Andrée Fredette

Downtown Contrast – Photo Wednesday

Andrée — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 22:30:56 +0000

I took that picture in downtown Toronto. When I looked out the window – from a fairly high floor – the contrast between building styles seemed too juicy to ignore. I had to return the next day, with my camera.

January: Bald Eagles

Andrée — Sun, 29 Jan 2012 23:04:56 +0000

Nature reveals itself in patterns, when you live on the windy West Coast… Since late December, I have noticed the return of the big birds. They are busy doing aerial acrobatics, there is a lot of high-pitched peeping (like Mike Tyson, eagles are big and mean-looking, but their “voice” is a high-pitched bell-like sound…). I presume these sounds and aerial displays are discussions over territory. There are quite a few bald eagles around Saturna.

Some birds - like the ravens – never leave the island, but bald eagles (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) head for the salmon rivers of BC in the fall. During that season, those rivers are true all-you-can-eat buffets for eagles and other wildlife. For pictures of that, see my November post about Goldstream, near Victoria.

This set of pictures was taken from my deck, yesterday. First, an adult perched on that tree for almost 30 minutes in the early afternoon. Surveying the neighbourhood, trying to decide if anything edible might be around. Love those piercing yellow eyes, don’t you?

Then, four hours later, while fixing dinner, I spotted the next visitor to the same tree. An immature bald eagle. According to the bird books in my collection, immature eagles only acquire the full white feathers on the head and tail by their fifth year, less frequently when they are four years old… So Junior, below, was probably following mommy around.

I left my cooking to get my camera, and get some pictures of Junior too. It was getting dark, so they are a bit grainy. If you are curious about their flight speed, wing span, etc., visit the bald eagle link I provided above. If you would like to check out eagle web cams (keeping an eye on the nests), click on this CBC page. And here is a direct link to an eagle nest cam in White Rock, BC.

Nature Morte – Photo Wednesday

Andrée — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 01:00:31 +0000

This week’s composition: a trio of mushrooms on a decaying log.

Winter hikes on Saturna have led me to accumulate lots of close-ups of the forest floor. The textures are amazing, when you start to pay attention!

I think this one is Turkey Tail (Trametes versicolor), but I couldcertainly be wrong… This mushroom is quite common around here. In China and Japan, T versicolor is used as an adjuvant in cancer therapy…

January on Saturna

Andrée — Sat, 21 Jan 2012 01:30:37 +0000

Yep, snowdrops (galanthus) are pushing up and starting to open on the sunny, rocky side of the island…

I didn’t plant these bulbs. The previous owner did, in abundant numbers. And their seeds have spread down the hill, to the other side of the house. Soon, the crocus will be out, and then, the daffodils. There are hundreds if not thousands of daffodils around the property. It’s pretty much the only flowering bulbs the deer will not sample…

Caught my Eye… Photo Wednesday

Andrée — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 01:00:33 +0000

My 2012 resolution consisted in not making resolutions. Most of my past resolutions involved eating better, sleeping more and getting a lot more exercise. Most of those resolutions were abandoned fairly quickly, or followed sporadically. So, in the spirit of keeping things simple, no silly resolutions in 2012.

Seriously, though, I resolved to work on my photo skills. Once a week - on Wednesdays – I’ll post a picture to mark my progress on the path of ”eye-training”.

Here is the inaugural pic. This 2 CV was parked in front of a café terrasse on Avenue du Mont-Royal, in Montréal, last summer. I loved that cheeky saturated green! It cheered that whole side of the street.

I especially liked the statement in the back window: “Ceci n’est pas une voiture … c’est un art de vivre”. A little bit like Magritte’s “Ceci n’est pas une pipe“…