Day 284 - Another view of UNB

A friend told me I could probably get better views of the UNB campus from further east along the north shore of the Saint John River. He was right. You can see the Old Arts Building (far right), as well as a number of other university buildings as they drift up the opposite hill. I can't say I love this shot: it's too wide and the buildings too small. But it does capture the campus, doesn't it?

Day 253 - Science fiction dudes

For some reason, this photograph scares me. It looks like something out of a science fiction movie, especially with those "beaks" open and ready to bite.

I honestly don't know what these dudes are. They seem to be some kind of air exchangers for one of the UNB science buildings. That's my best guess. I like their shapes and the strange animal-like quality of their "faces". They really do belong in some kind of a movie.

This photo is all in the framing. I wanted to make the dudes the centre of attention but to place them in an environment, a space if you will. That's why you've got the brick walls on the left and bottom and that interesting little vacuum cleaner hose as well.

Day 249 - Back to the old red brick

Red brick and white trim appear to be a staple for Atlantic Canadian universities and the University of New Brunswick is no exception. Here, Kierstead Hall fills the shot with its square lines, crisp colours and green landscaping.

I find taking interesting photographs of buildings especially challenging, not so much from the standpoint of f-stop and shutter speed but with regard to framing and composition. I think I'm pretty good at finding small details and photographing them in interesting ways but I still haven't mastered the art of introducing drama to the standard building picture.

I had hoped that the angle from which I took this shot and the inclusion of the two trees that break up the straight lines of the edifice and its bricks might add interest but I'm not sure I've been successful. Don't get me wrong, I think this is a nice picture. I just don't think it's a great picture.

Day 246 - The gates of academia

Back to the picturesque University of New Brunswick, where we find the brick pillars of the school's front gate. It's just too bad that this is not the gate most University faculty, staff or students use. Located at the bottom of the University, this gate (with a matching pillar on the other side of the entrance) leads to the football-shaped road that circles the main campus.

I'm pleased with this photograph because I managed to frame out all of the objects located nearby that interfere with the image: road signs, traffic lights, litter, construction barriers, etc.

I also had to fiddle with the light a bit and, to be honest, ended up using iPhoto's "Enhance Image" function to brighten the colours. It was a strange, kind of dismal day but the sun was still pushing a lot of light into the area from the left and behind the north-facing gate, making it difficult to get the colour and detail to show.

Day 244 - Sir Howard Douglas (Old Arts) Hall

The University of New Brunswick campus at Fredericton features the longest continuously serving university building in Canada:a lovely stone building which has been known by many names, among them "King's College", "Old Arts" and its current moniker, "Sir Howard Douglas Hall".

Old Arts was the school's original building when the university began operation on its current site on the hill in Fredericton in 1829. At that time, Old Arts housed classroom space, lab space, office space as well as dorm rooms and a chapel. The chapel, a lovely room on the ground floor, is still in use and contains much of the original furniture.

Photographing Old Arts is not easy. To get a good shot of the front (top picture) you have to wander down the grassy slope in front to a line of trees. Both the branches overhead and the slope below you tend to get in the way of your shot. In this photo, for example, the bottom of the first floor is lost behind the lip of the hill while the dome is obscured somewhat by leaves.

The picturesque entrance on the east side of the building (lower photo) creates challenges because of the close proximity of other buildings and a parking lot. Difficult to get a nice shot of it but well worth the effort. Unfortunately, the west entrance (which offers itself up to your camera) is not nearly as pretty.

And, as for the rear of the building, well, it's not as nice as the front, it is skirted by a busy parking lot and, to get far enough away for a full shot, you have to climb onto the terraced roof of the science library and still deal with wires.

To sum it up, Old Arts is a gorgeous building but just a little bit shy.

Day 237 - The beautiful campus of... UNB???

I have been trying to find a way to get a nice photograph of the campus of the University of New Brunswick. Just about everyone who visits UNB says that it has a beautiful campus and it does. Getting a long-distance photo that conveys that beauty, however, isn't so easy.

I'm fairly happy with this shot, taken from the North Side of the St. John River. I like the way the rusting walking bridge provides a foundation for the many red-brick buildings of the campus. As much as I like this picture, however, I'm a little disappointed that it doesn't include any of the university's signature buildings, like the original "Old Arts" building, the Student Union Building and the new Currie Centre.

Many of the buildings you see to the top right of this photo are, in fact, not on the UNB campus at all: they're part of St. Thomas University. Interesting: the best shot I could get of UNB is actually mostly of St. Thomas.

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 135 - Variation on a Theme

I had a hard time choosing a photograph yesterday from the twenty or so I took from the top floor of the UNB Student Union Building.

So I decided to use a second one today, sort of a variation on a theme. The subject matter is similar but I like the balance in this shot, a balance that the designers of the University obviously designed intentionally when they chose a location for and then built the residence buildings around the central green space below the SUB.

At some point, I will go there when I can get out on to the balcony (and, if possible, when the sun is shining) to take these shots again, just to see how different they would be.

Day 134 - View from Above

The University of New Brunswick offers some of the nicest views of Fredericton. This photograph, taken from the third floor of the UNB Student Centre on a soggy, cloudy Saturday, features some of the red-brick of the University, the walking bridge over the river and then the north side of the city in the distance.

I'm pleased with this picture because I was able to frame it in such a way as to capture so much of what makes Fredericton such a lovely place: the university and its distinctive buildings, the multitude of trees that populate the area, the mighty St. John River and the walking bridge itself, converted from an old train bridge. The north side of the city offers a picturesque background to the image.

Day 122 - Weathered Symbol

I had never noticed this decoration on one of the buildings at UNB until I walked through campus recently, Olympus in hand, looking for interesting subjects.

I believe that this wood carving at the top of one facade of the building was once a coat of arms of some kind but the peeling paint and weathered wood make it hard to see precisely what it was. It's an interesting challenge to find ways to photograph decay and make it interesting and not unappealing. I'm not sure I accomplished that task here (the lighting isn't great and the shot needs better centring) but I'm not unhappy with the result.

Day 43 - Foosball Abstract

Sometimes interesting photography comes simply from looking at commonplace objects differently.

For example, I really like this close-up picture of a foosball table at one of the residences on campus at the University of New Brunswick. By placing the camera very close to the blue players in the foreground, at about their level, I have created what I think is a very intimate shot of the game. The focus in on the red men in the second row, meaning both the blue players and the ball (in the back) are just slightly fuzzy which creates an interesting effect.

I tried photos like this without using the flash but the result was a bit of a dimming of the colours so I went with the flash-aided picture. The clarity and vigour the flash brings combines with the intimacy of the close-up framing to bring new life to an old past-time. I think it gives a new perspective on the game, don't you?

Day 18 - Historic UNB (Number 1)

A walk up the hill at twilight gave me a nice opportunity to capture the University of New Brunswick's beautiful, historic Fredericton campus bathed in a gentle light.

Built on the side of the river valley, UNB features as its central building Sir Howard Douglas Hall, better known as the Old Arts Building, which is to be found just to the right of this photograph. Old Arts is a massive stone structure that dates back about 200 years and serves as the central administrative building.

All the other older buildings on campus are either made of red brick or wood, creating a beautiful scene for the students, staff and faculty. The only challenge: the hill itself. You get quite a workout trying to walk the campus. But it does create a dramatic effect in photos like this one, which features a line of lamp-posts and a second of trees escorting the narrow path upwards in to the centre of the University.

This shot is all about composition and light. And it will likely be the first of many featuring the attractions of UNB this year.