Setting Up For Winterlude

Preparations for Winterlude get seriously underway early in January at the major venues, including Confederation Park, where ice sculptures are set up. These first shots feature the shelters in the midst of set-up, the first for the team carvers and the second for the single carvers.

Christmas trees see a second use during Winterlude, lining the snowbanks around the sites.

A few days later I was back at the Park, where things were coming along smoothly. The shelters for both the team and the solo carver sculptures were set up and ready to go.

There are some larger ice sculptures set up in the open as well, and this crew was starting work on one of those.

This is another one of the larger ice sculptures being worked on. I'll show you what they did with these two larger sculptures later this week.

Skaters On The Rideau Canal

Skating finally opened on the Rideau Canal for the season on January 23rd, with a section between the Bank Street Bridge and the Corktown Bridge opened at first. It has been erratic ever since. These are views taken on that day from the Bank Street Bridge looking east and west, around five in the afternoon. The sun was down, but there was enough ambient light left behind. The full moon is that light above the eastern horizon in the first two shots. Tomorrow I start up my Winterlude series.

The Sunrise In Different Shades

I was walking on the Bronson Avenue bridge over the Rideau Canal one morning last month. There was a fine snow falling, and it filtered the light of the rising sun in an interesting way.

A few days later passing through Brewer Park, another sunrise caught my eye. I photographed it in several different settings: normal, black and white, sepia, aqua, and negative.

Aslan Looks Quite Irritable Today

I do enjoy photographing the lions that stand guard outside the entrances to the main post office on Sparks Street. There are two for each door, with a total of six. They do remind me of the C.S. Lewis character Aslan, and they always collect at least a bit of snow in the winter.

In This Case, Location Really Is Everything

Downtown on the eastern edge of Chinatown stands this florist's shop.

A couple of doors east is this old house, which has been converted into offices for a law firm.

Their specialties are inscribed on this sign outside.

Both establishments have chosen an ideal location to do business in. For what lies between the two is this establishment, which always has new customers. Rather quiet ones at that, not so much as a peep out of them.

Mementos And Memories Of A Figure Skater

This gallery space in City Hall features a good deal on Barbara Ann Scott, including her legacy since her retirement. One of the lasting images I have of her from more recent years was her carrying the Olympic torch into the House of Commons during the lead-up to the Vancouver Winter Games. She struck me as a graceful, gracious, and warm person, a real credit to the country. Having this gallery honouring her was a very good idea.

Barbara Ann Scott - Canadian Olympic Champion

Barbara Ann Scott was one of our country's finest athletes, a figure skater in the mid to late 1940s who was dominant in the sport, winning the gold at the St. Moritz Olympics, among many other victories and accolades. You can read more about her here.

She was also a local, born and raised here, and though she retired from the sport and took on life in other parts, she often came back to Ottawa and retained a place in the hearts of many. Here at Ottawa's City Hall, a gallery has been set aside, with her story told through text and photography, as well as collecting her memorabilia, including trophies, clothing, awards, and the Olympic gold medal. I have more from here tomorrow.

City Daily Photo Theme Day: Scenes From A Cafe

The first day of each month is always a theme day for members of City Daily Photo, and for the first of February, the theme is Scenes From A Coffee House, or cafe. The theme is courtesy of Merisi, who blogs from Vienna, and from time to time features coffee houses in her blog. You can find other examples of the theme right here.

My choice for the theme is in the heart of the Byward Market, taking up the north end of the Market building. Le Moulin de Provence is a cafe and eatery here. I went up several days ago. The place offers a wealth of food and drink to eat in or take out, including a whole lot of baking. In 2009, President Obama stopped in here for cookies during a visit to the city, and the business still has photos up of the occasion- a sharp eye can even catch images of him among the cookies.