A Sunday Drive

On March 30th, Margarit and Lisa and I took a drive down the David Thompson Highway to Abraham Lake.  Shawn was feeling a little under the weather, so he stayed behind at the cottage.  After several days in a row of shitty spring weather with snow, wind and cool temperatures, we finally got a nice day.  The sun was shining, there was very little wind, and the temperature got up to about +8C in the afternoon.

We started off up at Windy Point.  This was one of those rare days when the place did NOT live up to its name.  There was barely a breeze there and it was very pleasant.  We wandered around on the point and took in the sights.  The reservoir itself was still frozen, but with the up and down spring weather we've been having this year, we didn't take a chance on venture out onto the ice,  A few people did, but we didn't think it was a good idea.  The ice was all covered with snow anyway, so there was no chance to see the ice bubbles.

After that stop we drove up a little further to Abraham Slabs.  I puttled out the big view camera and took a couple of shots while the girls wandered around a little.  One stop was at the camping area, and a second was down beside the highway, a short distance away.

After that we headed back to the cottage to check on Shawn.  He was feeling better and while we were away he had tidied up and done the dishes.  Later in the evening our neighbors Shelly and Eric came over for a visit.  We pulled out the BBQ and made some wings.  Then later when the neighbors left we had a late supper of steak and baked potatoes.

Ball Diamond

The negative is a recently processed sheet of Kodak T-Max 100.  This one was actually from a Readyload Film Pack.  Sadly these are no longer made by Kodak, or the Quickload version by Fuji.  It was a preloaded sheet of film in a paper sleeve, that fit into a special holder.  It made carrying a large format camera outfit easier as you could take one film holder and a bunch of these envelopes, significantly lightening the load.  The film was always dust free, so it had that advantage as well.  I have a few dozen of these left in both T-Max 100 and Neopan Acros.  They are significantly outdated, but I save them for when I go on longer hikes, or extended road trips.

I found this overgrown baseball diamond in a small town in southern Saskatchewan last fall.  I shot it with the intention of considering it for the Apparitions project.  

I took this shot on September 19th 2024, at about 2:00 in the afternoon.  I used my Ebony view camera and a 125mm lens.  A #22 Orange Filter boosted contrast without as harsh an effect as the #25 Red that I more typically use.  The exposure was for 1/15 second at F18.0.

April Calendar Image

This is the image I selected for the April page of my Fine Art Monochrome 2025 calendar.  I stumbled upon this scene inside an old abandoned building in southern Saskatchewan.  This was in June of 2024, when my colleague Chris and I were exploring some old hotels for the Beer Parlour Project.  In addition to the old hotels, I was also attempting to take some photographs for my Apparitions project.  This one ended up on the calendar.

Alberta Foundation for the Arts - Art Acquisitions by Application

On March 23rd I sent in my application to the Alberta Foundation for the Arts.  The deadline for applications is April 1st.  Every year they put out a call for the Art Acquistions by Application Program.  Basically artists can submit work to be considered by the jury.  Any work accepted will be purchased by the Alberta Foundation for the Arts, and added to their permanent collection.  Much of this collection is circulated for public display.

I submitted the maximum number... five pieces.  If I do not make the short list of finalists, I will be notified in three months.  If I do make it to Stage 2, then it will take an additional three months before any decisions are made.

I selected images that I already have printed, which is really the basis of the application program.  They are looking to acquire work that already exists.  It appears as though preference is given to work that has been previously exhibited.  

I included two prints that were exhibited at the 54th Annual Juried Exhibition of the Society of Canadian Artists.  This show was at the Papermill Heritage Gallery in Toronto in August of 2022.  These prints were Tangle Falls, and Blackmud Creek.

I included one print that was exhibited at the Elected Members Exhibition of the Society of Canadian Artists.  This show was at the Gallery Viva Vida in Pointe Claire, Quebec in October of 2022.  This print was Spreading Creek Burn.

I included one print that was exhibited at the InFocus Photo Exhibition at the Wild Skies Gallery in Edmonton from February to April of 2024.  This print was Icy Rocks.

And finally, I included one print that has not yet been exhibited, but is part of the ongoing Apparitions project.  This print was used to secure grant funding for production, and is currently part of a submission package to multiple galleries.  This print was Too Late for the Dance.

If any of these pieces are accepted and purchased it will help to fund my photography addiction and offset a small part of the travel and material costs.