Daily Photo - Dec. 16-31
For 2020, I am photographing every day, and posting the best of each day in half-month increments.
2020 December 16, Wednesday
A touch of snow managed to find its way to the ground. Considering the recent unseasonable warmth, it was quite a feat!
Olympus E-PL9: f6.3, 1/500 sec, ISO 640
IrfanView: Crop, Colour Balance
2020 December 17, Thursday
My favourite dessert is trifle and my favourite berry is rasp, so I was very happy when my Mom revealed this delightful bowl. At first I thought she was trying to cheer me up after my job loss, but it turns out that she had actually been inspired to make it after watching a baking show. Regardless, it tasted amazing.
Olympus E-PL9: f5.7, 1/80 sec, ISO 6400
IrfanView: Crop, Colour Balance
2020 December 18, Friday
My last day of work passed quietly... That is, until a flock of birds decided that there was something to be sought just outside my window! I grabbed my camera and snapped this photo. It's not the highest quality, since it's taken through a window and screen, but it does capture the moment.
Olympus E-PL9: f5, 1/320 sec, ISO 200
IrfanView: Crop, Colour Balance
2020 December 19, Saturday
One reason I built my patio was to make clearing snow from my back door easier. I never counted on how interesting the textures of the stones would look with a few flakes falling onto them.
Olympus E-PL9: f5.8, 1/400 sec, ISO 2000
IrfanView: Crop, Colour Balance
2020 December 20, Sunday
My original goal here was to get a shot of the eagle in a tree which included the other eagles flying in the background. I was not expecting to be treated to a little show of ruffled feathers and wing stretches.
Olympus E-PL9: f6.3, 1/1600 sec, ISO 640
IrfanView: Crop, Colour Balance
2020 December 21, Monday
Eagles are not veryoften social birds. Imagine my surprise to find a convocation of three in the same tree!
Olympus E-PL9: f6.3, 1/1600 sec, ISO 3200
IrfanView: Crop, Colour Balance
2020 December 22, Tuesday
My neighbours have a very large Christmas star in their front lawn. I dashed out to snap this photo, then rush back inside before getting too cold.
Olympus E-PL9: f6.1, 1/10 sec, ISO 6400
IrfanView: Crop, Colour Balance
2020 December 23, Wednesday
While on a stroll down by the estuary I came across this bit of fishing net. I think it makes for an intriguing vignette set against the water and sun-drenched far shore.
Olympus E-PL9: f5, 1/250 sec, ISO 800
IrfanView: Crop, Colour Balance
2020 December 24, Thursday
Given the Covid-19 pandemic, the holiday was a little different this year. Celebrating our Christmas Eve supper was just my parents and me. Still, Mom put on an excellent feast.
Olympus E-PL9: f4.3, 1/200 sec, ISO 6400
IrfanView: Crop, Colour Balance
2020 December 25, Friday
I have two photographs for you from Christmas Day. The first is an ornament on my parents' tree. The second is a shot of the village rink in Heatherton. In past years we've gone skating there over the holidays... 2020 definitely goes down as a green Christmas!
Olympus E-PL9: f6.2, 1/20 sec, ISO 6400
IrfanView: Crop, Colour Balance
Olympus E-PL9: f6.3, 1/500 sec, ISO 200
IrfanView: Crop, Colour Balance
2020 December 26, Saturday
For years, my mother has sent out a poem with our Christmas cards. It details the news of our family over the past year. We also receive many post cards from friends and family. This year, they ended up displayed on the piano. In this period of isolation, it is very heartwarming to be reminded of the people who care for us, even when we're physically distanced.
Olympus E-PL9: f4.5, 1/250 sec, ISO 6400
IrfanView: Crop, Colour Balance
2020 December 27, Sunday
I couldn't very well let the year peter out without including another shot of the amazingly productive pepper plant. I don't think any of us expected new buds and fruit at Christmastime!
Olympus E-PL9: f6.1, 1/60 sec, ISO 640
IrfanView: Crop, Colour Balance
2020 December 28, Monday
Years ago, an attempt at family baking ended up with some awful cookies. That prompted a trip to the ocean to throw the offensive treats to the fish in a cathartic rage to the sea. Ever since, taking a beach stroll has been a Christmastime tradition in my family. There are two interesting bits to this shot. The first is the sign, familiar to us now but new from last year. The second is how the frost survives only in the shadow of the fence-rail. While at the beach I took another interesting photo of a tide-pattern in the sand. To me, it looks like a peacock.
Olympus E-PL9: f5.6, 1/640 sec, ISO 200
IrfanView: Crop, Colour Balance
Olympus E-PL9: f5.6, 1/500 sec, ISO 200
IrfanView: Crop, Colour Balance
2020 December 29, Tuesday
I do not want to dwell overly on the Covid-19 pandemic. In all honesty my family has been spared its worst effects, as has the entire province when compared with the rest of the country and the world. Still, it is piece of history through which we are living. Signs of "wear a mask" are signs of our time.
Olympus E-PL9: f6.1, 1/500 sec, ISO 800
IrfanView: Crop, Colour Balance
2020 December 30, Wednesday
"Beginning to look a lot like Christmas" came a few days late! I wanted to get in a shot of my house before finishing the year. This time in 2019 I didn't have a proper front porch, nor a back patio. I have been so fortunate to have a house such a this, with a family such as mine, in a community such as the one where I choose to dwell. I am glad that I stuck with my initiative to take a photo every day in 2020, even if it didn't lead to more travel as I had expected (Ha!). I have learned to look closer at the world around me.
Olympus E-PL9: f7.1, 1/640 sec, ISO 200
IrfanView: Crop, Colour Balance
2020 December 31, Thursday
Here we are! The end of 2020. For many people, this is a night of vengeful celebration, of ripping calendars off walls and stomping on them. People are eager to put the year behind them. I think it's worth a deeper reflection, though. 2020 was the year we all learned the value of resilience, the importance of community, and the strength of cooperation. In the face of injustice, tragedy, and pestilence we have survived. As we continue to cope with those demons, which still linger among us, our lesson from 2020 should be one of hope that we will successfully surmount the challenges which surely lay before us in 2021 and beyond.
