©Darren Barclay

Darren Barclay sends in this image of Maligne Lake at sunset for his Turning Point Image.

I’ve always been a big fan of the whole “elongated” near foreground, far away background kind of images. I can’t really say why, it’s just kind of what I liked right off the bat when I got into photography. I also seem to have developed a penchant for shooting images in a portrait orientation early on as well.

I remember showing this image of Maligne Lake to my wife (then girlfriend) and excitedly proclaiming that, “this is what I want my images to look like!” Looking back on it now, I’m not entirely sure what I meant. Was it the light? The foreground? Perspective? Emotion? Was it all of that? None of that? I think that for me, everything really had kinda just come together and I was finally able to produce an image that conveyed what I was actually trying to convey.

I think that this image kind of “set the course” so to speak, of the direction that my photography would basically take over the next few years.

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The beauty of the Canadian Rockies is legendary among nature photographers. Not only is the scenery stunning and the wildlife abundant, it’s all easily accessible by highway. To whet your appetite, and for those just passing through, we offer you three scenic drives that we consider the best of the Canadian Rockies. And if you’re looking for more than a quick scout, we have many ‘where to’ guides on these parks for those of you wishing to experience the area in more depth. Watch for the next installment in this topic,  Three Amazing Secret Drives in the Canadian Rockies.

©Darwin Wiggett – Highway 40 in Kananaskis Country

Getting There 

The Canadian Rockies form a jagged spine along the western border of the province of Alberta and the eastern border of the province of British Columbia in Canada. For fastest access to the roads described in this article fly into Calgary International Airport in Calgary, Alberta, rent a car and drive west from Calgary on the Trans Canada Highway (highway 1). In just over an hour you’ll be swinging left onto highway 40 which leads you into Kananaskis Country where you’ll find a memory card full of photos.

©Darwin Wiggett – Wedge Pond, Kananaskis

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We are pleased to present a little slide show showcasing participants’ images from our Winter in the Canadian Rockies Photo Tour from this past February and March. For 2014 we have changed our winter photo tours to a workshop format with more directed learning, assignments and but still plenty of shooting time in stunning scenery. To learn more see our workshop description at  Abraham Lake Bubbles and Lace.

The following photographers have participated in the slideshow; please be sure to click on their names to see more of their images images from the tour.

Alan Hays

Linda L

Susan Cooper Parker

Chris Manderson

Perri Schelat

Martin Chamberlain

Malteste

Guy Kerr

Tony Dathan

Lisa Couldwell

Alan Ernst

Greg Bukoski

To see the high definition slideshow we recommend going to this link and expanding the view to full screen!

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Dan Wheeler has been on almost more tours out of Aurum Lodge than I have been! Dan has graduated to co-leading tours with Royce Howland. Dan also teaches photography and  printing and is currently setting up a new website that will highlight these offerings. We can’t wait to see it when it’s ready for its debut! For now, enjoy Dan’s images from his ‘blue’ period during the photo tour

©Dan Wheeler – Three Waters

©Dan Wheeler – B+W Mountain 2

©Dan Wheeler – B+W Mountain 3

©Dan Wheeler – Ridgeline

©Dan Wheeler – Split

©Dan Wheeler – Twist of Life

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Lynne Anzelc was super enthusiastic about being in the Rockies. Lynne told me in an email: “Such a spectacular place, I was in awe the entire time!  I think I did more looking than photographing, but hopefully will return and try again.” As you can see from Lynne’s photos below, when she stopped gawking, she made great images! Personally I think the more photographers actually ‘looked’ first, the better the image would be once the shutter is pressed! Thanks for that reminder Lynne!

©Lynne Anzelc – Athabasca Falls, Jasper NP

©Lynne Anzelc – Bighorn Sheep, Jasper NP

©Lynne Anzelc – Horseshoe Lake, Jasper NP

©Lynne Anzelc – Icy Stumps, Hoodoo Creek Bay, Abraham Lake

©Lynne Anzelc – Mistaya River above the Mistaya Canyon, Banff NP

©Lynne Anzelc – The North Saskatchewan River at Whirlpool Point, Kootenay Plains

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Alan Barrett has survived our cold weather photography tours before but not without a lingering memory of the ordeal! No details will be revealed here but suffice to say all of Alan’s extremities went home with him to England this time

Alan always impresses me with his intimate landscape work; he is constantly working on a themed project of some kind or other. In the past he has played with abstract patterns of slate, sandstone, beach details and shaky trees. This time Alan went for moving water with ice. Be sure to visit Alan’s website for more themed and inspiring galleries!

©Alan Barrett

©Alan Barrett

©Alan Barrett

©Alan Barrett

©Alan Barrett

©Alan Barrett

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Greg says he is still learning photography and so does not feel comfortable posting his images on photo sharing sites like Flickr, Google + or 500 PX. His wife Lynn, who was also on the Fire and Ice Photo Tour said that Greg doesn’t even show his pictures to her! Wow, now that is shy! So drum roll please….

Lynn, you won’t believe it but Greg’s photos are public for the World to see right here on the oopoomoo blog! And I think the viewing audience will agree it is time for Greg to share more because his images rock! Woohoo!

©Greg Anzelc – Mount Wilson, Banff NP

©Greg Anzelc – North Saskatchewan River at Rampart Ponds, Banff NP

©Greg Anzelc – Wounded Bighorn Sheep at Tangle Falls, Jasper NP

©Greg Anzelc – Horseshoe Lake, Jasper NP

©Greg Anzelc – Fire and Ice on Abraham Lake at Hoodoo Bay, Kootenay Plains

©Greg Anzelc – Mistaya River above Mistaya Canyon, Banff NP

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This is my last instalment from my ‘creative’ adventure taking only a 50mm lens on the week-long Fall in the Canadian Rockies Photo Tour. For those who wanted to see my early struggles with this exercise, here are the links for day 1 and day 2. By day 3 and day 4 I was starting to get the groove of the lens! On Day 5  our group worked the Icefields Parkway from Rampart Ponds to the Columbia Icefield returning along the Parkway to do sunset along Highway 11 at Whirlpool Point. Day 6 was the last day of the tour and was a half day only starting with sunrise along the Kootenay Plains and ending with a long visit to Mistaya Canyon in Banff National Park. On the previous days I ended up with about 20 keepers per day. From the last day and a half I ended up with only 23 images I felt were worth keeping. Below are 13 from the last days of the tour with a few notes in the image captions.

In the end, would I do an exercise like again? You bet! Next time maybe it will just be my 85mm lens, or maybe just a fish-eye lens. Who knows? Having and using just one lens helps you to see by reducing your choices. You get more creative with what you have! Less is more. And my back loved it!

©Darwin Wiggett – Mount Amery reflected in Rampart Pond, Banff NP

©Darwin Wiggett – Fireweed Abstract at Rampart Ponds, Banff NP

©Darwin Wiggett – Mount Amery at Graveyard Flats, Banff NP

©Darwin Wiggett – Rock Art at the Columbia Icefields, Jasper NP

©Darwin Wiggett – The start of the Sunwapta River at the Columbia Icefields, Jasper NP

©Darwin Wiggett – The North Saskatchewan River, Banff NP (a polarizer and a Lee 10-stop ND filter turn a mid-day shot to ethereal)

©Darwin Wiggett – Getting Jiggy With It (jiggling the camera during exposure) – The Kootenay Plains

©Darwin Wiggett – The Kootenay Plains (Orton Effect)

©Darwin Wiggett – Whirlpool in the sky – Whirlpool Point

©Darwin Wiggett – North Saskatchewan River and Mount Wilson, Kootenay Plains

©Darwin Wiggett – Mistay River details at Mistaya Canyon, Banff NP (using the Singh-Ray Gold-n-Blue Polarizer)

©Darwin Wiggett – Mistaya Canyon, Banff NP (using the Singh-Ray Gold-n-Blue Polarizer)

©Darwin Wiggett – Intimate forest scene at Mistaya Canyon, Banff NP

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On day three of the Fall in the Canadian Rockies Photo Tour, our group worked the Icefields Parkway from the Saskatchewan Crossing to Columbia Icefields culminating with a great hike up to Wilcox Pass on a glorious warm fall day. On day four, we spent most of our time at the Brazeau Colleries in Nordegg photographing the old coal mine. In total, I ended up with about 20 keepers each day. Below are my 15 favorites from days three and four. As you can see from the results, I really started playing with the extremes of the depth-of-field possible with the 50mm f1.4 lens. I finally was getting into the stride of the 50mm view. For those who missed it, here are the links for day 1 and day 2.

©Darwin Wiggett – North Saskatchewan River at Coleman Creek, Banff NP

©Darwin Wiggett – North Saskatchewan River and Fireweed, Banff NP

©Darwin Wiggett – Yellow on dark, Banff NP

©Darwin Wiggett – Ravens along the Icefields Parkway, Banff NP

©Darwin Wiggett – Mount Wilcox from Wilcox Pass, Jasper NP – Yes this is a two image stitch!

©Darwin Wiggett – Kootenay Plains Reflecting Pool, Bighorn Wildland

©Darwin Wiggett – Kootenay Plains Reflecting Pool, Bighorn Wildland

©Darwin Wiggett – North Saskatchewan River and Mount Wilson, Kootenay Plains, Bighorn Wildland

©Darwin Wiggett – Wired

©Darwin Wiggett – Does the paint peel look like the province of Alberta to you?

©Darwin Wiggett – Car top puddle

©Darwin Wiggett – Wheel Man

©Darwin Wiggett – self portrait

©Darwin Wiggett – Hanging Around

©Darwin Wiggett – Radiator

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Michael Lawson came out to the Rockies to add to his portfolio of landscape and nature images. Below are his six favorites from the Fall in the Canadian Rockies Photo Tour.

©Michael Lawson – Abraham Lake from Windy Point

©Michael Lawson – Kootenay Plains Reflecting Pool

©Michael Lawson – Looking down into Mistaya Canyon, Banff NP

©Michael Lawson – Mount Abraham and Fall Colours

©Michael Lawson – Flow

©Michael Lawson – Wilcox Pass, Jasper NP

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