was out there ( aged 86 ) directing the cows towards the BRAND NEW hole in the fence, ....and be dammed the HUGE traffic pileup created by their taking up the whole road.....well....actually...just me as it happened, but it COULD have been a major incident.
I waited while he directed them and with no more than a quick nod....he cleared me to pass....WHEW....another potential incident done and done.
Taxpayers saved a bundle as we avoided having to call out the S.W.A.T. Team.
As can be seen in the picture Mr. Brubaker had the welcome aid of a helpful cow...who appears to be telling the others which way to go.

Today's theme....yellow.

Jack has a sad and EXPENSIVE liking for chicken...especially as it were....'Chicken on the hoof'.
A few years ago he and a buddy went on a late evening raid to a neighbour's chicken pen ( 200 mature almost ready for market meat birds )on his front yard and....well....played with the chickens a bit.
Maybe played is a little too mild..let's say in the end the neighbour and us shared a $600 chicken extravaganza!
Jack learned his lesson and is still with us...their dog went to a retirement village.
Now he just LOVES plastic chickens and we LOVE that he loves plastic chickens.
This is his newest one....just a leg.

Matched pair?.......maybe?

I took this picture the other day down at a new area of my swamp.
I was trying to get a little closer to a beaver lodge out in the middle in the hopes of catching a beaver sunning himself.
No luck and I got a soaker to boot....or should I say...NO boot!
I did, however see this unusual cattail...never have seen one that grew like this that I can remember and I thought it might make an interesting photo.
I took 2 pictures...1 with no depth of field and 1 with lots....I prefer this one as it sort of 'highlights' the cattail and isolates it from the less important background.

Beautiful Blue Jay

I LOVE Blue Jays....I don't know why 'cause they're sassy as heck but I love their spirit and attitude.
We usually have lots in the spring but this year we had a HUGE crop of Blackbirds and Red winged Blackbirds and these two groups don't seem to get along well.
The Blackbirds have mostly gone and as a consequence ( maybe ) the Blue Jays are back.
I took lots of pictures but this one grabbed me because he seems to have a pensive look.....and yes....I know the lawn needs mowing....again!!

Centre of interest....not much doubt !

I took this picture the other day 'cause it reminded me of how little it takes sometimes to focus your attention when there's an environment that's green and blue....not that I find it boring.
I suppose most of you will not relate to a road completely devoid of traffic....save 1 old tractor.
Almost a traffic jam up here and certainly worthy of a mention in the local rag......only kidding.

Freeze Frame X 2....'cause I couldn't make a decision.

I took these shots yesterday afternoon mainly because KarenAnn's dog Stella Joy is so darn cute and works those sheep so well.
WELL....my dog Jack is smarter still!
Here he is working.....wait for it....
GRASSHOPPERS!
YUP...he sees or hears them and he jumps straight up in the air.
He does it many times when we go walking this time of year 'cause the hoppers are active and anyway there's little else for him to herd.
I hadn't thought of getting a picture but a working dog is a working dog so set the 60D to 1000th of a second and got 2.
I couldn't decide which to post so i posted both.....you decide.
One is higher but the angle on the other is more attractive.
And by the way...this is genuine...he actually does this, it's not a Photoshop trick!

Calm.......be the inner you.

I took this tonight after dropping my wife and her mother off at our camper.
They are going to stay for 8 days so poor single me....and I suspect it won't be a happy kitchen for a while. LOL
I know I posted a VERY similar pano a while ago but I re-did it using portrait rather than landscape and as a result it is 11 shots into this 1.
Also didn't do much in the way of processing except 1 little topaz one....called simple pop...just to brighten up the dark shoreline trees.
I'll get down every day after work but it's not the same.....boo hoo!!
P.S. I promise you the ripple rings are legitimate....a fish jumped just as I took the 5 or 6th shot...they are NOT photoshopped in.
As always...I hope you like it BUT critique it as much as you want....I can take it.....I'm wearing my big girl panties!.

When is a liquid not a liquid?

This 'sky' and shore scene is actually a reflection of the opposite shore shooting into the water from a high angle.
It doesn't take too close a look to see lily pads and rocks in the sky but it does mess with your head for a second or two....and that's what I wanted!!!!!!!!!!!!

Shades of Gray

I took this picture this evening around dusk.
It is only unusual in that instead of the usual 'VEE" formation in their flying, these geese were stretched out in a long line...presumably taking advantage of the vector lift effect at the wingtip of the goose in front of them.
This is just a small portion of the formation so it is HEAVILY cropped and finally treated with the 'ghostly' effect in Topaz.
Aside from that it is as I took it just 2 hours ago.
I hope you like it.

So restful I sat on the grassy ditch and just watched him.

I took this picture and 3 others more or less the same the other day.
I went for a quad ride down my road to a bush road I often use to explore.
Just beyond my usual turning off place I noticed a horse in a neighbour's field and I'm sure he doesn't own a horse.
I still don't know whose horse it was but it looked SO content and relaxed just enjoying it's meal well back from the road and traffic ( such as it is here ) that I got off my quad and just sat there for about 1/2 hour looking at it and pondering what an easy and peaceful life it seemed to have.
The sky was perfect and it turned out like a sort of 'postcard' pastoral scene I used to paint.
I hope the peaceful feeling comes across to you as well.

Motion Blur

The other day my buddy ( who happens to be a dog ) and I were out for a walk and he decided he was too hot so as usual he went in for a swim.
Normally he gets out, soaking wet and sneaks up behind me and shakes himself but this day for some reason he decided to do it in the water.
I was just about to take a picture of some ducks that had been startled by him and moved the camera towards him......voila!
A dog twisty.

Negative space....and then some!

Today I thought I'd be helpful so before the clean up ladies arrived I decided I would wash up the bigger pots and stuff in the back kitchen area....stuff that we generally don't put in the commercial dishwasher.
I ran the water, put in the big pots and roasting pans and such, added soap and walked away.
20 minutes later I heard water running and wondered what it was.......
THIS IS WHAT IT WAS!
The 'negative space' referred to in the theme is the items you DON'T see....sink, pots....and a host of other things.
AS USUAL....my attempts to help outside of my sphere of competence did me in.
Unfortunately it's out of focus and I only took one so I could hurriedly clean up my 'helpful' mess before they arrived but I thought it so perfectly fit the theme I'd post it anyway.
Absolutely nothing done except crop.

ALIVE......not 'brand' new but still has that 'New Colt' smell.

This picture was taken today on the way to work on my quad.
Janice invited me yesterday when it was brand new but I was running late and the quad was running out of gas so I put it off 'till today.
I photoshopped the owner out of the picture 'cause I wanted that cute son nuzzles mum picture.
I don't know much about horses so I hope I'm correct when I called it a colt...it's a boy so if I'm wrong...sue me!
All I know is he's cute as the dickens.
P.S. I forgot to mention that this little guy is only 2 days old!

Roadside vista

I took this shot quickly the other day on my way to visit my youngest son in a nearby city...small one.
I have no idea what the crop is but the sun hitting them made them positively glow on a beautiful sunny day.
I would guess it is a second cut crop but I'm willing to be corrected by KarenAnn ( Simple Little Pleasures | my 365 photo challenge for 2011 by KarenAnn ) who probably knows much more than I do.
In any case it looked quite lovely and definitely worthy of a shot and as I took it hurriedly from my truck window it definitely qualifies as 'roadside'.
Cropped and sharpened.

Reflection

I was tempted to do the usual huge lake scene with the glassy water and the distant shore reflection but I decided to downsize it to a much more local and personal level.
This creek is just across the road from my driveway and in fact runs into my swamp area ( wetlands to be politically correct ) and is just a tiny microcosm of this area....rocks, water and bushes.
Mostly just cropped and a tiny bit of sharpening.