Polaroid 55 Negatives

I processed a few sheets of Polaroid 55 film that I shot with my 4x5 camera on the weekend.  The negatives are now dry, and I've scanned a few to share here in my blog.  That field of sunflowers still captivates me and I am quite happy with the negatives that I have so far.  Even though the light was changing and at times a little flat, the skies were exceptional and as a result the negatives are very printable.  I can't wait to find the time to process the rest that I shot on various other film stock...

Wild Blueberry Picking

It is the season for the wild blueberries to be ripe.  And, the forecast was calling for the warmest day of the summer so far...  So the girls and I packed up and headed out for a day trip.  The forecast proved to be right as the temperature topped out at +31C in the mid-afternoon.  This was the first time that  we hit +30C this summer.  It has certainly been a cool wet summer this year and we are hopeful that the fall will be warm and dry.  But, it is getting so cool during the nights right now that I expect we will have our first frost very soon.  Some of the grain fields are ripening, and the geese are beginning to gather in flocks.  Fall is just around the corner, I'm afraid.

My parents came along with us for the day.  They had first taken me out to the blueberry patch over 30 years ago when I was a kid.  The patch is out in the jackpine covered sandhills north of Edmonton.  We keep the exact location a secret, so it doesn't get overpicked.  We missed the last couple of years and in fact that last time that we were out was three summers ago.  At that time Margarit stayed home with newborn Helena and just the two older girls and I went out.  This time around we all went.  There was a pretty good crop and despite the heat and the mosquitos we came home with enough berries to have some for fresh eating and baking, and a few to make some jam.  It was really nice to be out in the woods.  There were wildflowers of the late summer blooming, lots of mushrooms, and the kinnickinnick berries were also ripening.  When we got back into the city in the late afternoon, we all went out for dinner together.  A fitting end to a very busy but enjoyable weekend.

 

Busy Weekend

I got up moderately early and went out for a day trip with my friend Jon.  With all the camping we've been doing this summer this was the first opportunity for a day trip in quite a while.  And, it was the first time that Jon and I had been out together since the spring trip to the Crooked Trees.  We left the city around 8:30AM and headed to the northeast.  We drove the backroads and came across a couple of interesting old farmyards.  We stopped in a couple of places to take photographs.  In one of them we spooked a big Mule Deer buck with a huge velvet covered rack.  He bolted out of an old barn and took off across the pasture.  Later we found ourselves up at the Desjarlais river crossing on the North Saskatchewan.  As we made our way back in the general direction of home we decided to stop and explore the town of Hairy Hill.  Although there are still a handful of permanent residents left here, pretty much all of the stores, businesses and schools have been shut down.  As we continued on our way home we came across a field of sunflowers.  I had always wanted to photograph one, and so had Jon, but neither of us had ever come across one in our travels.  Although we were running a little later than expected, we both called home to our families and let them know that we simply had to stop and take some photographs.  I'm anxious to see some of the large format black and white images that I shot here, but like usual, it will be some time before I get around to developing them.  I did capture a number of color digital snapshots as well.  We eventually arrived back in the city, later than expected, but satisfied with the images that we made.  

Later that evening, after seeing the girls very briefly, I headed back out to play hockey in Sherwood Park.  This was just shinny with friends, but an opportunity to get in a skate before the upcoming winter hockey season starting in early September.  I also wanted to find out how my knee and ankle would stand up as both are just recovering from sprains sustained in the summer playoffs back in July.  I am still sore, and my mobility is limited, but I can tell that I am on the mend.  Of course if I had actually iced the sprains when they happened, and not been riding horses and packing around heavy camera equipment all summer, the recovery might be a little further along...

Dad and Daughter 2

In mid-August it was eldest daughter Hailey's turn for her weekend with Dad.  Like her younger sister, she too chose to return to the ranch in the badlands to ride horses.  This time around Hailey did not have Dad entirely to herself.  Some friends were camping with us... my close friend and business partner Frank was there with his daughter Sabrina.  His other daughter Tamara was there with her husband and son.  The weather was great and we enjoyed yet another weekend beside the Red Deer River.  We went out for two trail rides.  Sabrina and her nephew Kynan both got to ride for the first time and they both loved it.  We did a little fishing and just enjoyed two days outside...

Back to the Ranch...

Last weekend we headed out camping, right after work on Friday.  It was a very busy week, and a challenge to get everything packed up in time.  We let Hailey pack for herself, only to later find out that she forgot pants.  She had shorts and T-shirts, but no long pants.  The mosquitos were absolutely awful and swarmed all over us whenever we stepped out side.  Hailey quickly learned the value of careful packing.  Fortunately it stayed breezy for most of the weekend, helping to keep the mosquitos at bay.  

Once again we headed back to the ranch in the badlands.  The girls just can't seem to get enough of horses.  I don't really mind taking them out repeatedly over the summer as we just can't afford to own horses of our own.  And, it is a wonderful, relaxing, quiet spot in the badlands and the cottonwoods along the river.

The girls all went out for a trail ride on Saturday morning.  This was Margarits first visit to the ranch so far this summer.  As this was my fourth visit of the year, and I had already been out on a couple of trail rides, I let her go, and stayed behind at the trailer with little Helena.  Helena is getting close to ready to go for a short ride in a buddy saddle, and we may give it a try later this year.  For sure by next year.

On Saturday night we headed up north to the nearby town of Elnora to take in the 13th Annual Brahma-Rama.  This is a typical small town rodeo that features only Bull Riding.  It's always great to see an event like this at a small venue as you are right on top of the action.  We tried to talk the girls into entering the "Mutton-Bustin" competition that allowed the young kids to try and stay on a sheep.  But despite their interest in livestock they would have no part of it.  But we stayed into the evening and watched the bull riding.  There were a couple of families out from the local Hutterite colony, and some of the young boys looked pretty cute in their big black hats and suspenders.  I noticed that the Hutterite families were wandering about amongst the crowd and enjoying the action, and didn't hesitate to enjoy a cold beer too... even the women.  We left the rodeo just before the finals and just made it back to the campsite as a heavy thunderstorm was rolling in.

The next morning the ranch was very busy.  It was the annual charity ride for Stars [Shock Trauma  Air Rescue Society] Air Ambulance.  We joined in for the big pancake breakfast, the charity auction, and later the roast beef dinner.  There were no horses available for riding so we couldn't take part in the trail ride.  During the afternoon Hailey and I wandered off into the badlands and took a few photographs with my big camera.  It was pretty muddy and slippery from the showers overnight and in the morning.  We finally packed up and left in the early evening, arriving back home just in time to put the girls to bed.

A very busy weekend, but packed with a lot of fun and interesting stuff.  The girls are already talking about heading back to see the horses yet again...

 

 

Tragic News... Jason Turner

I didn't know Jason Turner well.  Jay was a close friend of one of the alternate captains of the Renegades Hockey Team.  Jay signed on to play with the team this past summer and was a great guy.  His team spirit was noticed and appreciated in the room and he quickly fit in as one of the guys.  I played defense along side of him for many of our games over the summer season, and through our just finished playoff run.  I just learned that Jay passed away in a tragic accident last week.  While on vacation in the Okanagan with his family, he drowned.  One of his kids had drifted out into the lake on a raft.  Jay swam out to try and bring his child back to shore.  He went down in the water and never made it back up.  At 40 years of age he left behind a wife and three kids.  What a tragic loss....     

He will always be remembered as a team player and family man.

I'm sure it must be terribly difficult for his family to carry on after such an awful tragedy.

This makes me appreciate and realize the importance of family, and the value of the time we have.

 

August Long Weekend

We traveled to the Alberta foothills for the August long weekend.  The girls and I packed up the trailer and headed out to the Forestry Trunk Road.  We spent most of our time at the campsite at Ram Falls.  It was very relaxing.  We arrived after dark on Friday night and it was a bit of a challenge to find a site that our trailer would fit into, particularly in the dark.  Eventually we succeeded.  We were a little annoyed at the campsite operator as despite advertising themselves as large RV friendly, there were limited sites that our small 5th wheel could fit in to.  This was particularly frustrating given the fact that the two campsite loops with larger pull-through sites were closed.  Judging by the overgrown nature of these sites, they had likely remained closed all summer.  The next morning we slept in and eventually moved to a larger site that had more space for our trailer.  The girls enjoyed picking and eating the wild strawberries that were ripening in all the clearings.  There were a lot of wildflowers blooming all over the place, particularly twin flowers, avens, monkshood, and others.  Later in the afternoon we took a walk down to the gravel bar along the Ram River and collected rocks.  There are a lot of very old marine fossils to be found in this formation.  The next day, after sleeping in again, we took a hike along the rim of the Ram canyon.  Still a little bothered by a sprained knee and sprained ankle, courtesy of summer hockey, I didn't climb down the long staircase to the viewing platform above the Falls.  While the girls checked out the falls, I took some photographs up on top with my view camera.  Then we set out along the canyon trail.  It was a beautiful day and we enjoyed the walk and all the wildflowers.  Margarit, Annelise and Helena eventually headed back to the trailer while Hailey and I stayed behind to take a few more photographs with the 4x5.  We were so absorbed in our task that we did not immediately notice the deer that wandered up in the trees right behind us.  That night we sat around the camp fire enjoying the evening together.  The next morning, after breakfast we set off down the road and ended up stopping for the afternoon at Elk Creek.  But, before we could do that, Margarit wanted to show me a rock that she had found down near the gravel bar.  She insisted that it was a perfectly heart-shaped rock that she simply had to have for her flower bed.  It turned out to be a rather large rock that was challenge to dig out of the side of the road.  Eventually we had it extracted and loaded in the back of the truck and were able to continue on to Elk Creek.  This is another of our favorite spots that we have camped at numerous times in the past.  We hiked down along the creek and the girls enjoyed splashing in the cold waters of the creek and collecting yet more rocks.  Eventually we had to pack up and make our way home.

Surprise...!!

My mother-in-law turned 80 last fall.  She finally agreed that she was no longer able to look after her acreage by herself.  Last spring she moved into a seniors apartment in the city.  Finally this summer she agreed to put her property up for sale.  The property sold this summer, and although the buyer intends to knock down the old house and build on the land, we were responsible for emptying the buildings and cleaning things up by the possession date.  My wife struggled with this as her Mom was reluctant to let go, and not particularly cooperative.  My sister-in-law and the eldest daughter in the family, although very helpful earlier on, was not able to travel from her home in California to help out with the final clean-up.  I was very busy at work so the brunt of it fell on my wife's shoulders.  To cheer her up a little after such a difficult task I bought her a car.  One of our neighbors had a nicely restored 1972 VW Beetle for sale.  My wife grew up learning to drive on Beetles and has a nostalgic attraction to them.  So I bought this one for her, and surprised her with it.  This will be her summer car, and is just for her.  We now need to clean out our cluttered garage to make room to park it, but Margarit relishes this challenge as she does not wish witness a repeat of the clean up that she just endured at her Mom's place.  We will work together to get our place in order and not have to subject our kids to such an indignity in the years to come.

Another Batch of Ilford SFX

A rather frustrating week for me at the end of July.  Some genius in civic government decided that re-surfacing the roads in our neighborhood would be an acceptable alternative to the complete re-construction that is really necessary, given the fact that everything is over 40 years old.  All this despite the fact that they played the same game a few short years ago.  An incompetent contractor that was undoubtedly the "low-bidder" was hired but was seriously lacking in communication skills.  So, the no parking signs went up and we were not allowed to park on our street.  As the long weekend drew nearer, I became more and more anxious to bring our trailer home, so that we could pack for our weekend travels.  Nearly two weeks later, following numerous trailer moves, and countless phone calls, the bulk of the re-surfacing was completed today, yet it is obvious that patching and further work remains necessary.  What a collosal waste of taxpayers money!! Eventually we snuck the trailer home long enough to get packed up and head out for the long weekend.  We spent a very relaxing three days at Ram Falls on the Forestry Trunk Road.  I have a number of snapshots, as well as some more serious images from that trip, that I will post in the coming days.  The current stumbling block remains the fact that my computers hard drive is full, and I can't download any further images from my digital camera.  Thank goodness for film!!!  When we returned from our weekend trip I processed a few rolls of Ilford SFX that were shot in my 6x24 panoramic camera.  This film has extended red sensitivity that approaches the look of true infrared films.  I'm beginning to fine tune the exposure and processing of this film, and am getting closer to the "Look and Feel" that I have been striving for.  This batch includes a shot of the aspen grove along the Miette River in Jasper National Park, an image of a country road south of the city, a couple shots of the boulders at Red Rock Coulee in southern Alberta, and finally a couple images taken along the Ram River this past weekend.

Hopefully in the coming days I can resolve my computer issues and will be able to download and post some additional images.  There were a lot of wildflowers blooming in the front ranges of the Rockies, and I think I captured a couple of acceptable images.