Morning Walk in Fort William - Canon EOS R

Knowing that winter can hit at any moment, I have been trying to get out on photo walks a few times during the week after I drop my wife off at work. It helps wake me up and also gets my creative juices flowing, and prepares me to sit in front of a computer. Well, almost. I decided to venture down to Fort William and make my way through some of the side streets. I had no route planned or even a final destination.

I did know that I wanted to check out some of old McKellar Hospital and perhaps the old FWCI building too. I managed to make it to both. These are areas I have photographed many times before so I do challenge myself to come up with different compositions. It’s not always easy, but sometimes all you need to do is turn around or even get lower to the ground.

I even made my way down some back alleys, which I absolutely love doing. I know it sounds strange, but some of my best photos have resulted from treks down alleyways. I’m not talking seedy dangerous ones, just neighbourhood ones.

There were some keepers from the walk. Some were better than others, but I figured I would share some of them here, for anyone interested in seeing a little peice of Thunder Bay from a different perspective.

Downtown Fort William

Last week I decided to wander around good old Fort William. Each time I go there, I always find new spots and different angles. This time around I brought my Nikon D750 and 35mm 1.8. I think it's the perfect walk around lens. It allows me to get in really close but it's also perfect for capturing authentic street photography, that loos natural to the eye. 

The following photos are simply a collection of things that caught me eye. Enjoy!

Almost too cold to take photos .... almost

This winter has taken a turn and it has been very cold. That's not good when you actually want to do something outside, but I decided to defy the extreme temperature, grab my camera, and wander around aimlessly looking for things to photograph. After meeting Anne for lunch at Cronos Cafe, I dropped her off, parked the car and began my cold and brief venture in downtown Fort William. 

Instead of my usual X-T1, I decided to pull out the X-E1 paired with the 35mm. I had forgotten how capable of a camera it is. Just like with all Fuji cameras I own, the colours straight out of the camera are superb. The first 10 minutes of the walk weren't too bad but then I started feeling the cold, especially on the face. Instead of giving in I just decided to keep walking and hopefully that would warm me up a bit. It didn't. Regardless, I managed to explore for about 25 minutes. 

I didn't really have anything specific in mind, as usual I just captured what caught my eye. I finished off my walk around the train yard on Simpson Street and did some in camera double exposures. Some of them turned out pretty good. It's usually a hit and miss kind of thing but fun as hell to try. If your camera has the option, next time you are out and about and looking for something different, give it a shot. 

Thanks for viewing!

Downtown Fort William

Last week I had to take Noah to the dentist so I decided to bring along my D610 and 50mm 1.8. After snapping a quick photo of my feet, just cause, I headed outside to walk around aimlessly. I tend to explore Simpson Street quite often so it's always a challenge to find different perspectives, and things to photograph. I'm always amazed that I am able to do so. Sometimes it's just a matter of looking behind as your walking or simply taking a slightly different route. 

Another thing that often dictates what kind of photos I capture of the same area is lighting. Sometimes all it takes is a bright sunny day or on the opposite end, a cloudy day. In this case, it was bright and sunny which meant harsh shadows. It also meant that the colours would generally be a bit more vibrant then that of a cloud day. 

When I walk around I tend to resort to my X-T1 but I actually don't mind the weight of the Nikon and 50mm. It's obviously heavier but not excessively so. The main difference is that I actually have to look through the viewfinder on the Nikon, which I have absolutely no problem doing.

I came away with a few good shots and a nice collection overall. All photos were processed in Lightroom with my usual adjustments and tweaks.