A Visit With The Horses

The snow decided to come down most of the day today so I figured it was as good a time as any to get Willow some fresh air. So I packed up my Nikon D750 and the 85mm 1.8 and me and Willow headed out to Centennial Park. Since it had been snowing for a while, I had a feeling Centennial Park would have a fair amount of accumulation of snow. 

As soon as we started getting closer to the parking lot at Centennial, Willow immediately sat up in the backseat. To this day, I still don't understand how she knows when we are arriving at the chosen destination. Instinct I guess. I couldn't open the car door fast enough. She always takes forever to enter the car, but low and behold, she gets out pretty quick for an old girl.

For some reason I thought Centennial Park was off leash, but it obviously isn't. I brought the leash in any case, so I hooked her up and down the trail we went. I decided to walk to the over pass and then back through where the stables are, just in case the horses were out and the gate was open. 

Before we got to the stable area, Willow had plenty of random trees to smell and I let her for the most part. I did have to start pulling on her leash after a while, or else we would have been there all day. I did try and get her to pose for a shot against the wall at the overpass, but it didn't go well. As soon as I stepped back to take the shot she would start walking towards me. 

As I mentioned above, the ultimate destination was the horses and luckily, 3 of them were out and I was allowed to go in. Willow wasn't too happy about being tied up to a tree but the horses were off limits for dogs. 

The horses really didn't move at all, so I worked with what I had. Also, only having the 85mm lens, meant I couldn't get in too close, but I still came away with some decent shots. 

In the end, Willow had a good time and so did I. Aside from my hands partially freezing (dollar store gloves aren't that warm), I'm happy with some of the photos I got. And of course, Willow got to hang her head out the window the whole way back. Everyone got what the wanted.

Centennial Park + Boulevard in the Fog

Centennial Park was the location of one of my latest excursions. It was foggy again, and I had to quickly decide where to go before it went away. I figured it was time to go visit the horses once again and in the process, hopefully there would be some fog lingering around. Luckily, the horses were still out and there was a bit of fog to add to the mood. At the very least, it was my favourite kind of weather, overcast and somewhat gloomy.

Once I arrived at the park, I made my way directly to the playground which was completely empty. I just got in really close and captured some of the finer details that most people wouldn't even be looking at. I was simply using my Nikon D750 and the 50mm 1.8. I mentioned this before, but it's such a great walk around combo, very well balanced. The colours that come from the Nikon are just fantastic and always so perfectly balanced. Of course, I do my usual magic in Lightroom but it really doesn't take that much. After all, it's about the composition too which I always push myself to evolve at. 

After talking to the horses for a short while and walking around the stables, I made my way to the train tracks and Muskeg Express. In the past I have always just walked past it but this time around I decided to get in a little bit closer. I think I came away with some pretty cool photos. I did the same for the tractor down the trail too. By the time I was done, the fog was all but gone at Centennial, but I figured I might as well do a drive by Boulevard, where the dam is. It was actually still a bit gloomy down there too so I went for a short walk to see what I can come away with. 

One of my favourite parts of Boulevard is the bridge and the view looking on. With the fog in the background outlining the grain elevators I captured a couple good shots. As with Centennial, I got in close on a couple occasions to focus on the finer details. Building up a bit of an appetite I figured I would stop at Tim's on the way back. While wolfing down my breakfast sandwich at the table, I noticed the construction worker through the window and because I pretty much always have my camera with me, I got a good fleeting photo. He was only there for a about 10 seconds. 

And of course, once I got home, the last photo which was the perfect conclusion to the morning was lazy Willow passed out on the driveway. She does have hard life after all. 

Centennial Park

With the weather getting a bit better these days I am finding myself out a bit more taking photos. After seeing it snowed quite a bit I decided to head back to Centennial Park to see how it looked. I definitely wasn't disappointed. There was a ton of snow out there and all the trails were barely explored yet. As far as I could tell, I was the only one out there. Mind you, this was at 9:45 in the morning. There's something peaceful about walking through snow covered trails early in the morning. 

Anyone who follows this blog and sees these posts knows that I enjoy focusing on the details, and getting those close up shots. They are often almost abstract in most cases. This time around I used my Fuji X-T1 and 16-55 lens to try and capture some wider angle photos. I'm very much looking forward to using this lens this year for weddings. 

As soon as I arrived and made my way down the first part of the trail, I felt like I was being watched. Low and behold, I turned to my left and there was a deer checking me out. Of course I took a photo of him. I saw how close I could get but before I knew it, he was running off into the forest. Beyond that I walked around the snow covered cabins and then eventually up around the stable. I think the horses thought I was bring them food because they came right up to me. I saw they didn't have any hay yet so I'm sure they were quite hungry! It did give me the chance to get some great close up photos of them. 

I finished off my walk by heading to the top of the trail that overlooks Thunder Bay. Once there I got some great shots of the powerlines and overall view. And that was it. Overall, it was such a nice and relaxing walk. Hopefully we get at least one more snowfall before winter comes to an end. As long as it doesn't get too cold!