Day 57: Whiteout

(Nikon D90, 35mm DX, f/4, 1/400, ISO 200 + 0.5 EV Post)

And the snow just continues to keep coming down here in the Greater Toronto Area as we continue to get blanketed by the something we haven't seen much all winter.  You'd think that as Canadians we'd all be used to this sort of stuff by now, but it always seems to take us by surprise.  Morning commute today was dreadful since the plows didn't have much time to get out beforehand.  In fact, much of the bus ride was gridlocked or moving at a bit of a snail's pace.  Thankfully the subway ride was largely uneventful. 

  

(Nikon D90, 35mm DX, f/5.6, 1/400, ISO 200, +0.3 EV)

It wasn't much of a surprise that when I emerged from the subway later that afternoon that it was of course, snowing.  It had been raining a bit downtown when I left.  About the only difference with this morning is that it was now a little warmer, meaning there was a ton of slush everywhere.  On top of that it was starting to get camoflauged by fresh snow, leaving for a few slick and nasty surprises.  It tapered off as I came back east.  Below if a photo of a sidestreet that I take on my way home, above is the park I cross.  It's just a sea of white out there.

 

(Nikon D90, 35mm DX, f/5.6, 1/400, ISO 200) 

Tomorrow promises to be busy.  It's my last day of work, and as mentioned in yesterday's post - the RUTV Masquerade.  More to come.

Day 56: Off the Beaten Path

 

(Nikon D90, 35mm DX, f/8, 1/160, ISO 200)

A pretty uneventful day off today.  Got to sleep in a little bit which was nice, considering how little I've slept all week.  I got back to Markham a little early this afternoon so I decided to explore a photo opportunity that I had been meaning to in the last few weeks.  The location for these photos was Sanwood Park in Scarborough.  To be honest, I never really knew this place existed despite how relatively close it was.  It was first brought to my attention in through my buddy Elijah (In red on Day 46)mentioned "a place near your house with a path and a lot of trees" that his brother had photographed in the past. 

  

(Nikon D90, 35mm DX, f/8, 1/250, ISO 200) 

It never really dawned on my exactly where it was, until a few weeks later when my dad and I went to go get our hair cut.  Upon making a left turn, I noticed what I thought was a pretty impressive row of trees with a winding running through it.  Whether or not this was actually the place, I made note that I'd go back one day to shoot it.  Today was that day.

 

(Nikon D90, 35mm DX, f/8, 1/125, ISO 200 +0.7 EV) 

I of course, chose the best day ever to venture there. The weather wasn't exactly pretty - if anything it was cold and there was blowing snow.  Of course it was a good excuse to put my D90 through it's paces.  I figure if my D60 can survive a bit of rain water than the D90 could certainly handle some snow.  It hasn't died yet... so that's a good sign. What caught my attention most after traversing much of the park was a wall consisting of artwork done by presumably students from the surrounding schools.  I'll let the series below speak for itself.

(Nikon D90, 35mm DX, f/8, 1/125, ISO 200) 

 

(Nikon D90, 35mm DX, f/8, 1/200, ISO 200) 

 (Nikon D90, 35mm DX, f/8, 1/200, ISO 200) 

 

(Nikon D90, 35mm DX, f/8, 1/200, ISO 200)

  

(Nikon D90, 35mm DX, f/8, 1/100, ISO 200) 

The final photo is not something painted on the wall, but I tried to be a little witty and let the photo frame itself.  Thank godness for Live View, otherwise it would've just been a crapshoot to get this photo.  By this time I was already freezing cold and didn't really have much of a notion to go belly first into fresh snow.

 

(Nikon D90, 35mm DX, f/8, 1/500, ISO 200 +0.67 EV Post) 

That's it for today, but there is definitely more to come.  This weekend I'll be at a Ryerson University Television (RUTV) masquerade event to celebrate their launch for this year, so that'll be exciting! 

Day 55: At a Glance

(Nikon D90, 35mm DX, f2, 1/160, ISO 400)

Grrrr! So, much of the day yesterday (and the day prior) was spent studying for my statistics midterm that was supposed to happen at 9 AM.  So what happens two minutes prior to us starting?  Thats right you guessed it!  Computer crash!  So of course the test gets postponed to next week, which happens to stack with my programming midterm that occurs the day before.  Oh joy.

Above is a photo of Lindsay, one of the handful of women in our program.  Considering that this is a quick snapshot, I'd wager that she's quite photogenic.  I believe this was the glance that she shot at me (don't worry, I was one seat away and we both know each other, so you can cease the stalker accusations) before she quickly darted her head right after hearing the momentary click.  Of course, a fraction of a second is all it takes with SLRs.
 

Going to keep it short, since I'm incredibly tired.  Back to school (albeit not for class) tomorrow, but at least the weekly grind is over.

Day 54: Push for Assistance

 (Nikon D90, 35mm DX, f/1.8, 1/320, ISO 400)

Took the photo at around 2 AM in the Rogers Communication Centre at Ryerson.  It had been a pretty productive morning, although I pretty much fell asleep through my programming lecture and once I got home.  I have a suspicion that all the hand driers are like this in the RCC.  I recall there being one labeled as such on the second floor; this one was on the third floor.  Nonetheless, I found it hilarious.

Of course, a lot of things are a little funnier when you're dead tired at 2 AM.

Day 53: Out of the Reading...

 

Simon Deng speaking at the Student Campus Centre

(Nikon D90, Sigma 70-200 II @ 120mm , f/2.8, 1/160, ISO 1000, Flash @ TTL + 0.3 EV)

...and into the fire.  Monday kicked off with a midterm.  As for how well I did?  It depends.  It's just that... I don't know.  Inside joke.  Afterwards, headed for a fantastic history class, surprisingly the first lecture this month.

 

Welcome to Air Romania Flight 1-R3P41R

(Nikon D90, 35mm DX, f/1.8, 1/400, ISO 1250)

After class, went to shoot some basketball again in the Ryerson gym.  A bit of a more intense game this time around, in my opinion.  It also began to snow earlier today, something we haven't seen much of all season.  At the time of this post it is still snowing, but it's slowed down a bit.  Much of it is already turning to slush.

A rare sight: Snow.

(Nikon D90, 35mm DX, f/1.8, 1/400, ISO 200) 

Lastly, shot some photos of Simon Deng (headline), a Sudanese refugee who escaped child slavery.  T'was one of those interesting 'reality check' events that really brought everyone in the audience back into perspective, and how not everything was all 'lovey-dovey' in the world. After that, headed to the Rogers Communication Centre to shoot a band that my friend Betty and Gabby were recording for their show.  Joined by a few others, we watched Canadians Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir win gold in Ice Dancing.  We then celebrated with Nestea and cake.  It was awesome.

Sorry for the shortness of the post, but currently operating on very little sleep.  More to come in a few days...

Day 52: Huggies

 

(Nikon D90, 35mm DX, f/2, 1/40, ISO 1600)

 

Unlike desk pictures, you can never get tired of Katelyn pictures!  

Every now and then, Katelyn walks into my room.  She's been pointing a lot to my laptops lately, but she usually gets lifted up onto my bed, where she points at my shelf full of stuffed animals.  At this point, I'm not sure if she's just pointing to any one at random, or if I've been goofy enough to not hand her the one she wants.  

Irregardless, I think she's grown attached to some of my stuffed dogs.  The one pictured is the one I usually hand to her first.  She usually hugs it once and then puts him down afterwards, pointing to another one.  Eventually she usually ends up sitting on my bed surrounding by half a shelf's worth of stuffed animals.  Most of which have been hugged or petted by her.  

Kids do the darndest things.

Day 51: Humpin' It

 

(Nikon D90, 35mm DX, f/11, 1/160, ISO 200)

As if I hadn't already mentioned it yesterday, it's going to be a very busy few weeks.  In case you don't believe me, here's a picture to prove it!  Shot this on the way home from work.  

Of course, even speed humps have a story!

These humps were installed several years back, likely to curb any potential drivers speeding down the straightaway portion of our street.  They've since been installed elsewhere throughout our neighbourhood.  Have they been effective?  I suppose.  I seldom hear cars roaring down my street anymore, which is nice considering I'm usually a pedestrian on this stretch of road and given that more and more pedestrians have been getting hit in the Greater Toronto Area.