Engagement photoshoot with Gareth and Kat at Sheridan College My thanks to classmates Gigi and Janine for joining me. It was a fun morning.

Elusive butterflies

A Monarch spreads its wings

The Black Swallowtail

 Clear Wing Hummingbird moth

Cabbage White

There's an enchanting little book called The Butterfly Isles by Patrick Barkham, about a man who sets out to "collect" all 61 species -- 59 natives, 2 migrants -- of butterfly that can be seen (or not seen) in Britain each year.
 It may sound rather geeky, but in fact Barkham makes it compelling. Some butterflies are on the verge of extinction, others are around only for a matter of days.
You really do get caught up in the hunt. And along the way you learn about the way butterflies behave (some are definitely not well bred), learn about their habitats and  meet a host of fascinating characters -- past and present -- along the way.
I was quite inspired to do likewise, albeit at a slower pace. So here's my collection so far of butterflies found in Ontario. Okay, I know it includes one moth but I rather like the shot and am intrigued by the idea of  a moth that likes to pretend that it's a bird.

Wish I knew what this one is

I'm actually finding it a nice challenge.Some of them, such as the Cabbage White, don't spread their wings when they rest. And others, such as the Clouded Sulphur, are all action and only deign to land several hundred feet away from the camera. A recent survey taken in the Niagara region found that there are 29 common butterflies in that region and another 25 that are uncommon/rare.
So it's gonna take a while ...

Red Admiral

  Doug and Sarah: Fun to know

 

 It was one of those "it's a small world" moments. Ulrike had arranged for Doug and Sarah to join us in a wedding shoot at Burlington's Royal Botanical Gardens and not only did I recognize Sarah -- we'd met a few years back -- but it turned out that Doug had worked with my son
Gareth, a lighting designer.

The shoot was great. Sarah has a keen sense of fun --we even had to persuade her not to climb a tree in her wedding dress.
Doug, dapper in his tails, was quiet at first but it wasn't long before he revealed a rich, extremely well-developed sense of humour.  He turned the tables on us by shooting pictures of us in action (see my profile picture!) Another of his talents: he's a juggler.
They were fabulous. It was great to see Sarah again and to meet Doug. We thank them for their kindness and wish them a long, happy and laughter-filled life together.

Sunrise, Sunset ...

Okay, I know sunset shots are a dime a dozen. But what the heck, I really like this one that I took in El Salvador during a working visit there with Habitat for Humanity Canada. And at least one person agrees with me. I gave a print to an auction being held to raise funds for a theatre project in El Salvador and it raised a three-figure sum. What's more, I received requests for two more copies of the print.

 Picture from an Exhibition

Capture Oakville is a prestigious annual competition run by the Oakville Camera Club. I have entered the competition once and one of my three entries was chosen  for an exhibition at Oakville City Hall. The exhibition was then remounted in Burlington.
My entry was taken in the downtown park beside the lake -- you could just see the lake in the bottom left-hand corner. It's a worm's eye view of plants and sky -- I was lying on my stomach. I was happy with the result although in retrospect, a touch more lake might be nice.

Paul and Ida

A recent engagement shoot with Paul and Ida at Sheridan College was fun, fun, fun. They are a relaxed, extremely good-looking couple and were more than happy to be posed, and hug and kiss each other on cue. He is Canadian and she is true-blue Swedish and they met while rock-climbing. Gigi, Janine and I spent an exceptionally enjoyable two hours with them and the results were outstanding. Thanks, Paul and Ida, you were fantastic!  And have a wonderful wedding next August.

 St. Luke's

Picturesque St. Luke's Anglican Church in Burlington, Ontario, which opened in 1834, is a popular venue for weddings. St. Luke's is the oldest church in Burlington and was built on land  given to Native leader Joseph Brant  for his services to British-Canadian forces during the American Revolution. There are several restrictions for wedding photographers. As in many Anglican churches, no flash is allowed during the service.  The church is at 1371 Elgin St. and the church office phone number is 905-634-1826.

Camino de Santiago

Following the Milky Way

The Camino de Santiago is an ancient pilgrimage route across Spain leading to Santiago de Compostela in Galicia. Many believe that the cathedral there houses the remains of the apostle St. James. I have walked three different routes to Santiago, in 2001, 2003 and 2009. A friend recently asked me to try to sum up the experience:

"Sunshine, virtually no rain (in August), joy, blisters, laughter, tears, snoring (in refugios). Kindness, friendship, aching limbs, tiredness. Wonderful landscapes, modern windmills, cows, sheep, acorns beneath your feet, birdsong, the sound of water and of cow bells. Traffic swishing past, sometimes uncomfortably close; car horns honking to encourage you onward. Celtic music blaring from speakers in grey-stone Santiago. A babble of languages, wonderful dinners (pulpo, caldo gallego, pimentos, Santiago cake) and some not-so wonderful ones. Good wine, red and white. Rediscovery, renewal. A sense of loss when it's over. Fulfillment."