Sunday, August 28, 2016

An odd reflection during a photowalk

The first thing you need to know is that the Calgary tower is on the south side of Ninth Ave, right where Centre street ends.
The second thing is that Bankers Hall is on the other side of Ninth Ave, just west of 3rd Street, so several blocks west of the Tower.
Last thing is that the sun sets in the west, just to remind you.

Look at this photo. It was taken from St Patrick's Island, which is due east of downtown, at 7:12:15 PM. No photoshop trickery, just some cleanup in Lightroom.


Do you see it? The shadow of the Calgary Tower on Banker's Hall? Think about how interesting  the light to be to get that much light from the east, during sunset. It wasn't just a blink and you'll miss it. I've got a bunch of photos of it.  You can almost see the red in the reflection in some shots, though that might be a mind game.

You've got to love Neil Zeller photo walks. Last night started a bit blustery, but calmed down. As he said, sometimes the best light is in the crappiest weather. And I say, no such thing as bad weather, just poor clothing choices.

I had a good time, and all the people I chatted with did as well. Some highlights for me. I missed the osprey landing on it's nest in the street light sculpture by THAT much. Sigh. There's some photos of the nest, and I think some chicks peering out, but from the photo you can't tell. Might be just another stick. I got some nice building shots, and worked hard at trying to correct my tendency to aim too high. Coffee after (decaf) and chatting, watching downtown culture.

Here's a few other photos, just because. Let's see what order Blogger puts them in. My buddy shooting downtown, I think. Maybe the osprey nest. This isn't quite as dramatic as the one from the triathlon a few weeks ago.


The light on this was a lovely silvery sheen that doesn't quite come across in the photo, nor do the brilliant red boxes. Again, this is lit from the east during sunset.

I've become a bit of a fan of the Calgary Tower, and was a little surprised to see it peeking between some new condo buildings.

One of the last shots of the evening, getting some coloured reflections off the water. It started to rain very soon after.  Another half hour and it would have been dark enough for some long exposure shots so the reflections really show up. Another time.

There is a sledding hill on the island. I had remembered a better view of downtown from there, but I think it was winter and so no leaves on the trees. Still, the sky was pretty dramatic, and I chatted with an interesting guy about a company we had both worked for.

The light was worth going out into a blustery evening! I was out to the first photowalk and enjoyed it, but couldn't really take full advantage with only the iPhone. Now that I've got a real camera I'm going to make these a must on my calendar. It's a great way to start to get to know other photographers.

Oh, and if you really want to know which lens and the exposure details, feel free to leave a comment, then come back in a little while. I'm comment friendly.


4 comments:

  1. Great shots! Shorts and mittens...gotta love Calgary weather :) It was so nice to spend the evening with you and Linda-hopefully he'll host another walk soon.

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  2. Those are some great pictures in pretty low lighting!! And just an iPhone you say? Amazing!

    If I ever have time in my (busy) schedule, I would love to participate in Neil's photowalk. The only problem is that - at this time - I am not interested in taking up photography seriously. I just like a different perspective on taking photos. Because frankly, I'll probably just to what an iPhone (4S) can do.

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  3. Great shots, Keith. Love the reflection shot of downtown at dusk, great colors. Wanted to come out for this but we were out of town, have to make plans to be sure and make it next year.

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  4. An intriguing observation! You got me interested so I checked my photos and I also see Calgary Tower red on Bankers Hall. I suspect this may be a reflection from the mirrored windows on Bankers Hall rather than a shadow.

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