7th Annual Bay + Algoma Busker's Festival - 2019
One of the premiere events, I think, of the summer, is the Busker’s Festival. It’s always a great time with so many performers and vendors coming out. Not to mention, it always brings out so many people from around the city. I didn’t get out as long as I would have liked this year because I had a wedding to photography, but I still got the chance to photograph a small portion of it. Along with the photos, I walked around for about 45 minutes on the Sunday and focused on capturing some video. That can be found below as well. I’m already looking forward to next years festival!
Fat Guys Auto Parts Car Show - 2019
Yesterday the annual Fat Guys Auto Parts Car Show took place yet again and I swear, it was twice as big as last years. I only spent around 30 minutes walking around because I had a wedding to photograph in the afternoon but it was enough to get at least a few photos of the cars and the people. It was pretty crowded with people as you would expect so instead of trying to get photos of entire cars I picked out details that stood out to me. I would say some of the photos are almost abstract.
Hopefully next year I’ll have a bit more time to actually photograph more of the awesome cars and people that attended the event!
Festival of Colours 201
It was Day 2 of an amazing weekend. Yesterday, as I mentioned in my previous post, the Festival of India took place at the Thunder Bay Marina Park. Today, Festival of Colours was the main attraction, and it’s definitely one of my favourite events of the year to attend and of course photograph. I only had about an hour to work with because of prior commitments, but I managed to get some good photos. As usual, there was a ton of people in attendance.
Festival of India 2019
Festival of India here in Thunder Bay has been going on for about 10 years I believe. I have made it to a few over the years and it’s always a great time. This year, I went for about 1 hour and came away with some memorable photos. The dancers that I did see were simply amazing. I would have been nice to stick around to see a few more but I had to go. Tomorrow, The Festival of Colours takes place at the Marina and I’m really hoping I can find the time to make it out. it’s quite the scene. Here are some highlights from this evening.
Project Learning Tree – Government Funding Announcement – Lakehead Unviversity
Lakehead University played host to an amazing event yesterday. The Federal Government announced that it would be giving $4.4 million in funding to Project Learning Tree. Project Learning Tree is a workplace program that provides youth with employment opportunities in the forest and conservation sector. Currently Zac and Nick Wagman are biking across Canada and they made a stop at Lakehead University, where they were greeted by Minister Patty Hajdu to announce the investment, which will support more than 500 local and Canadian youth, particularly those facing barriers.
To find out more about this initiative, head on over to the Project Learning Tree Website.
Thunder Bay Blues Festival 2019
I attended the Thunder Bay Blues Festival a couple years back and that was actually the first time I did so. It was only for one day and I didn’t have access to the stage or the ability to really get in close. I still managed to get a lot of great crowd photos because that is mainly what I was hired for and I had a great time doing so. Fast forward to this years event and The Walleye asked if I could capture the event for them. As soon as they said I would be getting media passes I jumped at the opportunity. Plus, it’s rare that I actually have this weekend in July free. Usually I have a wedding booked.
2019 Scholarship + Bursary Awards Reception
The Thunder Bay Community Foundation hosted their 2019 Scholarship and Bursary Awards Reception last evening at the Boys and Girls Club. A select number of high school students along with their families were on hand to receive various scholarships and bursaries. My job was to simply capture the atmosphere, the people and of course the award presentations. I had a great time capturing candid moments and I could really feel the joy and excitement from everyone involved.
Thunder Pride 2019 + Pride Parade
The final day of Thunder Pride 2019 finished with a parade. Oh what a parade it was. My wife Anne and I arrived about 15 minutes before it was to begin at Waverley Park. We walked up Algoma to the base of the hill and by the time we got there it was just starting. Last years parade actually went through downtown. I don’t know if it was because it was a different route but it seemed twice as big this year. We were simply amazed by the amount of people participating in the parade.
Loud + Proud Pride After Party - Black Pirates Pub
Thunder Pride 2019 wrapped up today with the parade, which I will be posting very soon. Before that, Black Pirates Pub played host to the Loud and Proud Pride After Party which had an amazing drag show. I made sure I got right up against the stage and braced myself for what was to come. The bar was packed and the crowd was so energized. All the performers did an amazing job, and being that close, you could really feel the energy. It was great to see so much support from everyone there.
Davinci Cruise Night
Anyone who reads my blog posts, knows that I try and get out and photograph some of the vintage car shows throughout summer and fall. I was just out at the Kakabeka Car Show a few weeks back it was my first one of the year. Surprisingly, I had never made it out to the Davinci Nights weekly car show before. I know it has been going on each year for quite some time. Well, I finally got the chance to check it out and I’m glad I did. There were a lot of cars in the parking lot and even some I had never seen before. It was also a nice cloudy, almost gloomy day, so the lighting was perfect.
Lakehead University - Indigenous Alumni Speaker Series
The Office of Aboriginal Initiatives at Lakehead University hosted a 2019 Indigenous Alumni Speaker Series on Wednesday, June 12th in the John. N. Paterson Auditorium at the Bora Laskin Faculty of Law (PACI).
Ms. Sherry Abotossaway was the Keynote Speaker. She shared her story as a recent graduate from the Bora Laskin Faculty of Law at Lakehead University. It was such a fun event to capture and it was also great to see such a good turnout.
Waverley Hill Soap Box Races - George Jeffrey Foundation
I only made it out to about 10 minutes of the races this year but I did want to share a small selection of photos I managed to capture. Hopefully next year I’ll have more time to get out and cover this awesome event!
Kite Festival 2019 - Chippewa Park
Now that it’s summer, there are all kinds of events throughout the city. One of my favourites to go to has to be the Kite Festival out at Chippewa Park. It’s an annual event, where vendors show up, kites are flown and great times are had on the amusement rides at the park. Not to mention there are a host of other activities that take place during the day. The best part for me simply all the people.
Baby Shower for Gabriel
As a present to Jamie and Cory, who are family, I took photos for their baby shower for Gabriel. It took place at the Northend Recreation Centre and it ended up being the perfect location. Apparently, the centre double booked which meant Jamie had to have the shower outside, which was perfect. There was great lighting, the kids had more room to run around, and I got lots of great shots at the playground as well.
Thunder Pride 2019 – Flag Raising & Media Event
Today marked the first day of Thunder Pride 2019. To open the event there was a Flag Raising and Media Launch down at City Hall here in Thunder Bay. Mayor Bill Mauro, Chief Peter Collins and Grand Chief Alvin Fiddler helped raise the flag with members of Thunder Pride, and June 5-16 will be proclaimed as Pride Week in Thunder Bay.
2019 Lakehead University Convocation Ceremony
Lakehead University Aboriginal Cultural & Support Services hired me to photograph today’s Lakehead University Convocation Ceremony and I had a blast doing so. It’s hard not to come away with great photos in such a joyous atmosphere. I’m right at home at these types of events because they are lot like weddings. I thoroughly enjoy capturing candid moments and that is exactly what I did.
Classic Car Country Cruiser Night - Kakabeka Falls
This won’t be a long write up by any means, I simply wanted to share some photos from the first Classic Car show of the year in Kakabeka Falls. I love classic cars. One day I hope to own one. Until then, I will continue to photograph them and live vicariously through their owners. There are quite a few more shows coming up this summer and I’m very much looking forward to photographing some of them if I’m available.
K.I.H.S. Graduation Ceremony 2019 - Valhalla Inn
This was my third year photographing the Keewaytinook Internet Highschool (K.I.H.S) Graduation. It’s always such an amazing and rewarding experience. Each year I have photographed the event, the number has graduates has gone up. This years event was no exception, with a graduating class of 32. Just like last year, Valhalla Inn played host to the graduation.
Lakehead University - Material Witness - The Outpost
The Office Of Aboriginal Initiatives hosted a special production of “Material Witness this evening at the Lakehead University Outpost. I was lucky enough to photograph some of it.
Material Witness was inspired by Spiderwoman Theater's 1976 production of Women in Violence. Irreverent, sometimes surprising, the show is rooted in powerful storytelling, with a twist of humor and an uplifting musical beat. It is a multigenerational exploration of violence, healing and renewal in the lives of Indigenous women in urban and rural communities on Turtle Island.
NADF CCP Workshop 2019 - Valhalla Inn
Nishnawbe Aski Development Fund (NADF) are a not-for-profit Aboriginal Financial Institution serving entrepreneurs, businesses and communities in Northern Ontario. They hosted a 3 day workshop focusing on community planning. It took place at the Valhalla Inn in Thunder Bay. I was there to cover a couple hours in the morning on the first 2 days. While I was there during the first morning they announced their new website launch which was super exciting. There was also a keynote presentation by Dan Longboat.