Su Buehler Photography

It is possible to get outside, go for a drive, and have a contactless day. The biggest challenge, especially for a longer drive, is finding washrooms. So keeping the day's drive within a few hours is an easy compromise. And get to some pretty amazing places for a change of scenery, and to enjoy nature. Natural light is essential, especially for colour photography. Always look for contrasts, but shots that don't have a lot of harsh shadows. This time of year, the sun is low enough for most of the day that shadows are softened, and keeping the sun at your back or the side will minimize shadows further. Hope you find ways to enjoy the winter!

Now that Christmas Day has come and gone, it's time to take stock of the past year, and think about all the good that has happened. As hard as that may be, this year especially, thinking about the positive things is a much better way to launch into the new year than thinking of all the things that didn't go as intended. How often does life happen the way we expect it to, or want it to? That all depends on what we spend our time and energy focused on. For me in the past ye...ar, I spent a lot of time and energy on things that I felt I was obligated to do, and not quite so much on the people and things that I am passionate about. It's often like that, isn't it, that we make decisions, and then just forge forward, and forget that when life changes, sometimes those decisions and commitments no longer make sense to us. We need to pause, take stock, and reassess. The end of the year is such a great time to do that. Probably why so many people make changes at the end of the year - they are setting personal goals, or reassessing the way they spend their time and seeing whether it fits with their values and priorities. I've determined that I need to make some changes, and follow my heart, align my time and energy spent on the things that I am most passionate about, and the things that, at the end of the day, are what matter the most. One of those things is my need to be visually creative. For the next few days, I'll be sharing the images that I've created in the past year that reflect how I was feeling at the time. It has been an unusual year for me, not just because of Covid, but so many things. And I fell into the trap of doing the things I was expected to, instead of the things that mattered to me. I think my art may change as I go around this curve. Day 1 - January 1, 2020, Snow curls. See more

Last year this time, Steve and I were spending a couple of wonderful days at the Blue Spruce Resort . So much has happened since then! We haven't been able to spend nearly as much time in Algonquin Park as we would have liked, but we did get up there a couple of months ago, and had the joy of having chickadees, nuthatches and even a Canada Jay land on our hands. I didn't even offer any food and still, they came without fear. So beautiful.

I found this article to be incredibly interesting, as an artist and photographer. It's important to not try too hard, to not worry so much about the rules, or the settings, and remember that whatever you're creating in the camera, if you love it, that's all that matters. https://medium.com//the-true-power-of-mindfulness-photogra

While everyone else seems to be enjoying the snow and ice and stars, I'm still remembering summer sunsets from Fisherman's Point. #algonquinpark #summer #sunset

Every once in a while, you have an experience that you often wonder if it was even real. Like seeing a timber wolf in real life. Even though there was one-way glass between us, the power of one of these great creatures emanates from them. They have an undeservedly bad reputation though, they are actually extremely beneficial to the environment. Like all of nature, they are a necessary part of the big picture. Taken at the Haliburton Wolf Center, July, 2020.

Thinking of warm summer evenings, wandering through The rare Charitable Research Reserve, and finding this lone dragonfly on the reeds by the river. Even though it was fairly late in the evening, the air was warm, the light was golden, and there was no one else around. Just my partner and me and the birds and the bugs. Evenings like that, you need something to remember them by. You need to go back into your photos and pull them out, close your eyes, and remember. If a photo isn't worth looking at the second time, it's not worth keeping. And maybe not even worth taking. And maybe that's what really matters.

Special pricing today only - Ever thought about getting back to sending Christmas Cards? Or greeting cards for the holiday season, whatever you celebrate? Real, authentic, handwritten cards? Doesn't it make you feel great to receive one? Then send some too! And make them unique. Today only, Fine Art America greeting cards are up to 40% off - meaning that you're supporting an artist you know, and you're getting something unique to share to make the holidays warmer and cozier for those you care about.

The first time I was on Mizzy Trail in Algonquin Park, there was a pretty thick layer of frost, and the air was cold enough to keep the frost from melting, even though the sun was shining bright. At least for a little while. I was noticing that the frost looked a little bit different on various surfaces - on plants, it was often a flat crystal - layered like a cake in hexagonal shapes. But on this wooden rail, each crystal was like an icy feather, reaching for the sun, even though the sun would eventually melt it all. And now, I can't wait for more frost.

Whenever I'm outside in natural surroundings, I marvel at how nature works, the cycle of life, and how we so easily see the beauty in the changing of the seasons throughout a single year. And yet we so often fail to see the same beauty in the cycle of life over many years, especially in ourselves. Even the evergreens lose some of their needles, and those needles become the paintbrush and paints on the canvas of a pond. I hope that as I approach the last part of my own life cycle that I am able to be the paintbrush and paints on the canvas of my surroundings.

Is it too late to share autumn colours? Nah, it's always a good time for autumn colours. They don't last long enough in real time, even though this year it seemed to be a wonderfully long fall, with warm temperatures late into the season. So it's awesome to look back as long as we want, and cherish the changing of the seasons, and settle into the understanding the life keeps moving on, that the only sure thing is change.