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Photos of Canada Photos of Quebec

A quick outing in foggy weather in Quebec City

The Château Frontenac in the evening with low clouds during Spring 2026
The Château Frontenac in the evening with low clouds during Spring 2026

In Quebec City, we had several consecutive days of rain in April while there was still snow on the ground. The warm rain melts the snow quickly, saturating the air with moisture and leading to fog and low-hanging clouds. Night photography enthusiasts know that this is an opportunity not to be missed for capturing special effects.

In the photo above, you can see low-hanging clouds above the Château Frontenac in Old Quebec. Fortunately, the central tower remains clearly visible. This is the perfect moment to capture the light reflecting off the clouds and onto the street.

Photographic Composition

Train in foggy weather in Quebec City during Spring 2026.
Train in foggy weather in Quebec City during Spring 2026.

Tonight, the wind is blowing less strongly near Gilmour Hill than in the Port of Québec. A persistent fog covers this section of Champlain Boulevard.

For the composition, I use the stationary railcar as the focal point between the lit road on the left and the headland on the right. It serves as a link for an imaginary diagonal line that cuts the image in half, running from the lower left corner to the upper right corner of the frame.

The Boulevard Champlain in Quebec City in fog, April 2026
The Boulevard Champlain in Quebec City in fog, April 2026

The fog softens and unifies the elements of the scene above. The photographic composition takes into account the path that guides the eye toward the center of the photo. There, a strategically placed fir tree prevents the gaze from wandering off toward the horizon. On either side of the image are two contrasting elements, differing in height, color, and state (nature vs. industry).

Click the link for more photos of Quebec City on my blog.

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Photos of Quebec

Hyperrealism at the Musée national des beaux-arts du Québec.

Femme assise, an hyperrealist sculpture by Sam Jinks at the MNBAQ in 2026.
Femme assise, an hyperrealist sculpture by Sam Jinks at the MNBAQ in 2026.

The exhibition “Hyperrealism: This Is Not a Body,” on view in Quebec City at the Musée national des beaux-arts du Québec (MNBAQ), runs through November 15, 2026. It is sure to become a major tourist attraction for the upcoming summer in Quebec City.

Some forty sculptures are on display for the public to view, including works by well-known artists such as Ron Mueck and Maurizio Cattelan.

An artist draws one of Marc Sijan's scuptures at thev MNBAQ.
An artist draws one of Marc Sijan’s scuptures at thev MNBAQ.

Above, a man who is clearly very talented took the time to pull out his sketchbook and draw a sketch of the sculpture “Mise au coin” by Marc Sijan.

Femme et enfant, a creation by Sam Jinks at the MNBAQ in 2026.
Femme et enfant, a creation by Sam Jinks at the MNBAQ in 2026.

Visitors experience a whole range of emotions. There’s something for everyone, from the simplest to the strangest, as in the photo below, where a young person (“The Comforter,” by Patricia Piccinini) is holding something—it’s hard to say exactly what—in her arms.

A work by Patricia Picinini that has everyone talking at the MNBAQ.
A work by Patricia Picinini that has everyone talking at the MNBAQ.

Click the link for more photos of Quebec City on my blog.

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Photos of Quebec Ship photography

A day of photography in extreme weather in Quebec City

Federal Trident sailing through the ice in front of Quebec City 2026
Federal Trident sailing through the ice in front of Quebec City 2026

Days with temperatures of -25 °C and below are becoming increasingly rare in Quebec City. With the wind chill factor, the temperature today feels like -36 °C. This is a golden opportunity to try to capture the sea smoke on the St. Lawrence River.

Photography technique

Sea mist between Île d'Orléans and Quebec City, winter 2026
Sea mist between Île d’Orléans and Quebec City, winter 2026

Night photography in these weather conditions remains difficult. The low light requires a tripod, which itself vibrates in the gusty wind. This means increasing the ISO and decreasing the depth of field to achieve a faster shutter speed, which slightly reduces image quality. In addition, using a 300 mm telephoto lens increases the risk of blurry photos. Photography is all about compromise!

Canadian Coastguard icebreaker Des Groseillers at work near Quebec City winter 2026
Canadian Coastguard icebreaker Des Groseillers at work near Quebec City winter 2026

Above is a photo of the Canadian Coast Guard icebreaker Des Groseillers at work. It is not surprising to see this type of vessel in the area, as the Seaway must remain ice-free in its centre to allow ships to navigate year-round. And this year, there is ice!

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Photos of Quebec

Quebec during the cold spell of January 2026.

Snow blower at work on Île d'Orléans in the winter of 2026
Snow blower at work on Île d’Orléans in the winter of 2026

On Île d’Orléans, snow blowers don’t stop clearing snow when a vehicle approaches from the opposite direction. They blow the snow across the road with enough force that you can quickly pass under the spray without getting too much debris on your car.

House on Île d'Orléans with Mont St. Anne in the background
House on Île d’Orléans with Mont St. Anne in the background

The sun hits the trees sideways in the late afternoon on Île d’Orléans. From the Sainte-Famille parish, you can capture the island’s houses with an interesting backdrop: the ski slopes of Mont St-Anne.

Protest in Quebec City against Iran's mullahs
Protest in Quebec City against Iran’s mullahs

Even in freezing temperatures, citizens of Iranian origin are demonstrating in Old Quebec against the dictatorial regime of the mullahs in Iran. All this at a time when an American fleet is positioning itself for a military intervention in Iran.

Click on the link for more photos of Quebec on my blog.

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Photos of Canada Photos of Quebec

The Canadian Coast Guard breaking the ice in front of Quebec City.

Canadian Coast Guard Amundsen icebreaker on the St.Lawrence river near Quebec City 2026
Canadian Coast Guard Amundsen icebreaker on the St.Lawrence river near Quebec City 2026

The freezing weather of winter 2025-2026 in Quebec requires frequent interventions by the Canadian Coast Guard to open passages on the St. Lawrence River. In the photo above, the icebreaker Amundsen, clears the way in front of Quebec City.

This ship occasionally works in the Canadian Arctic on research projects. It also ensures a Canadian presence in Canada’s northernmost territories.

Note the helicopter parked at the rear of the ship. Other larger icebreakers are under construction at various shipyards across the country, including the one in Lévis. Some of them are intended to strengthen Canadian territorial sovereignty in the Arctic.

Ferries at work in the ice in front of Quebec City winter 2026
Ferries at work in the ice in front of Quebec City winter 2026

Ferries make their way through the ice in January 2026. They ensure the crossing for pedestrians and vehicles between Quebec City and Lévis.

Ship moving through the ice on a winter night in front of Quebec City
Ship moving through the ice on a winter night in front of Quebec City

For this nighttime photograph, I used a Canon EF 85mm f/1.2L II USM lens. It requires very little light and allows the photographer to take a picture of the Ocean tugboat and the merchant navy ship as they pass in front of Quebec City. I took the photo from the Dufferin Terrace and cropped it to enlarge the image.

Click on the link for more photos of Quebec and Canada on my blog.

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Photos of Quebec

HDR Photography of the Château Frontenac at Christmas

HDR picture of the Château Frontenac at Christmas 2025 from Côte de la Montagne in Quebec City.
HDR picture of the Château Frontenac at Christmas 2025 from Côte de la Montagne in Quebec City.

During the holiday season, the Château Frontenac is decked out in red and green. For an interesting effect, try taking a picture of the castle’s main tower from Côte de la Montagne. To do this, you have to point the camera upward, but all the lines that are normally vertical become slanted.

Photographic Technique

To correct this effect and restore the architectural lines to near verticality, some computer work is necessary. In a few minutes, after cropping and changing the photographic plane, the photo regains the natural appearance that the eye observes when climbing Côte de la Montagne.

HDR photo of the Château Frontenac and surroundings in winter in Quebec City.
HDR photo of the Château Frontenac and surroundings in winter in Quebec City.

The photo above shows another beautiful view of the Château Frontenac. In the middle of the tourist season, passersby in Old Quebec are plentiful in front of the camera lens. Long exposure times mean that several “ghosts” will appear to be moving around when taking nighttime photographs.

How can you avoid these “ghosts” as much as possible? Timing is important. Once the blue hour has passed, complete darkness provides uniform lighting. This allows you to choose a moment when no one is passing by the camera when taking each shot to achieve the HDR effect. Five shots with different apertures will give you the desired HDR result. I use a tripod and a Canon EF 11-24mm f/4L USM wide-angle lens mounted on a Canon 5DSR full-frame camera.

There is only one person very close to the camera lens during the entire session. I remove her from the HDR photo. Since she was working with a tripod, she moved very little during my five shots, which allowed the correction tool in the digital processing software to teleport her to a parallel universe.

Click on the link for more photos of Quebec City on my blog.

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Photos of Quebec

Two photos of Old Quebec between Christmas and New Year’s Day 2025.

Château Frontenac during Christmas time in Quebec City
Château Frontenac during Christmas time in Quebec City

The photo above shows a section of the German Christmas market in Quebec City in front of the Château Frontenac. As usual, there was a large crowd that day in Old Quebec but I waited for the pedestrians to disperse a little before taking the picture. The blue hour is approaching…

Below, the huge Christmas tree installed at Place Royale occupies the foreground of this photo of Notre-Dame-des-Victoires Church in Old Quebec. This year, anonymous donors have made it possible for the interior of the church to be festively illuminated for the 2025 holiday season.

The Notre-Dame-des-Victoires church in Old Quebec during Christmas time in 2025.
The Notre-Dame-des-Victoires church in Old Quebec during Christmas time in 2025.

Click on the link for more photos of Quebec City on my blog.

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Photos of Quebec

Christmas decorations and atmosphere in Old Quebec.

Christmas time near rue Saint Paul in Old Quebec
Christmas time near rue Saint Paul in Old Quebec

While visiting Old Quebec, I took the opportunity to practice my night photography. The photo above shows some Christmas decorations at the intersection of Saint-Paul Street and Saint-Pierre Street. This is HDR photography, as I stacked five photos of 50.6 megapixels each.

Christmas decorations on rue Saint-Pierre in Old Quebec
Christmas decorations on rue Saint-Pierre in Old Quebec

For the photo above, I am a little cramped in the old Rue Saint-Pierre. It was only with the help of a Canon EF 11-24 mm F/4L USM super wide-angle lens mounted on a tripod that I was able to take this shot. There is only one shot, because the HDR effect would not produce anything interesting, accumulating the lights on the illuminated sign to such an extent that everything would become diffuse.

The format is not standard, but that only matters to photographers who are unable to break free from the theoretical rules of photography.

Click on the link for more photos of Quebec on my blog.

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Photos of Canada Photos of Quebec

Winter in Quebec City and the approach of Christmas.

On a beautiful day in December 2025, I spent a few hours in Old Quebec and its surroundings to take some pictures on the eve of the holidays.

Two pedestrians in Old Quebec during winter 2025.
Two pedestrians in Old Quebec during winter 2025.

At this time of year, the German market in Quebec City attracts residents from neighboring towns and tourists alike. Today, it’s -10°C and very windy, but people are still out and about.

Since photography requires the use of a tripod and often involves standing still, the priority is to dress as warmly as possible.

The photo below, showing part of a kiosk at the German market in Quebec City, was taken with a Canon EF 300mm f/2.8L IS II USM fixed lens. Why use a 300mm lens in an area where nothing really needs to be zoomed in on?

A stand in the Quebec German market in Old Quebec 2025
A stand in the Quebec German market in Old Quebec 2025

I challenged myself to work only with a 300mm telephoto lens for part of the evening, in order to isolate scenes that my eye would not automatically see. This method sometimes leads to beautiful visual discoveries, such as the close-up of the kiosk above.

The Christmas German market of Quebec City and the Glühwein Bar 2025
The Christmas German market of Quebec City and the Glühwein Bar 2025

In contrast to the previous photo, the above result cannot be achieved without the help of a wide-angle lens. A cell phone solved the problem of low light and captured this winter scene from the German market. It even allowed the “Glühwein Bar” to be included in the shot.

This year, the Alsace pavilion at the German market is still offering hot food and drinks, but like many businesses, it is ignoring official inflation and significantly exceeding it. Be sure to read the menu and associated costs carefully before ordering, or you may be in for a big surprise.

The Grande-Allée and some Christmas decorations in Quebec City 2025.
The Grande-Allée and some Christmas decorations in Quebec City 2025.

A final nighttime photograph shows a small section of Grande-Allée with some Christmas decorations, with the Le Concorde hotel highlighted in blue in the background. This part of Quebec City has received a lot of attention from retailers.

I will explore the city again in a few days to bring back more memories of this Christmas atmosphere before it’s too late.

Click on the link for more photos of Quebec on my blog.

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Photos of Quebec

A beautiful trip between Matane, Le Bic, and Berthier-sur-Mer.

September moon in Matane, Québec 2025
September moon in Matane, Québec 2025

Leaving Tadoussac, the road continues along the Côte-Nord (North Shore) and we pass through Forestville to reach Baie-Comeau and take the ferry to Matane, on the south shore of the St. Lawrence River.

We arrive in Matane at dusk, just in time to set up the camera equipment on the beach. There’s no way I can take the photo above from the ferry, because a long exposure requires absolute stillness. I want to capture this beautiful September moon rising above the houses.

I miss a few shots by relying on autofocus. I quickly change my photography technique. Liveview (Live View) mode and manual focus will improve the sharpness.

Fishing boat at dusk in Matane, Quebec 2025
Fishing boat at dusk in Matane, Quebec 2025

The next day, a boat leaves Matane just before nightfall for a fishing expedition off the St. Lawrence River. The relative calm of the waters offers interesting reflections. The low light and distance of the boat require the use of a high-quality lens, in this case the Canon EF 300mm f/2.8L IS II USM.

On the way back from Matane to Quebec City, a stop at Bic National Park allows us to take a few photos, including this fishing boat returning to port. The sailors’ departure time varies constantly depending on the river tides.

Fishing boat in the Parc national du Bic, Québec 2025
Fishing boat in the Parc national du Bic, Québec 2025

Another location well known for its beauty is the municipality of Sainte-Luce-sur-Mer. Below, the colorful houses along the beach attract the attention of tourists and contribute to the area’s reputation. I preferred to capture an overall effect by including vegetation in the foreground. The few small low cumulus clouds also add to the dynamic of the scene.

The village of Sainte-Luce-sur-Mer and its colorful houses.
The village of Sainte-Luce-sur-Mer and its colorful houses.

One last photo shows the sunset in Berthier-sur-Mer. This area, along with the Kamouraska and Notre-Dame-du-Portage regions, regularly offers exceptional panoramas when the sun sets. So much so that some photos can look like they’ve been retouched.

I saw reds and purples so pronounced that it became obvious that the photographer would have been accused of oversaturating his shots.

Sunset at Berthier-sur-Mer en 2024.
Sunset at Berthier-sur-Mer en 2024.

After an excellent meal at the beach restaurant in Berthier-sur-Mer, we finally reach our final destination, the beautiful city of Quebec City.

Click on the link for more photos of Quebec on my blog.