Pure Perspective

In my back yard

2010-07-07T22:14:00.003-04:00

My tea rose is blooming!
A weed; but a pretty one :)

Whatever this thing is (a grub of some description) is killing my lilies :(
Yummy raspberries!

We were airing out our tent when I saw this little guy...

Blue-Cat

2010-06-15T17:38:00.003-04:00

It's been forever since I've posted a picture of either of the cats. I caught Blue lounging today...just staring out the window. What a tough life!

Perfection

2010-06-03T17:56:00.004-04:00

The title says it all....I don't know how else to describe the colour of this flower. These photos are straight-out-of-the-camera and that's exactly what it looks like. While I've always loved the colour blue (and would tell you it's my fave colour) my mother can attest to the fact that I'm always drawn to this colour (as can be explained without a viewing of several dresses I've worn in the past - har har!) - there's just something about it...

This is the flower from the bud in the previous post.

Is this what attracts the ants?

2010-05-22T13:20:00.003-04:00

I noticed the peony buds in the back yard all have little droplets on them (and it's not rain!); I wondered if maybe whatever they're producing/secreting is meant to attract insects, namely the ants that always seem to accompany them. Some kind of pollination strategy, perhaps???
Regardless, this peony plant is doing very well and will have a number of blooms in a few short weeks! It would have been really handy to have a macro lens at my disposal for this shot. :(

Mel and Tony's Big Day! Only 5 months late....

2010-05-12T20:02:00.011-04:00

Mel and Tony were married in December but I'm only just now getting around to posting some (ok, a lot!) of their photos. This is quite easily my longest post ever, and there are so many more I would have loved to share. Congratulations you guys!

The only thing more beautiful than Mel's dress was Mel herself :)

The make-up artist was fantastic, even giving us all make-up lessons as she went about making the girls look fabulous!
Putting in the all-important veil!

Corset backs always require a little help :)

A pretty important mother-daughter moment!
The bride is starting to get excited!

Mel and her best friend and maid-of-honour.

My favourite shot of Mel from the entire day!

When everyone was ready, the girls went outside for a few photos on the deck.

Mel even got her wish - flurries!

I wasn't there for the getting-ready session for the guys, but I did catch Tony's brother helping with his boutonniere. It's not as easy as it looks! :)

Mel's parents both escorted her down the aisle.During their ceremony...

Sharing a moment when it was all-said-and-done.

We did it!

Tony's beautiful sister
It wouldn't be a wedding without some kissing :)
Bridal party fun at Watson's Mill in Manotick.

The "brothers"

There's nothing like a kissing silhouette!
Clearly, the speeches were entertaining!

First dance

Just a lucky shot, I really like it....

Tony's mom was so much fun!

Need I say more?!?! :)

The kids had a ball!

I almost felt bad taking this shot, as though I was interrupting a 'moment'.
A few details....

Decorating the chandeliers with Christmas balls was such a great idea! Everything was so festive!

An engagement photo (also taken by moi!)....

Rise and Shine :)

2010-05-11T16:39:00.004-04:00

Instead of heading straight to work today, I took a detour over to Dow's Lake to snap some shots of Ottawa's famous tulips during sunrise.

Beautiful warm light and unexpected flare :)

Real flare (unlike all the fake photoshop stuff I see so regularly....)

Not the nicest of shots, nor the prettiest of the tulips, but I LOVE the orange and purple flowers together!
I spent some time trying to capture the spider webs strung between flowers. These next 2 shots are about as good as it gets (sadly). Something to work on in the future!
I love how the sun is shining just on the tips of the petals. It was pretty in colour but I preferred it in B&W.

5 weeks and counting....

2010-05-03T20:49:00.004-04:00

Natasha and Ryan are tying the knot *very* soon.....so we spent a couple of hours together for an e-shoot last week. They tell me they really like B&W photos so I decided to post them all that way.

I couldn't help but post this one in colour. I love how vibrant the sun is!

Not this year ;(

2010-04-28T22:36:00.002-04:00

So, CP and I were at the game 6 OT loss. I didn't take many photos, but liked this one. And for the record, Mikey won the faceoff :)

A Baby on the Way!

2010-04-25T21:27:00.009-04:00

I had the extreme pleasure of spending an afternoon with Jenny, Tim, Lexi and Baby V last weekend. I don't know who wound up being more important - Baby V or Lexi! :)
Looking forward to meeting your little girl!

Meet Lexi - their first Baby Girl :)
She definitely steals the show!

It's almost time to meet Baby B

2010-04-10T12:13:00.003-04:00

Jenn and I got together on a glorious spring (summer!) day last week to do a baby belly shoot. We thought it would be fun to play at the playground :)

Baby B's first time on a swing (I think!)

Is there anything cuter than newborn baby shoes??

Can you guess Baby's name??

Well, now you know :)

With Mommy being a Sens fans and Daddy supporting the Leafs.....what is Baby B to do??

Quick Visit to Florida

2010-03-18T19:19:00.006-04:00

So, my Florida photos aren't particularly creative or exciting but any excuse to make a blog post 2 days in a row is good enough for me!

I wish we had palm trees in Ontario!

And whatever this is too!

There's nothing like vibrant colours on the beach!

I was too wimpy to swim but I got my feet wet!

Sandpipers are so much fun to watch! They do everything in unison!

Graceful egret

Pelicans fly slowly enough that they're relatively easy to photograph.

Don't want to be gator bait!

A fern in the shadows

Expecting!

2010-03-17T17:21:00.005-04:00

Celia and I traipsed around downtown last week to snap some shots of her beautiful baby belly. I've never seen an expectant mother who is so agile; you were such a good sport! All the best to you and your hubby and I look forward to meeting your little one when she makes her appearance!

Full Moon

2010-01-29T19:08:00.002-05:00

The moon will officially be 'full' tomorrow night but I thought this was close enough.

A little freezing rain

2010-01-24T18:46:00.002-05:00

Some freezing rain fell on Boxing Day and I'm a little late in posting the photos :)

Lookin' out my back door....

2010-01-23T11:10:00.004-05:00

It must have been really cold last night.....

Amaryllis

2010-01-17T19:30:00.002-05:00

Barnie's flower :)

First Family Shoot

2009-11-22T21:44:00.002-05:00

I was starting to think Austin would be in high school before his mom and I would be able to coordinate this shoot, but we finally made it work today!
Here's a small sample of what we took. More to come!

Three years later...

2009-10-27T21:52:00.005-04:00

....I'll be shooting Gen and Pat's wedding. They're getting married on the same weekend in June as we did what will be 3 years earlier :)
We met downtown on Sunday and it couldn't have been a more perfect day (even with the Zombie walk we inadvertently found ourselves in the middle of!)! We traipsed around the market, Parliament Hill (and surrounding area) and the canal and here are a few of my favourites!

I hope you guys like!!!

Welcome Austin

2009-10-17T19:08:00.004-04:00

Today was Austin's baby shower, and I was so happy to finally meet him (he was born the day I left for Europe). Despite being the star of the show, he slept through the whole thing but I managed to snap a few shots before heading out.
Congratulations Sarah and Mario and welcome beautiful Austin.
I'd like to know who your stylist is :)

Autumn Anniversary

2009-10-14T18:34:00.007-04:00

I had the extreme pleasure of spending some time on Monday with Susan, Dominic and their very handsome little men. Sue and Dom were celebrating their fifth wedding anniversary and thought it would be a good time to take some family photos. Nic was under-the -weather and couldn't participate for much of the shoot, but Ben certainly made up for it with his energy! I look forward to our next get-together in hopes that we'll get some more of Nic.

As usual, the photos always look better if you click on them to enlarge.

Fall in the Ferry

2009-10-12T21:25:00.003-04:00

So it's been a long time since I've added any photos to my blog; hopefully I'll be able to get my act together and post on a more regular basis from now on.

Brannon and I went home and had Thanksgiving Dinner with both of our families. This view might be a bit familiar :)
They've been cropped and I added a signature and a frame, but the photos themselves (in terms of colour, etc.) are straight-out-of-the-camera.

Happy Family! Part Two

2009-09-02T20:02:00.004-04:00

Here are a few more photos from my shoot with Angie and Mike....again, click on the photos for better -quality images!

Such an expressive little thing!

We didn't have a wagon so we used an old wheelbarrow :)

Wheeeeeeeee!

Cuddles with Daddy :)

Not too sure what to think about me...

Aaaand some cute 'sans bebe' shots!

I totally forgot to put frames on these but I'm way too lazy to go back and do it now....

Happy Family!

2009-08-30T20:37:00.006-04:00

A few teasers from a shoot I did this morning for Angie and Mike and their little beauty! I'm sure there will be more to come later!
FYI, I find the resolution looks a lot better if you click on the photos and look at the full sized images :)

An evening with Melanie and Tony

2009-08-26T20:06:00.005-04:00

I had the extreme pleasure of doing an engagement shoot last week with Melanie and Tony. We met in the late afternoon/early evening and walked the grounds of the Experimental Farm and then headed over to Dow's Lake. We had a lot of fun and they were so easy to photograph, in that they got comfortable in front of the camera almost immediately. What I like most about these shots (and there are SO many more I'd love to show) is how warm the sun makes everything look. What a perfect time for a shoot!
Congratulations to you both!

a la 'other' Jenn Black....

Bonnie and Eric Tie the Knot

2009-08-25T19:47:00.005-04:00

Bonnie and Eric were married on August 21 at The Rockeries in Rockliffe Park. Everything went off without a hitch in spite of the dreary weather.

The bride all ready to go!

Dress details

Even Sparky was dressed for the occasion!

Saying their vows

We did it!

Angela did a fantastic job on the cake!

Wednesday randoms

2009-08-19T19:30:00.004-04:00

So, I was scoping out a location today for a wedding I'm taking some photos at on Friday. I had no idea I'd interrupt someone's meditation. Well actually, I'm not sure I interrupted anything, he didn't seem to notice me. Who knows...

I also saw this little wall today - thought it made it for an interesting photo :)

Sticking to the 'random' theme, we had the first tomatoes out of our garden for dinner tonight. So so good!

Countdown to Sarah and Mark's Wedding!

2009-08-17T21:44:00.004-04:00

The Carnivale Lune Bleue has rolled into town (ok it's *from* town) and Sarah and Mark thought this would make the perfect setting for a series of engagement photos. We arranged for early admission so we'd have the place to ourselves for a while and we traipsed around the grounds on Friday afternoon taking as many photos as we could stand to take in the sweltering heat. Sarah and Mark were great sports and we had a tonne of fun. Here are a few shots that came out of our shoot!

The words on the wall in this first shot are much bigger in full size but in case you can't read them the sign says, "Do You Dare Enter The Realm of the Unknown?" Seems fitting for the occasion :)

Romance on the ferris wheel!

Peeking out from behind where the carnival staff make the cotton candy!
You're darn right!

A little privacy please....

The merry-go-round isn't just for kids!

How strong are YOU?

Be careful tossing those rings!

Wishing you both all the best!! xoxo

Birthday Flowers

2009-08-15T12:16:00.005-04:00

So pretty-much everyone knows that yesterday was my 30th birthday. Yup, I'm officially older than my 29-year old mother :)
I had a pretty busy day - I worked, went out for thai with my colleagues, did a super-fun engagement shoot with Sarah and Mark (teasers to follow) then came home and had some drinks and Italian food (YUM) with Jeremy & Marsha and Riley & Kathryn (our neighbours) and Brannon, of course. Then slept for 12 hrs!
Perfection :)
While we were outside having some drinks a van pulled up with a special delivery for me. Three guesses who they were from?!?!?

Thanks Mom :)

Some garlic each day keeps the vampires away!

2009-08-13T18:07:00.003-04:00

Our neighbour Jeremy grows his own garlic (700 plants!); he just harvested a bunch of it last weekend and he has some hanging outside on his porch. He told us to help ourselves....he should be careful what he wishes for!
Regardless, this is the first photo I've taken with my new 70-200 f2.8 lens and so far I'm liking what I'm seeing. I only hope I can get used to the weight of it -it's by far the heaviest lens I have.

My new sibling

2009-08-10T18:42:00.006-04:00

Meet my dad's new 'baby'. It's a Ferrari 360 Spider convertible.
We're taking suggestions for a good name - something that can go on the licence plate :)

Not that you can see it from this angle but the back tires are apparently twice as wide as the tires on my car!
Don't think we need a new key chain :)
Engine in the back, under glass, so you can see it when the trunk (??) is closed.
Let's play 'where's waldo'...err....Brannon in this one!
I wonder where the parachute is?? Ann??

Loon Lake part 2

2009-08-04T16:06:00.002-04:00

I photographed 2 individual groups (families?) of loons yesterday; this guy wasn't overly pleased with the attention.

Getting ready to do the loon dance :)

They come right out of the water!

Loon Lake

2009-08-03T21:03:00.002-04:00

Even though I see them all the time I can never get enough of these beauties :)
I must admit though, that I find their red eyes a bit frightening!

The Arkells

2009-07-20T19:53:00.002-04:00

I *heart* the Arkells and was thrilled to see them (in the front row no less!) at Bluesfest last week.

KISSfest

2009-07-18T10:26:00.009-04:00

So if you're on facebook then you've probably already seen these photos but I wanted to post them anyway, for the sake of the few who aren't.

Bluesfest has been packed with great shows, but in terms of actual showmanship I'm not really sure these guys can be beat. Before this show the Rolling Stones would have topped my list, but they pale in comparison to KISS's performance.

Brannon and I headed for the stage a couple of hours before KISS was set to take the stage in order to get a good spot. We weren't interested in being right at the very front (we appreciate our ear drums too much!) but we did want to be close. We wound up in an open little space to the slight right of the stage and it turned out to be an awesome location.
The photos aren't in the correct order they were taken, but I couldn't be bothered to play around with them that much.

Getting things started!

I actually find this whole blood spewing thing rather disgusting but the crowd LOVED it!

Hmm - some things never change I guess!

Help from some platforms!

I-I-I wanna rock and roll all night!!!

The confetti that was launched into the air during this song (a full half-hour before the end of the show) was unbelievable. It just never seemed to stop. The next day at Bluesfest it was still all over the ground both in and outside of the grounds!

The drummers are always hard to photograph. I like this one because you can see how fast his drumsticks are moving!

Of course there was fire-breathing!

He was looking right at me - hehe :) :)

They often play in unison - a bit cheesy but fun!

I was quite surprised to learn that a KISS show isn't really just a "Gene Simmons Show". I knew they all sang but I still expected him to be the front man. In all truthfulness I'd have to say that it's an equal split between Gene, Paul, and Tommy - no one really overshadows anyone else which is pretty rare for a rock band, especially one with one really high-profile member.

Paul Stanley (arguably the lead singer) took a little swing out into the crowd. Check out how high those heels are!

Bluesfest - Thurs, July 9

2009-07-11T13:39:00.005-04:00

I brought my camera along on my first night of Bluesfest.
The first show we saw was Shiloh; she's a bit of an Avril wannabe (in my humble opinion) but she has a strong voice and really played to the crowd.

Sista Monica - your typical southern female blues singer. She can really sing!
Emily Haines of Metric, they're my favourite band right now and I LOVED this show. I hope they'll be back in Ottawa (or somewhere nearby) again soon so I can see more!

This was as close to Ben Harper and the Relentless 7 as I could get (so ya, not close at all - haha). They were good, but not as good as I was expecting.
I didn't bring my camera with me last night but I saw The Stills, Okkervil River, Sam Roberts (who was much better than I had anticipated, I'm not much of a fan normally), and Jackson Browne. I found JB to be a bit too 'adult contemporary' for my liking but Brannon thoroughly enjoyed it, dancing the whole time (to my dismay - hehe). We were right next to the stage so that was pretty great.

Progression

2009-07-08T16:31:00.003-04:00

I first mentioned on May 13 that it appeared that my orchid was going to start blooming again. It's taken weeks but as of last night it had its first bloom - 6 more to come!
I've been taking photos since the buds first appeared and here is a small photo-documentary of the stages it went through. It took a long time to get started but it's progressed really quickly over the last week or so.
The last photo in the second row was taken 2 nights ago just as the first bud started to open, the first photo in the third row was taken yesterday morning and the last one was taken this afternoon when it was finally in full bloom - note the second bud starting to open :)

Don't mind the messy collage, I just threw it all together quickly. Click on it to enlarge :)
I'm quite pleased and hope she stays in bloom for a long while!

Sprouts

2009-07-06T18:41:00.003-04:00

I've been keeping busy with our flowers and veggies; here a few pics I took tonight. I've been photo-documenting all along but I didn't really think anyone would care!

The fruits of my labour - literally!

Hairy litle buggers aren't they??
I hope this provides lots of butternut squash - for soup!
And because I didn't want the flowers to be left out, here's my pretty hydrangea!

Anniversary Fruit

2009-07-05T10:43:00.003-04:00

Our anniversary was June 23 so I'm more than a bit late in making this post but I've finally gotten around to it so I hope Mom will forgive me :)
Not only did we receive many email/phone/facebook/snail mail congratulatory messages, but just as I was arriving home from the lab that day, I was greeted by a delivery guy who was dropping off a lovely edible arrangement from my family - Mom, Dad, Stacie, Barnie, and Flower. In other words, it was from my mom :) :) :)
Those in-the-know will understand the small size of Flower's (Luci-Fleur) name *wink wink* - there is no way she'd ever send a good thought my way!!

Canada Day Custard Cake

2009-07-01T19:16:00.006-04:00

Ok, so it's really just a pie but I was trying to keep with the 'C' theme :)

Today I tried out a new recipe for a strawberry (red) custard (white) pie in celebration of Canada Day. The plan was to share with our neighbours but we didn't end up seeing them (too bad for them) so there's that much more for us. With all new recipes I test out on Brannon I always watch for a reaction but today I didn't even need my eyes - he made sounds I've never heard him make before (heads out of the gutter people!!) so I knew it was a hit!
We're both looking forward to 'seconds' later on!

HAPPY CANADA DAY EVERYONE!!

And for the record, I made it all from scratch, even the crust!

Here's a link to the recipe.

Life on the dock

2009-06-26T16:01:00.004-04:00

I'm sure my parents were wondering what the eff I was doing down on the dock on Sunday (seriously though....what else?)! I was crouched right down at the level of the boards and this is what came from it.

Loonie Family

2009-06-24T13:11:00.002-04:00

For the first time EVER we saw a pair of loons carrying their babies on their backs; this is a common behaviour for them but not so common to see. Anyway, they hopped off by the time I got my camera out but I still managed to snap a couple of family photos of them although I wish I'd had my zoom lens with me.

I have no idea why they kick their legs like this.....

Mom's Flowers

2009-06-22T18:29:00.003-04:00

I went home yesterday for Father's Day and, like I always do, I dragged my camera around with me all day. Here's a small sample of mom's flowers. Peonies and irises :)

BFFs

2009-06-21T20:20:00.001-04:00

I just happened to have my camera out when these guys landed right in front of me on the dock this afternoon. I love how bright the blue one is!

Creepy Crawly

2009-06-19T16:20:00.002-04:00

This guy is living in my garden; I love his colour but wish he'd go away :(

In the garden....

2009-06-16T19:53:00.003-04:00

I seem to have a knack for finding weird ladybugs - check this one out! It looks like he's trapped under a contact lens :)

Just one of one of the flowers in my garden :)

What tangled webs.....

2009-06-15T20:50:00.001-04:00

This guy resides in my front flower bed....

...his friend wasn't home when I took this photo....

Doors Open Ottawa - Extras

2009-06-14T11:01:00.002-04:00

Here are a couple of nonspecifics I took on our walk around downtown....

This is right next to the Supreme Court but I have no idea what it's for.

This is in the Rideau Centre parking lot; I notice it every time I'm there. This time I actually had my camera with me :)
As you know, I love reflections :)

Ok, so that's officially the end of 'Doors Open Ottawa' - hope you enjoyed the tour :)

Doors Open Ottawa - Ottawa Little Theatre

2009-06-12T15:25:00.001-04:00

The last official touring spot on our little adventure was at the Ottawa Little Theatre.

We had free reign (FYI, I cannot seem to determine if the word is actually rein or reign - apparently both are acceptable) of the place so I took this one from the stage looking out at where the audience would be seated. Clearly the light was atrocious....

The set all ready to go for that evening's performance. The lead was seated at the table entertaining a visiting a child.
Back stage I found this tutu draped over a chair. How fitting!

I just thought this was funny!

So creepy I had to photograph them :)

Funky chandelier in the lobby.

Doors Open Ottawa - Carleton County Gaol

2009-06-11T18:23:00.003-04:00

We're getting near the end of this series of photos - I promise!

I've wanted to visit this place for as long as I can remember but I've never had the opportunity before. These photos were taken at the former Carleton County Gaol. It was functional from 1842 until 1972 and today it's a hostel and a museum.

I probably would have missed this little herb garden had C.P. not pointed it out. I guess nothing's ever garbage at a hostel!
The gaol was the site of what is thought to be Canada's last public execution. Prisoners were hanged right here at the front of the building. There is a platform behind the wooden doors that would have been open for public viewing. Then the trap door would be opened and the person would be hanged for everyone to see :(
I couldn't get a better shot because the courtyard is enclosed by a stone wall so I couldn't get any farther away!

So dramatic :)

These are the night-time cells; they're literally just wide enough for a person to fit in. It would be hard to even turn around. Luckily the rooms where travelers stay have been reno'd :)

Hehe - and just for fun, this is a goofed-up shot but I couldn't resist. The building is thought to be haunted by Patrick James Whelan (the last prisoner to be executed) and this looks rather ghostly so I thought I'd post it :)

Doors Open Ottawa - Government Conference Centre

2009-06-10T20:27:00.005-04:00

This building was once Ottawa's Union Station, the next stop on our tour. Today it isn't used for much, only for government conferences. It seems like a waste of beautiful space :(

Set up like it would be for a G8 meeting. QUITE underwhelming.
There's a section of the Berlin Wall in the lobby. I didn't get a chance to read about *why* exactly it's there. You can see the Brandenbug Gate and the Fernsehturm (tower on the right), I'm not sure what the one on the left is.

D Day in Ottawa

2009-06-09T15:18:00.007-04:00

Ok, so I missed the 'official' D Day ceremony at the War Memorial in Ottawa but C.P. and I happened across a ceremony on our little photo adventure on Sunday (June 7th). I've been trying to dig up information about the groups who were there to lay wreathes but I can't find anything written up about it in any form of local media :(

What I do know is that they are part of the womens' contingent of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, known as the Rebekah degree. The lodge was "founded upon the principles of faithfulness, hospitality, purity and dedication to the principles of the Order as portrayed by women characters of the Bible."

The Rebekahs escorted mainly couples up to the tomb, but again, I don't know who they were. From what I could tell though, they were all American. Do you see why I thought they were military nurses at first?!?!

Not so interesting I guess, if you're a kid :) :)
Lined up to lay their wreathes. For those that don't know Ottawa so well, that's the Chateau Laurier on the right.

After we'd watched the ceremony we headed to the twelfth floor of the NCC Building, where beautiful views of Ottawa's downtown core can be seen. This is what was left after all was said and done.

Doors Open Ottawa - Supreme Court of Canada

2009-06-08T17:32:00.005-04:00

The next stop on our walk around downtown was at the Supreme Court of Canada. I think it's safe to say that we found it all a bit underwhelming, but we're glad we stopped by anyway. I can't think of another reason I'd get to see it!

This is just outside the actual court room.
There are 9 judges; I just managed to squeeze in all of their seats! The room is decorated with a lot of red and wooden embellishments (including the walls!), and the lighting is quite dim which made it a bit of a nightmare to photograph sans tripod!
Judge's robe or Santa costume??? *wink wink*
~More to come tomorrow~

Doors Open Ottawa - C.D. Howe Building

2009-06-07T20:48:00.005-04:00

C.P. and I took advantage of Doors Open Ottawa today. Our first stop was at the C.D. Howe Building on Sparks Street. It's a government building that houses a number of departments, including the Auditor General and the Canadian Space Agency. It's known for having a green roof so we decided to check it out. Sadly, the majority of the "green" was behind bars...which just seems wrong...but was pretty all the same.

The people who work in the building have access to the green roof; what a nice place to eat lunch! The Ottawa Hospital should take notes!

One of the picturesque views from the roof :)

I'm a sucker for colourful foliage :)

Green roof! Some kind of thistle variety I think....

One last view.
The barriers at the edge of the roof are pretty high so this is the best shot I could get - I needed to be about 10 feet tall to get a better shot.

~More to come from our adventure in the next few days~

In Bloom

2009-06-06T18:46:00.006-04:00

The peony I planted a couple of weeks ago is in bloom!

This isn't a great flower shot but I liked the bokeh :)

Can you find the bug?

I loved this one in B&W.

This was the first shot I took, before adjusting the settings.
It's such a mess I think it's gorgeous :)

Fancy Feast

2009-05-31T20:14:00.004-04:00

So, this obviously isn't really a post about photography. It's more me bragging about a really yummy dish Brannon made tonight. He's made it before but it's been a long time so I enjoyed it a lot. He made beef roulade. He pounded out some (marinated) steak, and rolled it up with pickles, peppers, onions and bacon. Then he baked it in the remainder of the marinade. He served it with roasted potatoes and green beans. YUM-O!
This is after I cut it in half...

Stop and smell the....lilacs

2009-05-30T15:40:00.004-04:00

I picked some lilacs from my garden today so we could enjoy them inside. They smell SO nice!
Even Blue seems to be enjoying them :)

Ponies and Pigtails

2009-05-25T20:43:00.003-04:00

We went to Pickering to celebrate Liz's 30th birthday this past weekend. Most of their friends have children so the party was geared towards both the kids and the adults. Her awesome husband threw a great party - compete with pony rides, a clown, a keg and tonne of food!
I had great aspirations to take photos but that didn't really happen :(

Alex and Miss Dani on one of the ponies. This was a very quick moment, she started to scream a minute later :)

I wish my eyelashes were as long!
Miss Jenna was sporting pigtails, I thought they were cute :)

Happy cactus :)

2009-05-13T19:18:00.004-04:00

I always have trouble photographing solid red things but anyway....
My mom's (adopted) cactus is in bloom and it has magnificent flowers (for such an ugly plant!).

I like how green the stamens look in the centre :)

In other news, I recently noticed that my orchid (the one shown in my header) appeared to be sprouting some new roots. I had hoped that maybe it was a sign that she was happy and maybe thinking about blooming again. Well, over the last couple of days that so-called 'root' has started to grow straight up in the air. Methinks it might actually be a new stalk which will, in all likeliness, produce new blooms. I'm really excited because I've never been able to get an orchid to bloom again once it's done. Wish me luck!

It's Trillium Time!

2009-05-11T16:16:00.005-04:00

Could Ontario be represented by a more beautiful flower?!?!?! I took these photos while I was visiting my parents yesterday. I didn't want to miss my chance since the next time I'm there they'll likely be done for the season. For some reason, the red ones never look as healthy as the white ones. Apparently, it's not because they're 'unhealthy' but because they tend to turn pink as they age. Who knew?!?!

In case you're interested, there are ~43 known trillium species - I'm pretty sure the ones shown above are of the T. graniflorum spp, meaning they have large flowers. Everyone thinks it's illegal to pick them but according to wikipedia (great source, I know - haha) that's not actually the case, except for one species.

Home Sweet Home

2009-05-10T18:12:00.003-04:00

I went home to spend the day with my mom, and she showed me this little treasure. Sadly, she had to remove this nest from inside of their boat lift. Not necessarily because they didn't want it there but it's a dangerous spot for the nest, with the boat being lifted up and down so often. I never thought to ask what kind of bird is responsible for this incredible craftiness but it's pretty impressive! It's full of grass, moss, feathers, twigs, and even has the odd thin little piece of plastic. I love how the outside is completely covered in moss, although you might think it would be more appropriate inside for 'softness'.

Here, you can see the feather incorporated into the nest.
I like how you can see how absolutely perfect the circular opening is, and how the materials are distributed!

In my back yard

2009-05-09T13:40:00.003-04:00

I swear none of these buds were in bloom yesterday but when I looked outside this morning this is what I saw. When the rain ceased for a bit I ran out with my camera and took a few shots of the pretty trees/bushes. I love raindrops on leaves!

This is the serviceberry/juneberry bush we got from the city of Ottawa last spring. We weren't sure it would survive the winter but it has! It turns out we have another one too, but it was done blooming by the time we moved in so we didn't realize it.
I really like how different parts of the plant are in and out of focus...

We have a lilac bush!

I'm not actually sure what this shrub is but it's part of our 'living fence'.

More of Baby Devon

2009-05-03T12:50:00.005-04:00

I've been struggling with editing these photos (shot in RAW and now my computer isn't cooperating) but here are a few more edited with picnik. Isn't he just adorable???

There is a baby under that blanket :)

Lens Flare

2009-04-27T15:31:00.002-04:00

This week's Photo Challenge theme is "Lens Flare". While most people do their best to prevent it from occurring, I actually really love how it looks in just about any photo. Having said that, I didn't really know how to do it. So today I took my camera out, put it in manual mode and played around with the aperture until I found something I liked. I'm happy - for a first attempt anyway. Now I have to figure out how to get those gorgeous 'rings' that I see so often!
We're having perfect weather today for photographing the sun - it's 28 degrees in Ottawa! I hear it's snowing in Calgary....suckers! *wink wink*

Now if I could just find something to photograph for the challenge, that would be great!

Baby Boy

2009-04-26T16:08:00.003-04:00

I spent the morning yesterday with Morgan, Rob and their handsome little man, Devon (along with Angela and Jean). Despite easy-going parents and baby who was really content, getting the perfect shots was still a bit of a challenge. Regardless, I had a lot of fun and it was a pleasure to meet Morgan and Rob!
I've been really busy this weekend and haven't had much time to even look them over but wanted to quickly post one. Here's Devon, straight out of the camera (with the addition of a frame because I just can't help myself - haha).

Today, I (along with Brannon, Mom, Stacie and Ann) participated in the Walk for Multiple Sclerosis. Our team raised $3800! Thanks to everyone who supported us!!
The weather started out rather cold, windy, and wet but once we got walking it was fine. *I* was the only one who didn't have a camera (go figure!) so I'm relying on others to pass some along so that I can update my blog!

Minty!

2009-04-23T20:41:00.001-04:00

If you're on my facebook then you've already seen this but there's just something about it that I like...fresh mint!

Lovely Lily

2009-04-22T19:44:00.003-04:00

These were taken literally as we were checking out of our rental on Sunday at the end of our amazing birthday weekend. Sass had asked me earlier if I'd take some pics of Lily's little feet and I was happy to oblige - the only trouble was that we kept forgetting to actually do it!
They're not as good as I was hoping for but I still think they're totally cute. Lily was all-over-the-place and kicking her legs around...I see why it's important to photograph them when they're really teeny and not moving around so much. It must have been quite a sight to watch me "following" her around with my camera!

Mommy and baby feet...

Lily was so hungry and got a bit fussy...notice there are 3 sets of feet in this one! Daddy Dan was in the background :)

Kute Kiddies

2009-04-20T21:39:00.003-04:00

This past weekend's get-together was organized so the girls of "Cline Ave" could celebrate our 30th birthdays together. We met in 1998-1999 at McMaster and were 19 then. While it doesn't feel like it's been as long as it has, a lot has happened since we graduated and moved on.
One of the biggest changes is that there are little ones now.....

Strangely, the kids in these photos don't actually belong to the adults they're shown with :)

Reunion Weekend

2009-04-19T22:14:00.005-04:00

I'm pretty exhausted after spending a really great weekend with my girlfriends from Mac (our guys and children too) - we're all turning 30 this year so we decided to celebrate together. Living from Ottawa to Waterloo, we all converged on Kingston for a weekend of fun, reminiscing, birthday cake and even some new introductions (babies!). I'll post some more tomorrow but wanted to get one up tonight :)
It was a little difficult to get 14 adults, 2 toddlers and 2 newborns (and one unborn!) all together at one time for a photo but we did it. There's talk of making this trip once a year from here on in, rather than once a decade :) Here's hoping....
Happy 30th Cline Ave Ladies!!

Sign of Spring

2009-04-16T17:50:00.001-04:00

This is the first tree I've seen so far this spring with buds - I just had to take a picture!

Tamil Tigers Protest

2009-04-14T21:31:00.007-04:00

My friend Alex was visiting Ottawa today from Montreal and she brought her mom, Sonja, and Otti who were visiting her from Berlin/Vienna. It was Sonja's second trip here but Otti's first. We went on a walking tour of the market, Major's Hill Park, Parliament Hill and the surrounding area.
You probably know that a group of Tamil protesters have gathered at Parliament Hill, asking the federal government to intervene in the war in Sri Lanka. I've been concerned that the protest would prevent our visit to the Hill but, while chaotic and loud, the demonstration remains peaceful. Playing 'tourist' or not, you all know I would have had my camera with me so I couldn't resist taking a few shots - for you of course :)
It was a great day in terms of weather, sights, food and, of course, the company!

Even this kids are involved to some degree.

We all had a bit of a laugh here...only because it seemed that everywhere we went today we were reminded of Germans and their involvement in WWI/II - Alex and her mom are German :)

Easter-sicle

2009-04-13T10:32:00.003-04:00

The sun was shining but it was COLD yesterday! Brannon and I went to visit our parents for Easter and here is what we found in Rideau Ferry - icicles and ice caps (and not the ones from Timmy Ho's)!

Fondue meat!

2009-04-10T16:09:00.003-04:00

So again, I've slipped and have neglected my blog. Feeling a little bad about that I thought I'd post pics of some of the food I prepared for tonight. We're having fondue with Kevin and Tracy who are both fondue virgins!! Can you imagine...never having had fondue!?!?!
Anyway, they're taking care of the veggies and I did the meat. I have plain chicken and sirloin strips, and I also made some meatballs that I dipped in freshly grated parm (should come out of the oil nice and crispy!) and a Korean marinade for some of the beef. In addition, I made 5 dipping sauces so hopefully everyone will be pleased. Mostly I think I'm excited for dessert - we're making banana splits!!

Temple's Sugar Camp

2009-03-22T10:16:00.007-04:00

So, as I said yesterday, we went to Temple's Sugar Camp with Brannon's family. His cousin Todd, his wife Allison and their son, Charlie, were visiting from the GTA so it was a nice excuse for a trip! I would highly recommend this establishment; the food was nothing short of amazing. They have a lot of variety and have pancakes/waffles/breads made with everything from buttermilk and buckwheat to cornmeal and pumpkin (with lots of choices for sides)! It's also fully licensed for those of you who like a beer with your brunch!! lol
Anyway, I didn't have a lot of time for taking photos as we preferred to visit but here are few nonetheless :)

Lines that the sap runs through.
Charlie *trying* to enjoy his taffy. Unfortunately, it kept dripping on him and eventually led to a bit of a freak-out :)
Sap dripping into a pail :)
I'm not sure what it stored in these, I'd like to think it's syrup :)
The sap POURS into gigantic vats!
Steamy :)

Sugar Shack!

2009-03-21T15:52:00.003-04:00

I don't have a lot of time today for posting but I wanted to get at least one photo up. Brannon and I joined his family for brunch at a local sugar shack today. Not only was it nice to see everyone (it's been a while for me) but we had the BEST food! I took a few photos but I won't be able to get to them until tomorrow so for now I thought I'd post a photo of the taffy they make. I'm not really sure where they found the snow though :)

We're off to Brigitte and Craig's house for a BBQ to celebrate the end of winter - can't wait!

Last Day of Winter

2009-03-19T19:22:00.004-04:00

I'm pretty obsessed with the fact that spring arrives tomorrow! Even my house plants are aware of it.
My african violet is blooming in full force :)
Until now, I hadn't really noticed their petal arrangement - I think it's really nice!

Sunsets are back :)

2009-03-18T19:59:00.004-04:00

Ok, so this isn't much of a photo but it was so nice to see the pink sky as I came home from work tonight that I had to take a picture of it. I wish the scenery were a little more picturesque though...

Growing Garlic

2009-03-12T20:34:00.003-04:00

So, our neighbour grows his own garlic and keeps us well-stocked (yay!). He just brought this over on the weekend and today I noticed it's growing (but I guess that's because it's spring)....I guess we better eat it soon!
You know it's a slow photo day when you post pics of old garlic....

P.S. I can't seem to access picnik tonight so no frame :(

They're Baaack!

2009-03-09T15:12:00.005-04:00

Ladybugs, that is :)
I used a 70 mm macro for this but with the short focal length and the fact that the d@mn bug wouldn't stop moving, it's slightly out-of-focus. I still like it though :)

Dirty Thirty

2009-03-08T12:44:00.008-04:00

Brigitte's 30th birthday came and went this week and we celebrated last night with a surprise dinner at the Absinthe Cafe, followed by a party afterwards at Tracy and Chris's place.
We decided on a 'polka dot' theme.
We had flowers (as 'round' as possible, athough I'm not sure that party really worked out)...

...balloons....
...favours that included smarties (keeping with the theme of course)...
...oysters to keep it 'dirty'...lol....
...surprise dessert at the restaurant....
...and some absinthe of course (my photos of the drink on fire didn't work out)!!We arranged to have polka dots on the cupcakes (with matching polka dot napkins) and mini eggs too!

Since our dearest birthday girl LOVES games, we played a game of Twister! It all goes downhill from here so this is where the photos end! :)
We finished off the night with a dip in the hot tub!
We hope you had a great night (and end to a great birthday week!)!
Love you lots!

Angel Baby

2009-03-06T17:55:00.007-05:00

Like so many others, I've lit a candle for Baby Ali, in hopes that by way of a miracle this little girl will pull through. I've had this candle for at least a decade (a gift from my mom, of course, and I just realized that it's moved with me to at least 6 different homes) but never found a good enough reason to actually light it.
I found one today.

In case you can't make out the passage on the candle, here's what it says:

A gentle hand,
a guiding touch
barely felt,
the sign of an
angel's
presence.

Baby Jacob

2009-03-02T16:30:00.004-05:00

Meet the newest addition to Liz and Alex's family :)
He's 7 weeks old, so he slept a lot during our visit but I still managed to snuggle him away from his mom as often as I could :)

I love baby yawns :)The men of the family :)

When his big sister Danielle was born, I took almost this exact same photo of her with her mommy - I thought it was appropriate to take one of Jacob this way too. Liz is the BEST mom!

Sleeping with his tongue out - kinda reminds me of Barnie (family dog) who, in his old age, always has his tongue out a little bit :)I'll be seeing Liz, Alex and family again in April and we'll do a real family shoot then; I can't wait!

Miss Dani

2009-03-01T18:20:00.002-05:00

Brannon and I went to visit Liz and Alex this weekend and got to spend time with their kiddies! This is Danielle who will be 2 years old in a couple of weeks. She's grown up so much since I last saw her (over a year ago!) and has become the funniest, most independent little girl! We had a ball playing with her (while Liz and Alex put together a fantastic meal for us)!!
Thanks so much for having us guys!

Brannon and Danielle giving 'props' :)

Happy Dani
Enjoying her daily 30 minutes of tv...

Sitting in her princess chair!

Trying to play with her new little brother who isn't quite 2 months old yet.Tomorrow I'll post my photos of little Jacob :)

Thaw

2009-02-24T19:48:00.003-05:00

It doesn't feel very warm out but the snow is starting to melt;
could spring be just around the corner?

Symbolic

2009-02-23T18:48:00.004-05:00

I know this isn't a new trick for the photo-bloggers but I'd never tried it before until this evening. I like! I opened up the book I'm currently trying to finish to a page somewhere around the middle but didn't pay any attention to the words...notice the 'puppy love' comment on the left?!?!

Princess and the Pea

2009-02-16T21:58:00.001-05:00

I went into our guest room yesterday to find Bailie snoozing on top of a pile of folded blankets; it's not new behaviour but it's still cute. She's looking at me like she can't believe I'd disturb her for a photo - she definitely knows better!

Gifties :)

2009-02-15T19:37:00.005-05:00

I know I've been terribly delinquent with my blog lately; the truth is I've been delinquent with taking photos as well - just haven't had anything worthy to shoot lately, nor the energy to do so. Anyway, I received a wonderful package today from Miss Lizzy and made the effort to actually photograph the items. THANK YOU so much!

If you don't know what Post Secret is, check out the highlighted text. I very easily get 'sucked in' to these stories; it's very reassuring some days to know that others have problems too :)
Not only is it a great read, I'm sure it'll make for a very interesting conversation piece too!

I'll end this post by noting that I will try harder to post more often again :)

Three Guesses

2009-01-31T17:09:00.004-05:00

Both photos are of somewhat random objects; any thoughts as to what they are? The second one actually hurts my eyes a little :(

Stems

2009-01-27T20:54:00.002-05:00

Just a random shot (to say I actually posted something) of my beloved Vera Wangs.....

For the Love of Orchids

2009-01-23T17:52:00.001-05:00

~My mom has some gorgeous orchids~
Meanwhile, I'm waiting to see if mine will ever decide to bloom again :)

Focus Fun

2009-01-21T19:58:00.001-05:00

Vibrant Rust

2009-01-20T16:04:00.002-05:00

I found these 'pieces' at an abandoned cottage; I've photographed there before (the tire swing that was in one of my first-ever posts) but had never actually set foot in the yard until the other day. One man's trash is another [woman's] treasure!

Macro Hardware

2009-01-19T22:16:00.003-05:00

Rusty metal is one of my favourite things to photograph! Luckily it's everywhere!

Rust Dust :)

Saturday Stroll

2009-01-18T12:27:00.004-05:00

Here are a few more I took yesterday with the macro lens!

I like this first one because you can see a woodpecker hole in the tree behind the (lonely) leaf! They've really done a number on the trees that line the road that goes to my parents' house.
A little bit of bokeh in this one :)
The road has quite a number of log fences and there's always something great to photograph on them, the older the better! Here is a gorgeous blue lichen covered in snow/ice.
The end of a log fence; again I love the blue lichens and green moss!There's no shortage of snow mobiles in the area either. There were six of them racing around the lake all afternoon yesterday.

Squiggly

2009-01-17T19:06:00.003-05:00

So, I chose this week's theme for the photo contest (bokeh) only to learn that I couldn't really take the kind of shot I wanted to with the lenses that are currently part of my family (of lenses!); I had hoped to pick up the 50 mm 1.8 but it wasn't in stock so I set off to give it a try with my mother's newly acquired 60 mm macro - WHAT A LENS! I loved it and am happy that she has agreed to let me borrow it for a few more days! As you know, my parents live out in the sticks so I wandered around for over an hour outside in the cold this afternoon, just taking shots of anything, everything, and nothing! Here are a couple of shots I took....there will be more to follow...I'm going to make this photo expedition last ALL week :)
In the first, the only editing I did was to crop it a bit and increase the contrast somewhat; all that's in focus is the squiggly little branch.

In this one, I processed it a little differently (same as above in addition to using the 'cross process' function in picnik) and I'm really liking how it turned out; notice that only a teeny tiny portion of the branch in the bottom right corner is in focus - like I said, I had so much fun playing with this lens and I'm a big fan of anything 'abstract' and I feel like these shots fit into that category!

Wakey Wakey

2009-01-13T18:45:00.003-05:00

I'm a terrible wife and dog-sitter :)
I actually sat next to Brannon and Lola snoozing on the couch and waited for them to wake up so I could take pics of them. I suppose I'm also a delinquent photographer too since Lola's the only thing I've taken pics of in a week!
I figure it's safe to post these since Brannon doesn't actually read my blog, so he'll never know of this evil-ness!
Anyway, Lola has really taken to him; Chris and Tracy are going to have a hard time convincing Brannon to give her back!

More Lola

2009-01-10T11:43:00.003-05:00

Lola's parents were married yesterday so I thought it was time for more pics of her.
In the first pic, she's trying to sneak a nap in the cats' bed and in the second she's hanging out in the bed in our guest room. She likes luxury!

Canada is Golden (and I saw it first-hand)!!

2009-01-06T19:40:00.006-05:00

I know I've already posted all of these on facebook but I happen to have a few followers who don't "do" facebook so these are for them.

According to Stran (my gold medal game date), I have the best husband ever since he gave in and let me attend the gold medal game while he watched it at home. He says that Brannon's "one-up" on me...I say he's just playing a little bit of catch-up :)

Co-captain of the Swedish "diving team", Victor Hedman.

Our goalie (Tokarski) during the warm-up.
Markstrom during the warm-up.
My favourite players - Hodgson, Tavares and Subban.
More warming up :)
There were definitely more than words exchanged here :)I was caught photographing by security and was told my camera would be taken away if I didn't stop taking photos....I stopped for the most part but snuck in a few now and then. By the end though, I didn't care and I took as many as I wanted since the whole crowd was on their feet anyway (it would be hard to spot me) and it was likely that the security jerks had forgotten about me and my 'pro' camera.

And Canada wins 5-1!!!Player of the Game for each team; I have to like Karlsson now that the game is over as he is a Sens draft pick.

Tavares and Subban have been best friends since they were kids...oh wait, they're still kids :)
Team captain enjoying the moment!
It's PK's turn - he was a fan favourite :)
Tournament MVP John Tavares
Singing their hearts out to 'Oh Canada'!!

Dog-sitting

2009-01-05T16:24:00.002-05:00

Brannon and I are dog-sitting for Tracy and Chris while they're in the DR getting married. Meet Miss Lola. So far Brannon and I are much better hosts than our kitties are but we're hoping that they'll come around in the next few days. So far they haven't come face-to-face....maybe tomorrow :)

I want to play - plleeaaasssseeeee

Oh why can't I play with the cats?!?!?!

Sun Worshiper

2009-01-03T18:58:00.001-05:00

Bailie found a patch of sun on the floor today and there was nothing I could do to coax her away from it - not even tuna juice!!
I think she wants to go somewhere warm and sunny as much as I do!

One last holiday post

2009-01-02T21:31:00.002-05:00

Every Christmas for the last 5 years my mom has given me the Swarovski snowflake Christmas ornament. I look forward to seeing what they look like each year :)
This year she also gave me a stand that will hold them - 20 of them to be exact. I hope she keeps up the trend :)
In order to make them sparkle, I placed our snowman (he lights up in various colours) next to them. The picture isn't so great but it looks really nice in person :)