Moving day

I’ll be moving to:

polarcubby-blog.com

Mature and dignified

That or this, originally uploaded by polarcubby.

It did not look as well when I was taking the photo but it turned out very well. I did a bit of tweaking. I had to brighten the photo almost a full stop since my flash was weak. I also had to correct the white balance. He still looks a bit too green but maybe it’s just my imagination. I like the way he stares directly at me and the tired expression on his face. This dog is a great actor. Sometimes he just knows how to pose.

Peeking out

Peeking out, originally uploaded by polarcubby.

This one is a near miss. I tried to catch the kitty looking out from behind the tree but he was very shifty. During the shooting I thought I had it but the focus was not exactly right. Just an inch or so too close. This particular shot is the best of the bunch. I like how he’s looking straight at the camera and the blue of the eyes stands out on the green background but they are not sharp enough. Oh well. I’ll get it right next time.

Sneaky kitty

Sneaky, originally uploaded by polarcubby.

This is a simple snapshot but I liked the expression on his face. He was squinting a lot and my 85mm gives some stunning results. The focus and exposure are very good. And blue eyes stand out on a near sepia background. I’m happy with and proud of this one!

Posing

Posing, originally uploaded by polarcubby.

I’m not good at photographing people. I don’t get to practice a lot. But I do like this photo. I feel it’s a successful one. It’s well exposed. The background is sufficiently blurry but you can still see it’s in the backyard with a barbecue. Ivanka has a decent expression even though she tried to make a face. I did not tweak the original shot much. Just played around with the white balance (maybe a bit of a sharpness). I feel like I’m improving so it’s a good sign. I get a confidence boost from photos like this.

White squirrel!!!

     I have seen something special today! A white squirrel. In Toronto! Just a couple of days ago I was reading an article in Toronto Star describing 175 good things about Toronto (quite a few of those were very sarcastic) and the author mentioned an elusive legendary Toronto white squirrel. And today I have seen one! 

     It was absolutely amazing. I was driving west along Eglinton towards Islington and saw one on the side of the road searching for something in the grass. I could not believe it! I’ve lived in Toronto for 8 years and I don’t think I even heard about this creature until I read the article. I even sent a text message to my Twitter page to document this amazing experience.

     I also found an old entry of Urban Decoder in Toronto Life:

Urban decoder

The other day in Trinity Bellwoods Park, I saw a snow white squirrel with bright red eyes leaping around in a rather agitated fashion. Am I seeing things? If not, was there something wrong with it? —Meredith Abbott-Richards, Little Portugal

Posted on June 1, 2003 

Consider yourself blessed. What you saw was one of Queen West’s elusive and much admired albino squirrels. First spotted circa 1985, the fair beasts initially lived in a tree on the grounds of the Queen Street Mental Health Centre, before bravely migrating across the street to Trinity Bellwoods. Over the years, they’ve attracted a following, with disciples believing the rodents portend good fortune. For a while, the squirrels’ population swelled, until by the mid-’90s there were some 25 to 30 in the area. Alas, in recent years the albinos have been felled by genetic problems related to their blanched condition—which may explain why the specimen you saw seemed indisposed. Congenitally poor eyesight, in particular, is a bane to a species whose primary talent is the acrobatic leap. Today, appearances are rare; the ruby-eyed may soon live on only in legends—or nightmares.

     I wish I could take a photo of the squirrel. It is definitely not an every day subject.

King of the world

     

King of the world, originally uploaded by polarcubby.

     I just love how pretty he looks in this photo. The weather was good. It was quite early, so many shadows. But the sun is to the side so I got a lot of blue sky. Colours are much more lovely than I would have expected to see that early in the day.
     Chuck really enjoyed standing on that table, towering over the world.

It’s been a while!

     Well, this is how it always goes. I start a blog, I write in it for a while, and then I stop. I do the same thing with journals. Nonetheless, I still have the blog and I still plan to write in it occasionally. I am considering to make it more of a record of the photo assignments I get in my club or Flickr groups. This might work better (I hope).

     I also recently signed up on twitter.com, wonder if that will work. Since none of the people who care to know details of my life are internet-savy, I’m not sure who’ll read it. I have facebook account but I never ever use it.

     I’ll try to write more about my photo club and groups tomorrow.

Under the table

Under the table, originally uploaded by polarcubby.

     Ah! This is my doggie in High Park. I have been dragged on a leash for over an over all over the damn park. Exhausting experience. By the end I had to sit myself on the ground, put aside my heavy lens bag (only 1 extra lens) and my camera. But Chuck decided to do cute things and climb under the picknic table, so I laid down, took the camera and started snapping. I bet it looked funny to the passers by. I was lying in a pose of a bikini model, except I was wearing my warm Under Armour pants and hoodie with a baseball hat knocked aside by the camera. Memorable look!

Cheesy B&W of a helmet 25/365

 Cheesy B&W of a helmet 25/365, originally uploaded by polarcubby.

     Election is coming! Election is coming!

     Tomorrow is Tuesday! THE DAY! E-Day! The “lets-give-the-conservatives-a-majority” day!

     If Steven Harper gets what he wants, I’m prepared. My trusty helmet will protect me if I faint after hearing about a conservative majority (or perhaps when I bang my head on the wall).

“Please please any higher power that can help or is listening, do not let this happen! Give canadians enough common sense to at least pick a minority conservative government!”

     Well, I’ll inhale and exhale and then try not to care.