nature

Winter Nights

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WinterNight1
WinterNight2They have only just begun, really. It was a few days ago that the snow finally decided to swing by and tuck in the plants and trees with a thick white blanket. I confess that I love it. What is more peaceful than a shrouded winter night? The snowflakes, relinquished from clouds, slipping by in whispers. Fresh snow for a fresh year.

Best wishes for this shiny new year

[Images made by using a pop of flash at the beginning of a long exposure and then a little camera movement during the exposure.]
© Karen McRae, 2016

Goose Down 2

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Goose-Down2
This is a reworking of an image from a couple of years ago. The graceful form of the bird struck me when I first came across it; the water was shifting the goose back and forth in a slow rhythmic motion and the submerged down looked so soft and painterly. I have layered the bird photograph with an image of cloud reflections on water and I think I like the inky blue that spills over to the delicate palisade of golden threaded flora. Now I am thinking about how I might translate this into a painting…

© Karen McRae, 2015
Goose-Down2

It’s Still Autumn

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River’sEdge1, Early December 2015
River’s Edge2, Early December 2015
River’s Edge1, Early December 2014
River’s Edge2, Early December 2014

In the infancy of December 2014 the air was very cold and the river was all frozen jagged edges – sculptural and almost colourless. It felt like deep winter. But there is no ice in this early December, no snow. Just gentle waves lapping the soft shoreline.

[click on an image to see the bigger picture – top images from this Dec, bottom images from last]

© Karen McRae, 2015

The Spirited Ones

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InandOutof-the-Hand1InandOutof-the-Hand10
InandOutof-the-Hand8

InandOutof-the-Hand11Tiny chickadees in and out of the hand. I feel these images may give a sense of the sensations; the whirr of the wings at your ear and the ever-so-gentle touching down on your fingertips. A quiet joy.

[Click on the tiled squares to enter an image gallery]

The River's Edge
At River’s Edge, end of day.

© Karen McRae, 2015

Flight Patterns

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FlightPatterns_Geese1

FlightPatterns_Geese2

FlightPatterns_Gulls3Part of the rhythm of autumn; skies interspersed with migratory birds, punctuation marks of the shifting seasons.

[Longish exposures of Canadian Geese, and a lone seagull]
© Karen McRae, 2015

While Waiting on the Tide…

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RedFox_ParcBic_1Hiking 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.

FleuveSaint-LaurentLandscape_ParcBic1 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.

RedFox_ParcBic_6September 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

Evening Aria

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EveningSong1

EveningSong2In-camera multiple exposures of the mutable river and sky ~ intimate and still, wide open and wild. The summer heat sends the mind (and perhaps the body) to the water.

© Karen McRae, 2015