First walk of the year.

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As of last Sunday, it has been 23 days since I had my operation.

Still stiff, but the pain is mostly gone, expect when I take long steps. Coughing doesn’t hurt anymore, either. I have been doing so much better than I was 4 years ago. If you didn’t know, this is my second time having undergone this operation. This past sunday was Photowalk 15: Vieux-Montréal et Centre-Ville.

Marlon Iraheta

My friend, Daniel, decided to come pick me up, so we went together. This was my first decent walk since I had my operation; good thing the wind was cold so we had an excuse to go sit indoors and have a warm drink. I still have to be careful with lifting any weight over 9 lbs. I’m glad I decided to go with a ultra-light camera setup a few years ago.

It was nice to see fellow street photographers; it nice to hangout with people who have the same passion as I do. One thing I have noticed with the street photographers of Montreal is that they are not obsessed with gear. You can see that it’s about getting the picture and not just getting the gear.

Merci Dan!

Je me libère en marchant, ça me fait du bien, je fais des photos, des bonnes ou mauvaises, que souvent d’ailleurs je ne peux pas recommencer.  Raymon Depardon

Summer is approaching

No more time for procrastinating!

She wants to see the pictures, and not just on my monitor… It’s been too long, even for me… It’s overdue.

Final notice.

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This past summer, me and Princess FlowerCup went to New Brunswick and Nova Scotia. We had a family errand and a family member to drop off in the atlantic provinces. Lots of road, and thank the universe that A&W had the Beyond Meat burger. Not the biggest fan of stale sandwiches… We stopped in (in chronological order): Fredericton, Doaktown, Halifax, Alma, Halifax, Saint-André-de-Restigouche, Rimouski and Québec City. We did around 3,000 km in 9 days. As expected, in the small towns, it was harder to find vegan food or restaurants with such options, but surprisingly, Québec City was also really disappointing. I know I know, it’s the oldest city on the continent and I guess, just like older people, it will take longer to change. But c’mon, even if your city was built out of stone, it doesn’t mean you have to eat like they did in the stone age.

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I and we learned a few thing on this trip - a few thing about each other about road trips. Don’t drive too many days in a row, and plan a few places where you can spend a full day without too much driving around. It is a vacation, and if you’re the only one driving, well, it still has to be a vacation for you, too! Now, a few photography things: make sure you bring your cleaning kit on your road trip because when you’re in NB, there are not too many places where you can find what you will need. So, yeah, you will notice dust on some of my pictures - sorry. And yeah, it’s always practical to have a extra charger. I recommend one that you can use in a vehicle. It can be a sad thing when your batteries are dead and your forgot your charger on the dresser where you had been sleeping 2 nights ago.

We saw some wildlife, from deer to birds, but most importantly, must not forget… the red fireflies!

Thanks to all who hosted and opened their homes to us. We appreciate it.

I support the students

I see them out with banners and signs and, yes, they sometimes might sound brainwashed or like they are just taking advantage of the movement for a free day out of class, but on the other hand, consider this:

I think kids are still young and care more about their future and each other than us, the working class, who tend to be more blasé.

Maybe it’s time to listen to them, because what’s going on now ain’t working.

Time, time, time

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I wish I could spend all my time doing art - just wandering around taking pictures, coming home to chill out while working on them, and somehow the house would always be clean, maintained, and fully stocked.

I have too much to do to be able to add more. A weekly challenge, ok - it doesn’t sound like much, but I like to take my time when it comes to my photography. If I had endless amounts of time, I would only do photography… But I have bills, I ain’t rich, so I work, pay the bills, clean the apartment, feed the cats, and keep the pantry full. In the end, the time I have left is for my GF and to take a breath.

No - I would rather have time to work on my pictures, to wander with my camera, to do it the way I like to do it.

So yeah, challenge, maybe when I have more time; for now, I’d rather just take the time to do what I want, and do it well. So yeah, maybe another time…

If I was able to walk, I would be outside today with the students, because it is time.

Time to think…

Time to give a voice to the planet…

Time to change.

Time, time, time, time to think, time to have a voice for the planet. Time to change. There is no planet B.

Time, time, time, time to think, time to have a voice for the planet. Time to change. There is no planet B.

Week 4 of the Dogwood Challenge

Warmth poem in French

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La petite fille aux allumettes

Elle vendait ses allumettes sur le coin

Tout ça pour s’acheter un joint

 

On ne l’a pas retrouvé morte gelée

Elle était juste vraiment gelée dur

Par ce soir de janvier bien givré

The storm, Week 3 of the Dogwood Challenge

Week 3 of the Dogwood Challenge 2019

My goal this week was to take a simple but amazing black and white photograph of any subject of my choosing.

This past Sunday we had our first big snowstorm of the year, topped with a polar vortex. It was -19°C with a windchill of -29°C, and I need new winter boots… So cold…

I might have to burn a few matches to stay warm, like in the Little Match Girl fairy-tale. Thankfully, my story is not that bleak; I just need to go and try to find warm vegan winter boots. If you know any good locations in Montreal, let me know.

Stay frosty (or toasty, depending on your location)!

The Straw, Week 2 of the Dogwood Challenge

Rule of Thirds Motion

If you didn’t know, there is a rule of composition that is often applied in photography: the rule of thirds. Basically, you cut the picture in 1/3 on each axis and place your subject on the intersection of these lines. We can use this to show motion in pictures, like I have for this week’s chalenge. 

If you didn’t know already, I like discarded stuff... This one is a study of our society. So here you have it: my contribution for this week, taking a different angle on the subject matter, along with an extra dose of discarded - Straw I, II and the T-Bag. Personally, I like the golden ratio better when it comes to composition, but it depends on the picture. Rules are meant to be broken.

These unused plastic straws had been tossed in the back alley - not even the trash. They point toward passers by and a manhole, while in the back, there sits an all-you-can-eat restaurant. In some ways, this represents us as a society; blind to the consequences of our actions on our world. If you ask me, I think that a bigger problem is that we let corporations hide the truth of our actions to us when we use the good and services that they offer.

Taking part in the Dogwood 52 Week Photography Challenge

Hey everyone!

A long time ago in a galaxy… A few year ago I did a Picture a day project for more than a year. And now in a galaxy not so far away and not so long ago I doing another year long project.

I was great to challenge myself and to open my eyes to the world we live in. This year I hopping on the Dogwood 52 week photography challenge. So I intend to post these on every sunday.

https://dogwood.photography/52weekchallenge2019#

Week one Week 1 Story Telling: Self-Portrait.

Well I do a lot of street photography so here we go!

A few hours in Toronto

Every year, me and the twin usually go on a small road trip. This year we decided to check out Toronto, since both of us had seen it from the 401 a few times but had never really stopped to experience it. The goal was the get a feel for the city and to see if we would be interested in coming back for a longer stay.

 

We end up spending about 24 hours in Toronto. You’ll see a glimpse of it in these pictures, but I have to admit that downtown Toronto feels a bit like midtown NYC. I know they are different cities in many ways, but they have a similar vibe.

 

Next day we hit the road again...


 

Toronto, it was fun - see you soon (very soon)!!

 

Walking the Colours

I went to a photowalk, but the leader was not there in time. He was really late - even worse than me (wink)!

While we waited, I went inside the Place des Arts. This will be a recognizable place for locals. This passage is part of the Underground City in Montréal and, I have to say, as a street photographer, it is quite nice, especially when outside is the temperature of a freezer. Even in the summer it is an oasis away from the harsh sun with the pleasant breeze of AC rustling overhead.

In the end, I waited for some cool colors and someone to walk in front of them. There are some recesses of light in the ceiling, and you can wait for someone to walk beneath them. Since it was 10 am and they were in the process of removing the outdoor stage at the Place des Spectacles, we had to wait a while.

 

A walk with André

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On the first of April, I went for a walk around town with another photographer from my neighborhood. We didn't have the best weather, but we had fun. 

All my pictures were taken with my Fujifilm X-T1 and the XF 23mm F1.4 and XF 35mm f2 lenses. 

Le premier Avril j'ai été faire de la photo avec André, un autre photographe de mon cartier. Nous avons pas eu la meilleur météo, mais nous avouns eu du plaisir.

 

Here is a picture that Andre took of me:
Voici une photo de moi que André a pris de moi: 
https://www.facebook.com/Union-1837-938548756211083/ and on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/union1837/