Balconies of death

Where did everybody go?
Toronto, ON
May 2025
This photo originally shared on Instagram

I’ll often stand on the street below and wonder if anyone ever uses the balconies high overhead.

I want to imagine they do, but they seem more suited to convenient storage of patio furniture and bicycles than anything else.

Maybe if they came with parachutes.

#toronto #ontario #canada #yyz #architecturephotography #buildingporn #downtown #geometry #monochrome #photography #nikon #nikonphotography #nikon_photography

Paws for effect

Toe beans!
London, ON
December 2025
This photo originally shared on Instagram

Since it was a busy day for us yesterday, it was a busy day for her, as well. Hence the toe beans.

I don’t think she moved from that spot all evening, and I wasn’t about to interrupt her dog dreams.

They looked like happy ones.

#ldnont #london #ontario #canada #calli #callithethewonderschnauzer #dog #actofdog #schnauzersofinstagram #dogsofinstagram #instapuppy #monochrome #photography #apple #iphone #iphone17 #shotoniphone

Where's my ruler?

Tiled vision
London, ON
December 2025
This photo originally shared on Instagram

We often come across some fairly abstract scenes as we go through the paces of our otherwise ordinary lives.

Because wonder lurks in the corners we’d typically ignore.

And anything can be extraordinary if we choose to look through the right lens.

#ldnont #london #ontario #canada #restaurant #geometry #abstract #stilllife #monochrome #photography #apple #iphone #iphone17 #shotoniphone

An eagle watches over Eagle Lake

Sentinel
Eagle Lake, ON
June 2025
This photo originally shared on Instagram

The biggest bird sits on the highest tree beside a remote lake, watching and waiting for whatever might happen next.

Maybe she knows that humans long ago decided to call this place Eagle Lake. Maybe she can read a map. Maybe she appreciates geographic irony.

Probably not, I think to myself, as she continues to scan the landscape from her perch, looking our way every once in a while to ensure we don’t get in her way.

No risk of that, I silently tell her. This is her domain, not ours.

#dryden #ontario #canada #throwback #eaglelake #bird #birdphotography #birdsofinstagram #birdwatching #naturephotography #landscapephotography #canon #canonphotography #canon_photography

Freshly frozen

Miracles on the porch
London, ON
January 2025
This photo originally shared on Instagram

It’s that season once again, where the warming sun plays tug-of-war with winter’s chill.

And if we look in just the right spots at just the right times, we might be in for a bit of a show. For example, I found this one next to our front porch as I stepped outside to walk the puppy just before midnight.

I appreciate that icicles may be below the radar for most of us. But I can also appreciate that perhaps our radars aren’t pointing in the right direction, because there’s merit in the everyday, in the things that wait quietly for us just outside the front door.

#ldnont #london #ontario #canada #ice #icicle #winter #weather #wx #naturephotography #landscapephotography #monochrome #photography #nikon #nikonphotography #nikon_photography

When trees stretch a little further

Symbiosis in action
London, ON
November 2025
This photo originally shared on Instagram

Do you ever just stare at a tree and wonder what it’s thinking as it reaches for the sky?

I know what you’re thinking: I’m insane.

You’re probably thinking there’s no way that trees are sentient enough to reach for the sky in the same way that us humans do. And you’re probably right.

But plant life is life all the same, with a complex and nuanced relationship with the environment around it. Research even suggests trees can communicate with each other. And I’m not so arrogant to believe that we’ve figured out all the minute facets of life that make trees thrive.

They were around long before we were, after all, and they’ll be around long after we’ve finished trashing this place. And each other. They’ll reach for light and life and water and energy in ways us puny humans may yet never fully understand.

So on an autumn evening under a cloud-smudged sky, I watch the bare canopy sway in the breeze, its silhouette serving as a reminder that life takes on many forms, and we might want to slow down and appreciate all those forms every once in a while.

#ldnont #london #ontario #canada #optimistpark #sunset #tree #cloudspotting #naturephotography #landscapephotography #photography #nikon #nikonphotography #nikon_photography

Rocky road

Worn
London, ON
October 2025
This photo originally shared on Instagram

Deep in the woods, a narrow, rocky path winds its way down toward the river.

Every time it rains, the cascading waters scour the countless stones, smoothing them out in a process that’s been going on here since the glaciers first carved these lands millennia ago.

I can feel the loosely set rocks through the soles of my shoes. They move under me with each step, and I slow my pace to keep from falling. Maybe it isn’t the safest path, but it’s the only way in, and it’s the only one that speaks to me as I move through the woods.

They say we should get in touch with nature. On this day, I choose to take that advice quite literally.

#ldnont #london #ontario #canada #medwayvalley #rocks #texture #naturephotography #landscapephotography #monochrome #photography #nikon #nikonphotography #nikon_photography

Dead or not?

Past and future life
London, ON
October 2025
This photo originally shared on Instagram

This tree is either dead or waiting for life to return in the spring. Or maybe it’s somewhere in between.

I’d like to imagine that whoever stops to check in here has their own story to tell.

#ldnont #london #ontario #canada #medwayvalley #autumn #forest #trees #gameoftones #naturephotography #landscapephotography #monochrome #photography #nikon #nikonphotography #nikon_photography

Ephemeral tracks in the snow

Lead me home
London, ON
November 2025
This photo originally shared on Instagram

In the dying hours of a month best described as grey, the dark skies open up and cover the ground with a blanket of white.

While most folks choose to stay inside, out of the storm, too many others have no such choice.

They leave tracks in their wake, temporary signatures of their having been here, pointers to where they’ve been and where they’re hopefully headed.

We come across an intersection with curved tire tracks, a change in direction on a night when it’s safer to just go straight.

The why of this particular turn will only be known by whoever’s hands were on the wheel. We can only wish them a safe journey.

#ldnont #london #ontario #canada #winter #snow #weather #wx #onstorm #streetphotography #abstract #monochrome #photography #apple #iphone #iphone17 #shotoniphone

Date night cream cheese adventure

Chill in the abstract
London, ON
November 2025
This photo originally shared on Instagram

The scene: the cream cheese display case in our local Loblaws grocery store. My wife and I are here for date night*, and as I reach inside for some whipped shmear, I see something that begs for a little more attention.

Maybe it’s the lighting. Or the angles. Or the strangely mundane spectacle of Philadelphia brand products, which have been a breakfast staple since I was a kid. Maybe the what and the why shouldn’t even matter. The point is I’m strangely hooked.

So out comes the smartphone for a fast and chilly shoot. I get stares from strangers. My wife walks away in embarrassment.

Never mind. I’m committed to the vision. It takes a little bit of maneuvering to get the right composition - I believe cream cheeses are somewhat shy - but eventually I get what I want and extricate myself from the display so I can rejoin my lovely wife. I drop the container of plain whipped Philly into the cart before we point ourselves toward the cereal aisle. Tomorrow morning’s breakfast promises to be epic. I’ll remember the grocery run that made it possible long after the dishes are washed and put away.

—

* Date night happens any time we’re together. If we’re running errands - like fetching groceries - then it’s date night. Walking the dog? Date night. Sitting at an airport gate before the sun rises? Date night.

Because time spent together isn’t necessarily spectacular or planned. Sometimes the moments that matter most are the ones that happen when we’re just going through the ordinary paces of everyday life.

And if it involves a weird photo session that prompts my favourite human to walk away pretending she doesn’t know me, that’s just another piece of the never-quite-predictable - or even remotely normal - story of us. And yes, I realize just how insanely lucky I am.

#ldnont #london #ontario #canada #grocery #store #loblaws #refrigerated #dairy #shopping #retail #photography #apple #iphone #iphone17 #shotoniphone

Ancient industrial handrail

Grab on
Woodstock, ON
June 2025
This photo originally shared on Instagram

Ancient factories don’t always give up their secrets without a bit of effort.

So before we step into the stairwell covered with decades of dust, under brick walls eroded by time, we grab on to industrial-looking railings polished smooth by generations of now-vanished workers and their bosses.

And we say a quiet thanks to whoever ensured this relic of a community now lost to time still stands, that we can still stand amid the dim light filtered through ancient glass and listen for the echoes from those who once brought these walls to life.

Not everything needs to become a new condo development, after all. Not all stories should be ended by the thing we call progress.

#woodstock #ontario #canada #throwback #building #factory #architecturephotography #buildingporn #architectureporn #stilllife #photography #apple #iphone #iphone16 #shotoniphone

Red albatross under a blue sky

Land on this
London, ON
September 2025
This photo originally shared on Instagram

The winds howled all night as squalls raked our region and painted it monochrome shades of white and grey.

So please don’t mind if I look for a shot of colour in my big old pile of photos. It’s my way of countering the deepening gloom of a season marked more by darkness than by light.

Today’s rather abstract offering was captured at an air show in September. While the crowds gathered around the needle-nosed fighter jets, I chose to stand under a plane that first took to the skies 78 years ago. The Grumman HU-16 Albatross is certainly not needle-nosed, isn’t remotely supersonic, and will never strike fear in the hearts of, well, anyone.

Originally designed as an amphibious search and rescue platform, this particular model has been transformed into a modern classroom of sorts for the next generation of test pilots and flight engineers. It belongs to the International Test Pilots School here in London, and its glass cockpit and advanced avionics are the stuff its original designers could only dream of. It’s a pretty cool ride, owned and operated by a pretty cool organization.

Yet it was the colour and the rivets against an azure sky that kept me stuck to the tarmac for longer than was probably advisable.

Sometimes we just have to slow things down and appreciate the history that led to this specific moment. Those needle-nosed jets owe more than a passing thank you to legends like this.

#airshowlondon #ldnont #london #airport #ontario #canada #grummann #hu16 #albatross #aviation #flight #aircraft #planespotting #aviationphotography #abstract #photography #apple #iphone #iphone16 #shotoniphone

After the harvest

Rows upon rows...
Middlesex Centre, ON
November 2025
This photo originally shared on Instagram

I’m driving through the farmlands north of town when I see something fun in my peripheral vision.

It’s the first day of November, and the skies are having a bit of a hissy fit, with ominous clouds racing overhead, no doubt propelled by intense winds that I can feel through the steering wheel. They’re painting the freshly harvested fields below something fierce.

So I park the car and zero in on the treeline overlooking what’s left following the recent harvest. I’m not sure if it’s the leading lines, the subtle colours and tones, the textures, or all of them, but something about this scene makes me just want to stand there.

I get it: this is but one of countless fields on a very large planet. And who am I to call this any more special than any other?

But here’s the thing about farmers’ fields, photography, and I guess life, as well: not everything needs to be compared. Or ranked. This scene doesn’t have to win any more than any other needs to lose.

All that matters is right here, right now, I feel something. So I do my best to shoot it in a way that ensures I never forget that feeling.

Simple, really.

#ldnont #london #middlesex #ontario #canada #farm #autumn #naturephotography #landscapephotography #photography #nikon #nikonphotography #nikon_photography

Getting reflective in the driveway

Winter comes early
London, ON
November 2025
This photo originally shared on Instagram

If you’re Canadian, you know the drill: clean the walk and the car after the snow stops falling.

It’s usually accompanied by a little grumbling and whining. Okay, maybe not a little.

But on occasion you’ll stop and see something that makes you pause. A tiny little moment of wonder that reminds you that there’s a bright side to the cold and the snow and the murk.

I found mine on the door handle, and just had to engage in a little bit of guerilla driveway photography before I got rid of it all with the snowbrush.

It’s just an icicle, really, but for a brief moment it was a silent antidote to an otherwise grey day, a tiny slice of perfection sitting in plain sight - but only if I slowed myself down and took the time to look for it.

I hope you find your icicle today, as well.

#ldnont #canada #icicleworks #reflective

Defiance before the fade

One last wisp of colour
London, ON
October 2025
This photo originally shared on Instagram

A month ago, fire glowed in the tones at our feet, in the remaining leaves that still held onto their last wisps of colour despite the inevitability of all that surrounded them.

If we return to that quiet spot in the woods today, the colours will have shifted to browns and greys, mere shadows of what once was. It’s easy to assume it’s all over, that nature has hit pause, that nothing happens between now and spring, when life will return with a flourish.

This simple assumption, that everything stops as winter approaches, then magically restarts in a few months, ignores all that now happens out of our sight. The life we believe is reflected exclusively in bright colours can often be even more vibrant in their absence.

I wonder if there’s a broader message in these leaves. Maybe we’ve been looking at this autumn colour thing all wrong.

#ldnont #london #ontario #canada #medwayvalley #fallen #leaves #red #autumn #colour #stilllife #naturephotography #photography #nikon #nikonphotography #nikon_photography

Three geese walk up to a sandbar...

Preflight
London, ON
September 2025
This photo originally shared on Instagram

On an unseasonably warm September afternoon, I’m in the middle of a meandering bike ride through an unfamiliar neighbourhood when I come across this trio of Canadian Geese hanging out in a drainage pond.

The only camera I have on me is my smartphone, because stuffing an actual camera into a bike bag and then cycling the way I do - um, roughly - is probably not advisable for sensitive photographic equipment. I should have gotten the bike with suspension, I guess.

But they always say the best camera is always the one you have in your hand, so I park the bike and start composing with the iPhone.

To be charitable, “they” are spectacularly mistaken. The lens lacks reach, and I end up with this pixelated mess of a photo, and three angry birds who promptly swim away.

But I’m sharing it here, anyway, because I want it to serve as a memo of sorts to my future photographic self. I do that often, drop placeholder photos into the narrative to inspire myself for some future date when maybe the conditions will be better. Maybe I’ll have the right camera with me then. Or better lighting. Or I’ll be in a different frame of mind.

It’s a photographic game of Hansel and Gretel, except instead of finding my way home with a trail of food, I’ll be finding my way forward with a trail of really lousy pics.

But even a lousy photo tells a story - and keeps us on the path we were always meant to be on.

Now, there’s never a guarantee that we’ll even be gifted a tomorrow, so all of this is speculative at best. But it doesn’t hurt to leave little nuggets for the future, just in case.

Until then, the angry birds have time to figure out their next move.

#ldnont #london #ontario #canada #hydepark #bird #geese #reflective #naturephotography #wildlifephotography #naturephotography #photography #apple #iphone #iphone17 #shotoniphone

The colour-splattered sky

Before the switch is flipped
London, ON
November 2025
This photo originally shared on Instagram

The sky was in a bit of a mood last night, splattering herself with random colours and textures long after sunset.

She wasn’t at it for very long: just as soon as the chaos reached its peak, it began its just-as-rapid fade into darkness.

So I just stood there on the damp, soft grass and stared toward the west, musing in my head about how many times I’ve stood in this very spot, and seen scenes very much like this one.

It’s probably a large number. Too large, even, because how many photos of the sky does one person need? Whatever that number is, I’ve likely exceeded it.

But as the yellows and oranges shifted to pinks and salmons, then blues and greys and finally blacks, I stopped counting. Because whatever that large number is, it isn’t infinite. Not for me, nor anyone else who might see these images, or perhaps happen across me as I shoot them.

We all get a certain number of sunsets. Of everything.

So I hope you don’t mind if I keep shooting and sharing the ones I happen to see. The sunsets. The everythings.

Maybe the numbers are ridiculous. The alternative - having no numbers at all - seems even more so.

#ldnont #london #ontario #canada #optimistpark #sunset #orange #cloudspotting #naturephotography #landscapephotography #photography #nikon #nikonphotography #nikon_photography

She waits by the bedroom door

Shades of RCA Victor
London, ON
November 2025
This photo originally shared on Instagram

The scene: last night. 11:44. It’s bedtime for all of us, and as Calli the Wonderschnauzer often does on her way upstairs, she sits herself down on the upper landing beside our room.

She’ll wait for us to get there before finally getting up and following us in. There’s no telling what she’s thinking, but I’d like to imagine the thoughts bouncing through her head are happy ones. Maybe scenes from the day she’s just had, or wishes for a comfy night’s sleep with her humans. Or squirrels.

Last night, she lingered just a bit longer, the shadows she cast feeling just a bit more grounded than they usually do. So I quietly grabbed this memory before we all tucked in for the night.

Every once in a while, I’m reminded that the moments we remember most seem to be the quietest ones.

#ldnont #london #ontario #canada #calli #callithethewonderschnauzer #dog #actofdog #schnauzersofinstagram #dogsofinstagram #instapuppy #photography #apple #iphone #iphone17 #shotoniphone

Iced over

It's all about the texture
London, ON
November 2025
This photo originally shared on Instagram

When tiny frozen miracles are playing out at our feet, the least we can do is look down.

Soon enough, the morning sun will bathe this unassuming gutter in warmth, rendering this crystallized world little more than runoff.

So out comes the camera. Because we never know when the next miracle will occur.

#ldnont #london #ontario #canada #gutter #ice #frozen #winter #walkabout #weather #wx #onstorm #abstract #stilllife #naturephotography #photography #apple #iphone #iphone17 #shotoniphone

Impressionism in still waters

Feeling reflective
London, ON
October 2025
This photo originally shared on Instagram

Stand on a riverbank staring into the mirror-like waters long enough and one thing eventually becomes clear: everything is temporary.

This is just a reflection. The waters may or may not continue to flow here. The trees will eventually fall. The entire valley, carved out by these same waters over millennia, will eventually morph into something very different.

Maybe it’s all just an illusion. Or a hushed message to those of us who come here to hold onto the things we see and feel.

Because soon enough, we won’t be able to stand here at all.

#ldnont #london #ontario #canada #medwayvalley #autumn #forest #trees #thames #river #reflective #naturephotography #landscapephotography #photography #nikon #nikonphotography #nikon_photography

Old parking spot

Follow the sign
London, ON
September 2025
This photo originally shared on Instagram

The signs are everywhere. Even here, in the dusty corners of an elementary school parking lot, baking under the sun for as long as the place has been here.

No one leans in to catch the subtle streams of rust below the corroded screw, the hairline cracks in the paint, the berries growing defiantly through the twisted chain link fence.

It’s all invisible. In plain sight.

Which makes me fear the day when someone decides the cracks and the rust need to be painted over, and the berries need to go.

Because the scars we pick up along the way tell stories that don’t deserve to be erased.

#ldnont #london #ontario #canada #visitor #sign #stilllife #streetphotography #photography #apple #iphone #iphone16 #shotoniphone

Walk the red carpet

Here for now
London, ON
October 2025
This photo originally shared on Instagram

A lot can change in four weeks.

This patch of grass beneath a nearby maple tree was once covered with red leaves. Today it’s a snowy mess, and whatever leaves are left have long since shrivelled to brown.

But on that unseasonably warm October day, autumn’s colours flared brilliantly one last time, and the winds held off just long enough so we could enjoy the scene before winter repainted it.

I’m under no illusion that any of this is materially important to any of us. They’re just leaves on grass, after all, another milestone in a planetary cycle that never seems to end.

But for a brief moment on an otherwise ordinary day, an almost-bare tree painted a vibrant carpet of red on a perfectly shaded stretch of grass. I thought it was worth remembering.

#ldnont #london #ontario #canada #autumn #colours #red #tree #naturephotography #landscapephotography #photography #apple #iphone #iphone17 #shotoniphone

Related:

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Red Roof Inn, October 2024

Taking a moment to remember, November 2023

Red on grey on a windy day, October 2023

Don't stand so close to me, October 2020

Can you handle this pepper?

Red and green forever
London, ON
November 2025
This photo originally shared on Instagram

We live on a decidedly noisy planet. So on occasion I’ll look for tiny blinkered moments where the noise gets shut out and is replaced by something much simpler.

In this case, it’s one red pepper among many in the produce section of the local Farm Boy store. It’s late on a grey Sunday afternoon, and as soon as I round the corner and see this perfectly lit display, I know it’s time for some spontaneous vegetable photography.

As my immensely patient and understanding wife heads to the bread section, I lean in and try to figure out the ideal way to capture the scene and the moment. The noise of the surrounding store seems to disappear as I figure out angles and composition. I’m only shooting with a smartphone, but the equipment seems to be beside the point, anyway.

It doesn’t take long to get what I want, and soon enough I’m back in the bread aisle figuring out sourdough options with a particularly lovely human. She gets why I need to hit pause every once in a while - and why a little quiet amid all the noise can be good for the soul.

#ldnont #london #ontario #canada #grocery #store #farmboy #shopping #retail #red #peppers #vegetables #stilllife #photography #fruitography #apple #iphone #iphone17 #shotoniphone

Related:

A peck of perfectly imperfect peppers, February 2024

Green pepper musings, January 2024

Red pepper party, April 2023

Where we stress over cauliflower, January 2023

Three kinds of peppers, September 2022

Seeking solace in green peppers, June 2022

Peppers in all colors, May 2022

Thunderbird and jelly

Dangerous physics
London, ON
September 2022
This photo originally shared on Instagram

There are days when you just want to mash the throttles and join your friends in the skies for some death-defying moments.

Bonus points if you make a ton of noise and leave some reality-distorting jelly behind.

Because having a bit of fun with your besties is a lot more worthwhile if you change the landscape in the process.

#throwback #airshowlondon #ldnont #london #airport #ontario #canada #usaf #thunderbirds #lockheedmartin #f16 #falcon #viper #fighter #aviationphotography #planespotting #instaplane #nikon #nikonphotography #nikon_photography @airshowlondon @flyyxu

All that's left...

The view below
London, ON
November 2025
This photo originally shared on Instagram

The leaves have lost their brilliance and fallen to the floor, forgotten by all.

We’re way past autumn’s peak, long after everyone else has returned home and tucked their cameras back in until next year.

The remnants will soon be blown away. Or swept up. Or maybe they’ll just disappear on their own, wispy memories of a now-lost point in time.

Or maybe they won’t be memories at all. Because no one consciously remembers a leaf. Or a collection of them. Or the mess they leave after they’ve seemingly served their purpose.

Which gets me thinking: they’re still serving a purpose, even if we aren’t equipped to appreciate just what that purpose is.

And the trees that now stand bare over the chaotic forest floor will eventually be nourished once more.

#ldnont #london #ontario #canada #fallen #leaves #autumn #colour #stilllife #naturephotography #photography #apple #iphone #iphone17 #shotoniphone

Before the fire in the sky is extinguished

Burning water
London, ON
July 2025
This photo originally shared on Instagram

Fires in the sky never last as long as we wish they would.

Nothing beautiful ever does. The things that move us often disappear just as quickly as they appear in the first place.

Perhaps there’s a lesson in there. Or a message to our future selves.

#ldnont #london #ontario #canada #optimistpark #sunset #orange #cloudspotting #naturephotography #landscapephotography #photography #nikon #nikonphotography #nikon_photography

Listen to the quiet waters

Quietly reflective
London, ON
October 2025
This photo originally shared on Instagram

Some days don’t call for words.

Some days, nothing we can say or write will fix the ills of the world, or the people who live in it.

Some days the words need to be set aside.

Some days the only answer is to stand beside the slowly flowing waters.

Some days it makes more sense to say nothing and listen more.

Some days it feels right to wonder what was and what may still be.

In a place like this.

#ldnont #london #ontario #canada #medwayvalley #autumn #forest #trees #thames #river #reflective #naturephotography #landscapephotography #monochrome #photography #nikon #nikonphotography #nikon_photography

One red tree

All alone
London, ON
October 2025
This photo originally shared on Instagram

Everything happens in cycles.

Leaves that just a few months ago burst from tiny buds in shades of fresh green now flash brilliant red before falling one last time to their inevitable shrivelled fate.

Some hold on a little longer than others, desperate for a few more hours or days. But nature’s script is a strict master, and time eventually runs out for them all, leaving only a bare framework to whisper in winter’s winds.

I tell myself it’s just a tree. That the seeds of renewal are already being planted. That life continues on beneath the surface. That what we can’t see is often more vibrant than the things we can.

But I’ll still miss the red. The quiet endings of leaves floating to the ground one last time, gathering in the grass, scattering in the wind. The long wait for vibrancy to return, nurtured by the remnants of the past. The defiance of a single young tree fighting to survive in a wide open plain.

We’re all touched by our own forms of cycles, playing out somewhat endlessly in ways both visible and not. If we’re watching the trees, who, then, watches us?

#ldnont #london #ontario #canada #optimistpark #autumn #forest #tree #gameoftones #red #leaf #texture #naturephotography #landscapephotography #photography #nikon #nikonphotography #nikon_photography

Related:

Whole lotta red, November 2025

Trees on the horizon, June 2025

Weeds in name only, June 2025

A single tree stands guard, March 2025

Two weeks later..., April 2022

Finding life at the crossroads, August 2021

One tree hill, June 2009

Remembering why they fought

Frozen in time
London, ON
November 2025
This photo originally shared on Instagram

Some gave all. They fought for this leaf - and all it represents. Too many died for it. Or came home, and lived with the fallout. Continue to live, even.

And as we sit north of the border and watch the systematic deconstruction of democracy by an autocratic wannabe, the need to understand why we fought, and why those ideals are never guaranteed, has never been more pronounced.

We aren’t owed freedom. It isn’t automatic. And it’s never immune from the forces that would extinguish it.

Saying thank you one day a year feels like the bare minimum. Even the bare minimum no longer seems sufficient.

#ldnont #london #ontario #canada #remembranceday #lestweforget #stilllife #photooftheday #apple #iphone #iphone17 #shotoniphone

Related:

Back to the gutter, December 2024

Frozen berries by the road, March 2024

The things we find in gutters, March 2024

When puddles freeze, January 2023

Leaf frozen in ice, March 2022

Branches in ice, January 2022

Dying in the middle of a frozen street, November 2018

Edmund Fitzgerald + 50

Sacred waters and memories
Old Woman Bay, Lake Superior Provincial Park, ON
June 2024
This photo originally shared on Instagram

50 years ago today, the SS Edmund Fitzgerald sank in a storm on Lake Superior, taking 29 souls to the bottom.

The mystery of why the largest ship on the Great Lakes was lost persists to this day, and when we stood by the windswept shore last year and watched the waves wash over the sand, it felt like Gitchi-Gami would never give up her secrets.

She’s hardly the only ship to be lost, in these waters - or in any waters, for that matter. But she’s the one who became embedded in our memories, who became the anthem of a nation, who continues to remind us that the lives we lead depend on the sacrifices of countless mariners in waters like these.

Maybe we just don’t see it. Maybe we should stand in places like this and feel the waves reach out to us from the mysterious depths.

#oldwomanbay #algoma #throwback #lake #superior #ontario #canada #gordonlightfoot #naturephotography #landscapephotography #beach #photography #apple #apple #iphone #iphone16 #shotoniphone

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She'll pose for treats

This is my spot
London, ON
November 2025
This photo originally shared on Instagram

Look, I don’t much appreciate your constantly sticking that lens in my face. But if I sit pretty for a few seconds, will you finally leave me be?

I might even come around if you add in a treat. Or maybe six treats.

I know you know Schnauzers are smart. But did you know we’re also pretty good negotiators, too?

#ldnont #london #ontario #canada #calli #callithethewonderschnauzer #dog #actofdog #schnauzersofinstagram #dogsofinstagram #instapuppy #photography #apple #iphone #iphone17 #shotoniphone

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Factory window

Grated
London, ON
July 2025
This photo originally shared on Instagram

Looking out the window of a century-old factory, it’s easy to think we’re seeing a simple collection of old buildings.

Yet whenever I visit places like this, I don’t see the architecture as much as the now-vanished communities that used to rely on these places. The workers who filed in shift after shift and worked in often brutal conditions to provide for their families. The surrounding neighbourhoods whose livelihoods and futures depended on these iron-and-brick giants that painted the surrounding skies with shadows and smoke.

Buildings like these became anchors, imperfect pillars of imperfect towns where everyday people just tried to get by. It was never supposed to be easy or comfortable or even fair.

And as industrialization gives way to an economy more driven by data than physical labour, the structural monoliths that once defined our cities are slowly disappearing. Along with them, their stories similarly fade from our memories.

So for the few hulks that remain, we pause by their oversized windows and wonder about lives now vanished, and the sacrifices others made in the pursuit of better tomorrows.

#ldnont #london #ontario #canada #100kellogg #100kellogglane #digoev #building #factory #architecture #architecturephotography #buildingporn #architectureporn #glass #geometry #abstract #photography #nikon #nikonphotography #nikon_photography

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Whole lotta red

Game of tones
London, ON
October 2025
This photo originally shared on Instagram

The mission was simple: find colour.

It took a while to find this especially red example of tone and texture deep in the woods. But as soon as I turned the corner and saw it, I knew.

We may set out on a journey with all sorts of intentions about what we’ll encounter once we’re out there. But reality seems to have its own rulebook, its own way of delivering random experiences that may or may not align with what we initially sought out.

This particular autumn afternoon turned out to be a lucky one, when what I got more or less matched up with what I had hoped.

These days are rare, however. The universe usually takes turns we couldn’t have foreseen, and serves up colours we might not have imagined. Or maybe no colours at all.

Amid the soft sounds of leaves detaching from the trees and just as softly touching down on the forest floor, it dawns on me that not everything needs a plan, and the universe is going to follow scripts that don’t always match our own.

Which in the end is perfectly acceptable recipe for this thing called life. Because the journey wouldn’t shine as brightly as it does if we always knew what to expect.

#ldnont #london #ontario #canada #medwayvalley #autumn #forest #trees #gameoftones #red #leaves #texture #naturephotography #landscapephotography #photography #nikon #nikonphotography #nikon_photography

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Hidden sun

Where did it go?
London, ON
August 2025
This photo originally shared on Instagram

Thick clouds choke the sky as day slowly gives way to night. The sun is nowhere to be seen, but its influence is felt all the same.

Staring through glass at the turbulent scene above, it feels like an analog, of sorts, of life down here.

Because we can’t always directly see the forces shaping the day-to-day. But that doesn’t mean they aren’t there. And it doesn’t give us license to give up looking for them.

#ldnont #london #ontario #canada #optimistpark #sunset #orange #cloudspotting #naturephotography #landscapephotography #photography #nikon #nikonphotography #nikon_photography

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Maple leaves forever

Temporarily symbolic
London, ON
October 2025
This photo originally shared on Instagram

Since the maple leaf is the very symbol of this country, I’ve got to imagine that this photo is symbolic of who we are.

These leaves, captured deep in the shadowy woods, are battered and bruised by an environment explicitly determined to wipe them out. Whether it’s wind, rain, or last night’s curious mixture of sleet and hail, they wear their scars, yet still hang on with quiet defiance.

Also like Canadians, they stick together, shielding each other from constant abuse, turning themselves toward the life-giving light.

Eventually, they’ll lose their grip up here, and will tumble into the growing mess on the forest floor below.

Yet their story won’t end there, because soon enough they’ll break down still further and provide the ingredients for the next generation of leaves, already seeking life through the unseen roots below.

We’re as much part of this cycle outside the forest as we are within it, and anyone who doubts the power of a simple leaf hasn’t spent enough time in places like this.

#ldnont #london #ontario #canada #medwayvalley #autumn #forest #trees #gameoftones #red #leaf #texture #stilllife #bokeh #dof #naturephotography #landscapephotography #photography #nikon #nikonphotography #nikon_photography

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Blue light in the woods

The canopy clears itself out
London, ON
October 2025
This photo originally shared on Instagram

The light in the river valley is fading, trending toward shades of blue as the sun sinks below the ridges above the treeline.

The leaves on the trees have mostly fallen, the few that are left behind clinging to the branches in one last act of quiet defiance.

In so many ways, the story is over. Everyone else has already gone home now that the colours are just about gone.

Yet as one chapter ends, another is getting underway. It isn’t filled with crowd-pleasing colours and breathtaking tones, but it’s a story worth telling all the same.

We’ll have to return to this place, then. Because every story, no matter how bright or dim it might be, deserves to be told.

#ldnont #london #ontario #canada #medwayvalley #autumn #forest #trees #gameoftones #naturephotography #landscapephotography #photography #nikon #nikonphotography #nikon_photography

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The view under the bridge

Riverside
London, ON
November 2025
This photo originally shared on Instagram

There’s a bridge over the river that snakes its way through the university campus. Most days it teems with an endless stream of traffic, students heading to class, everyone else heading to work or life or whatever.

It’s a narrow bridge, with tight sidewalks and no shoulders. So everyone crosses carefully, barely noticing the river below.

It’s a different story on the path that runs underneath the span, a quiet spot where pedestrians and cyclists can and do stop what they’re doing to take in the scene.

Which is where I find myself hitting pause as I pedal my way home. The thrum of life echoes through the concrete and steel above my head, but down here it’s a different story.

Two realities playing out within metres of each other, each group of actors completely unaware of the other. As I stare at the reflective waters, I wonder what would happen if more of us took the time to change where we stand every once in a while.

#ldnont #london #ontario #canada #uwo #thamesriver #autumn #rocks #reflective #naturephotography #landscapephotography #photography #apple #iphone #iphone17 #shotoniphone

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Pedalling through the late autumn air

Ride. Always.
London, ON
November 2025
This photo originally shared on Instagram

Early on a chilly Sunday morning, I take the bike out of the garage and quietly set out on empty roads.

The calendar says November, the cold-soaked ache in my fingers a sobering reminder that autumn is getting ready for winter’s arrival.

Still, it feels deeply gratifying to be out on two wheels, to breathe the crisp air, and feel the crunch of the leaves under the tires. Whatever misgivings I may have had back at the house have long since been dismissed as I drink in the subtle joys of this time of year.

Soon enough I come to a bridge and decide I want to remember why cycling remains such a passion for me no matter the weather. It is, in the end, both a choice and a privilege to ride, and photos like this serve as reminders of why I keep heading out.

The snows will come soon enough, but for now there are still places to go, and days like this to hold onto.

#ldnont #london #ontario #canada #tvp #rosspark #thames #river #cycling #cyclist #orange #bicycle #cyclinglife #instabike #photography #apple #apple #iphone #iphone17 #shotoniphone

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As the beautiful game ends

Field of dreams
Toronto, ON
September 2024
This photo originally shared on Instagram

It’s still a beautiful game.

It’s still a beautiful team.

Filled with players, coaches, staff who aren’t just great at the sport, but great at life.

And maybe the ending wasn’t what the country had hoped for, but the journey was magical all the same.

And I’d like to believe that the story behind a sports statistic matters at least as much as, if not more than, the statistic itself.

I’d like to believe this applies in the game of life, too.

So this morning I’m grateful for what was, and for what lies ahead. An entire country got to share common, indelible moments of joy and heartbreak for months on end, and we were all lucky to have been a part of it.

Go Jays. Always. And thank you not only for what you pulled off, but for how you conducted yourselves along the way.

#toronto #yyz #ontario #canada #throwback #bluejays #mlb #rogerscentre #stadium #skydome #baseball #worldseries #sports #sportsing #photography #canon #canonphotography #canon_photography

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