Archive for ◊ October, 2009 ◊

31 Oct 2009 Chilly Halloween
Author: Gail |  Category: Toronto  | Leave a Comment

skyline from lakeshore

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I was hoping to get a few Halloween shots in before dark, but when I was on my way home from volunteering today I saw amazing light over Etobicoke and chased it with my camera. Unfortunately, by the time I got to Lakeshore the wind whipped the clouds over the sun and I lost my opportunity. Ah well, you win some, you lose some… I took some skyline shots with the remaining dark clouds:

skyline from Humber Bay Arch Bridge

View larger on my photo site.

There were only a handful of people walking/running/cycling along the lakeshore since it was cold and windy, but I was well-prepared with a windbreaker and my winter shooting gloves in my camera bag — packed before I went to The Brides’ Project this morning.

Humber Bay Arch Bridge

View larger on my photo site.

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When I arrived in my neighbourhood, which was CRAWLING with kids and parents dressed in their Halloween finery, it was too dark to sneak in any more photos. I could’ve used a flash, but I didn’t want to be that random kid-less adult freaking out the parents by taking photos of their kids. Maybe they’ll let me get away with it if I decorate the porch and sit out there with treats instead!

31 Oct 2009 Xena 1 Beano 0
Author: Gail |  Category: Critters + Creatures, Xena & Beano  | One Comment

Xena 1 Beano 0

In the Battle Royale over the cat bed, Xena is up by 1. You should’ve seen the paws fly earlier!

It’s kind of ridiculous, really, these two making a big deal over the cat bed when they take over my bed most of the day. In reality, their cat bed is actually my ENTIRE bed!

30 Oct 2009 The Lion Sleeps Tonight
Author: Gail |  Category: Critters + Creatures, Xena & Beano  | 5 Comments

the lion sleeps tonight

I just arrived home and grabbed the camera as Beano was yawning, and didn’t have a chance to change the settings — hence the motion blur. I think this is the first time I’ve ever caught a yawn on camera from these two!

In repose:

in repose

Otherwise known as the You Just Woke Me Up, Give Me A Moment To Figure Out Where I Am look.

Both of the cats are loving the cat bed so much they’re not content to share it anymore and fight each other to have the whole thing. I told Mona I would try and get a photo of them snuggling together the way they did at the beginning but I’m not sure how easy this will be if the fighting continues!

30 Oct 2009 Softball In South Boston
Author: Gail |  Category: USA  | Leave a Comment

company softball game

I’m up early for my second day of 6am starts (that’s it for now, thankfully), and posting on the fly — this time another photo from my trip to Massachusetts two months ago. I’ve barely posted any photos of that trip, and I took nearly 800 shots! Most of them were from this company softball game in South Boston. The batter is the CEO, I stayed at his house while he was in New York.

View larger on my photo site:
www.gailatlarge.net/2009/10/29/softball-in-south-boston/

29 Oct 2009 Wall O’ Coffee
Author: Gail |  Category: Mobile Blogging  | Leave a Comment

It’s 6am and I’m at work. Hey, at least there’s coffee.

28 Oct 2009 Thirsty Beano
Author: Gail |  Category: Critters + Creatures, Videoclips  | 2 Comments

Cats are funny, they make new discoveries all the time because they just couldn’t care less about most things at most times until one day they decide to take notice. I’ve had Xena and Beano nearly two years and they’ve only started drinking from the bathroom sink this month.

Xena will slurp water in the sink but only Beano will drink while the tap’s running. It’s funnier when there’s more water cascading on his head, but he’d already been drinking a while by the time I grabbed the camera, so I turned it down in case he stopped — it’s only a trickle here.

27 Oct 2009 Mimosa Man
Author: Gail |  Category: Working Life  | Leave a Comment

mimosa man

Actually, I’m not sure whether he’s carrying mimosas or just orange juice. In either case, he looks like a man on a mission.

I’m trying to distract myself from the fact that I just worked for more than four hours straight in Lightroom on a single project that could probably have taken me half the time if my computer weren’t buckling under the load. Nevermind, it’s done now. Well, not quite since it’s processing almost 500 photos… but it can run while I’m sleeping!

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26 Oct 2009 Yet Another Post About Wedding Dresses
Author: Gail |  Category: Volunteering/Charity  | 2 Comments

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I was volunteering at The Brides’ Project most of yesterday, and it struck me how even after eight months of helping brides find wedding dresses and looking at hundreds of them, I can’t predict which dresses will sell. Take this one, for example. I love this dress — it’s flattering, it’s lighter than the average wedding dress, and most of all it’s unusual. So how come it’s still in the shop? It’s not outrageous, but for some reason no-one’s bought it. Strange. Then again, I’m hardly a fashion plate, what do I know?

If you know of someone who doesn’t know what to do with her wedding dress, send her over to The Brides’ Project website to consider donating her dress to a good cause: supporting kids’ cancer camps. Proceeds from the dress sales are donated to Camp Quality and other cancer-related charities (Canadian Cancer Society, Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation). If you’re in the U.S., there is now an American affiliate (run by a wonderful lady, Monique) in Ann Arbor, Michigan.

The Brides’ Project has other, more traditional dresses, too. Examples after the jump:

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25 Oct 2009 Autumn In High Park
Author: Gail |  Category: The Great Outdoors  | 2 Comments

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After a day of volunteering at The Brides’ Project, I was driving home in full autumn afternoon sunshine and I knew I couldn’t just go home and continue editing while the sun was out. The days are getting shorter and colder, they slip away before you know it. Since I had my camera with me, I made a detour into High Park to see what I could capture before the sun disappeared.

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It was getting very dark, so I bumped up the ISO and used the 50mm f/1.8 wide open for the zoo shots. A couple of my favourites are the capybara and the Highland cattle.

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24 Oct 2009 Brunch + Zombies
Author: Gail |  Category: Food + Drink, Friends  | One Comment

Natalia the Zombie

No, we didn’t eat brains for brunch. But Natalia grossed out the vegetarians by roasting pork in the oven, then taking it out to display… thankfully no vegetarians lost (tossed?) their brunch.

I had to skip the (7th annual) Zombie Walk this year to finish my heap of computer work, but I didn’t want to miss the brunch beforehand. We ate first, before any fake blood and liquid latex made their ghoulish appearance, and I took photos while Jan and Natalia got their zombie makeup on with Marin’s help.

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Check out the rest of the photos in whichever way you prefer: [thumbnails] [slideshow - photos are larger] or in the Pictobrowser below. Clicking on a photo will advance you to the next one, or you can click on the play button to view it as a slideshow within Pictobrowser.

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