What makes photography memorable? To me, it’s related to my feeling and experience of the image creation process. It’s more of an intimate relation with the surroundings while shooting rather than documenting a site. That being said, I do shoot a lot of such pictures, but those are not the images that I feel a connection with when I look back.
This self analysis cannot be more pertinent than shooting in the uneasy times of 2020. My daily routine changed so much that even an evening walk or short trips away from home happened to be precious and unforgettable.
The photos selected in this post are a break away from the monotony and anxious days of last year.
Guardians of the sky
This milky way shot is at Frontenac Dark Sky Reserve. In the period of frequent lockdowns, I cherished this night-out far from the city. At the end of June, this photo captured the alignment of Jupiter and Saturn along with the galaxy.
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Red-winged blackbird
This photo is a good example of capturing the simplicity of nature. The red-winged blackbird was shot on a trail very near to my house. A pleasant and simple composition of the bird on a backdrop of the different shades in the sky.
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A very special astronomical event of 2020 sighting of comet C/2020 F3 (NEOWISE). Half an hour drive to avoid the city lights, this image is a blend of multiple exposures to capture the light trail along with the comet.
Nomad in the sky
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Late July, with the moon slowly overpowering the night sky and city lights as always being a spoiler, siting NEOWISE was getting more and more difficult. This is a multi-exposure shot with focal length blending to capture the setting moon with the comet over a green field. Already difficult to see with naked eye, this was the last proper composition of the comet that I was able to click.
NEOWISE with a setting moon
In search of NEOWISE is my blog post on photographing the comet.
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If you can pre-visualize an image and then be able to create something very close to it, the photo naturally becomes a favourite. While walking on a trail, I stumbled across a tree stump surrounded by green foliage. Since it was too dark to compose any shot properly, I decided to come back next morning to try again. The composition required a strong focal point so I took few minutes to search a red maple leaf. Shot with natural light, this vibrant contrasty coloured image is focus-stacked. For me, the stump, the wild plants around it and the isolated leaf share a story of changing seasons.
Refuge
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Fall Feeling
It’s always trial and error to get the synergy of movement and speed to create something of relevance with ICM photography. It was the end of fall and most trees had already shed their leaves. The frost and wintery weather had even turned the grass yellow and dry. After several failed attempts, I was able to capture the brush stroke effect in a unique yellowish colour palette. This image is more of an impressionist style painting than a photograph.
For blog post on 2019 images, visit Looking back at 2019
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