SimonMccurdy.com - Blog

Ongoing work.

Simon M. — Sat, 14 May 2011 14:21:45 +0000

website work is ongoing right now. should be done in a couple of days, please check back then.

Website Changes

Simon M. — Tue, 28 Dec 2010 18:50:58 +0000

Here is one more image from my trip to the Elbow River on December 27, 2010.

Shoreline ice and flowing water - Elbow River, Kananaskis Country.

This will be the last image I post for a while as I work on a fairly major overhaul to this website. Cheers,

Simon

Morning Jaunt to the Elbow River

Simon M. — Tue, 28 Dec 2010 03:49:07 +0000

Here are some images from a morning jaunt to the Elbow River I did on December 27, 2010. I got to the river before dawn and had a chance to shoot the changing light as the sun came up; not a ton of images – but a nice escape from the hustle and bustle of Christmas.

Sunrise from beside the Elbow River.

Shoreline ice formation #1.

Shoreline ice formation #2.

Midstream ice formation.

It wasn’t nearly as cold as the images make it look and as a bonus the short days mean you don’t need to wake up as early to catch sunrise. Happy holidays!

Simon

Powder Day #1

Simon M. — Sat, 11 Dec 2010 22:14:21 +0000

Due to some unused vacation days I was able to get down to Castle Mountain this past Friday (December 10, 2010). The report was saying close to a foot of fresh snow in the previous storm cycle. I will let the pictures describe the day, but suffice to say that the report may have been a tad conservative (especially in the trees).

We did much grooming while we were at Castle Mountain. Perhaps they should pay us?

Janey enjoying the soft snow between the trees.

Brendan contemplating when to go next (hint: there is no wrong answer)

Simon about to cover the camera in snow...

Janey still finding soft snow (and lots of it) later on in the day.

Brendan finding nirvana in the trees.

Yep, its still good...

And I thought this powder skiing thing was supposed to be easy...

Castle mountain was fantastic and because it was a week day there was next to no one there. See you on the hill.

Simon

The weather outside is frightful…

Simon M. — Sat, 20 Nov 2010 17:09:58 +0000

I went out for an early morning trip by ghost resevoir on the bow river. Now I like to think I’m pretty tought when it comes to the cold; however, I lasted exactly two images (maybe a half hour total) before I was forced to go back to the car. At least I think both image are pretty good.

Looking down at the bow river as the sun was cresting the horizon.

Shoreline and the sun reflecting off the river.

With a significant amount of snow falling relativelly quickly winter is in full swing and provided a nice reminder that by hands don’t last long (need better gloves for working a camera) when it is between -25°C and -30°C. Regardless the crisp air is nice and ski season has already begun so I should have some images from the hills shortly. Cheers,

Simon

Images that were ‘lost’

Simon M. — Sun, 14 Nov 2010 21:22:42 +0000

Three quick images that I didn’t think were so hot when I first took them. Looking back some time later and putting some effort into processing them I’d say I’m very happy I didn’t delete them.

Fireweed in the Amiskwi Valley.

Freshly baked baguette. Monochrome.

Playing cards in Amiskwi Lodge. Monochrome.

Now off to see if there are any more treasures buried in my archives that I’ve yet to process, if I find more I’ll be sure to post them at a later date. Cheers,

Simon

Sunrise at Wedge Pond

Simon M. — Sun, 31 Oct 2010 21:37:41 +0000

I got out to wedge pond this Halloween morning, sunrise certainly didn’t disappoint.

Sunrise at Wedge Pond #1

Light right before sunrise.

Sunrise at Wedge Pond #2

Abstraction of Wedge Pond shoreline. Monochrome.

The light show this morning was very short, but oh so spectacular. If only every morning was like this, but then maybe when it does light up I wouldn’t get as excited. Cheers,

Simon

Short jaunt in Southern Ontario

Simon M. — Wed, 20 Oct 2010 02:35:17 +0000

I was out in Ontario (Ottawa/Kingston area) for work this past weekend. Luckily there was still some colour and I had time to stop and grab some images. Enjoy.

Colourful trees along the river.

Near-far shore of a small lake.

Green down below, gold up high.

Incandescent foliage.

While it may not have been peek colour season when I was there, the corridor between Ottawa and Kingston was gorgeous. It’s definitely worth a trip out east during the fall as the colours are something we just don’t get out west. Cheers,

Simon

Morning at Forget-me-not Pond

Simon M. — Mon, 11 Oct 2010 16:28:43 +0000

Some images from an early morning trip out to forget-me-not pond in Kananaskis country. The clouds were promising, but too thick for the sun to poke through or light up.

Clouds and reflections in Forget-me-not pond.

Clouds creeping over the foothills and reflections.

Early morning clouds and shoreline at Forget-me-not pond.

Not quite the morning light show I had hoped for; but it was fun to get out and enjoy the early morning crispness. For those curious – yes that is snow on top of the hill in the background of image 2. Winter is not far away…

Cheers, Simon

Digital Library at the University of Calgary

Simon M. — Sun, 10 Oct 2010 04:15:37 +0000

A couple of images of the new (but still not complete) building at the University of Calgary.

Cobblestone roadway up to the new building.

Entrance, garden, and walkway support.

Future main floor study rooms.

The building is certainly neat and should be very cool and functional once completed. Cheers,

Simon