I had another busy day at work but managed to sit down and have a pint with a colleague late this afternoon at The Irish Embassy pub. I had forgotten my favourite soccer team (Arsenal) were playing a Champions League game today (although I had set the PVR in the morning), so was a little disappointed to walk into the pub and join the game at half time. I talked with my colleague about work for a while but I must say I was a little distracted by the game and shared some running commentary with his gentlemen also sitting at the bar watching the game. When my colleague left to catch his train, I introduced myself and dove into a quick and easy conversation about all things football. Yemi is also an Arsenal fan and we enjoyed the last 10 minutes of the game together and talked about getting together to watch an important match on Sunday.
Simple shot with my kit lens and pop up flash. Original shot included the TV in the background, but I wanted a slightly tighter crop. The Nikon in-camera trim function was a little too aggressive, but no worries, getting in close for people shots never disappoints !
Yemi is #76 in my 100 strangers project.
Tuesday, October 19, 2010
Monday, October 18, 2010
Leaving downtown to the colours
As I leave downtown from my office at Yonge and Dundas I head underground to the Dundas subway station. I used the unusual red plastic surrounding the entrance to colour the downtown action and chose to blur it and focus on the detail of the fixtures and grating - leaving downtown to its colourful evening.
Sunday, October 17, 2010
Raptors - Jarrett Jack on the offensive
snuck down to a better seat to grab some closer shots of the Raptor pre-season game versus Captain Canada, Steve Nash and the Phoenix Suns. It's quite challenging taking shots of pro sports, the first is getting the basics right and then shooting a lot to get the timing right with an action shot. I used manual setting, high iso (1250) and a custom white balance (5000K).
Saturday, October 16, 2010
Cataract Falls
I've been planning on joining the Toronto Photo Walks group for one of their events for some time now, and finally managed to meet up with them as they explored the Cheltenham Badlands and the Forks of the Credit Provincial Park. It was great to meet lots of fellow photographers and take the time to take lots of shots of some new landscape. Although fall colours are still stellar in the city and even around Cheltenham, just a few kilometres further North, the large majority of the trees had already lost their leaves. So when we found Cataract Falls (located in Forks of the Credit Provincial Park) late in the day, I didn't hesitate switching to black & white as I thought the site had lots of interesting contrast and texture. If you look closely, you can spot of our group taking a shot from the lower level. Actually I missed her the first time through and is a nice example of one of the benefits of black & white - the effect of out of place elements or colourful distractions can be minimized. I especially liked the late afternoon shadows of the trees on the water. Taking black & white shots in-camera is still a little hit and miss with the the lack of control and I experiment a little with the filter choices on my D80, it this case I used a yellow filter.
Friday, October 15, 2010
Laughers and posers
We got together with old friends in the neighbourhood and kids helped me with my daily shot. I like that kids are usually very happy to help out and they often come up with their own ideas for a shot. We were working on a moody kind of alley shot, and while I had them pose for a more traditional group shot, there was a lot of joking going on and I snapped this one. Although depth-of-field was working again me, I really like the mood of the shot.
Gorillaz mixing it up
Gorillaz mixing it up Originally uploaded by PJMixer
The Gorillaz concert at The Air Canada Centre was everything I expected it to be - video and groove heavy, melodic at times, performing most of their hits with a large ensemble (25+ members, including rappers and hip hoppers, back up singers, Bobby Womack, Chicago horns, guest Arabic instrumentation, two drummers and a string section). Clash guitarists Jones and Simonon were perfect stewards of rhythm with Damon moving between piano, guitar, melodica or just being a warm singing host and enticer.
The large video screen (see other shots) was in constant use, playing full length accompanying videos at times and comic book stills and animation with a splash of culture and historic footage. It would have been nice to get some live action close ups of the performers. And the backdrop logo added a strikingly colourful backdrop throughout the show for the varied sets and ensembles.
The near capacity audience (1/2 ACC format) was enthusiastic throughout. From my vantage point, the majority of the audience were standing for the whole (almost 2 hour) show.
Damon didn't introduce all the performers, but I think I saw a few of them on the Demon Days DVD from their Manchester show. I'd really like to see a DVD/BD released for this tour.
If you've read this far, you're perhaps of fan of the Gorillaz too, so If you still have an opportunity to see one of their shows on the remainder of their North American tour or world wide tour, I'm sure you won't be disappointed and you'll be singing and moving along to their wonderful beats, rhythms, raps and melodies for days afterward.
8.5/10
Gorillaz mixing it up
The Gorillaz concert at The Air Canada Centre was everything I expected it to be - video and groove heavy, melodic at times, performing most of their hits with a large ensemble (25+ members, including rappers and hip hoppers, back up singers, Bobby Womack, Chicago horns, guest Arabic instrumentation, two drummers and a string section).
The large video screen (see other shots) was in constant use, playing full length accompanying videos at times and comic book stills and animation with a splash of culture and historic footage.
I took advantage of some of my newer Fuji point-and-shoot, including the 16x9 size setting; it's high ISO NR EXR capability and also using -2/3EV to reduce the highlights on the (white) performers. With the screen being a big attraction (and distraction) it was tricky to find a shot that showing the visual splendor with some wonderful stage performances. But the Gorillaz backdrop logo added a strikingly colourful backdrop to every shot of the stage so I chose this one as it has a mix of the hip hip flavour with the string section silhouetted, Mick Jones (ex Clash) on guitar and fronted by Damon.
The large video screen (see other shots) was in constant use, playing full length accompanying videos at times and comic book stills and animation with a splash of culture and historic footage.
I took advantage of some of my newer Fuji point-and-shoot, including the 16x9 size setting; it's high ISO NR EXR capability and also using -2/3EV to reduce the highlights on the (white) performers. With the screen being a big attraction (and distraction) it was tricky to find a shot that showing the visual splendor with some wonderful stage performances. But the Gorillaz backdrop logo added a strikingly colourful backdrop to every shot of the stage so I chose this one as it has a mix of the hip hip flavour with the string section silhouetted, Mick Jones (ex Clash) on guitar and fronted by Damon.
Wednesday, October 13, 2010
Gritty pink after work bus
After work I walked a few blocks to see what I could find for my daily shot. As today was very overcast and the days are getting shorter, time was working against me. I spotted this pink bus and liked the gritty building backdrop, but I had to bump up the ISO to 1600 and still had to be steady with a 1/30th second exposure. I bumped up the contrast to get the most out of the colour and the wall texture. I decided on a wider shot to incorporate the street light and show some time of day context. I then just waited for a passerby to add a human element and framed her in the lighter brick work. Having the pink door markings was a unplanned bonus.
Tuesday, October 12, 2010
George's hangout
I work close to The World's Biggest Bookstore on Edward Street and I've often thought about trying to capture a shot that relates to the bold words written on its red walls. There are often panhandlers on this street and I spotted this man looking for a handout from my vantage spot across the street. I took a few shots looking for some interaction with people passing by and I overheard him asking for viagra so I thought this guy had a pretty interesting sense of humour. So I went over and asked how he was. He asked if I could buy him a bottle of wine and then noticing my camera asked if I wanted to take his photo in exchange for some change. I asked him his name and introduced myself. His name is George and he's been living on the street since 1982.
I've taken a few shots of homeless people from afar in the past and struggled with the difficulty of asking for a photograph with expectations of a donation. But George seemed pretty at ease and we got chatting and I offered him some loose change and started taking some shots.
George told me a little about himself, he has a pacemaker, is suffering from a hernia and a recently injured and badly swollen ankle. I asked him about his Real Madrid shirt. and he said Cristiano Ronaldo gave it to him when he was here in Toronto for the film festival. He said hockey star, Matts Sundin once gave him $50 as well ! He asked me about my English accent, his dad was from Manchester. George was previously a salvage contractor, and he told me he has an 18 year old son. I found it very easy talking with George, while chatting he continued to ask people for a variety of serious and joke handouts and favours. I like his sense of humour, perhaps his way of dealing with his difficult circumstances. I'm sure I'll give George an occasional donation and see how he's doing in the future.
George almost didn't make it into my daily photo project. The shots were taken late in the afternoon and he was facing the setting sun. In-camera, the shots looked ok, but when I looked closer at home, there was lots of overexposure on his face and I'd lost some nice detail. I could easily recover the shots using the RAW versions and I was really pleased with some of the results. So much so, I wasn't sure if an unedited shot was worthy of George and my daily shot. I chose this unedited casual shot because I wanted George in the project (and on my blog) and the shot did capture the initial intention of showing some context with the store's wall of words.
George is #74 in my 100 Stranger project. For more shots of George, please view them here.
I've taken a few shots of homeless people from afar in the past and struggled with the difficulty of asking for a photograph with expectations of a donation. But George seemed pretty at ease and we got chatting and I offered him some loose change and started taking some shots.
George told me a little about himself, he has a pacemaker, is suffering from a hernia and a recently injured and badly swollen ankle. I asked him about his Real Madrid shirt. and he said Cristiano Ronaldo gave it to him when he was here in Toronto for the film festival. He said hockey star, Matts Sundin once gave him $50 as well ! He asked me about my English accent, his dad was from Manchester. George was previously a salvage contractor, and he told me he has an 18 year old son. I found it very easy talking with George, while chatting he continued to ask people for a variety of serious and joke handouts and favours. I like his sense of humour, perhaps his way of dealing with his difficult circumstances. I'm sure I'll give George an occasional donation and see how he's doing in the future.
George almost didn't make it into my daily photo project. The shots were taken late in the afternoon and he was facing the setting sun. In-camera, the shots looked ok, but when I looked closer at home, there was lots of overexposure on his face and I'd lost some nice detail. I could easily recover the shots using the RAW versions and I was really pleased with some of the results. So much so, I wasn't sure if an unedited shot was worthy of George and my daily shot. I chose this unedited casual shot because I wanted George in the project (and on my blog) and the shot did capture the initial intention of showing some context with the store's wall of words.
George is #74 in my 100 Stranger project. For more shots of George, please view them here.
Urban landscape maple leaf
Believe it or not, It took about 30 shots to get this to something I liked (call me obsessive). I spotted a similar leaf as I was walking my dog in the neighbourhood and I thought the mixed wet/dry of the road added a little interest to the shot. There was a distracting unnatural mark on the original leaf so I found a suitable replacement and worked on a few different compositions. I wanted to keep the right side of the frame a little out of focus to give some depth, but as I was taking the shot at an angle I had some difficulty keeping the whole leaf in focus at the same time. I thought the wet/dry line in the road produced a little bit of a geographic contour or map feature, but then again it was late ! Big thanks to my dog Kooper who was a very patient companion while I was on my knees at the side of the road for a good 10 mins. The pop-up flash worked fine and shooting an angle to the ground made sure the flash didn't blow out or flatten the shot.
Sunday, October 10, 2010
Sunnybrook sunburst fall smiles
After a long walk in Sunnybrook park I took a few portrait shots with this warm yellow tree backdrop. As I was shooting into the sun, I decided to use it for effect and allow it to burst through and use flash to brighten my kids' faces and bring out I nice glow.
Saturday, October 09, 2010
Someone's late
The fall colours come and go so quickly here in Ontario so I've been snapping quite a few shots this weekend while the weather is beautiful. Some trees are in full fall colours, some have already lost of a lot of leaves and many still haven't shown any interest in changing yet. This tree is on my regular dog walk route and I liked the contrast of green outcropping with the sea of orange. The shot is quite close to horizontal and the dark tree branches provided a nice frame for the leaves.
Electric focus
My good friend was visiting this weekend and he brought along his electric guitar so he could jam a little with my son. I've tried to play a few musical instruments in my life, but I've never been able to get past real beginner levels. So I'm an awe with musicians at all levels, including my son who's been learning for about a couple of years and my fiend who's recently picked it up again. Just like the concert photography I enjoy, I find taking shots of any musician interesting. The combination of beautifully designed instruments with the concentration, focus and all manner of facial expressions makes for wonderful photography subjects.
Thursday, October 07, 2010
Walter's smile
Walter Gretzky is perhaps one of the best known and most loved sports dads. The NHL season kicked off today and there was a large Face-Off 2010 event happening at Yonge Dundas Square. Mr Gretzky was being interviewed along with old Maple Leaf players, Darryl Sittler and Jim McKenny (see here for other shots of the event). This is the first time I've heard Walter speak in person and he came across as such a nice man, comfortably talking about his love of hockey and of course his son, Wayne.
Wednesday, October 06, 2010
Kooper yawn
We're still struggling a little trying to control our 18 month old Australian Shepherd. One of his favourite spots is sitting on top of the back of the old (luckily) leather armchair by our front window. It provides a very comfortable view of the street so when I was flaked out on the couch and saw him up there, I let him be for a few minutes and grabbed a few shots. Kooper is a tri-colour (black, white and brown) Aussie so I often shoot him in black & white to accentuate his lovely high contrast coat. I guess he was a little sleepy like me late in the afternoon and I liked this capture of his wide yawn.
Tuesday, October 05, 2010
Raj
On the way home I noticed a new neighbourhood dollar store and its window display with Halloween costume displays. I thought the costumes may work for my daily shot, so I was considering my angles, when I noticed a man standing by having a cigarette. He was obviously a little curious about what I was doing. He owned the store and asked if I was interested in anything. I explained my interest from a photography point-of-view and I introduced myself. His name is Raj, he lives in Milton and recently opened this dollar store with his wife. This is the second dollar store Raj has opened, but he actually has a degree in civil engineering from Western. He was doing contract work in material engineering for US customers, until the economy worked against him. I liked the bright colours of his sign as a background and I used the pop-up flash to light his face better than the ambient light was providing. I took quite a few shots and paused on occasion as I tried to put him at ease, thanks for being patient with me Raj - good luck with your new store.
Along with my photo of the day, Raj is also #73 in my 100 strangers project. Find out more about the project and see pictures taken by other photographers at www.100Strangers.com.
Along with my photo of the day, Raj is also #73 in my 100 strangers project. Find out more about the project and see pictures taken by other photographers at www.100Strangers.com.
Old glass door knob
This is a very close macro shot of an old glass door knob in my house. As you can see, there is some deterioration of some kind, but actually it adds a little colour to the shot.
I took over 35 shots over about 15 minutes. My Speedlight external flash (+1.0 EV, 24mm manual zoom) was positioned about 4" above the knob point directly down. The pop-up was set at -1.3EV and the lens was about 1" from the knob using the a 10x close-up filter. Other settings: Flash WB;and custom optimization (+1 sharpness, +1 tone, Auto saturation and IIIa colour). This filter does produce very soft edges, but I think it creates a more abstract shot in this case.
I took over 35 shots over about 15 minutes. My Speedlight external flash (+1.0 EV, 24mm manual zoom) was positioned about 4" above the knob point directly down. The pop-up was set at -1.3EV and the lens was about 1" from the knob using the a 10x close-up filter. Other settings: Flash WB;and custom optimization (+1 sharpness, +1 tone, Auto saturation and IIIa colour). This filter does produce very soft edges, but I think it creates a more abstract shot in this case.
Sunday, October 03, 2010
Snake, up close at the zoo
It was a bit of a toss up deciding on today's shot from The Toronto Zoo, but I chose this one over the jelly fish because you can always grab a shot of them, but the snakes are not active that often. I took a chance with a very high ISO (2000) and I'm pretty pleased with the clarity of the shot, especially the details of his scales zoomed in 200mm.
Saturday, October 02, 2010
Old Georgetown reflections
While visiting Washington, my mom and I took a walk over to Georgetown and it's old canal. The still water and bright sunshine produced some nice reflections of the old buildings, bridges and the runner in red.
Friday, October 01, 2010
Workshop ceremony on TV ?
I shot this through an opening in my brother's photo booth project in his workshop. MY brother was telling us all about this very impressive, new CNC machine.
As the inside frame of the booth got overexposed it works well with a blended white page background (like in Flickr). The overall faded, somewhat nostalgic feel and the serious poses away from the camera looks like some TV shot of a weird workshop religious ceremony.
As the inside frame of the booth got overexposed it works well with a blended white page background (like in Flickr). The overall faded, somewhat nostalgic feel and the serious poses away from the camera looks like some TV shot of a weird workshop religious ceremony.
Barefoot on her opening night
My sister-in-law had her opening night for her "Portcards To My Parents" (www.postcardstomyparents.com) exhibition at Washington DC's Fathom Gallery and it turned out to be a wonderful evening with lots of family and friends. This shot was taken later in the evening when the crowd was thinning and Carolyn was relaxing with her friends. I didn't get the best exposure with my control on the flash, but I really like the composition and her playful pose. One inconsequential cheat on this is that I think the shot was taken after midnight. I took lots of other shots early in the morning, but I like this one the most.
Wednesday, September 29, 2010
September blushing sky
One of those days when I didn't find a lot of time to take many shots, then just after dinner my wife yells out about the beautiful sky. I grab the camera and start shooting right outside my house as the colours quickly change. I used a vivid setting to get the most of the gorgeous colours and used a centre weighted exposure setting to make sure the sky was correct and accepted the tree silhouettes.
Tuesday, September 28, 2010
I love to...
Another rainy day in Toronto. I turned my camera up to vivid to accentuate the metal framing and reflections.
Jumping Boxer
The Boxer Rebellion lead man, Nathan Nicholson catching a little pogo air at The Horseshoe Tavern. I always like taking shots at The Horseshoe because you can usually get close to the stage and they have no problem with you shooting with a DSLR (although you often need earplugs). As usual, I used my nifty 50 and decided to use in-camera B&W for a few shots. With fixed 50mm and being at the front of the stage was a little limiting, but gave me this unusual shot trying to capture his Nathan's frequent pogo jumps.
Monday, September 27, 2010
Next Mexx
Mexx are opening a new uptown mega store and I thought the architectural lines and muted tones were interesting and I used a lamppost to steady by nighttime shot.
Saturday, September 25, 2010
Bobby
Bobby organized our team for the North American Grand Masters (40+ years old) Ultimate Championships in Montreal. Bobby is 62 years old and played tirelessly on day one of play, and on many occasions played many consecutive points without substituting off. Over beers I learnt that Bobby is a very accomplished harmonica player and played on stage with the likes of Jackson Browne and on one occasion accompanied Janice Joplin ! I didn't get a lot of action shots (as I was exhausted during my sideline rests), but the thing I like about this one is that although the disc is long gone, the focus in Bobby's eyes is pure sportsman.
I wondering whether to include Bobby or any of my new teammates in my stranger project, but thought they'd fit into some kind of new set like "new found friends".
I wondering whether to include Bobby or any of my new teammates in my stranger project, but thought they'd fit into some kind of new set like "new found friends".
Friday, September 24, 2010
Red rocket man
Although it's obviously not a very clear shot, I quite like the composition, converging lines, colour patterns and the ceiling reflection. On the way home, I used manual setting and adjusted at each station until I had a decent balance of exposure and motion blur.
Thursday, September 23, 2010
Harold
I've seen this man selling t-shirts at the corner of Yonge and Dundas for many, many years, but I never knew his name. I think I bought a Zidane head butt t-shirt from him 4 years ago as a gift for my brother. He always shows up at the corner later in the afternoon and I finally got to meet him. I knew he'd make a great stranger with his grey rasta looks.
His name his Harold and he came to Canada from Trinidad in 1968 when he was 17. He learnt from his father how important a honest living is, so when he arrived on a Friday, Harold started his first job in Canada on the Monday, and he's had a job ever since, including working as a welder. Harold is a true entrepreneur and has lots of projects on the go. His latest project is trying to motorize his t-shirt cart. Harold even builds guitars and compares the curves of the guitar body to a women's figure. He said that when I take pictures of women and should include their whole body, not just their head and shoulders !
I took a few shots of Harold and trimmed a couple with a tighter crop which I'm starting to do a lot with my portrait shots. But with his white locks and beard, the shots look quite odd so I kept these more traditional head shots.
Along with being my daily photo entry, Harold is also #72 in my 100 strangers project. Find out more about the project and see pictures taken by other photographers at www.100Strangers.com.
His name his Harold and he came to Canada from Trinidad in 1968 when he was 17. He learnt from his father how important a honest living is, so when he arrived on a Friday, Harold started his first job in Canada on the Monday, and he's had a job ever since, including working as a welder. Harold is a true entrepreneur and has lots of projects on the go. His latest project is trying to motorize his t-shirt cart. Harold even builds guitars and compares the curves of the guitar body to a women's figure. He said that when I take pictures of women and should include their whole body, not just their head and shoulders !
I took a few shots of Harold and trimmed a couple with a tighter crop which I'm starting to do a lot with my portrait shots. But with his white locks and beard, the shots look quite odd so I kept these more traditional head shots.
Along with being my daily photo entry, Harold is also #72 in my 100 strangers project. Find out more about the project and see pictures taken by other photographers at www.100Strangers.com.
Wednesday, September 22, 2010
Mont Royal view of Montreal towers
I was in Montreal for business and visited Mont Royal which overlooks the city. There was a lot of trees blocking wider landscape shots views from the edge of this observation area. As I moved around I found this angle where I could isolate a few of the taller building and by zooming in from quite a way back I could condense the depth of field.
Tuesday, September 21, 2010
Tip toes Old Montreal photographer
When I'm in Montreal I always like to walk around Old Montreal. The old architecture, narrow streets and cafes are beautiful and produce a very European feel. I spotted this lady as she stopped her bike and took a photograph. She looks like she could a local, which would be nice as locals so often don't recognize the beauty of their own city.
Monday, September 20, 2010
Dave
I've seen Dave painting and chalk drawing at the corner of Yonge and Dundas ofr many years. I got downtown early this morning and Dave had already started a new piece. It was quiet so I introduced myself and we had a good chat about his work. This morning he was doing a corporate piece called Double Dutch. Dave's worked hard over the years to capture the South West corner as his patch for street art and is now getting more corporate gigs that pay quite well. Dave uses the money to buy new art materials to practice and improve his drawing skills. He has a lot of people ask him advice about making money in art - but really it comes down to simply working hard, building up your experience and making a name for yourself. Like many other jobs, there's no short cuts. He says people give him hats all the times with different chalk-themed aliases.
Along with being a daily shot, Dave is also #71 in my 100 strangers project.
Along with being a daily shot, Dave is also #71 in my 100 strangers project.
Sunday, September 19, 2010
Shadow half bowls
This is a neighbourhood lawn bowling club. I liked the crisp lines of the shadows and the asymmetrical pattern contrasted wit the other symmetrical elements.
Saturday, September 18, 2010
Jim - ultimate veteran, valued friend
I've known Jim for a very long time and have seen him a few times recently at ultimate [frisbee] events. I've always admired his playing skills, but more importantly Jim is a true gentleman, one of the nicest guys I've ever met. When I was out of work, I remember Jim being very sympathetic to my situation and offering his help if I needed it.
Friday, September 17, 2010
High school
My son started high school a few weeks ago. I tried to capture a shot that shows the classic architecture of his school and also create a sense of grandeur and intimidation. Luckily my son is far from intimidated by high school, but the thought of high school for many "minor niners" or for perhaps some of us as we reflect upon our entry into high school creates a distinctive image.
I got my D80 back from Nikon today. Although the $300 repair bill for the aperture control unit and cleaning was a little hard to swallow, I'm happy it only took 7 business days.
I got my D80 back from Nikon today. Although the $300 repair bill for the aperture control unit and cleaning was a little hard to swallow, I'm happy it only took 7 business days.
Thursday, September 16, 2010
The plot
Another in-camera feature you find on point-and-shoot cameras and now with some DSLRs is the aspect ratio setting. I'm not sure if it's by design, but I find shots in 16x9 often look like a frame from a movie. I positioned the men in the centre of the frame and thought it looked like they were characters in a movie, perhaps casually plotting a political takeover.
New concert listings
The Killers' frontman Brandon Flowers will be performing at Sound Academy on December 4th.
Tickets go on sale this morning for the Live Nation presale and Friday for the general sale.
Dane Cook is coming to Air Canada Centre. So if you like comedy, tickets go on sale Friday September 24th.
Tickets go on sale this morning for the Live Nation presale and Friday for the general sale.
Dane Cook is coming to Air Canada Centre. So if you like comedy, tickets go on sale Friday September 24th.
Wednesday, September 15, 2010
Sepia cable curves
I like some of the in-camera effect in point-and-shoot camera, and our old Canon has a sepia setting and in combination with a little grain from a close up zoomed in shot I like the soft sepia mood and thought the flow of the cables was pretty. It was shot on my desk with the city skyline in the background and a little glossy reflection in the foreground.
Tuesday, September 14, 2010
September summer shadows
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
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.
Sunday, September 12, 2010
Woody and his cast
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.
Saturday, September 11, 2010
Pink in the city; kids' street signatures
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.
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.
Friday, September 10, 2010
Where I find new music: Part 5 - NOW Magazine
Ever since I've lived in Toronto, I've read NOW for its music, film, arts and theatre listings. Along with staying up iwht concerts coming to town, you can sometimes cross reference a band with a new CD review or a tip on next week's hot tickets. Today as I was browsing the concert listings over lunch I band called Mystery Jets caught my attention as my brother used to play in a band called the Mystery Dates. A few pages further, their latest album was reviewed and got a strong 4 stars. A few clicks later and I was sampling their stuff on MySpace and YouTube. Great stuff, thanks NOW.
Mystery Jets are playing The Horseshoe Tavern on Monday night.
Mystery Jets are playing The Horseshoe Tavern on Monday night.
Previous posts in the series:
Where I find new music: Part 4: Streaming radio
When I'm at the office and got my head down doing email or working on some tech config, I occasionally open iTunes and pick a saved streaming radio station. I have a few saved that provide just the right mix of smooth and mellow music, either with electronica or jazz DNA.
Here are a few of my favourites:
Here are a few of my favourites:
- Groove Salad and Sonic Universe on soma fm
- SmoothLounge.com
- Deluxe Radio from Germany (but has some talking between tracks sometimes)
The trick is that when you're listening and hear something that you really like, then need to make a note of the current track because it may not be easy to review past tracks.
The track I found today was a something new from a Norwegian electrofolk band called Flunk called Sit Down.
Previous posts in the series:
Charlie Mime
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.
New Concert Listings
Just a quick note to say that Mt. Desolation is coming to The Drake Hotel on October 28th. This is the supergroup formed by Keane members Tim Rice-Oxley and Jesse Quin. See my supergroups post for more details. Tickets go on today Friday September 10th. The album comes out October 18th. You can here a couple of songs on their website here. I have to say that I am liking Departure on first listen and State of Our Affairs has grown on me, so I am quite excited about seeing them.
KT Tunstall is coming back to Toronto. I have seen her twice and she is really great live. If you haven't seen her, you can catch her at The Phoenix Concert Theatre November 23rd. Tickets go on sale today.
Macy Gray is playing Mod Club October 2nd. Tickets on sale today.
Other interesting upcoming events:
Boxer Rebellion Sept 27 at The Horseshoe Tavern (we're going)
The xx September 29th at Massey Hall (just won Mercury Prize)
K'naan (with opening act Shad) Oct. 1 at Kool Haus (saw them both last year)
Temper Trap October 5th at The Phoenix (saw them twice last year)
Hot Hot Heat October 8th at Mod Club (I'm going)
Belle & Sebastian October 12th Massey Hall
Sufjan Stevens October 13th Massey Hall
The Dears October 13th, 14th and 15th at The Garrison
Gorillaz October 14 at ACC (PJ going)
OK Go October 14 at The Phoenix
Band of Horses October 21 at Kool Haus
Stars October 23rd at Massey Hall
Greg Laswell October 30th at El Mocambo
Florence and the Machine Nov 3rd at Sound Academy (saw them last spring)
Sara Bareilles November 8th at The Phoenix
Kate Nash November 13th at The Phoenix
Mumford & Sons November 14th at Sound Academy (sold out)
KT Tunstall is coming back to Toronto. I have seen her twice and she is really great live. If you haven't seen her, you can catch her at The Phoenix Concert Theatre November 23rd. Tickets go on sale today.
Macy Gray is playing Mod Club October 2nd. Tickets on sale today.
Other interesting upcoming events:
Boxer Rebellion Sept 27 at The Horseshoe Tavern (we're going)
The xx September 29th at Massey Hall (just won Mercury Prize)
K'naan (with opening act Shad) Oct. 1 at Kool Haus (saw them both last year)
Temper Trap October 5th at The Phoenix (saw them twice last year)
Hot Hot Heat October 8th at Mod Club (I'm going)
Belle & Sebastian October 12th Massey Hall
Sufjan Stevens October 13th Massey Hall
The Dears October 13th, 14th and 15th at The Garrison
Gorillaz October 14 at ACC (PJ going)
OK Go October 14 at The Phoenix
Band of Horses October 21 at Kool Haus
Stars October 23rd at Massey Hall
Greg Laswell October 30th at El Mocambo
Florence and the Machine Nov 3rd at Sound Academy (saw them last spring)
Sara Bareilles November 8th at The Phoenix
Kate Nash November 13th at The Phoenix
Mumford & Sons November 14th at Sound Academy (sold out)
Thursday, September 09, 2010
Church of The Holy Trinity
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.
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.
Wednesday, September 08, 2010
Green glow parking garage
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.
Tuesday, September 07, 2010
Carcassonne
I played a few games of Carcassonne with the family on the weekend. I was in the Apple store at lunch today and picked up the new iPhone4. I paged over a few pages and accidentally touched an app without noticing what app icon my finger was on and Carcassonne opened up. What a surprise, I didn't even know there was a Carcassonne Apple app. Of course, I had to play for a few minutes. Love the game and now available as an app for you iPhone and iTouch, with iPad to come (which we'll be really nice with the larger screen).
Coloured construction corner
There's a lot of construction going on in the Eaton Centre these days. Along with the interesting angles created by all the scaffolding (already taken one of those), there are these colourful temporary boards surrounding the construction areas. I took this corner shot with my Blackberry and included some of the complimentary floor work markings.
Monday, September 06, 2010
Err
...(ctd from yesterday), when I got home from the long weekend, I tried a few other diagnostics to see if I could snap my D80 out of its "Err" state. No luck. I set up my Fuji FinePix on a mini tripod and got in close for this shot. (Since this shot was taken, I took the camera into Nikon and they've now told me the aperture control unit needs replacing. Total bill will be around $300).
Sunday, September 05, 2010
Tour di Via Italia
Our family visit to Windsor coincided with the annual Tour di Via Italia cycling races on Windsor's Erie Street in Lit'l Italy. Although many pro photographers took up their position just a little past the apex of the corner I found that the most dramatic shots were from a low angle right on the corner. It was a rather dangerous position with no barriers and bikes passing by within inches at about 30mph so I fired a lot of continuous bursts as the pack raced by. I was using my Zeikos battery grip and had a second (Zeikos) battery loaded as I'd read somewhere that it can speed up the frame rate. I also only shot in jpeg to get the best buffer rate.
But, this was apparently too much for my D80 and after about 5 lengthy bursts, I got the dreaded "Err" message displayed on the top LCD and the camera stopped functioning. I tried a number of different remedies, but nothing fixed the problem (to be continued).
But, this was apparently too much for my D80 and after about 5 lengthy bursts, I got the dreaded "Err" message displayed on the top LCD and the camera stopped functioning. I tried a number of different remedies, but nothing fixed the problem (to be continued).
Saturday, September 04, 2010
Windsor morning ceiling
I was the first one up at my parents home. I thought a blurred shot of the ceiling fan would be interesting but on its own it was kind of dull. So I zoomed out and brought the curves and lines from the front window into the shot to provide some context and contrast.
Friday, September 03, 2010
Classy Windsor ride-by
My sister-in-law with her coordinated outfit for her retro bike was too perfect to pass up. I used a slow flash sync to give her some highlights which also automatically set a relatively slow 1/60 sec so when I panned I got a nice blurred background and wheels.
Betty Davis Eyes
My wife and I went to see Brandon Flowers (of The Killers) play a solo gig last week and one of the tracks he played was the classic Kim Carnes' hit Betty Davis Eyes. I hadn't herd that great song in a very long time, and then I heard it again on the car radio this morning. I just went out to run another errand and heard the same original version being played at St. Louis Wings on their outdoor patio speakers. I ran my errand, and as I'm returning back to my car, the same restaurant is now paying The Killers' big it Sombody Told me.
Thursday, September 02, 2010
Jacks building
I liked the unusual decorative jacks on this new glass tower and the fluffy clouds broke up the blue sky nicely. Rather than a completely symmetrical composition I chose to include the angular side which seems create a better sense of space.
Wednesday, September 01, 2010
Heat wave windows
It's been a hot summer in Toronto and this last week of August saw another heat wave. These apartments are close to my house and thought the open windows summed it up nicely. A took a while to find a decent angle that captured a lot of windows in the frame and opted to go with a smaller aperture to keep them in focus.
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