It’s been a cold winter in the Crowsnest Pass. Between mid-December and mid-January, the temperatures were brutal. We also received a fair amount of snow. I have spent a lot of time digging out this winter. It seemed like as soon as I cleared the driveway, sidewalk, front steps, and patio of snow, it would snow another foot.
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This summer I visited Emerald Lake on several occasions to try and duplicate a photo taken in the 1930s by Thomas Gushul, a well-known Crowsnest Pass photographer. Emerald Lake is located along Highway 3, west of Coleman, near the Alberta-British Columbia border. The picturesque lake is connected to Crowsnest Lake via a shallow channel, 50 metres in length. Most travelers are unaware the two lakes are connected, as the highway bridge passes directly above the interconnecting channel, blocking it from view. When Thomas Gushul took his photo, these bodies of water were considered an extension of each other and regarded as one lake – Crowsnest Lake.
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While visiting Beauvais Lake Provincial Park in late May, I watched a pair of red-necked grebes as they constructed a nest of twigs and aquatic vegetation in shallow water, along the western edge of the lake. It took the birds about a week to complete their nest. Over the next three weeks, I returned more than a half dozen times to photograph the grebes as they incubated their eggs.
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A number of weeks ago, several southern Alberta photographer friends shared some of their recent bird photos with me. Among these were images of great blue herons, red-winged and yellow-headed blackbirds, Canada geese, and turkey vultures, the latter of which are seldom seen in this part of the province.
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Going outside for a breath of fresh air and to get some exercise is much more challenging these days, due to the physical distancing guidelines we are currently dealing with. The situation we are facing is making it difficult, if not impossible, to participate in things we usually take for granted. We still need to keep active, though, and it’s good to go outdoors, providing we do this in a safe, responsible manner.
Continue readingParked at the back of a nearly empty RV storage lot along Highway 3 in Crowsnest Pass is an old converted school bus. You can tell it hasn’t moved from this spot for a while. The front tires are flat and there are some engine parts sitting on a wooden bench next to the bus. I’m not sure what condition the motor is in, or if it even runs. I keep looking at this bus with interest, each time I pass by. It’s unique and has a lot of character.
I like old cameras. I like the way they look and the mechanics that make them work. I have collected a few antique cameras in recent years and enjoy having them on display.
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In keeping with the theme of my previous post, I have a few more Intentional Camera Movement (ICM) images I’d like to share. These are architectural in nature and were taken near my home in Crowsnest Pass. I enjoy photographing old buildings and it gave me an opportunity to try something different. Continue reading
Recently, I’ve been trying my hand at creating blurred, impressionistic-style images using Intentional Camera Movement, or ICM for short. Like all forms of photography, there’s been a learning curve involved but I’ve been getting some interesting results of late.
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Autumn is the most colorful and spectacular time of year in southwest Alberta. In early September, the mountains and foothills begin to transform from one season to the next. Within a couple of weeks, the surrounding landscape becomes illuminated in shades of red, yellow, orange, and gold. Bathed by the sun’s warm rays during the day, and chilled by freezing temperatures at night, the colors of autumn become more intense with each passing day. Continue reading
