Losing the Light

October 7, 2018 | drawandshoot

End of day landscape – dusky skies and a whisper of tree.

Momento (after the storm)

September 24, 2018 | drawandshoot

If you look closely you might notice the masts of docked sailboats emerging from the blustery landscape. The pinging and whistling sounds on vibrating metal masts are glorious.

Spring is Extinct

March 28, 2015March 28, 2015 | drawandshoot

Or, at least, if you lived here you could be forgiven for thinking this is true. It is also true that there are small signs of spring: the pussy willows are indeed popping out of their dark skins, the birds already have a little spring fever, the days are longer, brighter… But it’s still pretty cold. Just yesterday it snowed. Again.

Today the sun was shining, though, with enough warmth to start a slow melt of the little glaciers that line the streets. They are retreating incrementally. I spent hours out in nature but it was only on the walk home, looking at that gritty street-side snow and those small puddles, that I found images I liked. A slow shutter for a slow spring.

[Images of pavement, snow and ice, made while walking]
*Spring is not really extinct. I hope.

A Bird (or two) in the Hand…

February 18, 2015 | drawandshoot

1&2 nuthatch

3,4 &5 female downy woodpecker

6&7 chickadee

8,9 &10 male downy woodpecker

Finding the sweetness of winter. It’s a cold one…

Purple Martin Stories

August 20, 2014August 20, 2014 | drawandshoot

There are moments when it’s hard not to mourn the quick passing of the summer even though we are still in it. Cold rainy days that feel like they were borrowed from another month. A month like October.

And seeing that the Purple Martins have ‘left the building‘. Their summer nesting boxes empty – devoid of those beautiful summer sounds the swallows bring – the babies fully grown, independent. Eventually, hopefully, they will make it all the way to their winter home in Brazil, some of them banded and/or outfitted with tiny GPS trackers. Little winter ‘backpacks’ to tell stories of where they go. When they return in the spring the birds will be carefully caught and the tiny GPS devices removed. The number of Purple Martins is significantly dropping and it’s not really known why so, this data is hopefully a step in finding out what might be causing the decline in their population, and a step too, in finding ways to protect them. You can read more about the fascinating Purple Martin Project here and here on the Nature Canada website.

[The first image is a layered photograph ~ purple martins, a rainy window and a summer landscape made with movement.]

Swallow the Sky

June 16, 2014 | drawandshoot

[A composite (layered) image ~ swallows & grasses]
© Karen McRae, 2014

Up with the Birds

May 27, 2014 | drawandshoot

Above: Purple Martins in flight

I stopped in to see the Purple Martins after a very early start to my day. If I were a Robin I might have got the first worm…

There is a lot of activity as they are busily collecting materials for their little nest-box homes. I spotted a pair of Starlings (Sturnus vulgaris) attempting to build a nest in one of the boxes. It seemed that the Martins were discouraging their presence but those Starlings are tenacious.

Above: Moving in ~ A Starling in flight, gathering nesting materials

Each type of bird has its own wonderful shifting form when in movement. I don’t think I could ever tire of observing and trying to capture these various forms. Anyway, I like how these images look a bit like drawings and this process is giving me some ideas (and reference material) for an art project.

Life in the Liminal Spaces

May 13, 2014May 21, 2014 | drawandshoot

You might not realize that most of the photographs I post here are made in the city. A city ribboned with green spaces and waterways – corridors teeming with wildlife. A different version of city life. An exploration of the narrow tributaries, the wide rivers and the earthy ‘cracks’ someone has thought to leave between all the pavement. You never know what you might find in these spaces because even though we heap constraints on these wild creatures they place no constraints on themselves (Last spring we even had bears visiting).

The Night Heron and the Warbler (above)

Turkey Vultures, Perched and Circling

It’s common to see the odd turkey vulture circling above the green spaces but in the dwindling light of the weekend I looked up to see a tree draped with ten or more of these birds who appeared to be gazing down at me. They are so odd-looking with their red shrunken heads and wide-shouldered bodies. A few of them lifted their wings to the last rays of warm light.