Puppy at (temporary) rest

Do I look relaxed?
London, ON
May 2018
This photo originally shared on Instagram

Every day could use a little more schnauzer in it, right?

#ldnont #birthday #Calli #CalliTheSchnauzer #LittleMissCalli #519ldn #puppy #pup #puppylove #puppiesofinstagram #instapuppy #dog #actofdog #miniatureschnauzer #schnauzer #schnauzerpuppy #schnauzersofinstagram #schnauzer_planet #schnauzerlove #followforfollow #pet #doglover #petstagram #instadog #ilovemydog #doglovegram #london #Ontario #canada

Pink bike at rest in the cubicle farm

Cycling is life
London, ON
May 2018
This photo originally shared on Instagram

On this very special #BikeToWorkDay, I thought y'all might want a glimpse of the pink wondermachine in its parking spot.

Do you ride? Do you want to?

#ldnont #ldnbikes #BikeMonth #cycling #is #life #pink #bicycle #bike #cyclist #forever #commute #google #pixel2 #teampixel #london #ontario #canada

Pretty in purple

Temporary. This year, anyway.
London, ON
May 2018
This photo originally shared on Instagram

I'm going to miss these when they're gone.

#ldnont #lilac #pretty #purple #flowers #flowersofinstagram #bloom #tree #trees #green #temporary #nature #google #pixel2 #teampixel #photography #london #ontario #canada

Where the rubber hits the road

Knobby
London, ON
May 2018
This photo originally shared on Instagram

Found a gloriously dirty tractor sitting roadside during this morning's puppy-tour of the neighborhood. It spoke to me.

3 guesses what it said.

#ldnont #tractor #construction #tire #tired #rubber #hits #road #dog #life #shadow #texture #morning #sun #google #pixel2 #teampixel #london #ontario #canada

Spring has sprung

An explosion of pink
London, ON
May 2018
This photo originally shared on Instagram

Nature puts on a highly temporary show just outside our @ctvlondon studio. I'm glad I stopped to take it in.

#ldnont #pretty #pink #flowers #flowersofinstagram #bloom #tree #trees #green #shadow #tvlife #sunset #nikon #nikonphotography #nikon_photography #dslr #london #ontario #canada

Finding shadows at my feet

Angles and light
London, ON
May 2018
This photo originally shared on Instagram

Dog walk. Look down. Sidewalk. Overgrown grass. Street light. Shadow. Magic. Everywhere.

#ldnont #night #urban #suburban #street #photography #shadow #texture #concrete #monochrome #dog #puppy #walk #google #pixel2 #teampixel #london #ontario #canada

Waiting for the wind to blow

Circle of life
London, ON
May 2018
This photo originally shared on Instagram

It's a weed because someone decided to give it that label. Doesn't make it any less wondrous.

#ldnont #weed #dandelion #seeds #nature #life #temporary #green #stilllife #waiting #for #my #kid #other #parents #think #i #am #weird #google #pixel2 #teampixel #london #ontario #canada

Where I watch a bee do its thing

The basis of life, in my front yard
London, ON
May 2018
This photo originally shared on Instagram

Please bee careful out there today.

#ldnont #bee #insect #garden #gardening #purple #flowers #flowersofinstagram #google #pixel2 #teampixel #london #ontario #canada

Skyward

Touch the sky
London, ON
May 2018
This photo originally shared on Instagram

Blue skies always find a way to return. Just look up.

#ldnont #urban #street #photography #light #blue #sky #weather #wx #angle #perspective #nikon #nikonphotography #nikon_photography #dslr #london #ontario #canada

Chocolate-glazed donut shoot

Classic chocolate
London, ON
May 2018
This photo originally shared on Instagram

The scene: #TimHortons.

The mission: Shoot the #donuts in the display case before anyone notices.

Result: #noarrest

We'll call this a successful outcome, then.

#ldnont #coffee #shop #urban #street #public #spontaneous #photography #dessert #junkfood #sowhat #life #is #short #chocolate #google #pixel2 #teampixel #london #ontario #canada

A year in the life...of a puppy

She started out tiny
Stratford, ON
May 2017
This photo originally shared on Instagram

A year ago, we met this munchkin for the first time. She's a lot bigger now, and a lot louder, and we can't imagine what our home and family would be like without her.

#ldnont #Calli #CalliTheSchnauzer #LittleMissCalli #519ldn #puppy #pup #puppylove #puppiesofinstagram #instapuppy #dog #actofdog #miniatureschnauzer #schnauzer #schnauzerpuppy #schnauzersofinstagram #schnauzer_planet #schnauzerlove #followforfollow #pet #doglover #petstagram #instadog #ilovemydog #doglovegram #london #Ontario #canada

Glass Breezeway #1

The doors are always open
London, ON
May 2018
This photo originally shared on Instagram

Part of an ongoing effort to record the buildings and places that have mattered in our kids' lives.

#ldnont #architecture #architecturephotography #architectureporn #building #linear #straight #leading #lines #monochrome #black #white #grey #nikon #nikonphotography #nikon_photography #dslr #london #ontario #canada

After the rain

Soft petals
London, ON
May 2018
This photo originally shared on Instagram

Little known fact: Our daughter's name is Dahlia, so every time we have an opportunity to buy, plant, or shoot dahlias, we take it.

This time, the rain cooperated. Pretty, no?

#ldnont #dahlia #flower #flowers #flowersofinstagram #flowergram #floral #rain #drops #water #pink #white #stilllife #google #pixel2 #teampixel #saturday #london #ontario #canada

Watching a stranger wait for his wife

Biding his time at the IHOP
Delray Beach, FL
December 2017
Photo originally posted to Instagram

Every photographer has a weakness, and mine is strangers. I routinely shoot strangers from afar in public places because simply watching people go about their daily lives isn't something we tend to do much of anymore. We're so buried in our smartphones that we miss the comings and goings of daily life that are happening, quite literally, right in front of us. So I make a conscious effort when I've got a camera to break out of the heads-down mode and people-watch a bit.

I appreciate that my photographic strategy, such as it is, crosses a line. I should probably be approaching my subjects first and asking them to sign a release. My failure to do so probably adds a few more points to my bad-boy report card, but I continue to shoot quickly and quietly, almost always using a longish lens to reach into the scene without the subject ever knowing I was there.

On this Sunday morning in an International House of Pancakes (IHOP, and we'll leave the "International" part of its name for discussion another day), I saw this gentleman and his wife having breakfast. As he waited for her to return, I found myself staring at him, entranced by the way he occupied his time in her absence. He was super-focused on his coffee, carefully mixing in milk and sugar letting it cool while he patiently sat. He only started to drink it after she returned, which I found incredibly sweet - a gesture you don't see much of anymore.

My never-let-them-know-you're-shooting approach means we'll likely never know who this gentleman is. But in this hyper-connected era where anyone can be found on Facebook in seconds, there's some comfort in the fact that this man could be any of us, and I learned something about decent human behaviour by watching him on this slow-moving day in a South Florida restaurant.

Your turn: Do you take pictures of strangers? Why/why not?

Please don't cry

Natural texture
London, ON
May 2018
This photo originally shared on Instagram

I'm still doing the fruitography thing. That's where I take surreptitious photos of the produce whenever I'm in a grocery store. Years after I initiated this bizarre habit, I still can't explain why I do it. But it's fun, doesn't hurt anyone, and it makes me smile. That'll have to be good enough.

#ldnont #onion #onions #like #ogres #grocery #store #shoot #fruitography #everyday #photography #google #pixel2 #teampixel #london #ontario #canada

Dirty Miata in Deerfield

Wash me
Deerfield Beach, FL
December 2017
This photo originally shared on Instagram

I have this rather annoying - to others - habit of taking pictures of cars in parking lots. I don't plan it. The inspiration usually hits me as I'm walking by and catch sight of something. It's usually a car you don't see often, or one that seems to have an interesting story, or a vehicle that just looks neat. I don't need much of an excuse, though truth be told I do work fast because having to explain my addiction to the owner of the vehicle would be somewhat awkward.

Conventional wisdom might dictate that said vehicles should be clean, but I don't subscribe to conventional wisdom. In this case, the dusty patina on a well-loved Mazda parked in the back of a past-its-prime South Florida strip mall seemed to tell its own story. Indeed, I likely wouldn't have pulled my camera out had it been pristine.

#deerfield #deerfieldbeach #beach #mazda #mx5 #always #miata #car #auto #automobile #carporn #urban #street #streetphotography #canon #canonphotography #surface #texture #florida #fl #fla #vacation #travel #throwback

Shooting through a chain link fence

Splitting the difference
London, ON
May 2018
This photo originally shared on Instagram

Looking through the fence, down the street, behind the train station. Everyday, not-necessarily-spectacular scenes like this one never fail to draw me in. Why is that?

#ldnont #via #viarail #walkabout #urban #street #photography #clarence #st #fence #grey #steel #soho #neighborhood #perspective #Nikon #nikonphotography #nikon_photography #dslr #london #ontario #canada

Thematic Photographic 419 - Red

Mom told us to eat our vegetables
London, ON
May 2018
Photo originally posted to Instagram

My old BlackBerry - a Priv - gave up the ghost last week, so I replaced it with a Google Pixel 2. I did so for two reasons: It's a powerful, no-compromise device that runs an unadorned version of raw Android. And its camera is, according to the reviews, pretty slick.

So I left the world of BlackBerrys behind for the first time in 11 years (heresy!) because I figured a great camera more than offset the fact that I'd have to get used to thumb-typing on glass.

After an initial spontaneous photo shoot (fruitography!) in the neighborhood Sunripe grocery store, I'm inclined to think it was the right choice. Which means joy has returned to the pixelated land, and grocery stores throughout London and beyond are now on alert for a strange-looking nerd with a photo fetish. At least I say "thank you".

Your turn: As this is Thematic Photographic, you're probably asking about this week's theme. It's red. As in the color. Like the red radishes above. Or whatever else tickles your eye over the next week. By now I'm sure you know the Thematic drill. If not, click here and all will be explained.

The Cole's Notes version is this: Take a pic that evokes this week's theme. Post it to your blog, website or social media account. Leave a comment here letting everyone know where to find it. Visit other participants and feel free to return/re-post, and drag a friend kicking and screaming into this. Looking forward to seeing what you all come up with. In the meantime, I'll be in the corner over there nibbling on a salad.

--

#ldnont #fruit #vegetable #whatever #red #fruitography #google #pixel2 #teampixel #spontaneous #grocery #store #shoot #photography #not #busted #this #time #next #thematic #photographic #thematicphotographic #stilllife #salad #nature #miracle #london #ontario #canada

Her

Almost every day during the work week, Debbie sends me what we jokingly call her daily selfie. In the middle of her building the minds of tomorrow and me being a nerd in a studio, it's a critical reminder of what really matters in life - in my case, her - and why we always count the hours until we can be together again.

She's been the centre of my world for most of my life. And even though I was a 17-year-old slacker when we first met, even then I knew my world changed when I first saw her.

So many years later, things still change for the better every time I see her face. She keeps me, the kids, and our entire home in balance, and has set the tone - firm, kind, warm - for our kids their entire lives. They are the sweet, sharp, empathetic and ultimately successful people that they are because they've simply followed her lead.

Seven years ago, I wrote this about Mother's Day - A day like any other. And like no other. - and I still feel every word I wrote then:

Mother's Day is, like so many other days on the calendar, a manufactured holiday, a cheap marketing ploy designed to sell more stuff. I'm not against the concept of valuing mothers (or dads, or love, or even the jolly red guy and the egg-dropping rabbit, if they float your boat), but I do feel somewhat uncomfortable when quite legitimate sentiments are force-fed to us in the interest of filling more boats with inventory and more cash registers with plasticized cash.

From where I sit, this regularly scheduled commercial imperative takes the focus off of the thing that matters and instead puts it squarely on the gift, the thing you buy, the guilt that wraps around you if you don't. And what of the other 364 days? Well, Mother's Day coverage doesn't deal with those: all that matters is today.

Not in my world. Every day matters. And while it's nice to have one day where you make a special effort to remember, it's even nicer to find small ways to deliver the same message every other day of the year. Because if you save it up for this one day, you're kinda missing the point.

Less than two years after I wrote it, my wife lost her mom. Days like today, manufactured as they have been to cash in on a crass commercial need to sell more stuff, seem to ignore the collateral impact on those who don't fit the stereotypical ideal, who no longer have their moms, who never had them to begin with, who aren't parents, or who were, and lost a child, or who are lost, period.

So tomorrow, like we did today and like we did yesterday and the day before that (and...) I'll open up that text from my wife and smile. I'll subconsciously reach for her hand as we walk through the grocery store parking lot. I'll stop what I'm doing and look at her. Or think of her. Or talk to her. And listen. Because all we really have, on this day and any other, is time.

And if you choose to spend it wisely, you might find yourself lucky enough to spend at least part of this journey with some truly extraordinary people. And it doesn't matter so much what we call them, but that we make the effort to connect with them in the first place. Which, on reflection, is a pretty good gift for us all.

A chaotic assembly of branches

Perfectly imperfect nature
London, ON
May 2018
This photo originally shared on Instagram

Life. Random. Complex. Unpredictable. Asymetric. Precious.

#ldnont #naturephoto #nature #naturephotography #landscape #photography #Nikon #nikonphotography #nikon_photography #dslr #forest #trees #tree #saturday #morning #adelaide #huron #street #walkabout #monochrome #grey #tone #toneitup #agameoftones #london #ontario #canada

Your carriage awaits

Emptiness on Adelaide St.
London, ON
May 2018
This photo originally shared on Instagram

This drives me over the edge. This grocery cart has been stolen by someone too lazy to figure out some other way of getting their stuff home, then left on a sidewalk to either rot, or be picked up by one of those services that fetches wayward carts for a fee.

Either way, it degrades the neighborhood, and drives up costs for the rest of us law abiding folk.

Still, it made for a fun pic as I wandered the streets in search of things that spoke to me. And this abandoned cart most definitely did. Funny how that works.

#ldnont #adelaide #street #walkabout #urban #photography #monochrome #black #white #grey #sad #stolen #nikon #nikonphotography #nikon_photography #dslr #london #ontario #canada

Calli turns 1

Do I look happy?
London, ON
May 2018
This photo originally shared on Instagram

This is what a year on this planet looks like when you're a dog. Time moves too quickly, but every moment seems that much sweeter with this one around.

#ldnont #birthday #Calli #CalliTheSchnauzer #LittleMissCalli #519ldn #puppy #pup #puppylove #puppiesofinstagram #instapuppy #dog #actofdog #miniatureschnauzer #schnauzer #schnauzerpuppy #schnauzersofinstagram #schnauzer_planet #schnauzerlove #followforfollow #pet #doglover #petstagram #instadog #ilovemydog #doglovegram #london #Ontario #canada

Literacy, stacked

A little light reading
Boynton Beach, FL
December 2017
This photo originally shared on Instagram

Read. That is all.

#boyntonbeach #fl #fla #florida #book #books #bookstagram #bookish #bookworm #literature #literacy #matters #vacation #travel #everyday #photography

I will never top this birthday

Henrietta 2.0
London, ON
May 2018
This photo originally shared on Instagram

I'm delightfully overwhelmed by the wave of happiness and good wishes that's been washing over me for much of the day. Birthdays are always special, and being surrounded by so much love makes them even more so.

To top it all off, we brought the new wonderwheels home tonight. No more leaking fuel in the driveway and waking neighbors four blocks away. Life is good, and I can't believe how lucky I am to have gotten to this point in time and in life.

Cherish the little things, folks. Today and everyday, I promise I'll do the same. Thanks again!

#ldnont #birthday #red #honda #civic #blessed #london #ontario #canada

Guacamole frenzy!

Covering most of the food groups
London, ON
May 2018
This photo originally shared on Instagram

#QOTD: What's for lunch today?

#ldnont #lunch #food #foodporn #guacamole #cheese #lunch #lunchbox #meal #stilllife #stilllifephotography #london #ontario #canada

A new way of looking at the world

Perfection by our front door
London, ON
May 2018
This photo originally shared on Instagram

After well over 2 years of loyal service, it was time to replace my smartphone. This was a tough one, as I decided to ditch my BlackBerry (in this case, a Priv) for good and go with a Google Pixel 2. The camera was just too good to pass up, and I decided I needed to rip the physical-keyboard band-air right off and join the 21st century.

I decided to shoot some first-light photos on the Pixel before the rain moved in. I think I'm going to enjoy this one.

#ldnont #pretty #purple #flowers #flower #garden #google #pixel #pixel2 #teampixel #no #more #blackberry #green #nature #naturephotography #photography #london #ontario #canada

Life with a Schnauzer

Let's play
London, ON
May 2018
This photo originally shared on Instagram

Circus dog sees a squirrel on this morning's walk. No, she was not allowed to play with it.

#ldnont #Calli #CalliTheSchnauzer #LittleMissCalli #519ldn #puppy #pup #puppylove #puppiesofinstagram #instapuppy #dog #actofdog #miniatureschnauzer #schnauzer #schnauzerpuppy #schnauzersofinstagram #schnauzer_planet #schnauzerlove #followforfollow #pet #doglover #petstagram #instadog #ilovemydog #doglovegram #london #Ontario #canada

Electrical infrastructure and geometry

Don't touch!
London, ON
April 2018
This photo originally shared on Instagram

In the wake on the windstorm that swept across Ontario yesterday, it seemed appropriate to pick this out of the archives.

Power to the people!

#ldnont #power #electric #electricity #hydro #wires #onstorm #grey #sky #skies #Nikon #nikonphotography #nikon_photography #dslr #urban #street #photography #london #ontario #canada

Sunset from 1 Communications Road

The view from the studio
London, ON
May 2018
This photo originally shared on Instagram

Saying goodnight to the sun. Thankful for the opportunity to drink it all in.

#ldnont #stilllife #nature #walk #walkabout #texture #tree #sky #sunset #sun #branches #Nikon #nikonphotography #nikon_photography #photography #dslr #nofilter #nofilterneeded #photooftheday #instagood #weather #wx #london #ontario #canada

Another hilltop sunset

Never stop growing
London, ON
April 2018
This photo originally shared on Instagram

Reach for the sky. Even if you never actually reach it, you're closer than you would have otherwise been.

#ldnont #stilllife #nature #walk #walkabout #texture #tree #sky #sunset #sun #branches #Nikon #nikonphotography #nikon_photography #photography #dslr #nofilter #nofilterneeded #photooftheday #instagood #weather #wx #london #ontario #canada

More bags (red, this time)

Ready to be filled
London, ON
April 2018
This photo originally shared on Instagram

First blue, now red. Further proof that our Promotions crew is the best there is.

#ldnont #stilllife #photography #stilllifephotography #red #white #repeat #pattern #abstract #abstractphotography #abstraction #spontaneous #photo #shoot #london #ontario #canada

Where I host a radio show

I got to sit in the big chair today as host of The Live Drive on Newstalk 1290 CJBK here in London. I've done it a few times before, and it's always been a wild ride.

It's one thing to be on the receiving end of an interview where you talk about one particular tech topic for a set amount of time. It's quite another when you're the captain of the ship, responsible for everything - segments, timings, commercials, listener calls, social media, you name it - until your producer waves in the evening news at 6pm and sends you home.

It's an absolute privilege, and I'm lucky to have been allowed to be in this spot at all. So a studio selfie was definitely called for. Thanks for indulging me and my crazily unconventional journey through the world of multiplatform media.

Yellow peppers. Or are they orange?

Ready for your salad
London, ON
April 2018
This photo originally shared on Instagram

If you aren't going to eat your vegetables, may as well capture them in pixels.

#ldnont #food #foodporn #yellow #peppers #fresh #healthy #healthyfood #stilllifephotography #texture #grocery #store #shoot #retail #fruitography #london #ontario #canada