Its been more than a week since I last posted a blog. I shot this during last night’s sunset at Polson Pier in Toronto. The heavy winds off Lake Ontario were very cold and the waves covered the boardwalk in a reflective coating of ice. I wanted to spend more time shooting, but the winds were brutal and the water spray was cold.
Atop the CN Tower, Toronto
The CN Tower opened to the public in 1976 and despite visiting the attraction many times, it remains an amazing experience. Last evening I went with my camera and captured this high resolution image of downtown Toronto. Shooting through the glass and avoiding reflections can be challenging, but the result is breathtaking.
Toronto Skyline from Casa Loma
As an amateur photographer, finding time to take pictures can be a challenge. During the week, that typically means shooting in the evening, and in the winter, shooting after sundown.
This image was taken from the terrace at Casa Loma in Toronto. Most of the view is blocked by large trees, but there is a break that provides a wonderful view and frames the image.
Blue and White Sunset, Toronto
Spectacular colours are not always necessary to make a beautiful sunset. Sometimes all you need are some amazing clouds.
Leuty Lifeguard Station, Toronto
Sometimes a scene is more impactful when it is shot in black and white. It makes the shot of the Leuty Lifeguard Station at Woodbine Beach much more dramatic and moody.
Scarborough Bluffs, Toronto
Scarborough Bluffs is an escarpment located adjacent to Lake Ontario formed following the last ice age. At its highest point, it rises 90 metres (300 ft) above the coastline and spans a length of 15 kilometres (9.3 mi).
Why I like using older manual focus lenses.
I have been slowly acquiring mint or near mint Nikon Ai-s lenses from Japan and today I own six of them ranging between 28mm and 180mm.
While today’s modern auto-focus lenses certainly have their advantages, there is something about older manual focus legacy lenses that make them attractive to use. Whether that's the feel of the precision engineered, metal focus barrels or the fact that you feel more involved in the photography process when you focus manually, there is no denying their appeal.
One of the problems with today’s modern cameras with their smart processors, sensors and autofocus motors is they shield photographers from what really happens when you snap an image and keep us from having to learn and understand many of the basics. Don’t get me wrong, I embrace new technology as much as the next person, but I’m concerned that it could diminish the experience and even result in poorer quality photographs.
Using older manual focus lenses does not necessarily mean lower quality images. In fact, Nikons Ai-s lenses from the late 70’s and early 80’s are simply phenomenal in terms of their superior build quality and optical performance, and deliver fantastic results. Nikon’s 85mm f1.4 Ai-s lens remains the best 85mm lens ever built by anyone, and a favorite of many portrait photographers.
So given that many of today’s modern lenses are also super-sharp, focus automatically and produce amazing images, why bother with these old lenses? For me, it changes the way I take pictures. It has forced me to compose my images differently. Focusing manually makes me slow down. Rather than clicking away indiscriminately, I find myself thinking much more about how I approach a photographic situation.
I will never get rid of my modern auto-focus lenses and will continue to use them in most situations. However, manual focusing and using vintage lenses has transformed me and my photography and I will continue to use them when I can.
Winter Sunset in Toronto
While driving from work, I noticed the setting sun and rushed to Chester Hill to grab this image.
Winter in Toronto
It is very Canadian to see a pickup game of hockey on an outdoor ice rink , despite the snow and cold temperatures.
I like this photo a lot. Even in a large and busy city like Toronto, people still make time to play hockey, one of the things that helps define what it is to be Canadian.
Kensington Market, Toronto
I took the images to juxtapose the new pristine glass towers of Toronto’s downtown against the old graffiti covered bricks buildings of Kensington Market.
Kensington Market is a bohemian neighbourhood that draws artists and tourists to its shops, vintage boutiques and arts spaces. The Market is also home to a wide range of specialty grocers, bakeries restaurants and cheese shops, making it Toronto’s most vibrant and diverse neighborhoods.
The Milky Way
While organizing my photos I came across two that I had not published previously. The image above of the Milky Way core was taken from Centennial Trail in Algonquin Park. The photo below was taken from the Chikinishing Trail in Killarney Park
Moonset
This morning’s setting full moon was spectacular. This was shot with a 70-200mm lens at 200mm, f11, 1/3rd second and ISO 64.
Chester Hill Lookout, again
Saturday evening was cold and clear and a perfect time to go back to Chester Hill Lookout and take some photos.
The photos below were shot using a Sigma 150-600mm super zoom and a 1.4 teleconverter that extends the zoom to 840mm. It does a remarkable job considering that the CN Tower is located 4.75 km away.
Getting sharp images from that far away is a challenge and requires more than just a good camera and lens. It requires the right conditions, and measures to keep the camera as still as possible. Even a very slight breeze will cause the camera to move which translates into blurry images. A sturdy tripod is a must.
In addition, you can delay the shutter release. On a DSLR camera, an internal mirror flips up when the shutter releases and that movement can cause a small vibration that blurs the image. To avoid this, I set the camera to wait 3 seconds after the mirror flips before the shutter releases to provide time for the camera to settle down. It may seem crazy, but at that focal length simply breathing on the camera can cause a blurry image.
Chester Hill Outlook, Toronto
Chester Hill Outlook is still not well known as a great place to view the Toronto skyline. It is located north of the Bloor/Danforth on the east side of the Don Valley.
It is a fantastic place from where to view and photograph the skyline and the Bloor Viaduct in the foreground helps to frame the city lights.
Toronto Skyline During a Wind Storm
Most landscape photographers use filters on occasion. In this case, a Neutral Density filter was used to “smooth out’ or blur the things that are moving (like the sky and water) and keep the rest of the image in perfect focus.
A Neutral Density filter lengthens the time to expose an image by limiting the amount of light that reaches the camera sensor. The 75 second exposure used in this photo causes moving things to appear blurred and results in a moody image that is dream-like and surreal.
#nikond850 #leefilters #manfrotto #torontoskyline
Sunrise Over Kempenfelt Bay, Barrie
The the best time to shoot landscape photography is around sunrise and sunset during what is referred to as the “golden hour” when the light is warm, diffused, and directional. The light changes very rapidly during this period, so it is important to make changes to your settings regularly and quickly so as not to miss the shot.
Monday morning the sunrise in Barrie was beautiful and I captured these images along the waterfront over a period of about an hour. The first shot of the “Spirit Catcher” is one I have wanted to capture for some time.
Toronto Cityscape in the Day
I had some free time yesterday while in downtown Toronto and decided to shot the cityscape during the day, rather than at night. It was clear and the wind off the lake was very cold.
The number of construction cranes is noticeable. Apparently, there are over 120 erected in the city today.
These were also captured using 35+ year old manual focus lenses.
Another Image Captured With an Older Nikon Ai-s Lens
Here is another photograph taken using a Nikon Ai-s legacy lens from the early 1980s. This image of the Toronto Skyline was captured using an 85mm f1.4 lens. It is the most precise and well-built 85mm f/1.4 lens ever made by anyone. It's a legendary professional lens that takes incredible images and for many photographers, their favorite Nikon lens of all time.
The lens is made of metal and is heavy at a pound and a half, and the quality is apparent when you hold one in your hand. Even the lens hood is metal made from a solid piece of machined billet aluminium. The lens is built to the highest mechanical standards of any lens ever made. When Nikon introduced an autofocus version in 1995, they continued to manufacture this manual focus lens for another 10 years.
This lens came from Japan where owners tend to really take care of their lenses. Despite being manual focus and close to 40 years old, a copy in mint condition sells for as much as $1,000 on eBay. I managed to get this near perfect copy for considerably less.
Even though it lacks all the modern “bells and whistles” of today’s autofocus lens, it is a real pleasure to use due to its precision and quality. And, it produces stunning images.
Early Morning Sunrise
This morning’s sunrise was stunning. In addition to the beautiful sunrise, a couple of techniques were used to make this image so appealing. First is the symmetrical reflection in the windows. This makes the photograph richer, or abstract and more artistic.
The second is the leading lines of the balconies, the railings and the top window frames that all point to the sunrise. These leading lines help draw the viewers eyes into the photograph to give the image depth.
This photo was taken at ISO 64, f11, an exposure time of half a second, and at a focal length of 24mm.
Royal Ontario Museum, Toronto
I have wanted to shoot the Royal Ontario Museum at night for some time and have waited for conditions to be just right. Tonight they were. It was cold and clear, the sky had some clouds and the moon was bright.
This is a single shot taken using a 20mm f2.8 Nikon lens at an aperture of f11, ISO-64, and an exposure of 11 seconds.
