I thought I'd share another of my recent photos.
Normally I wouldn't take the time to photograph a Canada Goose because they're so plentiful but I couldn't resist. Plus I'd been walking for a while and hadn't taken any photos and felt I'd better snap a shot of something.
I was out for a stroll at Presqu'ile Provincial Park near Brighton, Ontario. It was a cool overcast day with a bit of rain off and on but not bad enough to send me running for cover.
My plan was to go for a walk and take the camera just in case. I really just wanted to go out to see what work had been done at the park since my last visit. Come to find out they've built two new washrooms in the camping area and built up the causeway that lead you out to the High Bluff campground. I sure hope they don't leave it a dirt and gravel mess for the summer. That would not only be a dusty but might make rollerblading, biking and stroller pushing a bit of a pain.
Any way, I snapped this shot of the goose with my Nikon D7000 and 70-300 VR lens. I liked the colour version with the bright green grass but I think it works even better as a black and white. I'm going through a bit of a black & white period again. It happens from time to time. Hope you like it.
Friday, April 27, 2012
Friday, April 13, 2012
Sorry We Suck
If I were a Toronto Maple Leafs fan I
would be embarrassed. Not by the pitiful results the team has posted 8 years in
a row (45 years since the last championship), or the way they constantly
collapse down the stretch year after year or by their inconsistent goaltending, defense or lack of depth up front, but by the way the Leafs management and
ownership thinks an apology makes up for their ineptitude.
It’s baffling to me how a once proud and
powerful National Hockey League franchise can fall into such disrepair and
disarray. 
It’s even more perplexing how Larry Tannenbaum and his rich and
powerful senior staff can arrive at the idea that an apology in the local media
will smooth things over.
It’s even more perplexing how Larry Tannenbaum and his rich and
powerful senior staff can arrive at the idea that an apology in the local media
will smooth things over.
Of course, I’m not even remotely a
Toronto fan. I’m as far from it as is humanly possible. I’m a die-hard, red,
white and blue, poutine eating, “ole ole” and “nah nah hey hey” singing
Montreal Canadiens fan. But that doesn’t mean I can’t sympathize with Leafs
fans, several of which I consider good friends.
I just sat through one of the worst
seasons in Montreal history with management issues, coaching issues, player
issues and poor results on the ice. As bad as it was, I’d still take the Habs
over the Leafs any day. Montreal is trying to make moves to solve the problems
of missing only one year of the playoffs. The GM is gone, the coach was fired
mid-season and the interim coach will likely be let go as well. Add to that an assurance
from the ownership that they’re committed to restoring the storied franchise to
its rightful place among the league’s elite teams and I’m satisfied that
they’re making an effort at least. I just hope it leads to results.
But what are they doing in Toronto? Yes
they fired the coach and as much as I dislike Ron Wilson, the mess they’re in
was hardly his fault. The Leafs this season were great guys but aside from
maybe a handful of players, the rest were not skilled enough to succeed on a
consistent basis. Sure they had good nights but those games were few and far
between.
So who’s to blame? Is it bad scouting
and drafting? Is GM Brian Burke, the architect of the team to blame? I don’t
claim to be an expert but I think these are the two main issues with the Leafs.
 |
| Brian Burke |
I am amazed that Brian Burke still has a
key to the Air Canada Centre. The ultimate blame has to fall on him. This is
his team and while they haven’t drafted well, with the amount of money behind
this team, it amazes me that they can’t draw more skilled free agents or make
trades to improve their situation. Let’s be honest, the deal for Phil Kessel
looked bad when Burke made it and it looks even worse today. The picks they
lost in that one deal were huge. I’m not saying Kessel isn’t a skilled player
but he’s not worth the price they paid for him. But that’s old news and what’s
done is done.
Toronto has to move on and right the
ship before their fans finally come to their senses and revolt. Its one thing to go to the games and “boo”
the players but it’s another thing entirely to stop buying tickets, merchandise
and lining the pockets of the owners Bell and Rogers who were smart for buying
this franchise. They knew that no matter how much they sucked or how little
they had to spend on the team, the cash was going to keep flowing in just as
much as it would if they had a Stanley Cup contender.
At what point will the fans finally stop
saying, “I support my team in good times and bad”? I appreciate the value of
loyalty and not wanting to abandon your team but at some point you have to ask
yourself, what are they doing to warrant my support and money? The relationship
between the fan and the team is “give and take” and with Toronto the fans are
giving everything and the Leafs ownership is gladly taking every dollar they
can.
 |
| 1967 Stanley Cup Champions |
Monday, April 02, 2012
Junos Were Awful
Did those Juno Awards suck last night or what?
With William Shatner hosting Canada’s premiere awards night recognizing Canadian musical talent in Ottawa, I was hoping he would steal a line from Star Trek and say “the needs of the many, out-weigh the needs of the few”. Judging by the reviews I’ve been reading from people online, the majority felt the same way I did. The “many” would have preferred to see a much better show.
When it comes to today’s music, I’m fairly knowledgeable but I admit I’m not as in tune with the pulse of modern music (if you want to call it that) as I was even just ten years ago. Of course I used to work in radio so it was a big part of my life.
I do enjoy some of today’s music and you can find me in my car from time to time singing along with Kesha, Gotye, Eminem, Adele and many other none one name artists and bands. Admittedly my tastes tend to gravitate towards Classic Rock and 80’s tunes and that includes Canadian bands. I grew up listening to Bryan Adams, Northern Pikes, Joni Mitchell, Honeymoon Suite, Neil Young, Platinum Blonde, The Tragically Hip, Haywire, Gowan and so many other cool Canadian bands.
Perhaps what made those bands cool was the fact that they really felt like our own. Many didn’t have the international recognition like a lot of Canadian acts do today. They sounded different while today most Canadian artists tend to sound like the same cookie-cutter bubblegum crap that comes out of the U.S. Remember the days when songs had guitar solos? Now instead of a good guitar riff, we’re stuck with Rap solos where all they do is mention the names of the artists singing on the song. When did it become important to say your name in every song you sing? It’s like they know they sound like everyone else and need to take roll call just to make sure the audience knows who their listening to. Could you imagine The Beatles, Led Zeppelin or even Elvis Presley doing that? I think not. When you’re good, the music can stand on its own merits.
What I witnessed on the show last night was mostly bloody awful. I realize times change and I’m probably sounding like an “old fart” but other than performances by Nickelback, Blue Rodeo and Hedley and the voice of Feist, I just didn’t see a lot of stuff to be proud of.
Maybe it was the venue and atmosphere that distracted from the performances as well. In the past I attended several Juno Awards shows in Toronto at the O’Keefe Centre (now the Sony Centre I think) and it was much more intimate with a lot less yelling and screaming by young adults waiving telephones and wearing mouse ears. We were able to mingle with the performers prior to the show in the lobby and talk with them. I spent time chatting with the boys from Barenaked Ladies, The Northern Pikes, Rush, Ronnie Hawkins, Jeff Healey and others. They were just good people sharing a love for music.
The one positive from the night was how the performances were live and not recorded or lip-synched. That has always been an important part of the show in my mind. Even if they did give a Juno Award to the most famous lip-syncing group in the history of music...Milli Vanilli.
I guess times change and things change with it but that doesn’t mean I have to like it. Luckily there’s YouTube where I can find plenty of performances by past artists and groups from my youth to keep me satisfied. But I may have just watched my final Juno Awards.
Just for fun, here's a blast from the past as Platinum Blonde performs at the 1984 Juno Awards in Toronto.
With William Shatner hosting Canada’s premiere awards night recognizing Canadian musical talent in Ottawa, I was hoping he would steal a line from Star Trek and say “the needs of the many, out-weigh the needs of the few”. Judging by the reviews I’ve been reading from people online, the majority felt the same way I did. The “many” would have preferred to see a much better show.
When it comes to today’s music, I’m fairly knowledgeable but I admit I’m not as in tune with the pulse of modern music (if you want to call it that) as I was even just ten years ago. Of course I used to work in radio so it was a big part of my life.
 |
| William Shatner Sings at opening of 2012 Juno Awards |
Perhaps what made those bands cool was the fact that they really felt like our own. Many didn’t have the international recognition like a lot of Canadian acts do today. They sounded different while today most Canadian artists tend to sound like the same cookie-cutter bubblegum crap that comes out of the U.S. Remember the days when songs had guitar solos? Now instead of a good guitar riff, we’re stuck with Rap solos where all they do is mention the names of the artists singing on the song. When did it become important to say your name in every song you sing? It’s like they know they sound like everyone else and need to take roll call just to make sure the audience knows who their listening to. Could you imagine The Beatles, Led Zeppelin or even Elvis Presley doing that? I think not. When you’re good, the music can stand on its own merits.
What I witnessed on the show last night was mostly bloody awful. I realize times change and I’m probably sounding like an “old fart” but other than performances by Nickelback, Blue Rodeo and Hedley and the voice of Feist, I just didn’t see a lot of stuff to be proud of.
Maybe it was the venue and atmosphere that distracted from the performances as well. In the past I attended several Juno Awards shows in Toronto at the O’Keefe Centre (now the Sony Centre I think) and it was much more intimate with a lot less yelling and screaming by young adults waiving telephones and wearing mouse ears. We were able to mingle with the performers prior to the show in the lobby and talk with them. I spent time chatting with the boys from Barenaked Ladies, The Northern Pikes, Rush, Ronnie Hawkins, Jeff Healey and others. They were just good people sharing a love for music.
The one positive from the night was how the performances were live and not recorded or lip-synched. That has always been an important part of the show in my mind. Even if they did give a Juno Award to the most famous lip-syncing group in the history of music...Milli Vanilli.
I guess times change and things change with it but that doesn’t mean I have to like it. Luckily there’s YouTube where I can find plenty of performances by past artists and groups from my youth to keep me satisfied. But I may have just watched my final Juno Awards.
Just for fun, here's a blast from the past as Platinum Blonde performs at the 1984 Juno Awards in Toronto.
Sunday, April 01, 2012
Holy Editing Batman!
I had a great time on my vacation and yes it was nice to get home and slowly get back into the regular routine again but I have a lot of work ahead of me.
As a photography hobbyist I managed to snap more than my fair share of photos during my three week stay Florida.
Twenty years ago I would have taken my camera and maybe shot two or three rolls of film sparingly. With the arrival of digital and the larger memory cards, I now tend to be less picky and more clicky.
I haven't added up the total number of photos I took but I spent five hours yesterday in front of the computer working in Photoshop and I don't think I'm even halfway done.
Of course I enjoy the editing process when I'm working on photos that I really want to look their best and the way I envisioned but on this particular trip I snapped a whole bunch of family photos which I tend to spend less time fussing over. That doesn't mean I don't do some light editing to make them pop a bit more.
I got a bit lazy at one point and created a "Action" in Photoshop CS5 that I could just click on and it would make all of the basic edits for me in just a second or two but even then I found myself not being totally satisfied with the results of some and having to go back and rework them.
The process is ongoing and luckily it's raining and cold today so I don't have any excuses to go outside and will likely spend more time today on it.
The photo I've included here was taken at Holmes Beach near Bradenton, Florida looking out at the sun setting on the Gulf of Mexico. I don't know who the couple is as I just found them sitting on the beach enjoying the view.
As a photography hobbyist I managed to snap more than my fair share of photos during my three week stay Florida.
Twenty years ago I would have taken my camera and maybe shot two or three rolls of film sparingly. With the arrival of digital and the larger memory cards, I now tend to be less picky and more clicky.
I haven't added up the total number of photos I took but I spent five hours yesterday in front of the computer working in Photoshop and I don't think I'm even halfway done.
Of course I enjoy the editing process when I'm working on photos that I really want to look their best and the way I envisioned but on this particular trip I snapped a whole bunch of family photos which I tend to spend less time fussing over. That doesn't mean I don't do some light editing to make them pop a bit more.
I got a bit lazy at one point and created a "Action" in Photoshop CS5 that I could just click on and it would make all of the basic edits for me in just a second or two but even then I found myself not being totally satisfied with the results of some and having to go back and rework them.
The process is ongoing and luckily it's raining and cold today so I don't have any excuses to go outside and will likely spend more time today on it.
The photo I've included here was taken at Holmes Beach near Bradenton, Florida looking out at the sun setting on the Gulf of Mexico. I don't know who the couple is as I just found them sitting on the beach enjoying the view.
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