The perfect oatmeal cookie…

/ Sherry Galey / 15 Comments


cookies3

I don’t know about you, but when the cool weather rolls in, I yearn for homemade treats.

And when I’m wishing I was back in New York, taking pictures, I distract myself by baking.

Cookies.

cookiesGIlr

But not just any cookies. Oatmeal cookies.

They can’t be too soft or too doughy or too hard. They must be thin and light and buttery and crispy and chewy. A tall order for sure.

And I tried many a recipe until I found the perfect one. And if you’ve ever had the same problem, I will share it with you.

You can whip up a batch in no time at all — and even feel somewhat smug that they contain whole grains and aren’t as unhealthy as many other cookies. I also add a bit of ground flaxseed to the mix, which makes the cookies even more wholesome.

Get the recipe here.

And if you’re ever in need of distraction, give them a try.

On the move in New York City…

/ Sherry Galey / 9 Comments
 When I’m in New York, I just want to walk down the street and feel this thing, like I’m in a movie.
Ryan Adams
peopleon the move

Under Bethesda Terrace

One of the things I love most about New York is the energy and movement. Walking, cycling (if you’re insane), driving (if you’re insane), riding buses, subways, taxis and carriages — even sailing — people around you are always going somewhere. And if you only have a few days, you want to be going somewhere — everywhere — too!

For sale on Getty Images
In Brooklyn by the East River
By the Bethesda Fountain

Laid out on a grid system, New York is one of the easiest large cities in the world to get around in. We generally walk, and walk and then walk some more. But I’ve also figured out how to get to places like Brooklyn and the Cloisters way north near Harlem by subway and bus without too much trouble.

New York
In the New York Public Library

And here’s what happens when you stop for a moment to figure out where you are and where you’re going next — a New Yorker stops to ask if they can help you find something.

It happened twice this trip and it’s happened every single time I’ve travelled to New York previously —  all 11 or 12 trips!

I agree with Bill Murray:

My favorite thing about New York is the people, because I think they’re misunderstood. I don’t think people realize how kind New York people are.

This time a kind woman approached us in Central Park as we were finishing up our photography for the day. And a sweet male cyclist came up to us as we were stopped in Times Square looking at the Jumbotron.

Yes, New Yorkers are always moving, but some do take time to stop to help travellers.

New York City bus
In Grand Central Terminal

 

Central Park in Black and White and in Colour

/ Sherry Galey / 32 Comments

central park boaters copy

Last fall, I did a 7-part series in this blog featuring images of New York. It’s such a visually rich city and I had such a good time shooting it that I was thrilled to have the chance to make another trip this fall.

Last year I signed up for a photo safari called “Iconic New York.” It was a great fun to discover key spots in Midtown Manhattan with fellow photographers and get tips to improve my photo skills. You can read more about it here.

Me and my sister on the Bow Bridge. Photo by Rob, Photo Safari leader.

As I was going to be travelling with my sister Elena this time, who enjoys photography as much as I do, I suggested we sign up for another safari — this time in Central Park, a place we both love.

Ever since my very first trip to New York back in the early 80s, I’ve been an enthusiastic fan of Central Park. I appreciate its enormity, its diversity, its intelligent and beautiful design and the way it is open and accessible to everyone.

Public green spaces are vital to liveable city life — and Central is one of the most exceptional examples in the world of how that works. New Yorkers love it — and so do visitors from all over the world.

Our group met at the Bethesda Fountain and Terrace and concentrated our first shots around that area. Leader Rob, a professional photographer, offered useful pointers and suggestions before and after we made our images. I particularly enjoyed discussing composition with him. He gave us demos and also gave us plenty of time to wander on our own.

There were four of us in the group, which turned out to be very congenial — two Canadians (my sister and I) and a man from Australia and a woman from New Zealand.

We then gathered under the arches and practised shooting in low light and high dynamic range situations.

After that we moseyed on to the Bow Bridge, which proved to be a great vantage point for shooting the boaters on the Lake and the Loeb Boathouse. The day had been forecast to be rainy, but we did not get one drop. It turned out to be gorgeous with lovely light.

Before we parted 2 1/2 hours later, we also spent some time in the famous tree-lined Mall.

Elena and I spent the rest of the day continuing to explore areas of the park we hadn’t been before (such as the Ramble) as well as returning to spend more time around the Bethesda Fountain.

This is where I made some of my favorite images — and happened to look up just at the right time to catch a young couple ready to kiss. It was a “decisive moment” as Cartier-Bresson would say.

The whole area was packed with people taking pictures and enjoying themselves and the excellent free entertainment. It was obviously a magnet for romantic wedding pictures as everywhere we went we saw brides and grooms posing together. To get my images with fewer people in them, I had to be patient and wait for just the right time.

The colours in stone and tile work under the Terrace are beautifully soft and subtle, which makes for lovely colour pictures, but the stone arches and interesting architecture and light also suits black and white photography perfectly.

So I did both.

It was a still a bit early in the season for the really vibrant fall foliage (not to self: go a bit later in the fall next time), but there was enough of a change to make the background scenery pop a bit.

I found that alternating between my wide angle zoom (24 to 85 mm) and my telephoto zoom (70 to 200 mm) gave me a good variety of focal lengths to capture the images I was drawn to.

These are only a small group of my images of Central Park, as you can imagine. I just may have to do another post on this very special place!

smooch

I surprised myself by being fast enough to capture this “decisive moment”.

arches band

The Terrace arches in black and white.

bride

With their beautiful light, couples flock to the Bethesda Arches for wedding pictures.

bubbles

These giant bubbles must have looked magical to the little ones. Hey, they looked magical to me!

boathouseLR

The Loeb Boathouse reflected in the waters of the still Lake.

elena

My sister focusses her camera on some of the beautiful details of the Arches.

sherry and rob

Elena took this one of me and Rob discussing a shot.

Inside each of us…

/ Sherry Galey / 13 Comments

astor hall

Maybe the desire to make something beautiful is the piece of God that is inside each of us.

Mary Oliver

I just returned from a rejuvenating trip to New York City. I love that city with an inexplicable passion, and have ever since I first travelled there in the early 80’s. And it’s a feeling that has come back each of the 12 or 13 times since then.

I went this time, for many reasons, but partly to make images. In every location we visited, others were taking pictures too. Now, many of these pics were no doubt travel snapshots and the ubiquitous selfies that are taken to prove to friends you went somewhere…

But I think the urge to photograph New York goes deeper than that. Everywhere you look in New York, there is so much visual richness and energy. I am convinced that visitors reach for their cameras and phones in an effort (not always totally conscious) to try to capture and take home some of the beauty and awe they experience.

At least I know I do.

This was taken in the magnificent Astor Hall of the New York Public Library.

It matters that you care…

/ Sherry Galey / 13 Comments

Hokusai Says

…He says it doesn’t matter if you draw,
or write books. It doesn’t matter
if you saw wood, or catch fish.
It doesn’t matter if you sit at home
and stare at the ants on your veranda
or the shadows of the trees
and grasses in your garden.
It matters that you care.
It matters that you feel.
It matters that you notice.
It matters that life lives through you.
Contentment is life living through you.
Joy is life living through you.
Satisfaction and strength
is life living through you.
He says don’t be afraid.
Don’t be afraid.
Love, feel, let life take you by the hand.
Let life live through you.
 Roger Keyes

Prince Edward County in Black and White

/ Sherry Galey / 13 Comments

Today’s post features some recent explorations in black and white photography.

I recently went on a delightful sojourn with my family in Prince Edward County, Ontario — a wonderful rural region around Picton which has become very popular for its amazing food and wine and hospitality.

Hundreds of images later, I have only managed to process a few. I’ve joined a wonderful Facebook group that focuses on black and white photography, and this has encouraged me to work on one of my very favorite forms of photography.

So here is a just small taste for now…

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Rising out of the water…

/ Sherry Galey / 13 Comments

cover

Not too far away from us is a gem of an Ontario Provincial Park called Bon Echo.

We headed that way recently to visit some friends who have a cottage on Upper Mazinaw Lake, right next to the park.

The southeastern shore of the lake features the massive 100 m (330 ft) high Mazinaw Rock, an escarpment rising out of the water, adorned with some 260 Aboriginal pictographs, the largest collection in Canada.

I had heard of these and was quite excited to have the chance to see them for myself.

paddling

pictograph

bob and rodger

The cottage can be reached only by boat so we arranged a time to meet and be picked up at the dock.

Our host was kind enough to take us for an up-close tour of the Rock by boat, which is the only way you can really see the pictographs well.

The rock art paintings are spread out over 65 rock faces along a 2.5 metre stretch of the cliff face and the pictographs are extremely complex and abstract.

The Mazinaw pictographs were designated a national historic site of Canada in 1982 and have been researched since 1895.  This is the largest rock art site on the southern Canadian Shield and the only major pictograph site in southern Ontario. Pictographs have also been found in northern Ontario.

At 145 metres deep (476 feet) this lake is the second deepest in the province and the Rock goes down 100 metres into the lake.

The whole area is wonderful for canoeing, kayaking, camping, hiking, climbing and all manner of outdoor activities. The park even has yurts for people who want a slightly more comfy camping experience.

It seems inexplicable that there are trees growing on the side of the Rock, but some of them are said to be 1,000 years old.

Bon Echo is French for “good echo.”  The rock is responsible for the large echo that is unmistakable during thunderstorms and fireworks displays.

 

tree on cliff

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

August break, Day 29

/ Sherry Galey / 11 Comments

hydrangea in bottle

Today’s prompt  for the August Break is “nature,” and I today I offer a little piece of it that I brought indoors — a hydrangea, one of my favorite flowers.

I feel so fortunate that blogging and photography have introduced me to so many fascinating and talented people across Canada and the United States — and even further afield.

One woman I very much admire is Laurie MacBride — a passionate environmentalist and wonderful photographer — who lives on the other side of the country from me on one of the Gulf Islands near Vancouver, British Columbia. (I have to admit I am a bit envious that she lives on an island, since I’m an island girl at heart.)

Laurie spent much of her career heading up the Georgia Strait Alliance, which is a conservation group working to protect the Strait and its adjacent waters.

These days she communicates her love and concern for nature largely through her photography. The images she shares of B.C.’s amazing and intricate coastline — from her boat and her kayak — are incredibly compelling. So compelling in fact that I fell in love with one of her mounted prints, and it now has a place of honour in my dining room.

Laurie has exhibited her work over the last few years — and she made a slide show video of one of those exhibits called Reflections on the Coast. It is well worth watching not only to enjoy her gorgeous land and seascapes  but to also hear her poetically describe the environment she is so intimate with. Watching the show you can see that Laurie is as adept at capturing large natural vistas as the small, telling details.

Laurie has a beautiful portfolio, as well as a Flickr photostream and a great photoblog. I have a feeling Laurie is out with her camera in her boat right now creating new images of more natural wonders. Can’t wait to see them!