#52weeksofWE - 48 of 52, History 101

Though Windsor and Essex County are ever shifting and dynamic, we continue to live among the living history - the buildings, the statues, the celebrations - of our far reaching past. Okay, maybe it isn't as far reaching as if you were to walk around Windsor, England (we don't have castles per se), but it is still an area rich with stories and relics of an engaging past. So feel free to take pictures of this history. Also, this more so than other weeks, feel free to attach some text to the picture for a short history lesson.
Submit your photos on Flickr or Facebook, and send the picture files to me if you want them to be featured on my weekly reflections: essex.masqueATgmailDOTcom

Photographic Tale of the Week - Floating Village

"Floating Village" by Gabe Garcia

Both involve water, but rather than the cool simplicity of last week's "SUPping into the Unknown," Gabe Garcia's "Floating Village" is all about capturing the bustle of a Hong Kong fishing village. Though not filled with people, Gabe's words paint a picture of fishy commerce and the beauty of catching a fish, docking, and eating it right there. This is a great photo that encapsulates the busy lines and angles of the village with the rounded layering of hills almost becoming one with the haze of clouds in the background.

This is what Gabe has to say about this picture:

This is a site of Hong Kong not often seen. This is a floating fishing village off shore located between a few islands near the top of the peninsula. You can boat out here and eat at a restaurant they have or fish or come just to buy live fish to take home fresh to eat. This place is huge, about 100 meters long and 50 meters wide. It is built entirely on top of plastic 55 gallon blue barrels and foam blocks with wood planks tied on top. The employees and fishermen live on boats and shacks on the floating village. I asked our host what they do for Typhoons, he said they take the roofs down so they do not blow off, anchor it well then leave for shore and hope it's there when they return. It has survived many typhoons over the years. We ate here for lunch, we caught a few fish, gave it the the staff who cooked it and we were eating it 10 minutes later. It was the best cook fish I have ever eaten. These guys know what they are doing when it comes to fish.

You can see the rest of Gabe's photostream here.

Make sure to check out the rest of the Photographic Tales of the Week on this blog. Also, visit the Pictures with a Story Flickr group where I have selected them from. 
For other updates, check out the following links:
Facebook
Twitter

#52weeksofWE - 47 of 52, You light up my YQG

Add together the earlier sunset, heavy grey clouds, and the freezing of precipitation, and the result is we tend to experience a little more darkness these days. But life continues. We don't tend to drop into bed at 5:30 when the sun is almost down, no matter how much we want to. Instead, we flip on a light or flock, like moths, to where the light is. We even make our lights pretty, twisting them into shapes and giving them different colours. Capture any and all this week in Windsor - Essex. For any of those intimidated by low light shots, the lights don't have to be on.
Submit your photos on Flickr or Facebook, and send the picture files to me if you want them to be featured on my weekly reflections: essex.masqueATgmailDOTcom

#52weeksofWE - 46 of 52, A Place to Sit

If it's not one thing, it's another. After a month and a half of chaos and family expansion my body sensed the slack in schedule and decided to succumb to the cold / flu bug going around. Add the regular work and familial duties and the theme for this week just seemed to slip away from me. 

But, here we are for our shortened Week 46 theme. Fortunately for us, be you king or pawn, there is nothing better than a good sit (anybody know the reference?). Yes, I know you can sit practically anywhere, but this week we want to celebrate any of those especially photogenic chairs, or benches, or stools, etc in Windsor - Essex. There are many of them, so I hope that the shortened week won't stop you from getting at least one shot off before next week's theme.
Submit your photos on Flickr or Facebook, and send the picture files to me if you want them to be featured on my weekly reflections: essex.masqueATgmailDOTcom

Photographic Tale of the Week - SUPping into the unknown

"SUPping into the unknown" by TdW (RSA)

My family, for the past several weeks, has been fighting off a cough / flu visitor that seems to be tackling us one at a time. It was my turn starting last night. The closed in feeling of an pounding head, aching joints, and tight chest was not necessarily inspiration for this week's selection - I had selected it before feeling crappy - but it is even more appreciated now that I am putting it up. TdW's "SUPping into the unknown" a beautifully colourful, simple composition is acting for me like visual Vaporub - the cooling blue, the openness of water and possibility, the blending of surface and sky is a breath of fresh air. 

Here is TdW's writing on the picture: 

 

A lone SUPper (Stand Up Paddler) on lake Slocan near New Denver.
It's not exactly what the camera saw and what my eyes (and brain) saw, but watching this man, who I didn't know at all, glide over the water, nor knew his purpose of paddling or destination, I overlayed the state of my mind on the picture, so that where he came from or went to are invisible. But I would have been left with blue only had I made the fact visible that he is unknown to me.
So I salute this unknown man who so peacefully and one with his environment did this solo performance.

It's quite unlikely for us far away here in South Africa to visit BC in Canada. But in Aug we traveled for nearly a month with our (grand)children in the beautiful Kootenays and Rockies. What a great area to visit (apart from the many forest fires causing so much smoke). When I saw this man paddling quietly away, while we had picknick on the pebbles, I liked the scene, so serene. The original shot had a slope at the other end of the lake filled with trees, the way every slope in BC seems to be filled with trees. I blurred the trees away with Lightzone, using Gaussian blurr, in order to create the mood described.  

 

Maybe some day I will travel, from Canada, to South Africa. Find his photostream here. 

Find the rest of the Essex Masque sites at the following links:

Facebook

Flickr

Twitter 

Patterns Exploded - Catching up with Weeks 36 through 44

"Bee on Wild Flowers" by Paul Thibodeau

My work life tends to revolve around penciled out lists of tasks to accomplish, some scratched out and others left incomplete and unmarred. The pages of my notebooks over the past couple of years are filled with them so that you would think I did little else other than remind myself of what I need to do. Don’t let that give you the impression that I am organized to the point of being an exceptionally productive member of society. 

Productive maybe, but not exceptionally so.

All lists were thrown out the window nearly six weeks ago when the pregnancy related discomfort, false labour, and the consistent concern that our fourth would be born on any day kept me busy at home. Our wee bundle of joy arrived on Thanksgiving Day

Also, the challenger photographs continue to roll in and I have been able to only skimp my responsibility for one week. Next to the continued good health of my baby, the great support from grandparents, the understanding of work, and the fact that the two deer we hit with the car on our way home late from the hospital did not go through the windshield, watching the great shots come in of flowers, challengers personal favourites, and the newer themes have made an overwhelmingly stressful couple of month and a half more palatable. 

So instead of featuring a bunch of shots from everything I have missed, I am going to pick one especially enjoyable picture from each week. Also, selfishly, I will include the ones I contributed. Don't worry, these weren't many.
 

Thank you, and I am happy you continue to enjoy the #52weeksofWE photo challenge.

Blissfully unaware of what was on its way, week 36 was Pattern Recognition - you can find the description here. 

"Untitled" by Laura Arce

Week 37 was Add Some Flower - a greatly popular theme that saw many beautiful shots. Here are a few.

"Summer's Dying Days" by Paul Thibodeau

"Untitled" by April Particelli

 

"Untitled" by Laura Arce

Have a favourite thing? Shoot it! Here is the description for A Few of Our Favourite Things, weeks 38 and 39.

"September11" by April Particelli

Week 40 was my overly convoluted, "creative" title Windows are the Eyes to our Houses.

"Windows" by Paul Thibodeau

And the signal to my triumphant return to photo challenge consistency, Make Like a Tree which deserves several featured photos.

"Wire and branch, bard and leaf" by Patrick Firth

"Finding Autumn's Glow" by April Particelli

"Twisted Tree" by Laura Arce

And, finally, those more photogenic aspects of Worship was week 44. 

"Autumn Church Path" by Patrick Firth

"Storefront Idols" by Paul Thibodeau

Join us capturing dragons and goblins in Windsor - Essex, as well as some Halloween leftovers, in this week's theme - Windsor Fantastic. Check all the other photos and various other communications from the Essex Masque my various other platforms.
Facebook
Twitter
Flickr

Photographic Tale of the Week - Autumnal Shrine

"Autumnal Shrine" by Enrico Fossati

Are you looking for the most beautiful word in the English language? Do you desire the most aesthetic collection of sounds and phonemes  gathered into a collection of letters made to form, in this case, three syllables of absolute bliss? Look no further than Tolkien's "cellar door" or "sellador" and enjoy away. However, if you ask my opinion, the word I am constantly drawn back to and could take a fragrant bath in is the word "autumnal." The first syllable - the "ahh" sounds like an opening up in a cosmic sense; the second, "tum" like the beating of deep, earth-shaking drum; the last syllable, "nal," I haven't decided yet, but it is good nonetheless.
Suffice it to say, my decision to feature Enrico Fossati's "Autumnal Shrine" as this week's Photographic Tale of the Week" from my Flickr group, Pictures with a Story" may have been a bit biased. However, I think if you take one look at this masterpiece of light and beauty, you will find no fault in its selection. Read what Enrico has to say about it:

"Exploring a new alpine area i have found this incredible Shrine of the autumn at its maximum splendour, i hope my shot can reproduce the majesty of that place and the feelings who i have felt."
Strongly recommend watching this on a black background .
  For Capture this shot i have used Lucroit Equipment, if you are interested don't forget that you can get 10%OFF with my Discount Code FOSSATI10. lucroit.com/SHOP/?&id_lang=1
WORKSHOP ANNOUNCEMENT: Want to join me on an adventure here? I'll be co-leading a workshop in the Dolomites with Erin Babnik this July 17-23. This is an adventure-style workshop that will take us to some of the most amazing wilderness locations in the region. The workshop includes six days of shooting and a post-processing session on the last day. We have a 12-page brochure available that contains all of the details. For more information, visit www.erinbabnik.com/workshops

Additionally:
About the picture is a new location who i have discovered in the French Alps, during a beautiful 4 days trip with my friends hiking and taking photos. It was a fair day when the autumn was at his maximum spendour, it was a bit tricky to compose due the huge amount of sprays coming from the waterfall and the rocks was very wet and not very comfortable for composition. I have used a polarizer for reducing the glares and enhance the beautiful tones of the foliage. 

I am an image maker based in northern Italy. I love to capture the beauty of nature and I am seriously fascinated by landscapes of any kind. I love to edit my works with dark and dreamy moods inspired by movies and artworks from many great artists. I love to share my works all over the world, and I hope you enjoy. I leave you with a famous quote that in my opinion fits extremely well with my approach to landscape photography:
“A single dream is more powerful than a thousand realities.”
 
You can find Enrico at the following sites:
https://www.facebook.com/enricofossatiphotography/
http://www.enricofossati.it/  
https://500px.com/efossati

Check out everything else Essex Masque related, including the 52 week photo challenge I
 am hosting for Windsor - Essex residents at the following sites:
Facebook
Flickr
Twitter

#52weeksofWE - 45 of 52, Windsor Fantastic

No matter how much the goblins, dragons, and ghosts have been relegated from the reality of older generations to the fantasy of contemporary times, they still make their way into daily life - whether they be dragons on Ouellette or ghosts on the trains out in Ojibway. This is your chance to capture one of the elusive beasts.
I'm sorry for the timing of this one, as it may have been less of a challenge during Halloween week, but you may find some decorative leftovers anyway. And don't let the name deceive you, there are still fantastic creatures in the County.
Submit your photos on Flickr or Facebook, and send the picture files to me if you want them to be featured on my weekly reflections: essex.masqueATgmailDOTcom

#52weeksofWE - 44 of 52, Worship

As you may have noticed people tend to create things - whether they be buildings or statues or art - where they can celebrate or worship the great, enigmatic, subtle divine that touches our lives , whatever our belief. Again, be creative. There are many ways we represent worship, and many ways that we perform it. And many of them are beautiful, so capture away!
Submit your photos on Flickr or Facebook, and send the picture files to me if you want them to be featured on my weekly reflections: essex.masqueATgmailDOTcom