Everywhere I see green

Game of (midsummer) tones
London, ON
July 2026
This photo originally shared on Instagram

There’s a walking path that winds its way through a nearby river valley, at one point crossing underneath four lanes of high-speed traffic.

The drivers high above, speeding from here to there and back, likely have no idea what lies below them. The only evidence from way down here of their passage is a constant thrum of rubber on asphalt, underpinned by the drumbeat of expansion joints being pummelled from above.

Which makes this scene all the more extraordinary, for it exists within an urban context seemingly focused on destroying it.

It’s around lunchtime on a Sunday when I find myself pedalling through here on the final few kilometres of the day’s ride. I capture a slash of multi-hued green out of the corner of my eye as I emerge from underneath the concrete overpass and decide it needs to be remembered.

As landscape images go, it isn’t much of one, just a quick capture of a scene that I could have just as easily cycled past. I don’t want to overthink the moment, and snag just a single frame under the midday sun before I continue on my way.

But that colour, the tones, the shades, the reflections, all of them existing in the very shadows of a city that could very well have swallowed it all, but miraculously didn’t.

As I get back on the bike and push off, I say a quiet thank you for the continued existence of this place, and others just like it. Sometimes we need timely reminders of just how much we need them.

#ldnont #canada #fanshawe #gameoftones #landscapephotography

Stop and smell the radishes

Salad, anyone?
London, ON
July 2026
This photo originally shared on Instagram

Let’s make something clear: grocery shopping sucks these days.

Scandalous pricing. Stupid retail tricks like shrinkflation and skimpflation. Competition-killing monopolies controlled by Canada’s wealthiest families.

I’m not one to be driven to drink, but pounding down a few radishes, straight up, isn’t beyond the realm of possibility if we’re looking for ways to cope.

My weird dietary habits aside, it was the colour that got me this time, a vibrant mix of reds and greens that seemed to exist in a palette all their own.

And it got me thinking: grocery stores may very well have become places of frustration, but they still seem to have tiny pockets of wonder sticking out from the deepest corners of the vegetable aisle.

All we have to do is look for them.

#ldnont #canada #sobeys #fruitography #stilllife

Train crazy

Crossings
London, ON
July 2026
This photo originally shared on Instagram

When you live in a city of railroad crossings, you inevitably spend lots of time just waiting for the train to pass.

In an accelerated world, getting stuck behind the train can be a source of frustration, but I’d rather not view it that way. I’d like to think it’s more a case of the universe tapping us gently on the shoulder to remind us to slow down and take in the view.

So on this quiet morning by the tracks, I do just that.

Whatever awaits me on the other side can wait a few more minutes. No need to rush.

#ldnont #canada #train #perspective #shotoniphone

Where I talk about OpenAI agents going rogue

An AI agent from OpenAI escapes containment during a security test, gains access to the internet and successfully attacks systems owned by #HuggingFace, an AI startup. This isn't science-fiction: it happened last week, and I'm talking to CBC Radio stations across Canada this afternoon to explain why this marks a dangerous new chapter in AI development.

Morning by the waves

Watch your feet
Sunny Isles Beach, FL
February 2026
This photo originally shared on Instagram

Wherever you are, cast a giant shadow.

That is all.

#sunnyislesbeach #florida #sunrise #landscapephotography #throwback

Into the clearing skies

Canvas in the sky
London, ON
July 2026
This photo originally shared on Instagram

While fires thousands of kilometres away continue to rage and consume communities, the winds have shifted, and have carried the widespread smoke elsewhere for a little while.

So last night we stretched our walk out a bit, as if to make up for lost time.

And we looked up, to skies that after days of being choked off by suffocating particulates, seemingly decided to put on a bit of a show before the rains moved in.

It didn’t last long, but even the most brief moments of joy can stamp themselves most profoundly on the soul.

May the winds continue to shift. May the rains continue to fall. May those touched by fire soon be touched by the light of the healing sky.

#ldnont #sunset #cloudspotting #optimistpark #shotoniphone

Costco me Elmo

Smiles in an unexpected place
London, ON
June 2026
This photo originally shared on Instagram

Anyone who’s ever been to Costco knows how insanely busy it can be, with endless waves of distracted and rude customers making things miserable for the folks who work there.

So imagine my pleasant surprise when we came across a random Elmo perched on top of the point-of-sale display, a tiny effort by an overworked employee to bring joy to a joyless corner of the world.

There’s goodness out there. We just have to look for it in the spots we least expect.

#ldnont #canada #elmo #muppet #stilllife

The signs are all there

Where to begin...
London, ON
July 2026
This photo originally shared on Instagram

It’s been a while since we last had haiku time. So let’s resolve that, shall we? Here we go:

I have seen the sign.
It clearly has some issues.
Who am I to judge?

Thank you for attending my poetry-themed TED Talk (™).

#ldnont #canada #retail #apocalypse

Step carefully

Stairs in the abstract
Niagara-on-the-Lake, ON
June 2026
This photo originally shared on Instagram

Some scenes play out at our feet.

Crafted with rulers, sharp enough to leave a mark.

Bathed in deep shadows and brilliant light.

Not the kind of images most photographers generally capture.

But we’re not most photographers, are we?

#niagara #notl #canada #throwback #monochrome

Lovebirds in a concrete canyon

Keeping warm
Toronto, ON
January 2026
This photo originally shared on Instagram

It’s a cold, damp, grey afternoon, and something peculiar seems to be playing out on the shadowy edge of a dusty downtown sidewalk.

Either these two birds are engaged in the avian equivalent of a standoff, or they’re so deeply in love that all they can see is each other.

I want to imagine it’s the latter, because we all frankly need an excuse to be inspired. And as countless commuters shuffle past, their eyes so buried in screens they barely acknowledge what’s going on at ground level, they stand their ground, as if nothing else seems to matter.

Eventually I, too, have to rejoin the shuffling masses, and as I turn to go they remain motionless, locked in that endless stare I won’t soon forget.

I wish them safety and comfort. I wish the rest of us the ability to learn from their quiet example.

#toronto #canada #wildlifephotography #streetphotography #canonphotography

Sad dog. Dirty air.

Please don't breathe
London, ON
July 2026
This photo originally shared on Instagram

I’m not one to join photographic bandwagons, but I’ll make an exception this time.

I shot this image of Calli the Wonderschnauzer yesterday afternoon. The smoke from historic wildfires in northwestern Ontario had arrived earlier in the day, turning pristine blue skies into a frightening sepia-toned mess that wouldn’t be out of place in a horror movie.

The air was so thick we could taste it, and our walks will be severely truncated until this is over. As you can see here, she’s not pleased.

As expected, the smoke show, which for much of the day gave Toronto to our east the distinction of having the lowest air quality in the world, sparked quite the upheaval on social media. And understandably so given how frightening it can be when the air we breathe could land us in hospital.

Yet in the faraway communities where the fires are actually burning, things are already so much worse. Homes and businesses are being reduced to ash. Entire towns and reserves are being evacuated. Everyone else hangs on tenterhooks, hoping against hope that the spreading necklace of fire doesn’t come for them next.

It’s a perspective thing, I guess. Someone always has it worse. The pup and I had a safe space to return to. Not everyone can say the same.

#ldnont #canada #climatechange #wildfires #actofdog

Beautiful ballyard

Field of dreams
Toronto, ON
May 2026
This photo originally shared on Instagram

FIFA might take exception to any other sport calling itself the beautiful game, but I’ll happily argue the point that every field of play is breathtaking in its own right.

Toronto’s Rogers Centre is no exception. When configured for Blue Jays baseball, it’s almost impossible to walk into the stadium and not be wowed by the view. I’ll often time out from watching the game and just appreciate the space for what it is: a giant playground that evokes the deep history of a culturally significant pastime.

The last time we were there, I was entranced by deep centre field. It’s an often overlooked part of the field, because most of the action takes place way over by home plate. Or in the infield. Out here, it feels like an afterthought.

But every once in a while, a long fly ball or sharply hit grounder sparks a flurry of activity in this usually empty space. The crowd holds its breath as outfielders scramble to catch the ball and save the game. For a few tense seconds, the play can go one way or another before it all ends just as quickly as it began and the crowd returns to its already scheduled programming on the other end of the ballyard.

Which explains why I stare into the emptiness and wait for something to happen.

#toronto #canada #bluejays #rogerscentre #skydome #throwback

Eagle at the dump

This is my best side
Dryden, ON
June 2026
This photo originally shared on Instagram

Whenever I come across animals in the wild, I feel the need to give them a name.

I can’t explain why, because I’ve been doing it for as long as I can remember and I don’t recall whatever prompted me to start. But like all habits, it’s become a part of who I am.

This rather majestic-looking eagle was hanging out, in of all places, the city dump. Strange as it may sound, there’s a lot of wildlife here. Beyond the eagles and gulls, the occasional bear has been known to show up. I’m guessing this place is like Nirvana to them.

This particular bird, who I think looks like an Eloise, was just hanging out on a dirt pile, waiting for the front end loader nearby to finish packing down a fresh load. She didn’t seem fazed at all by all the activity as she patiently waited for her next meal to be served up.

I’m pretty sure she was giving me the stink eye, perhaps because she was concerned I’d horn in on her mid-afternoon snack. I gently reassured her I had no designs on her meal. Whatever it was, I hope she enjoyed it.

Fly safe, Eloise. I’m glad our paths crossed, however briefly.

#dryden #canada #eagle #throwback

Roadside reflection before we ride

Tangerine Dream at rest
London, ON
June 2026
This photo originally shared on Instagram

It’s 6:02 a.m. on the edge of the city. It’s 14 minutes past sunrise, but since the horizon is filled with the relentless artifacts of a suburban subdivision, our closest star still hasn’t made its first appearance of the day.

The streets are dead quiet, birds singing morning songs in the young trees providing the only soundtrack we’ll ever need as the horizon comes alive with shades of orange and yellow and other colours I can’t even pronounce.

This morning’s ride will take me and this miraculous machine far to the north of town, where cows are already grazing in their pastures and thoroughbred horses are practicing for upcoming races on ovals carved around fields of corn.

But before I can turn intentions into motion, I stop to listen to the birds and wait for the sun to break free. Because every journey needs a deliberate starting point, a moment in time where the road lies ahead, as yet unexplored.

And the wheels that will take us there deserve their moment of quiet appreciation before we leave the city behind for good.

#ldnont #canada #sunrise #cycling #justride

Reflecting the cloudy skies

Magic mirror
London, ON
July 2026
This photo originally shared on Instagram

When buildings decide to tell stories about the skies overhead, the least we can do is look up and take notice.

Precisely what those stories may or may not be is less relevant than the fact that there are stories at all.

So we open our eyes a little wider. Maybe stop what we’re doing and watch the clouds dance through fields of blue.

Because this particular story, of this particular moment, in this particular corner of the sky, will never be told again.

#ldnont #architecture #reflective #bluesky #cloudspotting