Tag: photographic composition

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Photography Photos of Quebec

Line study in photography.

Old Quebec Stairs May 2023
Old Quebec Stairs May 2023

Photographers make little use of the intense midday light when it comes to achieving an interesting effect. However, as in this HDR photo of the stairs of an Old Quebec street above, bright light can be used to create shadow effects with horizontal, vertical and oblique lines.

Quebec City HDR Spring 2023
Quebec City HDR Spring 2023

Above, another staircase with lines running in all directions. But it plays only a partial role in this HDR photo, the rest being taken up by the scene in the distance. I was looking for a double effect of chiaroscuro and atmosphere. The foreground, dark and cold, contrasts with a brighter background with an uncertain sky. On the right-hand side of the photo, the tension eases and the blue sky and sun appear.

Street photography at the "station de la Plage" 2023
Street photography at the “station de la Plage” 2023

This image is what is known as “street photography“. Chance has placed this person in the right place with the right dress and the right umbrella. She is wearing a horizontally lined dress and holding an obliquely lined umbrella in front of the vertically lined fence of the “station de la Plage” in Quebec City. The gray sky avoids distractions and focuses attention on the main subject.

For this last photo, I didn’t have my full-frame camera, but a cell phone. The file was of inferior quality, so I had to improve the focus using photographic software with artificial intelligence capability.

Click for more photos of Quebec City and Île d’Orléans in Summer on my blog.

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Photos of Quebec

A Storm on Île d’Orléans.

Sea kayaks at Saint-Laurent-de-l'Île d'Orléans 2023
Sea kayaks at Saint-Laurent-de-l’Île d’Orléans 2023

Unstable weather presents two advantages for a photographer on the Île d’Orléans. Firstly, the fear of rain means that visitor numbers are greatly reduced. In fact, most of the people who come to the island are interested in the outdoor activities on offer, such as fruit picking, cycling or sea kayaking. So, we’ve got the road all to ourselves to stop whenever we feel like it!

Île d'Orléans before the storm, July 2023.
Île d’Orléans before the storm, July 2023.

Secondly, unstable weather means the possibility of thunderstorms, with all their interesting cloud formations. It is therefore essential to check the radar and weather forecasts before setting off for the island.

The two photos above were taken with a Canon 5DSr full-frame camera equipped with a Canon EF 11-24mm f/4L USM ultra wide zoom lens.

Click on the link for more Summer photos of Quebec City and Île d’Orléans on my blog.

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Photos of Canada Photos of Quebec

Old Quebec in Summer.

Summer 2023 in Old Quebec.
Summer 2023 in Old Quebec.

Some companies organize themed guided tours of Old Quebec at dusk in summer. The guides dress up in costume and regularly follow the same routes. With a little patience, a lantern-wielding person can be included in a photo, as well as the old stone houses and the Château Frontenac. This adds another interesting detail to the scene.

The picture above presented several challenges, some of which have been solved. Ideally, the HDR method would have provided a better control of luminosity, but the hostess holding the lantern would have disappeared in the process carried out by the Photomatix software. This person played an important role in the scene, so I decided to take just one shot, but in RAW format to optimize the sky light correction in post-processing.

I wanted to use the smallest aperture possible to get a precise focus from the foreground to the Château Frontenac. But due to the lack of adequate light and the movement of people towards the camera, I had to maintain a sufficient shutter speed, even at ISO 6400. Unfortunately, the aperture suffered a little.

So, this is a photo full of compromises, where you do the best you can with the situation and the photographic equipment available.

Click on the link for more Summer photos of Quebec City and Île d’Orléans on my blog.

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Photography Photos of Quebec

A Canon lens avoids the garbage.

The Basilique-Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Québec , April 28th 2023.
The Basilique-Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Québec , April 28th 2023.

A sixteen year old Canon 14mm f/2.8 L lens that was narrowly saved from the garbage allowed me to take this wide angle photo of the Notre-Dame de Québec Basilica-Cathedral in Old Quebec.

The visit being improvised, I did not have a tripod. So, I put the full frame camera Canon 5DSr directly on the ground. However, the lens was pointing straight ahead, preventing me from capturing the architecture and colors of the vault. I put my wallet and the lens cap on the floor to provide support for the camera to point towards the ceiling. Considering the circumstances, the result could have been worse.

Two months earlier, this 2007 Canon 14mm lens broke and could not focus automatically or manually anymore. I had sent it to Canon in Toronto. The company had written back that the lens was beyond repair and that I would unfortunately have to get a new one, at an estimated cost of $2700.

With nothing left to lose, I took the chance to have it repaired in Quebec City in a small workshop that repairs just about everything. The technician only needed a few hours of work on the lens and I received a bill for $200 plus taxes.

It was explained to me that the big camera companies do not repair equipment that is fifteen years old or more: they declare it “irreparable” when a few hours are all it takes for an experienced and competent technician to do the job.

The breakdown came just in time as the technician retired within a few weeks…

Click on the link for more pictures of Quebec City and Île d’Orléans in the Spring on my blog.

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Photos of Quebec

Spring in Quebec City

Joe Fafard's sculpture photographed during Spring in Quebec City.
Joe Fafard’s sculpture photographed during Spring in Quebec City.

Nature comes back to life with the arrival of Spring. This is a good season for black and white photography. In the case of the photo above, the melting white snow uncovers a dark colored ground. The almost black main subject also stands out against a fairly light horizon, so this can only help the photographic composition.

I imagined the effect of the photo when transformed into black and white, with this continuous alternation of light and dark from the foreground to the horizon.

The horse, now free of snow, is galloping past the trees. The multiple trunks seem intertwined with the horse and give the illusion of a ghostly apparition. To avoid too much confusion, however, I had to make sure that the horse’s head and tail were clearly visible. A vertical shot was better because of all the branches that fill the first third of the picture and seem to be part of the horse.

The all-metal animal is part of a set of eight horses created by Joe Fafard, a renowned Saskatchewan artist and Officer of the Order of Canada. The City of Calgary and the Calgary Stampede donated the sculpture to Quebec City and it is located along Champlain Boulevard near the Cap Blanc stairs, just before entering Old Quebec.

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

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Photography Photos of Quebec

Old Quebec in winter.

Old Quebec, winter 2023.
Old Quebec, winter 2023.

The Old Quebec in winter is always exciting to photograph. The continually changing weather presents new opportunities that must be seized. Moreover, for the same weather system, each hour that passes also offers a different luminosity. The photographer is spoilt for choice.

For the picture above, taken with a Canon 5DSr, I positioned myself in a place that is normally off-limits during winter. That’s why you can only see my footprints in the snow. But hey! The risk was minimal and the angle of view perfect to capture the Château Frontenac.

The street lamp emits a light that needs to be corrected in the camera. Instead of “AWB”, select “tungsten”. This adjustment allows you to reflect exactly what you see, rather than ending up with tones that are too contrasty. HDR photography allows for some correction of large contrasts in brightness.

The lights on the roof of the Chateau Frontenac illuminate the snow falling around the building. This snow makes for interesting sky tones, even though the blue hour has long since passed.

In terms of the photographic composition, the low wall and fence serve as the entry point into the photo. The lamp post is located at a point respecting the rule of thirds. The building on the right blocks the view and invites the eye to continue its exploration to the left of the photo, which leads the viewer to the Chateau Frontenac.

The photo below, taken a few minutes later, uses the stairs as an entry point into the photo to quickly lead the eye to the Château Frontenac. In this case, a vertical format lends itself better to the scene.

The Château Frontenac, winter 2023.
The Château Frontenac, winter 2023.

The snow on the railings and steps adds an alternating black and white effect. Otherwise, everything would be quite dark and we would lose a little interest. A nearby street lamp provides enough ambient light to illuminate the scene; however, I was careful not to include the light source directly in the photo, as it distracts the viewer from the main subject.

In winter as well as in summer, I use a tripod to reduce camera shake and improve resolution in low light conditions.

Click on the link for more pictures of Quebec City in Winter on my blog.

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Environment Photos of Quebec

Heat wave in Quebec City in December 2022.

Global warming affects everyone
Global warming affects everyone

End of December 2022. It’s hot in Quebec City. The city was first swept by a storm that left hundreds of thousands of Quebecers without power, some for more than a week. A heat wave then swept through the province of Quebec for several days.

One positive aspect of this warm air is that it melted the thick layer of ice and snow that had accumulated on the roofs of homes during the December 23 storm, resetting the clock for the remaining portion of the winter to come.

But when it comes to winter sports, it’s a different story. One had to walk around town on the last day of 2022 to see the changes in just a few days.

Passing by the public skating rink maintained by the municipality on the Battlefields Park, I took this picture that sums up the situation: a warm rain falling on the snow and accelerating the melting to the point where a thick fog sets in, puddles of water several centimeters thick covering a layer of ice.

I use this water to add the reflections of the skaters in the photographic composition. Fortunately for them, the sportsmen benefit from a mechanically cooled ice rink to continue practicing their favorite activity.

Click on the link for more pictures of Quebec City in Winter on my blog.

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Photos of Canada

A vintage Cadillac in Victoria

The two pictures below show advertisements for cars that were found at the time in various magazines.

Old advertisement of a big american car
Old advertisement of a big american car
Old advertisement of a Pontiac Bonneville american car.
Old advertisement of a Pontiac Bonneville american car.

These old representations of a new car favored very bright colors to catch the reader’s eye and increase the chances of a sale. In the two photos above, red and orange are found on cars, buildings, dresses, faces, etc.

Vintage Cadillac parked in Victoria, British Columbia
Vintage Cadillac parked in Victoria, British Columbia

When I spotted this old Cadillac in 2018 in Victoria, British Columbia, the two previous photos came to mind. Again, several elements of the same red and orange colors are found in the photographic composition: the Cadillac, the motorcycle, the umbrellas, the post office box, the chairs and tables, and even part of the menu. It almost looks like an artificial set-up for an upcoming advertisement!

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

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Photos of Canada Photos of Quebec

Cruise Ships in Quebec Harbour.

Cruise ships in the Port of Quebec in the fall of 2022
Cruise ships in the Port of Quebec in the fall of 2022

Another great time for Quebec City merchants begins with the arrival of multiple cruise ships each fall. Not only do the thousands of tourists pour into Old Quebec and its Petit-Champlain neighborhood, but the ships must also be restocked in anticipation of the continuing voyage. 

In terms of photography technique, the Promenade des Gouverneurs and its staircase act as an entry point to the center of the photo above. It is of course important to preserve some autumn colors, as they are so ephemeral. A wide-angle lens helps the photographic composition, but it certainly distorted the street lamps on the left of the photo, which had to be straightened with an image processing software. Finally, the rule of thirds worked perfectly here to highlight the magnificent view from the heights of Quebec City.

The Queen Mary 2 arrives in Québec City on September 29th 2022.
The Queen Mary 2 arrives in Québec City on September 29th 2022.
The Queen Mary 2 in the Quebec City harbour in 2022.
The Queen Mary 2 in the Quebec City harbour in 2022.

Click on the link for more pictures of Quebec City in Autumn on my blog.

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Photos of Quebec

The architecture of Quebec City in photography.

Fontaine de Tourny and the Quebec National Assembly building.
Fontaine de Tourny and the Quebec National Assembly building.

The fontaine de Tourny and the parliament building in Quebec City are often photographed separately. This can give very good results. However, the visual impact can be increased by combining the two architectural styles in close proximity in the same photo.

By paying attention to the photographic composition, I sought a balance while creating a tension between the two works. In the scene above, the fountain and the Parliament building appear to be of similar height. The vertical axis of the center of the Parliament tower is about the same distance from the right side of the photo as the vertical axis of the fountain is from the left side. This is close to the rule of thirds, but not dogmatically so. Both works are deliberately framed tightly.

Other elements contribute to the interest of the scene. First of all, each architectural work has a specific color that is well marked and luckily the colors are almost complementary. Still on the subject of color, I chose to take the photo during the “blue hour”, that time of day just before dark when a very soft light illuminates the landscape for a few more minutes.

Finally, the water jets and the people in the background add a little dynamism to an essentially static subject.

Click on the link for more pictures of Quebec City in Summer on my blog.