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Photography is the capture of light

We can not create photographs without it.
When you go out to create photos, how much effort do you take to look at the light? How often do you position yourself based on how the light is, and how the light will be during the course of the event?

I was out shooting at the Toronto Pride Parade on the July 1 weekend. This was my fourth or fifth time shooting…frankly I was getting bored with what and how I was shooting. Same thing, different year.

I did not have a media pass this year, and had no real plans or agendas.

I have been watching the destruction of the Anarchists unfold over the course of the last couple of days… from the safety of my living room. ( except for one excursion to the corner to buy some bread, which is were I captured these images.)

One thing that stuck me was the shear number of amateur photographers in the middle of these events.

It is easy to pick out the Pros vs the amatuers by their equipment and how they handled themselves.

I am wondering if the number of these “innocent” participants, helped the Anarchists evade police, and actually increased the violence.

Serendipity or sometimes you just get lucky

I have been shooting a lot with a lensbaby.  The effects I can get are great, when you take the time to set it up, get your focus perfect…take test shots.

That is not how I have been using it.  I set up a prefocus point and press the stutter when something interesting might be in my range.  Added to the “spray and pray” part of this style of photography, is that I have been shooting out the window of moving street cars for a lot of my images.

(This is the basis of the series I am working on My Toronto. )

This style of photography reminds me of the days of film… never knowing what you have until you take it home and look at it.  It also brings a lot of luck into the capture of images… the wow factor when you look at them.

I am not sure what caught my eye to press the shutter on this image… but the result was not what I was expecting.

I went out yesterday to photograph “THE FENCE”… the security fencing they put around parts of Downtown Toronto for the G20 Summit.

I will leave my political views about if this should be happening to another time and place, but the security they have put together for this event is staggering.

As I was walking along King Street, past the Scotia Tower, the other photographer I was with and I started taking images of the building.

A security guard came running out to us shouting “It is illegal to take picture here“

I usually deal with security guys in a calm manner… by explaining that what they are telling me is bullshit, and then slowly move along.