On dogs, NYE, and (non)resolutions

Yes?
London, ON
December 2024
This photo originally shared on Instagram

I’ll apologize in advance if this seems curmudgeonly. I’ve never subscribed to the notion that the ending of one year and the beginning of the next is somehow worthy of celebration.

And please don’t get me started on resolutions. We’ve established such artificially predictable traditions around arbitrarily defined “special” days that we’ve forgotten to focus on all the other days.

Calli the Wonderschnauzer thankfully knows none of this, and as one year segues into another, I think she’s onto something.

I happened across her napping form on an otherwise ordinary Saturday afternoon. She was dreaming something fierce - her giant eyebrows always betray her - and I sat on the floor for a bit and just watched her.

When she finally woke up, snacks were had, balls were tossed and retrieved, and I may or may not have given her a Schnu hug.

It was a spontaneous moment that reminded me why we’re so lucky to have her. She makes every day special in its own crazy way, and thanks to her we never know when the next moment of whimsy will happen.

None of this finds its way onto a calendar, and none of it is ever planned. It’s just life, unscripted and unexpected, and she - and we - would have it no other way.

And while some of us will resolve to do things differently in the coming year, I’ll instead resolve to fill in those unheralded in-between days like this one with more moments that make our dog - and by extension us - happy.

Sounds like a fun way to spend any day of any year, no?

#ldnont #london #ontario #canada #newyear #calli #callitheschnauzer #dog #actofdog #schnauzerpuppy #schnauzersofinstagram #schnauzergram #schnauzers #dogsofinstagram #instapuppy #photography #apple #iphone #iphone16 #shotoniphone

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A very Sault sunset

Towering
Sault Ste. Marie, ON
May 2024
This photo originally shared on Instagram

In a northern Canadian city where huge towers of steel reach high into the big sky, the sun and the clouds - and a single stealthy bird - decide to put on one last show before tucking in for the night.

We’ve stopped here, the halfway point of a two-day drive. As we shuffle off the third floor elevator in search of our hotel room, there isn’t really enough time for a full-on shoot.

But there’s no reason why I can’t spend a furtive few minutes beside the filthy window at the end of the hallway.

The light is fading fast, so I work quickly before rejoining the fam to figure out dinner plans.

Tomorrow promises more adventures on the road, and more big skies to take our collective breath away.

#saultstemarie #ontario #canada #throwback #travel #sunset #cloudspotting #antenna #bird #gull #flight #naturephotography #landscapephotography #photography #nikon #nikonphotography #nikon_photography

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CF-18 Demo's final flight

More than just pretty paint
London, ON
September 2024
This photo originally shared on Instagram

This is a classic good news/bad news kind of story.

The good news is Canada’s 40-plus-year-old CF-18 Hornet frontline fighter is finally set to be replaced by the F-35A Lightning II.

The bad news is the RCAF has stood down the CF-18 Demonstration Team for 2025 as it manages the transition to the new jets. So no more planes with wicked paint jobs flying their wings off at air shows across the continent.

Instead, we’ll see a much smaller number of what the force calls “non-aerobatic tactical demonstrations” using standard grey jets.

In a world of escalating worry and risk, fancy-looking multirole planes flying wild demos at air shows hardly rank as a global priority - and their removal seems trivial compared to real everyday problems faced by real everyday people.

Yet it still feels like a notable loss for those looking for small examples of inspiration during dark periods of history. And for those who put it all on the line to keep the rest of us safe, they now have one less way to tell us their story.

Thankfully we have visual proof of that last glorious paint job. It - and the story behind it - will be missed.

@airshowlondon #ldnont #london #airport #ontario #canada #throwback #SkyDrive #AirShowLondon #aviation #boeing #mcdonnelldouglas #rcaf #cf18 #hornet #fighter #flight #aircraft #avgeek #aviationphotography #planespotting #instaplane #photohraphy #Nikon #nikonphotography #nikon_photography

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Random Montreal Metro moment

Sweet ride
Montreal, QC
August 2017
This photo originally shared on Instagram

I know that street photography is all about capturing ordinary moments involving ordinary people in ordinary spaces.

Yet I still can’t get over the fact that the floor of this Montreal Metro (subway) car looks clean enough to serve a three-course meal.

I wish I could explain it.

#montreal #quebec #canada #throwback #ttc #subway #transit #streetphotography #photography #apple #iphone #iphone16 #shotoniphone

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The big blue door

Colourful history
London, ON
April 2022
This photo originally shared on Instagram

On grey streets in grey neighbourhoods, we can still find colour if we search hard enough.

Even if it needs a touch-up or two, beauty still exists in the places no one seems willing to look.

#ldnont #london #ontario #canada #building #architecture #architecturephotography #buildingporn #architectureporn #downtown #blue #doors #streetphotography #photography #apple #iphone #iphone16 #shotoniphone

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Back to the gutter

Frozen little world
London, ON
December 2024
This photo originally shared on Instagram

It’s gutter ice* season again, so I’m back to lurking in the dusty corners of the neighbourhood in search of miniature wonders that won’t exist by lunchtime.

I get stares from strangers - including one homeowner who opened the door and watched intently as I crouched down to shoot the street in front of her house. I get it: I’d probably think it’s weird, too.

In a world sometimes overwhelmed with darkness, there’s a certain appeal to finding tiny examples of weather-carved joy in the most surprising margins of day-to-day life. And a dirty puddle where the sidewalk meets the road is as surprisingly marginal as it gets.

So that’s where I look. Otherwise I’d miss out on a pretty good - and temporary - show. And so would you.

——

*Gutter ice happens when everything gets good and wet from rain or melting snow, then quickly freezes overnight. The rapid cooling can turn puddles into tiny crystallized winter wonderlands that make for awesome spontaneous macro photography scenes.

The operative goal is to shoot fast, because they usually melt before the dog is finished terrorizing the neighbourhood. Besides, this phenomenon doesn’t happen all that often, so we either shoot it now or lose the opportunity entirely.

I don’t actually think that the term “gutter ice” is a real thing - but it’s real to me. And hopefully, now, to you, as well.

#ldnont #london #ontario #canada #water #gutter #ice #frozen #winter #walkabout #weather #wx #onstorm #abstract #street #stilllife #streetphotography #monochrome #photography #apple #iphone #iphone16 #shotoniphone

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Light > dark

And so it begins...
London, ON
December 2024
This photo originally shared on Instagram

Tonight we lit the first Chanukah candle, and it’s no secret that this holiday hits home harder than most. At least to me.

It’s the Jewish Festival of Light, and for each of the holiday’s eight nights we light one successive candle, until by the end of it all we risk burning the house down.

In the end, though, it’s worth it. Because these are dark times for Planet Earth in general and for Jews in particular, and it’s impossible to ignore the poignancy of miraculous light banishing threatening darkness.

We’ve always been hated well beyond our tiny-percentage-of-the-global-population’s size. We’ll leave the whys for another time, but suffice to say it gets tiring after a lifetime of wondering how much of your background you want to share, and how to respond when you know you’re being targeted.

Even here, in my own feed, I debate whether I should even raise it at all lest I awaken the trolls. Or maybe the professionals who might hire me for my next role or contract until they realize I’m “that” kind of Jew, or a Jew at all.

After all, the silent kind of hatred is everywhere, too, and eventually you learn how to detect the subtle signs.

I used to suck it up - even pretending to laugh at an employer’s jokes because, well, he paid my salary, and calling him out, despite his assurances that he “loved Jews”, felt somewhat risky given the relative power imbalance.

But silence is no longer an option - it didn’t work out so well for the appeasers in the 1930s, and it won’t work now - so we’ll take any opportunity to shine the light and strive for better.

It doesn’t matter who we worship or what we believe: we all deserve to live free of that kind of worry. May this season of light, in so many forms, inspire us to do better. I doubt a single post from an ordinary guy like me will make much of a difference, but we have to start somewhere. So consider this my start.

#ldnont #london #ontario #canada #chanukah #hannukah #howeveritisspelled #jewish #holiday #stilllife #photography #apple #apple #iphone #iphone16 #shotoniphone

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Claira joins the family

Lilly's little sister
Dryden, ON
December 2024
This photo originally shared on Instagram

Why hello! I’m new on this planet, so I’m still figuring out how cameras and social media work. My name is Claira Jane Sutton Levy, and after hanging around with my Mommy (you know her as Michaela) for most of the year, they cancelled my lease on December 13th and suddenly everything looked and sounded a lot different.

You might know my Daddy - he goes by the name Zach - and he and my Mommy are always around when I need something. Which is often. They’re really good at this family thing.

I have a big sister, Lilly, who’s been waiting what seems like forever for me to come out. It’ll be a little while before I can walk and talk and play, but already I know I’m loved beyond words, and it’s only a matter of time before she and I rule the world. Or the living room, for starters.

I’ve already learned a few things in my brief time here, like how everyone holds little rectangles of glass in their hands and points them at you, how they find it funny when I squirm, and how my dog Piper’s head is bigger than my entire body yet she already hovers nearby like a giant, gentle protector.

Right now I’m focused on eating and sleeping and growing and looking cute and being on the receiving end of these things they call hugs and kisses. It’s nice to be held. It’s nice to be on the outside. It’s nice to be part of a family. Especially mine.

I’ll share more soon. I’ll have stories, I promise.

Lots of love,

Claira

Waiting quietly to return to the sky

Empty Airbus
Mississauga, ON
December 2024
This photo originally shared on Instagram

Toronto Pearson, 4:07 a.m. An Air Canada Airbus A321-200 quietly awaits its return to the sky as an army of workers on the ground toil anonymously in the darkness.

There’s an argument to be made that airports are sacred places. Not in the traditional sense, mind you, but in the role they play as portals to the rest of the planet.

Countless people begin and end their journeys here, and it’s difficult to ignore the resonance of a place where we literally leave the ground in search of whatever adventures may unfold when we eventually return to it.

For now, there are no adventures - just exotic machines sitting quietly in pools of light.

Soon the sun will rise. This machine will fly once more, only to be replaced by others. And the cycle will continue for those lucky enough to find new destinations, and those responsible for their journeys.

#toronto #yyz #pearson #international #airport #ontario #canada #aircanada #airbus #a321 #travel #travelphotography #travelgram #flight #flying #aviation #avgeek #monochrome #night #photography #apple #iphone #iphone16 #shotoniphone

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Where we visit the Stonehenge tree

The texture is the thing
London, ON
October 2024
This photo originally shared on Instagram

When Stonehenge comes to the forest, the least we can do is stop what we’re doing and run our fingers carefully across the mottled bark.

Because the trees all have stories to tell.

#ldnont #london #ontario #canada #tree #trunk #bark #medwayvalley #forest #gameoftones #texture #autumn #naturephotography #landscapephotography #stilllife #monochrome #photography #nikon #nikonphotography #nikon_photography

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Just before the longest night begins

Pastel skies
London, ON
June 2024
This photo originally shared on Instagram

Yesterday’s Winter Solstice was something of a double-edged sword. While it was the shortest day of the year, it also represented a turnaround point of sorts, as the days now get brighter and longer for the next six months.

Half-full or half-empty? It’s rather up to us, I suspect, a conscious choice we make every time we look to the sky for answers.

I’m keenly aware that stuff happens, that life can be a challenge, that the days that result may be darker than we’d like.

But I’m also keenly aware that while the environment around us may be beyond our control, our response to that same environment is entirely up to us.

That control thing again.

So as the planet turns another corner in a universe that both gives us life and tries to take it, I’ll find comfort amid a long winter by focusing on the skies that pour out just a little more light with each passing day.

And I’ll keep looking up so I can feel the warmth on my face. Because I still can when so many others can’t.

Maybe I’ll take a photo or three along the way.

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

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Old dead leaf

Still here
London, ON
October 2024
This photo originally shared on Instagram

On a dull day in late October, I find myself on a path through the woods not far from home. While there is no sunset to be had, my watch tells me I’m about to lose my light, so I’m shooting a few last moments before turning for home.

Most of autumn’s colours have long since faded to near-grey, the landscape a muted riot of monotones now melting to black as night approaches.

I notice a single leaf hanging onto an otherwise empty branch. No colour to speak of. Just a washed out, rotted leftover of the season.

Yet this leaf, for reasons I can’t fully appreciate, is the one I’m staring at. “Why?” is a silly question to ask in the forest. So I don’t.

I think it might have something to do with tenacity. For long after the autumn colour-seekers have packed their cameras away and gone home for the season, the woods continue to write their next chapter in a book they’ve been writing for longer than we’ve been around.

I’m thankful I’m out here alone among the grey, rotted leaves, learning their nuanced, textured stories long after everyone else decided there were no more stories to tell.

As I tuck the camera away and start the quiet walk home, I wonder about how storytellers decide when their stories end - and realize too many of us are putting our pens (and cameras) down too soon.

#ldnont #london #ontario #canada #throwback #medwayvalley #heritage #forest #trees #autumn #forest #leaf #stilllife #naturephotography #landscapephotography #photography #nikon #nikonphotography #nikon_photography

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Galaxy quest

It's a blast
London, ON
September 2024
This photo originally shared on Instagram

I feel like looking at airplanes. It makes me happy, and I think we all need more happies.

Who’s with me?

#airshowlondon @airshowlondon #ldnont #london #airport #ontario #canada #throwbsck #skydrive #McDonnellDouglas #Boeing #C5 #Galaxy #bewareofblast #apple #iphone #shotoniphone #aviation #flight #aircraft #avgeek #planespotting #aviationphotography #photography

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Shall we skate on the sidewalk?
London, ON
December 2023
This photo originally shared on Instagram

Dance like nobody's watching; love like you've never been hurt. Sing like nobody's listening; live like it's heaven on earth.
Mark Twain

#ldnont #london #ontario #canada #throwback #building #downtown #victoriapark #sculpture #art #dufferin #poetry #streetphotography #photography #apple #iphone #shotoniphone

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When branches ruin the shot

All that's left
London, ON
November 2023
This photo originally shared on Instagram

Sometimes the trees just get in the way.

Sometimes that’s the entire point.

#ldnont #london #ontario #canada #sunset #cloudspotting #weather #wx #silhouette #bokeh #dof #optimistpark #naturephotography #landscapephotography #photography #nikon #nikonphotography #nikon_photography

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Birds at the pier

Greet the morning sun
Cocoa Beach, FL
December 2019
This photo originally shared on Instagram

On a day that now exists to me only as a gauzy memory, I sit alone in the cool sand where the ocean either begins or ends and watch a flock of birds divebomb the pier.

Under the first golden rays of the day, they loop together in the sky, almost crashing into the tough old wooden structure before skimming the tops of the waves. Then they climb steeply into the early morning haze, only to turn back as one, ready for another pass.

I watch them repeat their aerobatics more times than I dare admit, not wanting the show to end. It’s strangely cathartic.

It’s hard to fully explain the millennia of evolution that crafts living beings so finely capable of this kind of collaboration.

But it’s just as easy to quietly observe the spectacle and be mesmerized by the magic.

#cocoabeach #florida #throwback #atlantic #ocean #travelphotography #travelgram #vacation #sunrise #waves #water #photography #Nikon #nikonphotography #nikon_photography @floridaspacecoast

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One tree. Lots of fog.

Standing sentinel
London, ON
December 2024
This photo originally shared on Instagram

When Monday dawns enveloped in fog so thick it can be felt more than merely seen, it feels right to wander the neighbourhood for a bit.

I believe this tree would agree.

#ldnont #london #airport #ontario #canada #tree #fog #winter #weather #wx #optimistpark #naturephotography #landscapephotography #silhouette #monochrome #photography #apple #apple #iphone #iphone16 #shotoniphone

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From cereal to glass and steel

The future of Kellogg
London, ON
December 2024
This photo originally shared on Instagram

Once they made cereal here.

Now they make memories.

So while the crowds fill every corner of this giant, lovingly repurposed piece of industrial age architecture, the camera in my hand seeks out a relatively quiet upper floor for some fun with glass, angles, and light.

Inspiration seems to lurk in the places we often fail to observe. So let’s look for it there.

#ldnont #london #ontario #canada #100kellogg #100kellogglane #digoev #building #factory #architecture #architecturephotography #buildingporn #architectureporn #glass #geometry #reflective #photography #apple #iphone #iphone16 #shotoniphone

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Reflecting on some icy remnants

Fire and ice
London, ON
February 2022
This photo originally shared on Instagram

We can either be annoyed that winter has left an icy mess in its wake - or we can be thankful for the unexpected light show.

That perspective thing again.

#ldnont #london #ontario #canada #throwback #sunset #orange #cloudspotting #weather #wx #ice #reflection #optimistpark #naturephotography #landscapephotography #photography #apple #iphone #shotoniphone

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Scene from a sidewalk

Strangers, all
London, ON
August 2023
This photo originally shared on Instagram

Note to self: get out there more often. Wander the downtown streets and capture random instances of random strangers wandering through their own random journeys of the everyday.

Because otherwise how will we remember what it all looked and felt like?

#ldnont #london #ontario #canada #throwback #urban #downtown #streetphotography #photography #canon #canonphotography #canon_photography

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The Friendly Giant was right: always look up
London, ON
July 2024
This photo originally shared on Instagram

Time ravages us all.

But still we stand ourselves up and reach for the sky.

It’s the only choice we have.

#ldnont #london #ontario #canada #hydepark #lookup #streetlamp #streetphotography #photography #blue #sky #apple #iphone #iphone16 #shotoniphone

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What Scooby might have seen

Craggy
London, ON
December 2024
This photo originally shared on Instagram

Remember when those meddling kids were terrorized by the grumpy old man who lived in a shack near the abandoned mine shaft?

I imagine it looked like this before Scooby and his buds had him arrested and unmasked.

Mother Nature always served up the perfect backdrop.

#ldnont #london #ontario #canada #fog #winter #snow #weather #wx #tree #onstorm #street #streetphotography #naturephotography #landscapephotography #night #monochrome #nightphotography #photography #apple #iphone #iphone16 #shotoniphone

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Walking in the fog

Swallowed by the light
London, ON
December 2024
This photo originally shared on Instagram

The thicker the fog gets, the clearer things seem to become.

Why is that?

#ldnont #london #ontario #canada #fog #winter #snow #weather #wx #onstorm #street #streetphotography #naturephotography #landscapephotography #night #nightphotography #photography #apple #iphone #iphone16 #shotoniphone

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Mannequin madness at the mall

Borderline public lewdness
London, ON
December 2024
This photo originally shared on Instagram

When I was a child, I had this weird habit that involved sneaking into retail store window displays and pretending to be a mannequin.

I would stand perfectly still, usually in some bizarre stance involving holding my arms at some unnatural, possibly robotic angle, with an equally strange look on my face. I’d stay locked in that position for as long as I could, hoping to fool passers-by into believing I was the real deal.

Bonus points if my parents happened to pass by during my, ah, performance.

Unfortunately, I was a silly kid, which meant it was only a matter of time before I’d giggle uncontrollably. I also had to watch out for store employees, because apparently you’re not allowed to just wander into a store display and turn it into an impromptu stage. Imagine that.

Fast forward to adulthood and I’m still playing with window displays. Only this time I’m on the right side of the glass, and it usually involves a camera.

This time out, the abstract hanging objects in the starkly lit display space grabbed my eye, and before long I was lining up a fast composition in my mind. I waited for the spawning salmon-like stream of shoppers to thin out before I leaned into the glass and shot a single frame and decided I liked what I had.

No employees chased me away this time. Perversely, I wish they had.

#ldnont #london #ontario #canada #shopping #retail #store #zara #masonville #stilllife #glass #display #design #abstract #photography #apple #iphone #iphone16 #shotoniphone

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Peanut, bokeh, and date night

Spontaneous takeout photo sesh
London, ON
December 2024
This photo originally shared on Instagram

Date night last night meant picking up dinner for a living room picnic.

And while I waited for the order to be ready, I played with the peanuts the restaurant so graciously made available for customers in line.

I never said it was fine dining. And they had me at peanuts.

So I found a table off to the side and started to compose the shot. I do this sometimes, play with light and composition and angles. It brings me a strange degree of joy, even in the middle of a public space that normally doesn’t host spontaneous photo shoots.

I hope I brought some unexpected joy to a few strangers. I hope I inspired them to step out of the normal every once in a while. I hope a single photo of a peanut somehow turns into a ripple of something a little more tangible.

That’s what photography does for me. No one ever said it had to follow a script.

#ldnont #london #ontario #canada #restaurant #fiveguys #bokeh #stilllife #photography #fruitography #apple #iphone #iphone16 #shotoniphone

Related:

Revisiting the Peanuts Gang, September 2022

Nuts to that, March 2018

That's just nuts, March 2016

A peanut's hard life, July 2013

Thematic Photographic 72 - Junk, October 2009

Nuts, November 2005

Another edible photo, December 2004

Walking through the snow at night

Stay in the tracks
London, ON
December 2024
This photo originally shared on Instagram

It snowed again. Lots. Which left the neighbourhood streets looking like this.

It didn’t last long, mind you, because soon enough the plows came along and opened them back up.

And as much as we need passable roads, there’s something to be said for those fleeting moments when the snows run deep and everyone hunkers down inside. Or grabs a sled and heads for the hill. Or simply sits inside a frosty window and enjoys the muted silence.

There are plenty of reasons for the connective tissues of a modern city to operate cleanly and efficiently.

But there’s also merit in the occasional snow day where everything stops so kids can stay home from school and play in the snow.

It won’t be here forever, after all.

#ldnont #london #ontario #canada #winter #snow #weather #wx #onstorm #street #streetphotography #leadinglines #night #nightphotography #monochrome #photography #apple #iphone #iphone16 #shotoniphone

Related:

Dirty tracks in the snow, December 2024

Chasing snow at night, November 2021

Winter's return, November 2020

Someone made tracks in the snow, April 2020

Hashtag Parking Lot, April 2018

Playing in the snow before work, February 2018

Temporary tracks in the snow, May 2013

Trackmarks, February 2007

The olive fixation continues

Seeing red
London, ON
September 2024
This photo originally shared on Instagram

During an ordinary visit to an ordinary grocery store to pick up ordinary - and overpriced - groceries, I find my eyes and my mind drifting somewhat.

I do this all the time, stare into the corners of the everyday in search of something, anything even, that might grab my eye or squeeze my soul just a little.

I never really know what I’m looking for, but I like to tell myself I’ll know it when I see it.

And so we have the olive jar display at the local Sobeys, a tiny slash of red in the middle of an otherwise ordinary place.

I use that word, ordinary, a lot. Maybe nothing is truly ordinary. Maybe we’re meant to keep looking into corners for inspiration.

#ldnont #london #ontario #canada #grocery #store #sobeys #shopping #retail #random #stilllife #photography #fruitography #apple #iphone #shotoniphone

Related:

Olives, not the oil, October 2024

Listen to the talking cans, April 2023

Grocery store shelf perspective, July 2022

The grocery store dating scene, September 2021

Tres saucy encore, September 2021

Peppers under glass, November 2020

Where Andy Warhol comes grocery shopping with me, May 2020

Dirty tracks in the snow

Evidence, for now
London, ON
December 2024
This photo originally shared on Instagram

We’re all on some kind of journey.

Where we begin and end them isn’t always apparent.

Often we’ll cross paths, usually in silence.

We’ll leave some form of evidence along the way.

But it’ll be temporary, soon to be erased by time or circumstance or whatever random forces happen to roll in.

Each story either destined to live on as a memory in those who leave these tracks behind, and those closest to them.

Or simply fade away.

#ldnont #london ##oldnorth #ontario #canada #winter #snow #weather #wx #onstorm #street #streetphotography #night #nightphotography #photography #apple #iphone #iphone16 #shotoniphone

Related:

Chasing snow at night, November 2021

Winter's return, November 2020

Someone made tracks in the snow, April 2020

Hashtag Parking Lot, April 2018

Playing in the snow before work, February 2018

Temporary tracks in the snow, May 2013

Trackmarks, February 2007

Red drapes in a crowded mall

Hanging around
Toronto, ON
November 2024
This photo originally shared on Instagram

Texture matters.

Because everything can be virtualized.

Sometimes we just have to be there, and see and feel it for ourselves.

#toronto #ontario #canada #yyz #throwback #red #drape #eatoncentre #abstract #photography #apple #iphone #iphone16 #shotoniphone

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Where we follow a man who shops, November 2024

Swirling, March 2022

It only looks like a sheet, March 2019

Eaton Centre, way up, February 2018

The fringes of our lives, December 2010

Breaking through the glass ceiling, April 2009

Layered mystery, October 2006

Why does our dog hate her coat?

I'm wearing it under protest
London, ON
December 2024
This photo originally shared on Instagram

Some days dawn darker, and this Monday was one of them.

Yet dark day or not, the dog still needed her walk. So on went her snazzy coat - that she despises - and off we went.

Coat-hatred notwithstanding, it didn’t take her long to bury her nose in the season’s first snow. She jumped over - and occasionally into - snowbanks taller than her, and broke through fresh powder as she fruitlessly chased a squirrel who mocked her from atop the backyard fence.

The morning was still dark, an echo of a world that left fairness and kindness behind long before she was a puppy. But for reasons known only to her, all that mattered was the snow.

So she played. And I watched. And smiled at the blinkered innocence and joy of a happy dog.

And while it didn’t fix the planet, the temporary, admittedly trivial light in the darkness was a welcome change.

On the way home, I resolved to be more like her. I quietly wished we could all be more like her.

If only.

#ldnont #london #ontario #canada #winter #snow #weather #wx #calli #callitheschnauzer #dog #dogs #actofdog #schnauzerpuppy #schnauzersofinstagram #schnauzergram #schnauzers #dogsofinstagram #instapuppy #photography #apple #iphone #iphone16 #shotoniphone

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Canine sphinx, November 2024

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Our dog the photo model, September 2024

All dogs deserve a Place, February 2024

That Schnauzer stare, December 2023

Boop the snoot, October 2023

Sleepy puppy stare, November 2022

The thousand-mile stare, February 2020

The king at rest, December 2014

One last fire before night

Orange-painted sky
London, ON
October 2024
This photo originally shared on Instagram

I stand alone in the deepening cold of an autumn evening and watch the sky light itself on fire one last time before extinguishing itself for the night.

I wonder how many times I’ve stood here, or in places much like it, and watched the heavens in awe.

I wonder if I’ve done this too many times, but just as quickly banish the thought.

Instead I wonder how many more of these I’m going to get. Because sunsets, like the days they mark, aren’t infinite, at least for mere mortals who stand alone in the chill and wait for the show.

Everything in front of us is a limited-time offer. As are we.

So we get out there and enjoy it while we can.

Makes sense, doesn’t it?

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

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The unexplained late night light show, October 2024

One jet in a big sky, September 2024

Seussian sunset, 10 times fast, August 2024

One last flash of blinding orange light, August 2024

Glory after the storm, August 2024

Dark clouds, bright colours, July 2024

The clouds on the other side of the sky, July 2024