November's photo favourite is...

November's Favourite Photograph: "Impermanence"

"Impermanence". Surprise surprise.

I honestly believe that "Beer Taps" is the best, most interesting photograph of the bunch and yet not one person voted for it nor even mentioned it as being among their favourites.

"Jumpy Lights" is also an interesting photographic experiment but received little support while "Magic Pods", with its interesting shapes and textures, was also mentioned by only one person.

I find this amazing. And yet, I can't disagree with the support that both "Dog Days" and "Impermanence" received. I love both pictures, for their simplicity and their beauty. Maybe I can learn something from this: complexity and technical brilliance does not necessarily make a good photo.

And poor, poor "Waiting for the Wind". I don't think people even noticed it, despite the fact that it was the first shot on the list. I hope New Brunswick isn't insulted by that. And... I think it's a pretty good photo!

Day 364 - Lying in wait

One last image of Marlee Marie, this one taken Christmas Eve as she surveyed the presents under the tree.

The Olympus sat on its tripod, with the aperture at f8 and the shutter at about 1 second, thanks to the light coming from the tree's lights and other lamps in the living room.

That's how still Marlee will lie when she smells food, such as the (human) treats hidden in the stocking with the reindeer on it that is just inches from her nose. It's like she's not even breathing. Don't worry: the stocking found a new home on a bookshelf moments later.

Day 344 - Golden doodle or baby seal?

I warned you early on that there might be a few photographs of our beloved dog Marlee, didn't I? Well, here's another one. Those of us who know her recognise this as the classic "I'm ready to play" pose, right down to splayed legs ready to jump, the eyes intent on her dad, and the orange rubber ball hiding beneath her ear to the left of her head. Those of you who don't know Marlee and don't have a dog of your own probably thought this was a photo of a large baby seal, caught on the ice floe.

Taken early in the morning, just after Marlee's first walk, this photo posed a real lighting challenge. In fact, it was only the technical wizardry of iPhoto's Edit functions that really saved it. I took the shot in very low light at f3.4 at 1/60th. Even then, the Olympus' light meter was blinking away at me. But the camera doesn't offer any larger aperture settings and I couldn't move the shutter speed any lower without having the natural shake in my hand affect the shot. So I just clicked anyway and left it to iPhoto to save the day.

What impresses me about the shot now is that iPhoto's exposure control allowed me to recapture Marlee's original colours and detail but, in doing so, it seems to have converted the snow and grass into a black-and-white background. Happily, I quite like the overall effect.

Day 270 - Doodle in the grass

When I started this blog 270 days ago, I worried that I would end up putting too many photographs of our beloved golden doodle, Marlee, up. I think this is only the third or fourth such photo so maybe my worry was needless.

I've posted this picture most particularly because I like the angle. I was lying in the grass when I took it so we are actually looking up at the dog as she lies on the ground. I am also pleased with the quality of the focus, which captures every curl in her fur and the shape and texture of her tongue.

Day 254 - A tale of two Rileys

Riley takes centre stage today as he gambols through the beautifully lit fields of the potato research farm on the east side of Fredericton. Riley is the golden doodle pal of our own Marlee Marie. The two are best friends and get along famously, even if Riley is older, male and a lot more gregarious than our own puppy.

I always think Riley looks like a Muppet but his is one of the most expressive faces I've ever seen on a dog. And he's the perfect subject for showing the amazing difference between face-on sunlight (top photo, with a vividly green backdrop of the field behind him) and backlighting from a slowly setting sun (see below).

With these two shots, and Riley in such absolutely similar (and characteristic) poses, the differences are clear. While the top photo looks like a portrait (and is really quite nice, I think), the bottom photo has more drama, with the backlighting catching the fur around his edges and bringing it to life, while the rest of him is less clear, less crisp, less detailed.

Yes, I know, the bottom photo is not perfectly focused (the auto focus always has trouble with tricky light situations) but the exercise is, I think, worth it. And Riley is a cutie, isn't he?

Day 215 - Nose to Nose to Nose

A joyous gathering of golden doodles this afternoon in our back yard.

Today, long-time friends Marlee and Riley (centre and left) made a new pal in Maple (right), a two year-old doodle who has just moved into the neighbourhood with her family. Apparently, Maple has a body and hair like Riley but a temperament like Marlee (shy and fearful of new people).

It took the new pup only a short time to find her role among the two older dogs: she's the playful youngster who gets away with things. To a point. Then Marlee has to put her in her place!

The photograph itself is evidence of the challenges you face when you have the low-light conditions of a deeply cloudy day and the non-stop movement of dogs as your subject. In order to get enough light into the camera, you have to sacrifice both shutter speed (with the result that moving objects can become blurred) and aperture (which means that your depth of focus is very narrow). Hence, Marlee and Riley are both a little bit out of focus: Marlee because she's beyond the depth of focus and Riley because, well, Riley never stops moving.

Day 208 - That poor, doomed ball

Warm evening sun warms the colour of Marlee's fur and deepens the blue of the water in this photograph taken the other day at the Mactaquac marina.

The water is clear enough that you see her legs as she paddles but there's also her reflection to contend with, making for an interesting lower half to the dog figure in centre frame.

I'm pleased with the composition of this shot as well, with the location of the bush, dog and finally ball moving your eye from bottom left to top right, in coordination with Marlee's chase of her orange prey. It adds to the sense of action in the photograph, heightens the sense of danger for that poor, doomed ball.

Day 196 - Woodlots, lily pads and faint-hearted dogs

The University of New Brunswick owns a plot of land at the southern end of Fredericton that is known as "The Woodlot". I believe it was originally obtained for the use of the University's forestry program but, as that program has dwindled of late, so has the need for the Woodlot. So UNB has been selling it off, piece by piece, for development.

It's a controversial topic around here, mainly because the Woodlot is a wildlife preserve, providing a home for a variety of species of animals, birds and plants. Many locals also enjoy the vast wooded property for recreational purposes (dog walking and skiing, for example), which makes its destruction even more of a cause for concern.

The Woodlot currently features quite a lovely pond just off the main trail, complete with a small boardwalk and some wonderful views. I took Marlee for a long walk in the Woodlot today and stopped long enough to take some shots of the amazing lily pads and their flowers. Not much to say from a technique standpoint: I just pointed the Olympus in the right direction and pressed the button.

I love the reflections in the water.

The lower photograph captures Marlee, peering out at me from a safe position at the foot of the boardwalk. Our dog, you see, doesn't like walking on things that move so the motion of the boardwalk bothered her. She wouldn't come out to join me but just sat near the shore, gazing at me with a forlorn expression, and whimpering gently. THAT was the true challenge I faced in trying to take this lovely photograph of the plant life in the pond: dealing with the complaints of my four-year-old Golden Doodle.

Day 74 - Nose to Nose

I warned you that this photo blog might end up offering a number of pictures of our beloved dog, Marlee. Here she is, nose to nose with a timid little friend, Maggie, as they both enjoy a midday walk in the sunshine and mild temperatures.

Marlee has just been to the groomer and is especially fluffy and trim today so it's an exceptional chance to catch her at her best.

I think, however, that the sunlight was a bit too intense when I took the picture, creating deep, hard shadows that take away from the effectiveness of the image. Oh well, sometimes you take what you can get. And the nose-to-nose pose is well worth it.

Day 69 - Night Vision

There are a lot of interesting details in this night-vision photograph. The shadow of the tree in the foreground, the shine of the dim light on the ice-packed snow, the silhouetted tree in the background, not to mention the borg-like figure in the centre of the sidewalk.

That's Patti, by the way, wearing a special head-light that makes walking the dog safer at nighttime. We took Marlee out for her evening walk, giving me a chance to practice low-light photography between near falls on the icy walkways. Unfortunately, the Olympus' automatic settings simply can't handle night-time shots so I was forced to go to manual, open the aperture as far as it could go, then try to hold the camera as steady as possible through the long (1/4 of a second) opening of the shutter.

I was standing beside a fairly strong street light, which really helped, and I think the picture turned out pretty well.

Day 57 - Sunny Snowbank

From Patti comes this interesting image of Marlee, huddled into the side of a snowbank in our backyard. After a pelting storm that added more than a foot of snow to the already thick carpet that blankets our yard, the sun came out and gave our dog a chance to do some snowy sunbathing.

We often think of Marlee as being white in colour: photographs like this one prove otherwise. She's a cinammony cream colour and we're certainly at no risk of losing her in a snow storm. Meanwhile, we've got another 15 centimeters of snow coming on Monday so we may just see our five-foot fence disappear entirely from view. We've had many interesting experiences since moving to New Brunswick but snow is truly the most overwhelming image of this province for me.

Day 50 - Hello Saki

As you might have figured out from this blog, we think the world of our golden-doodle, Marlee Marie. I think she's the cutest, sweetest dog in the whole world. I also think she's a bit of brat but...

Then I see a dog like Saki (pictured on the right). Wow, is that ever a gorgeous dog. I don't know what breed he is (Malamute? Husky?) but I just think he's such a purely beautiful dog. He and Marlee get along very well so meetings like this one on the street in Fredericton are generally happy occasions. Saki is a kind and gentle dog, exactly the kind Marlee likes.

I just find it interesting to see the two of them together: Marlee so cute and curly and unkempt and Saki refined and lovely. The only frustration is with the camera: because of the delay between pressing the button and the shutter clicking, I miss an awful lot of great pictures.

I'm pleased that I captured this one, though.

Day 45 - A Valentine's Rose

Happy Valentine's Day. This rose is brought to you by our beloved golden doodle, Marlee Marie, who seemed to think the three-foot plush flower was for her and her alone.

The simplest of point-and-shoot photographs, this one involves the auto setting and the flash, trying to catch the puppy playing with the rose. I find that the Olympus sometimes struggles with focus in this kind of situation and there is usually a fairly long delay between the time I press the shutter release and the camera actually takes the picture. I've missed a lot of interesting action because of that.

Anyway, I compensate for that possibility by taking more shots, just to make sure at least one turns out. And I'm happy that this one did.

Day 14 - Puppy Close Up

A busy day running around meant I had little time with the camera. Time to take an extreme close-up of Marlee's face, to capture the beauty of her brown eye.

Though the camera's point-and-shoot set up offers little in the way of adaptability to certain situations, it does handle close up shots fairly well, especially when you use the extreme (18x) zoom function. The zoom allows the photographer to get up close and personal without giving the subject warning that you're taking their picture. Here, Marlee was more focused on her mom on than on the camera, giving me a chance to get a nice, clear shot of her face from the side.

Day 9 - The Birthday Puppy

Today features the first of what might be too many photographs of our beloved golden doodle, Marlee Marie. Marlee makes her first appearance today because it's her birthday! She turned four this morning, which is approximately equivalent to 28 in human years.

Another first is that this photograph was not actually taken by me. My partner, Patti, took this interesting picture of Marlee doing the "happy dance" in the snow in our backyard. She used the same Olympus camera I've been using every day. I find the picture interesting on many accounts but most importantly that it's taken after dark, with light be provided by the camera's own flash and an LL Bean head lamp doo-dad that we use for walking Marlee at night. The glowing things on Marlee's legs are reflector straps she received for Christmas from an aunt in Toronto, useful for making sure Marlee's visible to car drivers on her many night-time walks around the neighbourhood.

Happy birthday, Marlee. Let's hope your fifth year on the planet doesn't include too many appearances in this photo-a-day blog. No promises, though.