One of the many moose statues scattered around Toronto, this one at St. Clements School, uptown Toronto.
Sunday, January 31, 2010
Saturday, January 30, 2010
Thursday, January 28, 2010
Nadia
I work in a shared executive office, which means there are many different companies sharing common facilities, but otherwise not related at all. It's a weird kind of feeling, because you see the same people on a regular basis but they're not colleagues - it's more like a neighbourhood ! I've been here for over 5 years and seen many different companies and people come and go. I've causually met a few people over the years, but late last year, I started to make a point of getting to know more of my neighbours.
I walked into the office this morning and walked by one of the larger, multi-person corner offices and the morning light coming in was beautiful. Nadia was sitting at her computer and the lighting and the colour of her sweater just stood out ! I hadn't met Nadia before today so I dropped off my stuff in my office and returned to her office to introduce myself and see if I could take her picture.
I set the camera up before I approached her so I wouldn't be fumbling with the settings while I was introducing myself. As I asked if I could take her photograph I could tell she wasn't that comfortable with the idea, but she laughed a little, so I snapped a few shots before she had time to worry about a pose - I really like the result.
As she recognized my English accent, we quickly talked about our backgrounds. Nadia is originally from Pakistan, moved to Saudi Arabia, then the UK and has now been here in Canada for 5 years - she calls herself "a global soul". We agreed that the Canadian winters are a little harsh but the morning sun on her face was cheering her up.
This is the first "stranger" I've met at the office. It's an unusual situation, where someone is a stranger one minute, you introduce yourself, learn their name and little about them,and then they're part of your life.
Funny we didn't talk business at all.
Nadia is #39 in my 100 strangers project. Find out more about the project and see pictures taken by other photographers at www.100Strangers.com.
I walked into the office this morning and walked by one of the larger, multi-person corner offices and the morning light coming in was beautiful. Nadia was sitting at her computer and the lighting and the colour of her sweater just stood out ! I hadn't met Nadia before today so I dropped off my stuff in my office and returned to her office to introduce myself and see if I could take her picture.
I set the camera up before I approached her so I wouldn't be fumbling with the settings while I was introducing myself. As I asked if I could take her photograph I could tell she wasn't that comfortable with the idea, but she laughed a little, so I snapped a few shots before she had time to worry about a pose - I really like the result.
As she recognized my English accent, we quickly talked about our backgrounds. Nadia is originally from Pakistan, moved to Saudi Arabia, then the UK and has now been here in Canada for 5 years - she calls herself "a global soul". We agreed that the Canadian winters are a little harsh but the morning sun on her face was cheering her up.
This is the first "stranger" I've met at the office. It's an unusual situation, where someone is a stranger one minute, you introduce yourself, learn their name and little about them,and then they're part of your life.
Funny we didn't talk business at all.
Nadia is #39 in my 100 strangers project. Find out more about the project and see pictures taken by other photographers at www.100Strangers.com.
Wednesday, January 27, 2010
Paula
I stepped out at lunch today to try and grab a snow flurry shot (didn't get one), but I ended up meeting Paula as she was walking her dog Molly. As you can probably guess, her hat got my attention - I love seeing people where bright colours in the winter !
We talked about dogs a little bit and I found out there are a few off-leash downtown dog parks. We also talked a little about photography - Paula just got a a new Canon dSRL (5D Mark II I think, lucky her), but she said she found it a little challenging taking photos while walking her dog - I agreed with her on that one ! She also told me about the Toronto Photo Walks (torontophotowalks.ca/) group on Flickr - I may join them on Saturday in the Beaches ! Hoping to connect with Paula on Flickr.
I'm so glad I stopped Paula and asked for a photograph, much more rewarding than a picture of the snow.
Paula is #38 in my 100 strangers project. Find out more about the project and see pictures taken by other photographers at www.100Strangers.com.
We talked about dogs a little bit and I found out there are a few off-leash downtown dog parks. We also talked a little about photography - Paula just got a a new Canon dSRL (5D Mark II I think, lucky her), but she said she found it a little challenging taking photos while walking her dog - I agreed with her on that one ! She also told me about the Toronto Photo Walks (torontophotowalks.ca/) group on Flickr - I may join them on Saturday in the Beaches ! Hoping to connect with Paula on Flickr.
I'm so glad I stopped Paula and asked for a photograph, much more rewarding than a picture of the snow.
Paula is #38 in my 100 strangers project. Find out more about the project and see pictures taken by other photographers at www.100Strangers.com.
Tuesday, January 26, 2010
Monday, January 25, 2010
Sunday, January 24, 2010
Saturday, January 23, 2010
Friday, January 22, 2010
Hart House
I was picking up our tickets for tonight's performance of High Fidelity at Hart House Theatre at lunch today. If you don't know, Hart House is one of The University of Toronto's oldest buildings. I just loved the stone walls and wood paneling everywhere. The lighting today was just beautiful. I'm sure I'll be returning for future photo shoots.
Thursday, January 21, 2010
Wednesday, January 20, 2010
Tuesday, January 19, 2010
Monday, January 18, 2010
Sunday, January 17, 2010
Shredded glow
I experimented with lots of difficult exposures and 2 flash combinations (built-in and SB-600) and placement, but as it turned out, I liked the glow of this over-exposed shot the most.
Saturday, January 16, 2010
Friday, January 15, 2010
Thursday, January 14, 2010
Wednesday, January 13, 2010
Nofair / Nikon 18-200mm VR
Taken with my new Nikon 18-200mm VR lens.
I've wanted this lens for quite some time, but I haven't been able to easily justify the expense. Nikon released a new version of this lens late in 2009 that by most reports, only differs with a zoom lock to stop lens creep. Nikon apparently changed a lot of the focusing mechanics, but I don't believe the old and new are really that different and not really worth the $100+ difference. Nikon were still showing this lens on their site up until quite recently, but asking around told me that this original version was already disappearing from the stores. Combine that with a great price at Black's here in Toronto and the decision point was getting closer. When my wife got her ticket to the Olympics, there was another big reason to invest in this versatile and very highly rated lens. But as I was mulling this over just this morning, what became the tipping point was my wife's blog post and her desire to step out of auto-mode and learn how to properly use a dSLR.
I had a chance to take a few shots over lunch before my battery died. Already, I can tell it's going to create a little spike in my photographic activity. Early impressions of focusing speed and picture quality are very good. Why did I put this decision off so long ?
I've wanted this lens for quite some time, but I haven't been able to easily justify the expense. Nikon released a new version of this lens late in 2009 that by most reports, only differs with a zoom lock to stop lens creep. Nikon apparently changed a lot of the focusing mechanics, but I don't believe the old and new are really that different and not really worth the $100+ difference. Nikon were still showing this lens on their site up until quite recently, but asking around told me that this original version was already disappearing from the stores. Combine that with a great price at Black's here in Toronto and the decision point was getting closer. When my wife got her ticket to the Olympics, there was another big reason to invest in this versatile and very highly rated lens. But as I was mulling this over just this morning, what became the tipping point was my wife's blog post and her desire to step out of auto-mode and learn how to properly use a dSLR.
I had a chance to take a few shots over lunch before my battery died. Already, I can tell it's going to create a little spike in my photographic activity. Early impressions of focusing speed and picture quality are very good. Why did I put this decision off so long ?
Tuesday, January 12, 2010
Monday, January 11, 2010
Sunday, January 10, 2010
Saturday, January 9, 2010
Friday, January 8, 2010
Thursday, January 7, 2010
Please Close Gate
Experimenting with new Blackberry Bold 9700 3mp camera. Not too bad, but still very basic.
Wednesday, January 6, 2010
Tuesday, January 5, 2010
Monday, January 4, 2010
Apple app images
The Mac store window display at the Eaton Centre in Toronto. Where do those iPhone and iPod Touch people start finding and loading apps out of the thousands available ? I'll find out soon as my wife gets hers later this week !
Sunday, January 3, 2010
Saturday, January 2, 2010
Bowl game tension
The International Bowl game was played today at Toronto's Roger's Centre for the third year. This year, The University of South Florida defeated Northern Illinois University. This was the first NCAA bowl game I've seen and even though the crowd was a little small, the support from the loyal traveling fans and local fans was great.
Friday, January 1, 2010
Antony
Antony is #60 for the Quebec All-star high school (midget) football team. Anthony's mom is my wife's cousin so we all went to see his game versus the GTA All-Star team New Year's day at the Roger's Centre.
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