Autumn reflected

Another picture from the enchanted place on the Shawinigan River.

This time I felt like bumping up the reflection to be almost on par with the real trees and also added a bit of a white vignette. Enjoy!

Nikon 7100, 50mm, 1/50s @ f/6.3, iso 400

Enchanted place

While in Quebec City during the long Canadian Thanksgiving weekend, we visited Montmorency Falls. What a disappointment! Not only the falls are not that pretty (though large they are!), but also the crowd was almost unbearable. So we just turned around and left without taking a single picture.

On our way to Montreal we decided to visit the town of Shawinigan. Another disappointment. Someone decided to build as many supermarkets in the middle of what could be one of the nicest places to live.

Then, on our way out, we encountered the enchanted place. In the afternoon light, the fall colours looked almost unreal. Add few little waterfalls here and there, play of shadows between areas still lit by the sun and those already dark. You get the picture :)

Speaking of which - I am extremely grateful for the Lightroom panorama feature - it was not intended to be one, but of the few shots I've taken, none was framed right. Only combining two shots gave the effect you see below.

Nikon 7100, 105mm, 1/6s @ f/22, iso 200

Color my world...

In a stark contrast to the previous picture, this one was taken on the same day, but not in the morning fog, but in the strong noon daylight.

As I said before, autumn is just starting here in Quebec. You have to observe the hills and mountains to see the colors, because on the road level they are still just a few specs of yellow here and there. But when you take your eyes a bit higher this is what you're going to see...

Nikon 7100, 105mm, 1/100s @ f/10, iso 100

Autumn accents

So the summer is gone, the days are shorter and shorter and the nights cold enough to scare Sunday campers :)

But this means there will be soon more and more shades of yellow and red around. Hunting for them, I went to the parc national de la Mauricie. Even this far north there are only few signs of coming autumn, mostly on higher hills. As this picture was taken on the river bank, only this one tree was not green. The scene looked so nice in the fog though that I decided to make it monochrome with just one color accent.

Nikon 7100, 105mm, 1/125s @ f/9, iso 200

Summer day

On the last day of our US trip (yes, I'm starting backwards) we encountered a weekend paradise for people from New Hampshire and neighbouring states - a river "beach" in the White Mountain Forest. Sun, water (cold, I admit), rocks, little waterfalls and fresh air - that is all one needs to relax and prepare for the coming week.

The image was taken "casually", with the iPhone 5s, upon departure.

iPhone 5s, auto

Classic postcard from Charleston

Another mansion from Charleston, SC. This time I shot at the gate to capture the "inviting" character of the alley.

The original RAW was a bit too green for me, so I switched to monochrome. And then I decided to give it that classic postcard look with white vignette and a bit of sepia, courtesy of Silver Efex.

Sony RX100M3, 24mm, 1/50s @ f/5.6, iso 320

Soothing sight

Few steps from the shore, where the previous picture was taken and there is another sight. The lake is still there, so are the Adirondacks hills, but now we find ourselves in the green...

I really liked the park just on the other side of the Beach Road. And the bush on the first plan looked like it just bloomed to greet the visitors coming for the Memorial Day weekend.

Sony RX100M3, 44mm, 1/100s @ f/5.6, iso 80

Spring panorama

It was a nice weekend hike to Mt. Sourire (~450 m), where we were greeted with this view. Notice the snow still lying on the hills where ski trails are supported by snow guns.

Sony RX100M3, 24mm, 1/160s @ f/5.6, iso 80

Spot the difference

When visiting Lake Placid on Easter weekend, I barely could recognize the lake I saw 2 years ago in the summer. However, even in its frozen state, you can still take a trip around the Mirror Lake!

Nikon 7100, 75mm, 1/3200s @ f/5.6, iso 100 (April 2015)

Samsung S2, auto (July 2013)

Pattern of pines

I went to Adirondacks for Easter, but this time not so much photographing.

However, just passing on the road, I managed to spot a nice, contrasting pattern of pine trees on the hill. Wintery landscape, hopefully one of the last opportunities this year!

Nikon 7100, 75mm, 1/640s @ f/5.6, iso 100

Lights of McGill

And again, having the heavier camera in my backpack paid off (too bad I did not pack a tripod too)! I've been just returning home from a meet-up when this sight caught my attention. It was almost dark, only the sky was a bit lighter with one of those cloud formations that make pictures interesting.

Not having a tripod I improvised by resting my tele lens against the fence. With high ISO and VR mode active I managed to get a pretty decent shot at 70mm (105mm in 35mm terms) and f/10. I tried 85mm too (the second photo), but I like the framing in the first one better. On afterthought, I could have tried to step up the aperture a bit.

Nikon 7100, 105mm, 1/6s @ f/10, iso 3200

Nikon 7100, 127mm, 1/6s @ f/10, iso 3200

Dark Hedges of Mont-Royal

North Ireland has got its Dark Hedges, in Montreal - at least for me - that would be the park alley, an extension of Rue Rachel, that leads to the Monument of Sir George-Étienne Cartier. I pass this place almost every morning on my way to work. Today was a very sunny day, so I took my tele lens to make the most of it.

I tried two different versions - the original picture was the darker one. Then I tried the overexposed settings of the Silver Efex software. And I have to admit, the lighter variant looks better, more along the spirit of the season, which in Montreal - unfortunately - is still winter.

Nikon 7100, 255mm, 1/200s @ f/9, iso 100 (overexposed)

Nikon 7100, 255mm, 1/200s @ f/9, iso 100 (dark variant)

The perfect moment

This is the last photo of the series. I mean, I still have a few that would be a good material, but it is time to move on to another location. Mind you, all the pictures posted this week are from the same day in Adirondacks Park: a morning spent on the lakes and the afternoon/evening at hiking.

The capture below is actually the first of that day - when the sun was still below the horizon, just preparing to set. It was taken just 50 minutes before that one. 

I do not remember whether I used any ND filters to achieve 10s exposure - probably did not have to. The result is a very smooth, silky surface. However, what I like the most are the colours, similar to this and this, but somehow even more deeper and astounding.

Nikon 7100, 75mm, 10s @ f/16, iso 100

Mountain fist bump

Another panorama from atop of the Cascade Mountain - this time during the daylight. Well, sort of, because it was already after 7pm and the sun started preparing to set.

Plus, the rock on the top of the mountain looks like a fist ready to bump! 

I rarely do HDRs, because it is always a struggle to make them look natural. This one is close, but still not quite there. I was using the HDR Efex 2, maybe I'll try again with Lightroom 6?

Sony RX100M3, 24mm, hdr @ f/11, iso 80

Golden hour

This is another one from the last summer in Adirondacks: a breathtaking view from the Cascade Mountain near Lake Placid, one of 44 High Peaks. Almost nobody stays at the top until the sun set. Those who do, get this sight to admire.

Sony RX100M3, 70mm, 1/6s @ f/11, iso 80

Ethereal sailboat

I wanted to go back to Laos (in virtual sense), but then this picture came up. At first it didn't seem much, but the more I looked at it, the more I saw a sailing ship formed by the fog, reflection and the trees acting as masts. Maybe the photo would have been even better if the sky was more dramatic?

Nikon 7100, 105mm, 1/100s @ f/4.5, iso 1400

Feeling blue

And the picture I was looking for yesterday was this one. It is actually a sibling of that photo, but shot wider, with a different camera (Sony here, Nikon there).

Sony RX100M3, 31mm, 0.6s @ f/11, iso 80

Path to enlightenment

Sony RX100M3, 54mm, 1.3s @ f/11, iso 80

Back to Laos. The Kong Lor Cave was nice, but so were the surroundings. The forest path leading to the cave was especially welcoming in the early morning.

Green portal

Sony RX100M3, 70mm, 1/80s @ f/11, iso 400

Interesting tree pattern on the natural rubber plantation in Krabi.

Urquhart Castle

Nikon 5100, 82mm, 1/50s @ f/5.6, iso 140

Re-edit of the picture taken this winter at the Loch Ness. More summer-like version.