John Harvey Photo

April, 2005
Go to Slide Show

Hey look, it's month two


The cliché about the cobblers children going barefoot seems to apply to photography as well - I live next to some of Vancouver's choice tourist spots, but I rarely bring my camera if I ever visit.   So I was reading National Geographic while waiting around for a seabus and this picture caught my attention:

National Geographic Photo

Granville Island (where I go grocery shopping) has no shortage of human desensitized birds.  I did my grocery shopping and then went outside to go find the birds.  Funny enough - there weren't any.  It was after a rainstorm so the benches were wet and no tourists were spilling food for birds to pick up.  I hung out - everntually the benches dried, tourists came to throw french fries at the birds and kids came to chase the birds.   Time to take some photos.

Sea GullCity Bird

Darker BirdDarker Bird Away

So did I get that killer shot?  As they say in Art School - if you can't make it good, make it big.  Yes, I don't have the exotic species and I decided that the 105mm really isn't the right lens for the job (I should have used the 80-200) and I really didn't have the lighting necessary, so no, I didn't get the shot.  But I have the gear (you can see daylight through the Gull's nose).

Gull Enlarged


Canada Goose
On my walk home I walked past two geese sitting and grazing.  (Animals are lazy too - these birds had a ring of grass plucked around where they sat - they didn't bother to get up and move along.)

Goose Snacking
 

Canada goose makes 131 species in my Taxonimic Database.  Cool.  Collecting nature is so much more open ended than collecting books or movies or action figures.

April 9th
David and I tried our best to stay out of trouble for the day - we hiked a 12km section of the Baden Powell trail from Lynn Canyon to Grouse Mountain.

April 10th

Building update!  The hole is definitly bigger - they have dug down a number of stories and put in retaining wall up against the street.
House Update
I don't know how much deeper they will get (you start running into problems like how are you going to get the loader out?), but it's moved way faster than the building across the street.


Mike was talking about going for a hike.  It wasn't a great afternoon weather wise but why not?  There is a nice short hike in Deep cove - the tail end of the Baden Powel trail out to a rock bluff.  Mark was game and so was Catherine.
 
Wooden BridgeOregon GrapeFerns On Log

Licorice Fern
Geek story.  So yesterday I saw all of these baby ferns.  Curious, I came home and read the bible on local plants and it turns out there are about 12 species of local ferns, not the 3 I had on the web site.  I really should have known this (I've seen others) but now the hunt was on - find a new species! 


Turns out it wasn't the shortest hike ever - it took us about an hour to reach the rock bluff.  It was raining but not hard. 

Mike With AViewOn A Rock

We walked back and had dinner at the Raven.  Good pub, good burgers.

April 16th:
Building update!  I was quite surprised to see a crane poking up over the buildings when I went out for a walk this morning.  When I got my camera they were assembling the gantry at the top.  As near as I can figure this crane will be beside the building itself. 
Crane Being Built
April 17th:
A bunch of us are big fans of the show "Dead like Me". 

Jer Less Distorted
One of the most common sets in the show is a "Der Waffle House" where the cast have breakfast and get assignements.  There is a "Der Waffle House" in New West.  We would love to have breakfast in the same place as the show so we gave it a go.

Four Eating Breakfast

Short answer - not the same as the show. Long answer - the Waffle house on the show is actually a set that has been used on a few different Vancouver based shows.  The one in New West isn't bad but it isn't worth the drive out to New West.   Oh, and we need to go back to Sophies for breakfast some time.
 


Darker Bird
Species: Sturnus vulgaris (european starling)
Location: Go To...
Tags: bird, Granville Island, invasive
Sea Gull
Species: Larus glaucescens (glaucous-winged gull)
Tags: BC fauna, bird, shallow depth of field
Darker Bird Away
Species: Sturnus vulgaris (european starling)
Tags: bird, invasive
Licorice Fern
Species: Polypodium glycyrrhiza (licorice fern)
Tags: fern
Jer Less Distorted
Person: Jeremy
City Bird
Species: Larus glaucescens (glaucous-winged gull)
Tags: bird, city, shallow depth of field
Oregon Grape
Species: Mahonia nervosa (Oregon grape)
Tags: plant
House Update
Tags: construction, Vancouver
Four Eating Breakfast
Person: Eric, Gabi, Mark, Stephen
Tags: breakfast
Canada Goose
Species: Branta canadensis (canada goose)
Tags: BC fauna, bird
Goose Snacking
Species: Branta canadensis (canada goose)
Tags: bird
On A Rock
Person: Catherine, Mark, Michael
Location: Go To...
Tags: hiking, rain, rock, summit
Ferns On Log
Tags: fern, waterfall
Wooden Bridge
Tags: bridge, hiking
Crane Being Built
Tags: construction, crane, Vancouver
Mike With AView
Person: Michael
Tags: bird(6), shallow depth of field(2), BC fauna(2), invasive(2), hiking(2), Do Not Tag(2)
People: Michael(2), Mark(2), Catherine(1), Eric(1), Gabi(1), Stephen(1)
From: John Harvey Photo > Blogs for 2023 to 2005 > April 2005

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