September summer shadows

September summer shadows - #304/365, originally uploaded by PJMixer.

I only had our old Canon point-and-shoot today and I was struggling trying to correct an under-exposure warning with non-auto settings, so in auto I did't have a lot a control on the technical elements of the shot. But I thought the subject was fun having the converging long shadows and well defined silhouettes of my daughter and I.

Piggy and Raccoon lookalikes

Piggy and Raccoon lookalikes - #303/365, originally uploaded by PJMixer.

I quickly snapped a few backyard shots before the mosquito feast. I got lucky with how the flashlights fell on their faces highlighting my son's noise and masking the daughters eyes.

Woody and his cast

Woody and his cast - #302/365, originally uploaded by PJMixer.

I'm a Woody Allen fan, so when my wife suggested we see go and see the premiere of this latest film, You Will Meet a Talk Dark Stranger at The Toronto International Film Festival I was pretty excited. Woody introduced the majority of his ensemble cast before the screening (before he flew back to NYC), from left to right, Gemma Jones, newcomer Lucy Punch, Freida Pinto, Josh Brolin and Sir Anthony Hopkins. I loved it - classic woodism spot on casting and tragic comedy.

I thought our Fuji point-and-shoot did well to capture this shot from the upper balcony. However, it's in-camera trimming quality was a little poor, so I did crop this one in Photoshop. I chose to leave the front row photographers in the frame to help with the context of the shot. I love how Brolin is joking with Hopkins, Punch's attention to her director, Pinto's shyness and Jones' class and of course a classic gesture from Woody.

Pink in the city; kids' street signatures

Pink in the city; kids' street signatures - #301/365, originally uploaded by PJMixer.

There was a number of charity events in my neighbourhood yesterday for the battle against Women's cancer. While on a run with my dog I saw that a load of kids had written their names and greetings all over the road. Later in the afternoon I jumped on the skateboard and went back to grab this shot.

Although there isn't a lot of contrast, I maximized the resolution to pull out the detail and looked for an angle and made sure the chalk work filled the whole frame.

Charlie Mime

Charlie Mime - #300/365, originally uploaded by PJMixer.

I'm not certain if this is a new mime to the Yonge and Dundas neighbourhood, but I'd never seen a Charlie Chaplin before, but what better timing than the Toronto International Film Festival ! I've taken lots of other shots at this corner and it's quite difficult to get an uncluttered background, so I crouched down and used the beige building as a more neutral background. As I've been using my Fuji point-and-shoot a daily basis as my DSLR is being repaired, I'm getting used to some of the more advanced settings, in this case I forced the flash and added 0.3 EV.

Church of The Holy Trinity

Church of The Holy Trinity - #299/365, originally uploaded by PJMixer.

I work very close to the Church of The Holy Trinity and had gone to its cafe before but it was the first time I'd been inside the church. The church functions today like a church should, opening its doors to people in need and excepting modern day diversity. The Church staff were quite busy serving coffee and soup, helping a young man find a place to sleep and spending time with a disabled person. The staff allowed a man to sleep against one of the walls and quite a few street people freely coming and going. I spent some time reading about the interesting history of the church which was built in 1847 with funds from an anonymous donor. You can read more about the history and its current day services here.

I took a few traditional wide angle shots showing stained glass windows, but I wanted a shot that showed the lovely iron work, the unusual pews and the wonderful ceiling.

Green glow parking garage

Green glow parking garage - #298/365, originally uploaded by PJMixer.

It was so quiet when I went to my car after work today. There are some good angles, lines and symmetry in parking lots and the added bonus here was the creepy green glow and organic-like ceiling. I played with a few WB setting (fluorescent) and bumped up Fuji's dynamic range setting.