The snow is mostly gone, here on the prairies, but it will be some weeks before we see greenery and flowers blooming. I can’t wait! It has been a long winter and I sure could use a bit of color. Late spring or early summer images are great for it because all is fresh and green is bright and not dimmed by dust of late summer days.
We are lucky here in Alberta, because some nights are full of light show. We had a couple of gorgeous Aurora showing last fall and I have managed to capture some shots without leaving the city.
I know, I know it is winter and everybody posts winter photography, but I am not ready for it yet. I see it outside my window every day, so I want to see something warm, colorful and pretty. Hope you are in need of this as well.
It has been a while since I’ve posted anything about Elk Island National Park. So, I think, it is time for some lovely sunset from the beginning of summer, when all was green, flowers were blooming and days were warm and long.
I love visiting Rockies in summer! Just the fact that one can explore without layers of clothes to keep one warm is so appealing. No need to worry about road conditions and closures, no need for heavy winter gear. There are things, of course, one needs to prepare for such a trip. Bug spray, sun screen, lots of water, snacks and a jacket or a sweater - we are visiting mountains, after all, are a must. Good pair of shoes and a bear spray are a good idea as well, especially when one thinks about hiking.
It is truly a wonderful experience to welcome a new day in the mountains. We were lucky to be able to do just that during our recent trip to Banff National Park just before Christmas. The changing colors of the sky, reflected in little pools of open water at Vermilion Lakes made it all seem like the most exotic place, even though we have visited it so many times before.. Met a few photographers who, having the same idea, were already positioned in various places along the lakes capturing all those colors of a beautiful solstice morning. Experiencing such natural splendor makes landscape photography even more enjoyable. Even though you are spending long time outside, in the cold, you are rewarded with such wonderful views that it is all worth it! I have managed to shoot a few close ups, too (can't really help myself, you know ;D) I have also been finally able to play with Sony NEX-6 and NEX-7 during this trip enjoying not having to drag my heave Canons along and must say, I do like the results. I hope you do, too ;D.
Kasia
It's been a while since my last posts, but I do have a very good excuse. We went for a road trip to Tofino and back. It's been only my 3rd ever venture to BC, my first to Vancouver Island and I was really looking forward to seeing the land and venture to places I have not had a chance to visit before as well as re-visit the few I have. Travel photography is wonderful because it gives one opportunity to practice all sorts of things. From landscapes to architecture, nature, macros, night shots... It is so much fun, though it does require bringing a lot of different lenses and a bit of gear. Today I would like to share some pictures I have taken on our way to Vancouver. It's quite a long way from Edmonton so we took a break from driving to visit our friends in Kamloops, BC. While enjoying their company and a wonderfully hot evening I took a few shots of their world. We did have a view of quite a lovely sunset as well from their patio...
The next day we resumed out drive through the Rockies. Our first stop was at Kamloops Lake where I took a few shots of a lovely view:
While driving I couldn't help but to notice a great contrast between very dry mountains, covered with sage and bluish grass with level ground that is quite often used for agricultural purposes. It does require lots of watering, as we were able to notice, and the lush greens of the meadows are so very different in colour than surrounding mountains..
Travelling through canyons and summits, on our way, along rivers and mountain slopes gives you an opportunity to see very many interesting things. Too bad one cannot always stop when one wishes... The landscape changes often on the way and at least one is not bored, stuck in a vehicle for hours on end..
I've always wanted to visit Hell's Gate again. The first time I went there (over a decade ago..) I was awed by the incredible power of water flowing at this particular spot in Fraser Canyon.. You can see it churning under your feet while crossing a bridge. It does give you a bit of a weird feeling.. Here is a few shots I have taken while there:
Our long journey that day ended finally in Vancouver where we met one of our friends who, very kindly, took us for a tour around the city. What we saw there I will share in my next post. For now, just one more shot taken while driving, just before we reached our destination. There is not always a chance to stop on a highway to properly take photos, so I do try to shot some things from a moving vehicle. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't, but one must try, right? Especially, when I am in the very lucky position of a passenger and I can devote my full attention to surrounding views (which Mac is always bemoaning, having to always be the driver.;D).
To be continued..
Kasia
As I have mentioned in my previous post: Ice and Light - Lake Louise in Winter, we haven't had much luck with the weather, during our latest foray into the mountains. We've glimpsed a bit of a blue sky for a moment - I did managed to snap a shot of it :D (see below) - but mostly the sky was heavy with clouds and the snow, along with rain were falling heavily obscuring the views... That, however, has not stopped us from taking pictures ;D. They are just totally different than what we usually come back with, because it forced us to chose different ways of showcasing the mountains. And the heavy snow added a bit of a Chrismasy feel to some of the pictures.. I hope I was able to capture the atmosphere and the feel of the world of winter Rockies.. Enjoy! Kasia
I've never been to Lake Louise in winter before and was looking forward to seeing this beautiful place all covered in snow. When we arrived there the sky was already clouding up, but there was still enough light and colour to make things look interesting and it gave me the opportunity to take a few pictures of some of the great ice sculptures scattered all over the place, before they were damaged by rain and snow that came the next day. Mac has shared his images from this trip in his posts: A mix of color in winter - Alberta Landscape Photography, Winter in the Rockies – Alberta Landscape Photography and People in the Mountains – Candid Photography and now it is my turn to show mine, hoping you are not too bored yet ;D Kasia
I know I've already shared some pictures from our visit at Lake Louise in July of last year (Lake Louise - how I saw it..), but I cannot resist posting more of them. Especially today, when the world outside is so dark and gloomy I can't help but look at these pictures and feast my eyes on summer colors... It is one of the most beautiful places in Banff National Park here in Alberta and every time I go there I am enchanted by the sight of it. I was lucky to have taken my macro lens with me as well and managed to snap a few shots of the beautiful wild flowers growing around the lake. I hope you enjoy all this color as much as I do... Kasia
It's not very often that we have a chance to visit mountains in the evening, when the sun is low on the sky and moon has already risen. The light is incredible then and the colors of the sky and highlights caught on tops of the mountains are just amazing. We have had a chance to see all this beauty while driving through Banff National Park in late July. I have shared some of the pictures taken that day at Lake Louise in my post Lake Louise - how I saw it.. and today, I would like to add some more images from that trip. Regardless of how much hurry we were in, we just could not help ourselves and stop now and again to capture the sites. Enjoy! Kasia
We were very lucky this summer to be able to travel through the Rockies twice - so far :D. The first time we have visited only Jasper National Park in Alberta visiting some of the places we have not seen yet. The weather, again, was on our side and in spite of the very strong wind the temperature as well as the sky cooperated and allowed us to stop by and take lots of pictures... It was a very wet beginning of the summer and the lakes and rivers were full of water (as you can see on pictures of both Jasper and Talbot Lakes below). We have made a little detour before we entered the park to visit another site in the mountains, but the roads were closed due to flooding... There was still quite a lot of snow high in the mountains and we have been granted wonderful views of glaciers and snow covered peaks (Mount Edith Cavell with her glaciers, below). Here is a few shots from the first trip:
It was a wonderful trip, filled with great views and animal sitings that are always a pleasure...
Our second trip took place just a week ago and it took us a very long way through the mountains to British Columbia and back home to Alberta. We were a bit short on time and could not stop too often to take pictures but we have still managed to take a few stops here and there admiring the views and the abundant flora. It's amazing how of the wild flowers full the mountain meadows were this time of year!! It was simply gorgeous and since I did take my macro lens with me I took advantage of it and here are some of the results:
On the way there we could not resist a short stop at the beautiful Moose Lake, B.C. It was a gorgeous day, the clouds providing a lovely background to the mountains surrounding this lake and the wild flowers bloomed with abandonment making the views even more appealing...
As before we have decided to take a different way home and could not resist stopping at Lake Louise (since we were travelling through Banff National Park this time). After we left there, the views became even more beautiful... We rarely have a chance to travel through the mountains with setting sun and moon accompanying us. This time we were granted both of these and it was such a gorgeous set of views that, regardless of a long travel ahead, we have decided to stop a few more time to capture the wonderful scenes. I hope you like them as much as we did :D
Kasia
Some time ago, in my first post of this series, I have shown you what amazing colours a mountain ash turns during fall. Today, I would like to share a few pictures I took during our trip to the Rockies in October of last year. Mac has already shared some of his images in his post Fall Leafs in Jasper and I thought, it would be nice to show you some of mine as well... When we arrived the foliage was still covered by frost, that has not managed to melt in the morning sun, but as the day grew warmer all that was left behind was amazing colour. Here it is, the splendour of last fall in Jasper National Park.
Kasia
