Just a Canadian curious about the world
My photo taken for Les Petits Ballets is now on display around the city on the Capital Events poster. I’m really thrilled about it.
I’m also so happy for Rosa. She’s playing Miss Minchin in A Little Princess. It’s her first named role in a ballet. In the past she’s only been allowed to be corps de ballet as the school preferred to highlight the younger students. The ballet is May 28, 2011 at Centrepointe Theatre.
Two years ago I joined the RA Photo Club. The Nortel Networks Photo Club was decimated from the cuts at Nortel and the company was headed for bankruptcy protection; there were very few people still attending the meetings. I wanted to see what the other clubs were like.
I also joined the Studio group, which allows me to have access to the club’s studio. I took the mandatory training session. I had also taken two studio courses with Lawrence Cook at the School of Photographic Arts Ottawa (SPAO) a few years ago.
But I never followed these opportunities up with my own studio sessions to practice.
I often fell into the mental trap of being afraid of not being successful.
Rosa and I talked about this and she, being more adventurous than I, pushed to have a studio session this weekend. So I booked a 6-hour session at the studio and we went in.
We treated it like a simple fashion shoot. Rosa brought about 10 complete outfits, including shoes.
For the high-key photos, I set up a large soft box at camera right, and raised it as high as I could – the ceiling was quite low. Put another, smaller soft box with a grid at camera left. Rosa stood on the seamless white backdrop (or cyclorama).
For the low-key, I used a thin vertical softbox at camera left. Because of the height, I was not able to raise it very high, so it was just above eye-height. Rosa stood on a black seamless backdrop. I learned from an earlier course that you can introduce colour into the background if I use a gel on a spotlight pointed at the background. This is what I was attempting to do for the Les Petits Ballets photos. So in this case, I used red and blue gels on a strobe that was fitted with a grid. This is used also to separate the model from the background.
For a few shots, I turned the grid strobe around to point at Rosa from behind. I was intending to use it to outline her, like a rim light. I also lowered the output level, as I only wanted enough to light her shoulder and hair. I wasn’t satisfied with the results, so I will need to try again in our next session next month.
The diagrams were created with the Strobox iPhone app.
Today I continued my monthly museum visits with my first visit to the new Canadian War Museum.
I had been to the older museum about a decade ago. The new building, which opened in 2005, is much nicer with more room for exhibits.
First, I took the ramp down to the LeBreton Gallery (the main display floor). The ramp is lined with huge paintings, but they are mounted so high up on the wall it distances the viewer from the works. I think the paintings should be lower and closer to the viewer so that they may be more engaged.
The LeBreton Gallery contains a large collection of military vehicles and other large hardware. It was focused more on the army; there was only a single plane and a few naval guns. There were dozens of vehicles. The main museum for aviation would be the Canadian Aviation and Science Museum, and the Navy is well represented by the Maritime Museum of the Atlantic in Halifax.
Of interest to me was the 40mm Bofors anti-aircraft naval guns. They were ubiquitous during the later stages of war in the Pacific. They were mounted en-mass on every naval ship. They were complemented by the smaller, close range 20mm singles. They were key to dealing with the ship protection until the introduction of the kamikaze threat in the later stages of the war required the new 3″ anti-aircraft gun.
Along the same row were the main battle tanks, including the famous World War II M-4 Sherman, Russian T-34 and the German Panzer MkII and Panzer V tanks. At the end of the row were the Cold War tanks like the Chieftain and Leopard I.
A CF-101 Voodoo was mounted high in the ceiling, as if flying over the battlefield.
Also on display in the LeBreton Gallery were a jumble of smaller vehicles, including motorcycles, snowmobiles, ambulances, artillery and so forth.
Next, I went upstairs to the exhibits. The layout was a little confusing; I had to use a map to find out where I should go.
The history of military in Canada starts long before Canada was a country. Before the Europeans arrived, tribes of First Nations would wage war against each other. Forts were built using wood an other available natural resources.
Once the Europeans arrived, there were wars between the French and British, culminating in the French defeat in Quebec City (Battle of the Plains of Abraham), the destruction of Fortress Louisbourg in Nova Scotia, and the deportation of the Acadians (Le Grand Dérangement).
Canadian troops participated, as part of the British Empire, in some of the African campaigns of the British at the turn of the 20th century.
Canada was first forged as a nation on the battlefields and trenches of World War I. Though a country with a small population, Canada contributed to the eventual success in the Western Front through gallantry and the use of new tactics.
The Second Battles of Ypres, where the Canadian troops were gassed by the Germans), was the first time a former colonial force pushed back a major European power, in this case the Germans. The Third Battle of Ypres ended when Canadian Troops captured Passchendaele. In the Battle of Sommes, the 1st Newfoundland Regiment was almost entirely wiped out in a single attempt to advance to the next line of Allied trenches. This was indicative of the murderous attrition rate of trench warfare.
At the Battle of Vimy Ridge, where “all four four divisions of the Canadian Expeditionary Force participated in a battle together, and thus became a Canadian nationalistic symbol of achievement and sacrifice”. Tactically, it was a brilliant victory for the Canadians. Using a rolling artillery barrage to keep the Germans undercover in their trenches, the Canadians were able to advance to their objectives without coming under attack from the withering machine gun fire.
In both World War I and II, a major part of the Canadian contribution was our navy. The first Battle of the Atlantic (WWI) and Second Battle of the Atlantic (WWII) against the German U-boat threat was important to Canada and also to the Allied European powers – United Kingdom and the Soviet Union.
Canada entered World War II in September 1939. Canada was a location for the training of troops, a strategic location for the transatlantic convoys, and a major military force for the liberation of Europe. In the World War II exhibit, the museum had a Spitfire flying overhead and Hitler’s 1933 Mercedes-Benz 700k staff car.
After the war, Canada was on the front lines of the Cold War with the Soviet Union. The Canadian Navy excelled in anti-submarine warfare and was a member of STANAVFORLANT, a NATO task force. Canada was between the two superpowers. Any nuclear war would see Canada stuck in the middle. The most important part of this history was the creation and later cancellation of the Avro CF-105 Arrow (the most advanced interceptor of the time) and the subsequent purchase of nuclear tipped BOMARC missiles for Canadian airspace protection (as part of the larger NORAD organization).
This part of the exhibition had a Soviet T-72 MBT and a MGR-1 Honest John short-range missile.
The final exhibit was Canada as peacekeeper. I am justly proud of the Canadian peacekeeping missions. We have earned our reputation in conflict zones in the Middle East, Africa and the Caribbean. If I were in a position to influence the future direction of the Canadian military, it would be to expand the peacekeeping missions and sovereign territory protection (cough, the Arctic Ocean, cough), at the expense of large-scale offensive military actions (i.e. NATO).
I had only a few minutes at the end of my visit to walk (nearly run) through the extensive art gallery. I really enjoyed seeing the wealth and variety of art pieces on display, which cover all the major combat areas and conflicts, up to and including the current mission in Afghanistan and our on-going peacekeeping missions. The museum closed as I was in the gallery section.
Overall, it was good to go through the museum, but I don’t know that there is much to draw me back for return visits.
Interesting research notes: Canada has the 13th largest defence budget ($21.8 billion Cdn), and 58th largest in terms of personnel (67,000).
The photo gallery for my visit is here: http://gallery.myredbmw.net/v/Events/WarMuseum/.
Today I was asked to come in to take some promotional photos for Les Petits Ballets. They are preparing for the upcoming presentation of “The Little Princess” at Centrepointe Theatre in May. I was very pleased with the results.
Instead of shooting in the classrooms (which are very cluttered visually), we used the rehearsal studio. It is about the same size, but it is set up like a theatre with a black velvet background. It is a better location than the studio.
I also wanted to use the off-camera flash and coloured gels. Rosa and I had experimented at home one evening in December, and I wanted to try again. Specifically, I wanted to put some colour into the background to make the group of girls standout.
Including Rosa, who is playing Ms. Minchin, there were four girls. The choreographer posed the girls, and I would take a number of shots. The dancers tried six different poses.
The Canon 7D has a wireless flash controller built-in, using the on-camera flash. This means that when using the Canon 420EX off camera, it must have line-of-sight to the camera to receive the data.
I put the 420EX on a stand on the floor behind the girls. It was pointed at the black backdrop with the wireless receiver pointed back at me. I used a green gel (Honl) over the flash to ‘break-out’ the dancers from the background.
Because of the limitation of requiring line-of-sight, there were times the flash did not fire. The outfits of the dancers would block the communications. The ideal solution would be to use an RF (radio) controller that would not require line-of-sight.
Because the on-camera flash is used to trigger the remote off-camera flash, this meant that for some shots, I had to fix the red-eye in Aperture. This also could be reduced with an RF controller.
When using the flash, I try to take a set of two photos as quickly as possible. I know that the first photo will trigger all the flashes. When the second photo is taken, the flash has not had enough time to recycle and so I will get the second photo without flash and without needed to manually go turn the flash off. Having photos with and without flash allows me to pick the one that I feel is better. Sometimes the flash will overpower the exposure, and can produce harsh shadows; the nature light exposure might be better. Other times the flash is needed to correctly expose the image.
The photos taken will be used in promotion for the performance (Centrepointe Theatre, May 2011) and for the school in general. In the past, some of my other photos were used for the Capital Events poster and local newspapers.
On the flight to Madrid, while flying into the sunrise, I noticed this triangular dark area on the horizon. In my sleep-deprived state, it took me a few seconds before I realized it was the shadow of the Earth.
This shadow extends out hundreds of thousands of kilometres into space, out past the orbit of the Moon. If the shadow intersects with the full moon, we see a lunar eclipse.
The act of exploring and understanding the world and universe are such an incredible joy for me.
This afternoon, Rosa and I went to the Vintage Clothing Sale at the Chateau Laurier. It was the first time either of us had been in the Chateau.
Rosa shopped for nearly 2 hours and found three neat dresses from the 1950’s and 60’s. It was fun people watching too – lots of characters!
After the shopping was done, we went to Métropolitain Brasserie. I ordered Coquille St. Jacques (scallops), which were delicious. Rosa and I talked for hours. We rarely have enough time, with all our work, dance, racing and family commitments.
I’ve been thinking about what I learned from attending the STS-132 Atlantis launch on May 14th.
1. I learned that if I rent or borrow equipment, I should read the manual before I need to use the equipment. During the launch, when I was using the Canon 100-400mm, I did not set the correct focus length switch. This meant that when the camera needed to refocus, it would hunt for focus over the entire focal length. If I had set the switch correctly, it would have only used the longer focus lengths and should have focused faster.
2. Next, reviewing the photos later, I realized I should have borrowed or bought a UV lens filter, to cut down on the haze. All the launch photos have a bluish tinge.
3. Always remember to bring the lens hood if you have one. When I visited the Kennedy Visitors Complex, I forgot to bring the lens hood for the Canon 10-22mm. It didn’t greatly impact any photos but it could have – always be prepared.
4. Now, about the launch itself. As many people on the Internet have noted, it is very hard to both experience a launch and take pictures. I did my best to do both, as I only had one opportunity. If I had more chances to see a launch, I would go once to experience it, and once to try capturing the experience with my camera.
I was able to watch Atlantis as it was nearly at the official definition of outer space (roughly 100km), which was after the 4 minute point of the ascent to orbit. And as I looked up at the vehicle, two thoughts came to mind.
5. First, the planned height of the SpaceShip Two flights of Virgin Galactic will be about that height. It’s only a third of the height of the typical orbit of the International Space Station. And it doesn’t really seem very high, when you can see the shuttle attaining that in such a short period of time. You can see still the shuttle as it passes that height.
6. Secondly, it absolutely stunning how thin the atmosphere of the Earth really is. As noted above, the official edge of space is 100km. All of the air that is used by every human being and every animal and every plant that ever lived on this good planet, all used that thin veneer of air. Just 100km of air, spread across the face of the Earth. That’s all there is.
And that’s where all of the air pollution goes. It’s not a limitless sky. It’s very very finite. To a single person, it seems incomprehensibly unending, but when you think about the output from 6.8 billion people, it seems very limited. All the cars of the world, all the planes, ships and lawn mowers and leaf blowers and electric generation plants – they all empty into that fragile sheet of air.
I worry about air pollution (and water pollution) and global warming. Even if a person, against all evidence, does not believe that man is contributing to the problem of global warming, certainly they cannot deny that air pollution is a problem that is created by man.
And I think about the entire trip. I flew down to Florida, which directly contributed to air pollution. I watched the shuttle, which uses aluminum-based material in the Solid Rocket Boosters. The Shuttle Main Engines (SSME) burn hydrogen and oxygen and do not pollute directly, but it took a lot of energy to create that volume of liquid hydrogen and oxygen, and another big electrical bill to cool those liquids and keep them cool. There are the transportation costs of moving everything around – the solid booster segments come from Utah, the external tank comes from Louisiana.
I’m scared sometimes that we have already passed the point of keeping our planet useful to future generations. I worry that the air pollution, global warming, pollution of our water, dispersion of all the man-man chemicals (in pesticides, medicines, leeching buried plastics, huge oil spills, garbage dumps, etc) has already put enough of our junk into the biosphere that the Earth will become uninhabitable in some distant future.
I do what I can to reduce my personal impact, but I know I am not doing enough.
Continuing with my previous posting about doing more in Ottawa, tonight I went to see Douglas Coupland at the National Arts Centre. He was reading Chapter 4 (of 5) from his new book Player One: What is to Become of Us?
He is reading the entire book, which is in fact the 2010 Massey Lecture Series. It will be presented during the week of November 9th on CBC Radio’s Ideas show.
This is the first time that I have had the original author of a story read it to me (well, to an auditorium). I’ve been to see a few other authors, and it’s usually a Q&A.
After the hour-long reading, there was a Q&A, presented by Ideas host Paul Kennedy.
Interestingly, Douglas echoed what William Gibson had said the day before about airports being a stateless location – Player One
After the Q&A, there was a long line for the book signing in the lobby. I was setting up my camera (ISO, exposure, etc) to take a picture when Douglas looked right at me and I hit the trigger as a reflex. It was a nice shot without too many distractions. But for just a microsecond, I saw a look on his face that I read as annoyance at being photographed. It has bothered me a lot. I had just broken the rule – try to connect with the subject and ask permission. So many others were also taking pictures, which spurred me into wanting to take a picture, but I could have handled actually taking portrait better. It is a valuable lesson.
