About Me
Franklin Wang is a professional accountant (CGA) and an avid photographer specializing in nature, landscape, travel, and candid. He is based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. To see his latest work, click here.
Photographers I Follow
Other Resources
Categories
Archives
Email Subscription
Category Archives: Ontario Landscape
Sleepless Night in Parry Sound
Perhaps it was the hotel which had a funny smell that made me feel uncomfortable from the minute I stepped in the lobby, or it was the sound of the nearby trains that didn’t seem to stop running all night, I had such a tough time falling asleep the night we stayed in Parry Sound. Despite feeling extremely tired when the day broke, I decided to head down to the harbour for some photography. It had been raining the whole night, so there was no sunrise to be taken. The sky went quickly from complete darkness to blue and then grey. As soon as I had my camera mounted on the tripod, the rain started pouring down, and it came down really hard. There was no time for me to meter the light and work the scene. I just went with my gut instinct, and below is the result of that gut instinct – a soft, dreamy photo of the 30,000 islands of Georgian Bay.
To see what I saw through the viewfinder, you must view it large in the What’s New album.
Daybreak in Port Credit, Mississauga
This is my first sunrise image in a very long time. The hectic schedule at work, and the running around with the kids’ figure skating lessons, swimming lessons, and Taekwondo lessons has made it difficult for my body to fight off the magnet of my warm bed each morning. Joining the three-week walking competition at work provided me with the extra motivation to finally roll out of the bed when the alarm rang last Sunday morning. Looking out the window, I was not sure if I would see the sun rise with heavy clouds over the city. But I decided to head out anyway, because I needed to walk and get those steps in for the competition. As luck would have it, the sunrise on this morning turned out to be one of the best that I have ever seen. Red, yellow, and orange mixed in with the blue hue of the early morning sky producing beautiful colour palettes that I just can’t describe with words.
This image is captured with my point-and-shoot Canon G12, an advanced compact camera with creative controls (i.e. manual controls) that I carry with me all the time when I am out walking. In future posts, I will share some of the pictures I have taken with this camera during this walking competition.
Images from Killbear Provincial Park
I took the family up north on the last long weekend of the summer. It rained much of the time and we rarely saw the sun even at sunset. These two images were what I could master on a night with not so spectacular light.
The second image was taken minutes before the night fell into complete darkness. Heading out in the dark on a rocky trail with two small kids was a bit of a challenge, but we made it back to the car with no bruises and twisted ankle.
I am planning to come back here later this month for the fall colours. Hopefully I will have better light to work with then.
Flowerpot Island, Georgian Bay, Ontario
Flowerpot Island is one of the islands of Fathom Five National Marine Park of Canada. The island got its name from the strange rock formations that look like flowerpots. Initially there were three flowerpots, but one fell down in 1903. Pictured above is the larger flowerpot of the remaining two.
Flowerpot Island is situated in Georgian Bay, Ontario, 5 km offshore of Tobermory. It is a popular travel destination for its towering cliffs, strange rock formations, dense forest, and crystal clear water. It is also home to the garter snakes, red squirrels, and a variety of orchids. However, on my 2 trips to this island I wasn’t able to spot any flowers or wildlife. Perhaps I will have better luck with a third trip, as they say “the third time’s a charm”.
A quick search on Google, and you will see hundreds, and perhaps thousands, of pictures of the two flowerpots. So finding a unique vantage point can be quite a challenge. After walking on the rocky beach for an hour waiting for the tourists to clear the scene, I came upon this vantage point. The “S” curves in the foreground lead the viewers’ eyes to the flowerpot, which I carefully placed in the top centre position. The wider view helps to depict the natural beauty of this island.
Albion Falls – Naturally Beautiful
You probably have noticed this waterfall picture on my Home page slideshow or in my Nature & Landscape gallery. It is a picture of Albion Falls that I took earlier this spring. Albion Falls is one of the hundred waterfalls located in Hamilton Ontario, and it is a cascading waterfall flowing 19 meters (62 ft) down the Niagara Escarpment. Due to the fact that it is located on the side of the road where there are two parking lots, it is frequently visited and photographed.
Photographically, there are endless possibilities at this location. But dealing with the high sun atop the falls and visitors risking their lives climbing up the rocks, I decided to pack it up early on my last trip there. While researching the site and preparing for my next trip back to Albion Falls, I came across the story of Jane Riley, a 19th century woman who was disappointed in love with a womanizer Joseph Rousseau. Jane stood at the top of a steep cliff not far from the falls and flung herself to the bottom 100 feet below. I will have to look for this steep drop, which has been dubbed “Lovers’ Leap” since Jane’s suicide, on my next trip.
In this picture of Albion Falls, I utilized the horizontal lines of the rocks to lead the viewers’ eyes into the picture. I then tried to contrast the strong horizontal lines of the rocks with the soft vertical lines of the flowing water. This idea of contrasting lines came from the Chinese symbolism in which the cliff represents the masculine while the waterfall represents the feminine.
Follow Me
