Colours

A reminder to members of City Daily Photo that the theme for December is Slow.

More fall colours today around Ottawa. 

I was in the Nepean area one day, and fall colours alongside this church caught my eye.

A bus ride later, I was waiting up at the Tunney's Pasture transit station. Trees outside the perimeter drew my attention.

This vibrant tree was outside a bank in the Glebe.

One day I headed out in the direction of Lebreton Flats.

Pindigen Park is here, and this tree certainly drew me.

Autumn colours around nearby buildings had the same effect.

Here we look across at the Canadian Firefighters Memorial, with fall colours in the background. The large statue of a firefighter points towards a wall with names of those firefighters who have died in service.

Across the road is the National Holocaust Monument, with the War Museum in the background.

My path led me on, in the direction of the nearby Portage Bridge.

Here at Richmond Landing, I took more shots of fall colours.

I kept moving along the bridge, which spans the Ottawa River between Ottawa and Gatineau. The river passes through a series of islands here, including Victoria Island, home to the ruins of an old carbide mill. We'll pick up here tomorrow.

City Daily Photo Theme Day: Blue

 The first day of each month is a theme day for members of City Daily Photo. This month, that theme is Blue. Check out how others are taking on the theme right here.

I start in one of the courtyards of the Byward Market, taken in July. This sculpture in vivid blue is called Our Shepherds, by Patrick Berube.

Even the sign for it is in blue.

I took another shot of it in August.

Blue skies- or a mix of them- seemed ideal for this theme, particularly early in the morning.

In late August I showed you some pics of a rainbow taken at Lansdowne Park, and mentioned I'd hold one over for the theme. This was done in panorama. Storm clouds have their own shades of blue.

Here in the north end of the Glebe, the morning sky caught my eye.

This painting is outside a house on what looks like a utility box.

Twice a month I head out to the Portage Bridge to photograph the view downstream over the Ottawa River. In August each year, Cirque du Soleil puts on a production over on the Gatineau side of the river, beneath a blue and white big top.

Heading back, I photographed this view of a secondary channel of the river, with Victoria Island on the left, Richmond Landing on the right, and Parliament off in the distance, all contrasting well with the skies.

In early September, I took these two shots early one morning in Centretown, with the blue sky vivid against the clouds, typical of late summer skies.

And lastly, a few days later, and close to home. The dark blue stormy clouds to the east on the horizon caught my eye late in the afternoon.

Odds And Ends In A National Capital

I have some odds and ends shots for you today and tomorrow taken from the last few weeks around the area. I start in early July, where en route to the National Gallery I took this shot of a flowerbed in Major's Hill Park. The flowers are presently that which last into October, when the tulip bulbs will be replanted in this bed.

After I finished the visit, I took this shot of Notre Dame Basilica across the road from the Gallery.

A sure sign of summer- this is in a residential garden in the Glebe.

Another garden, and a morning shot. This is close to home for me in the Glebe.

More summer flowers- I passed these at Richmond Landing overlooking the Ottawa River while on my way to the Portage Bridge to photograph the downstream view.

A series of artificial swans occupy the central atrium in the Billings Bridge mall. This is one of them.

One day I was at Lansdowne Park, and there was a rainbow.

I got the better part of the arch in with this one. I'll feature a similar shot in panorama for the Blue theme in October.

And I went over to the north side of the Aberdeen Pavilion, where the rainbow was still shining.

One morning in the Glebe, I saw this bunny across the road having breakfast. They are such skittish critters.

One night I walked down to Lansdowne, on a night that was rather cool, with clouds blowing swiftly in the night sky. I took a shot, and thought I saw the face of a skull up in the center. Maybe it's just me.

When I went out to the Chaudiere Falls, I photographed this. A zip line spans the Ottawa River from here to the Gatineau shore. 

On my way out, passing by the War Museum, I noticed a large flock of Canada geese in occupation of this field on the other side of the road, busy having lunch.

Odds And Ends

 Today I have some odds and ends from the last few weeks. In early January, I took these in the pre-dawn during a snowstorm. This is near Bank and Somerset Streets. Somerset House, the dilapidated former inn that has been an eye sore for the better part of a decade and a half thanks to the incompetence of the owner-developer who's been nothing but excuses ever since an accident inside, is at right.

That night, snow plows had come through. This view looks west on Somerset.

Some nights later, I took this shot of Abbotsford House in the Glebe from across the street.

Colonel John By is the British military engineer who is considered the founder of the city, and the man who led the construction of the Rideau Canal. His statue is in Major's Hill Park. The fencing around him over the winter shelters the flower beds, where tulip bulbs are waiting for spring.

Taken in Little Italy, a very large pile of snow. Some places have snow removed entirely. Others do not.

Close to home, literally. The neighbouring building to mine develops issues with ice each winter, building its way from the roof down to the ground.

One afternoon near Richmond Landing, I saw a squirrel in this tree.

Moments later, a cardinal briefly stopped on the retaining wall.

A wider view. Gatineau is in the background.

Same area, different day. I took this shot near sunset as I was passing Richmond Landing, heading over to the Portage Bridge to take one of my shots downstream over the Ottawa River.

The Aberdeen Pavilion at Lansdowne Park is a delight to photograph at night, particularly when the area has quieted down.

Dawn, and close to the above shot. I took this at a park that neighbours Lansdowne, with an quiet baseball diamond covered in snow.

A short walk north, and more of the dawn.

A different day, but early morning light. I took this shot of the Peace Tower on Parliament Hill. This was taken while I was getting some shots in for Winterlude, which we'll start looking at in a couple of days.