Spring cleaning

It's been awhile since any new postings have gone up on my blog. Here is some recent work.

Photo Randy Vanderveen Grande Prairie, AB 13-03-23 Hayley Prusko of the Smoky Lake Skating Club takes to the ice in the Preliminary Free Skate at the Grande Prairie Skating Club's 18th annual Peace Open Competition Saturday March 23 at the Coca Cola Centre.

Photo Randy Vanderveen near LaGlace, Alberta 13-03-23 Bison graze in a snow covered pasture in a region near LaGlace bearing the large mammal's name Buffalo Lake. Bison continues to be an alternative for livestock producers in the Peace Country.

 Photo Randy Vanderveen Bezanson, Alberta 13-04-09 This Canada goose couldn't be blamed for debating whether it got its return dates mixed up as it walks across the frozen surface of water in a field. With temperatures expected to rise — despite a forecast for a little more snow this weekend — hopefully spring is on its waPhoto Randy Vanderveen Grande Prairie, Alberta 13-04-09 A robin makes its way across the ice picking at cat tails for food Tuesday. The birds are often viewed as a sign of spring.Photo Randy Vanderveen Grande Prairie, Alberta 13-03-30 Pre-Bout Xcessive Force Fighting Championships at the TEC Centre in Evergreen Park, Saturday, March 30. Gloves above and a fighter getting his hands taped below.

Photo Randy Vanderveen Grande Prairie, Alberta 13-03-30 Pros Spencer Jebb battled Paulo Azambuja at the Xcessive Force Fighting Championships at the TEC Centre in Evergreen Park, Saturday, March 30. Azambuja, from Brazil won the fight with an arm bar.

Light and Shadow

Photo Randy Vanderveen San Sebastian del Oeste, Jalisco, Mexico While mid-day is probably one of the worst times of day to take photos by including the silhouetted portion of a gazebo the photograph of the village's church goes from flat to interesting.

The DNA of any photograph consists of light and shadow.

Without light you are not going to have a photo and with out shadow your photograph will likely be a very one dimensional image.

It is the balancing act of how you as a photographer use light and shadow in relation to each other that helps create a unique image.

The composition, shutter speed and depth of field all work together to create a great photo but without light there will be no image. Photography at its root means to write with light.

Experimenting with different kinds of light, angles, etc. can help make you a better photographer whether you are shooting photos on a high end digital DSLR or a point and shoot.

Knowing light can move your images from the realm of a simple record or snapshot of what you see to a photo that you can be proud of.

Photo Randy Vanderveen Puerto Vallarta, Jalisco, Mexico The new Los Muertos pier in Puerto Vallarta (above and below) takes on two distinct looks just because of the colour of lights highlighting the structure. Photo Randy Vanderveen Puerto Vallarta, Jalisco, Mexico Backlighting, even if it is high noon, is essential to make a stained glass window come to life like this one in Our Lady of Guadalupe church in Puerto Vallarta. If you want to see how essential it is look at a stained glass window from the outside in the middle of the day — it appears muddy and dark. PLEASE REMEMBER WHEN YOU ARE PHOTOGRAPHING IN ANY HOUSE OF WORSHIP TO BE RESPECTFUL WHETHER OR NOT IT IS FROM YOUR RELIGION. WHILE THE ARCHITECTURE MIGHT BE FANTASTIC IT IS A SACRED PLACE.Photo Randy Vanderveen Puerto Vallarta, Jalisco, Mexico The ornamental structure of a window casts a shadow on a nearby wall in the setting sun in a hallway at the Tropicana Hotel in Puerto Vallarta. Light and shadow are the basic building blocks of any photograph.

Photo Randy Vanderveen Puerto Vallarta, Jalisco, Mexico The morning sun, out of the frame, causes the cross and globe on the roof of Our Lady of Guadalupe church in Puerto Vallarta to glow like a beacon while most of the photo is reduced to silhouette. (Photographed with a point and shoot camera).

Photo Randy Vanderveen Puerto Vallarta, Jalisco, Mexico Reflections, like the highly polished tile floor in the Puerto Vallarta airport, can add another dimension to the light and shadow in your photographs.

Winter Dog and Pony Show

Here are some recent photos from Evergreen Park taken at the northernSpirit Light Festival and the Grande Prairie Sled Dog Derby.

Photo Randy Vanderveen Grande Prairie , Alberta 13-01-05 Lisa Saffel urges her dogs through the race course as she takes part in the skijor event — dogs pull the musher around the course on skis as opposed to a sled. The Grande Prairie Sled Dog Derby ran two days of races at Evergreen Park this past weekend, Jan. 5 and 6.Photo Randy Vanderveen Grande Prairie , Alberta 12-12-28 A team of horses pulls a wagon of area residents through a tunnel of light as they take in the northernSpirit light show at Evergreen Park. The seasonal festival of lights put on by the Peace Draft Horse Club and local sponsors ran through the Christmas season.Photo Randy Vanderveen Grande Prairie , Alberta 13-01-05 The background blurs as Josh Lichti and his team race through the course on the Six Dog Six Mile Open event. The Grande Prairie Sled Dog Derby ran two days of races at Evergreen Park this past weekend, Jan. 5 and 6.Photo Randy Vanderveen Grande Prairie , Alberta 13-01-05 Jody Verge urges her dog team through the race course as she takes part in the 10 Dog 10 Mile Open event. The Grande Prairie Sled Dog Derby ran two days of races at Evergreen Park this past weekend, Jan. 5 and 6.

Happy Accident

Photo Randy Vanderveen, Grande Prairie Alberta A Sunwing 737 does its best Rudolph impression with the help of a runway light in the background, as the plane lands in Grande Prairie to pick up passengers for charter company's inaugral trip from the Swan City to Puerto Vallarta with a stop in Fort McMurray Wednesday morning.

Sometimes happy accidents can make or break a photo.

The arrival of Sunwing's 737 to kick off a new service at 5:45 am made for a bit of a challenge.

Anyone living north of 55 knows the sun doesn't begin to shine until 9 a.m. or later in December so a lack of light was going to make things challenging.

A slow shutter speed 1/25 second, high iso 2000 and fast aperture 2.0 still resulted in being underexposed by 1/3 to a half stop. However, the blurring lights combined with the unplanned for positioning of the nose of the plane resulted in a photo that works in the Christmas season.

Lights, action

Photo Randy Vanderveen Grande Prairie City street lights and vehicle lights appear to be an explosion in colour as the zoom of the camera lens is moved during a 20 second exposure.It may still be a week and a half away but on behalf of my wife Cheryl and myself "Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year."