These photographs are from a late summer fashion shoot with gorgeous costumes designed and sewn by Vanessa Mayville. These images have been floating around in my mind for few days so I thought I’d post a few.
[Models ~ Vanessa & Avonlea]
© Karen McRae, 2015
Hiking the shoreline of Bic National Park (parc national du Bic) in Quebec, waiting for the water to push out a little further so we are able to pass around boulders and cliffs that are only passable during low tide. While stopped and listening to gently crashing waves and breathing in salty air this little red fox appears from the scattered boulders waiting with us until the water will recede enough for the hike to continue.
We are walking beside the immense St. Lawrence River (Le fleuve Saint-Laurent) as it opens up to the Gulf of St Lawrence, which then flows into the North Atlantic Ocean. The river becomes tidal somewhere around Quebec City, about 300 km upstream of where we are walking and it does feel like being on the cusp of the ocean.
September might be the best month to take a vacation. The best time for missing the summer crowds and peak insect season while still basking in (mostly) gorgeous weather.
© Karen McRae, 2015
River lilies that have been inverted in processing to bring out the lovely forms. Lots of possibilities to explore, not enough time!
© Karen McRae, 2015
The warm weather birds are returning. And while the land, too, has returned from under the snow, the rivers and lakes are still holding vast expanses of ice. I was watching these seagulls bickering, swooping and foraging at the open edges of the water, catching little fish and the lovely afternoon light. Some of the slow-shutter-speed images made me think of paper cranes which explains the title ‘Origami Gulls’.
© Karen McRae, 2015
We might have reached the final crescendo of winter cold. Maybe? This might be it for mornings starting out at -25c. How beautiful they can be, though. The clarity of the cold. And a stage set for…ducks. Those goldeneye ducks will push up against the northern iciness as long as there is open water. Surely there are more hospitable places to spend the winter but every year it seems as though there are just a few more of these birds that can’t resist this beautiful river.
The thermometre is rising now. We are destined to feel temperatures above zero in the next few days. It will be especially sweet this year.
Part of me, though, already misses this frosted landscape.
[photographs from yesterday morning]
© Karen McRae, 2015
The Snowshoer
Today felt downright balmy as the temperature briefly climbed all the way to -4c ~ we have been locked in the deep cold for so long, and it’s not over yet. It’s hard to believe spring is (officially) just under a month away. This day was for perfect for playing in the fresh snow, though, so I took my camera along while I was cross-country skiing on the escarpment and attempted to make use of the dull light (which can be suitable for longer exposures). Each of these images was made in-camera using multiple exposures and/or camera movement.
© Karen McRae, 2015
1&2 nuthatch
3,4 &5 female downy woodpecker
6&7 chickadee
Finding the sweetness of winter. It’s a cold one…
© Karen McRae, 2015
Every winter I find myself pressed up against this window holding my breath while I turn my lens on the forming frost. A tiny new garden grows during each cold spell and it’s never the same. You can find last January’s ‘Winter Garden’ here .
© Karen McRae, 2015
during snowfall…
[Layered exposures, made with camera movement]
Karen McRae, 2015
draw and shoot 