After a 3 month hiatus… I’ve shifted into a new role at work…two of them, infact. So I’m learning how that goes. Couple some additional hours with trying to be a husband and father when I get home, this blog sort of falls to the bottom of the priority list. Thus here’s another shorty…
To my amazement, when a friend invited me (nearly a year ago) on a photography tour, my amazing wife supported the endeavor! The tour was primarily around the town of Port Renfrew, British Columbia but that town is a bit small. As I understand it, the addition of its first gas station within the past year was a big deal. I flew into Victoria and spent nearly twenty-four hours there. The parliament building, as in the main photo, is really wonderful with its copper domes. When the sun was setting or rising, the light put on a show across the building’s stone walls. It was fun to just walk around and enjoy the area…but I also took photos.
I found this lamp post with the tilted top. I thought it was a fun piece and like how the dome of the parliament building behind it fits with the curves. I tried a crop with the lamp centered but I prefer this one better. I’d like to remove the other lamp posts on the left at some point because I think they’re too distracting.
On the back side of the parliament building, the light was hitting this scene nearly perfectly. I love the contract between the two sides of these stairs and the uniformity of the columns.
We walked down to the wharf and found a handful of very pretty boats. I found the various doors interesting and may do a separate post with just boat doors. For now, this rusty anchor caught the light really well. I wish the bouy hanging off the far side of the boat wasn’t there. Perhaps a tool for some AI tool…
What a pretty time of year to visit Victoria. I don’t know if they’re out during the summer months also but the tulips were in bloom everywhere. The businesses around the parliament building seem to agree that landscaping should be done with as many colorful tulips as possible. I got a few photos with very bright flowers but these tulips stood out. I’ve never seen these with the pointed petals before. I wish I had closed the aperture up a bit more to keep more of the flower in focus but I’m still quite happy with this photo.
We tromped around a bit more before headed up to Port Renfrew the day after flying in and I found this. It makes me think of West Side Story. I like the harsh light and the shadows. I also really like that it feels monochrome but isn’t. There’s not much color there but it’s definitely not a grayscale photo.
James Covello June 6, 2024
Very nice, Barrett! There’s a bunch of nice photos here.
I like the one at the top with the domes and the moon—great light on the statue at the tippy top, too.
I think I agree with you about the lamp posts on the far left of the second image. I actually didn’t notice the neat bent tip to that lamp until I read the text…it might be a little too close to the top edge. I suppose you could extend the blue sky easily enough, but you would probably have to make the aspect ratio more extreme than 3:2…maybe 16:9 vertical?
The tulip is very nice. And you are right—there were so many different varieties.
I really like the alleyway, too. Probably need to edit out the chimney with the bird in the lower corner, but I think the glare on the buildings is neat and the way that the strings of lights all disappear off the left edge is neat, too…so much better than if it was all just plain sky.
Good work!