Revisited: Vancouver's Stanley Park

OK, I'll admit it. I'm not a big city guy. Up until last summer, if you'd asked my opinion of Vancouver British Columbia, I would've told you to keep on driving. Traffic, skyscrapers, traffic, blah, blah, blah. But a job I shot there last summer changed my mind, and Stanley Park had a lot to do with that...

Stanley Park was Vancouver's first park and is still one of the city's main tourist attractions. Over 1,000 acres of cedar, hemlock and fir rainforest, beaches, and waterfront cycling & walking paths just a short distance from downtown Vancouver. In short, paradise in the middle of the city! Here are a few of my Stanley Park photos I shot while in Vancouver last summer.


A couple walking along the Seawall Trail in Stanley Park, Vancouver BC


Biking along the Seawall Trail in Stanley Park, Vancouver BC


A cyclist passes the Harry Jerome Statue in Stanley Park, Vancouver BC


Harry Jerome Statue at sunset in Stanley Park, Vancouver BC


Lions Gate Bridge near Stanley Park in Vancouver BC


Stanley Park Totem Poles (totems) at Brockton Point, Vancouver BC - According to Wikipedia, this is the most visited tourist attraction in British Columbia. This image was taken at dusk, and the totems were "painted" with a flashlight to bring out the details.

Next time you get a chance to spend some time in Vancouver, take it! Ride the 25km or so waterfront path on a sunny day from Coal Harbour all the way around the park to English Bay, around False Creek to Granville Island, then Kitsilano beach and back. I guarantee your view of this city will change! I can't wait to go back.

Check out more Vancouver photos in my Vancouver & Whistler 2010 Photos gallery.


Cheers, Josh
Copyright © 2009 Josh McCulloch.

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McKenzie Bight - Gowlland Tod Park

Another cool place I visited recently, and not too far from home (also in Gowlland Tod Park).


Cascade Waterfall along the trail to McKenzie Bight


The view north along the shoreline from McKenzie Bight

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The view southwest across the Saanich Inlet from McKenzie Bight to the Malahat - The wildflowers are just starting to come out here.

Gowlland Tod is such a cool place - Rainforest, beaches, ridgetop hiking... and within a short drive from Victoria. What more could you ask for in a park?

Check out more of my Vancouver Island Park images in my Vancouver Island Photos gallery.

Cheers, Josh
Copyright © 2009 Josh McCulloch.

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Garry Oak Ecosystem & Wildflowers

Got out and explored a few local parks today, one of which was Gore Nature Park - a beautiful Garry Oak Ecosystem that was protected from development. A great little park, and the wildflowers are out in force right now!


Garry Oak Ecosystem Meadow and Wildflowers


Tall Mountain Shooting Star, also known as Jeffrey's Shooting Star (Dodecatheon jeffreyi)


Satin-flower (Sisyrinchium douglasii) - Garry Oak Meadow


White Fawn Lily (Erythronium oregonum)

Love finding these little gems! Check out more like them in my Nature and Landscape Photos gallery.


Cheers, Josh
Copyright © 2009 Josh McCulloch.

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Central Saanich - Daffodil Capital of Canada

Got out during some crazy weather today and got a few great frames of the fields of daffodil flowers here in Central Saanich. Apparently Central Saanich BC is known as the "Daffodil Capital of Canada", and grows the most Daffodils anywhere in Canada, with over 18 million blooms annually, the majority of which are grown by Vantreight Farms, a five generation family farm.

It went from sun to rain to hail in a matter of minutes which made for some great images and dramatic light, I just wish I'd had better shoes on - flip flops are not made for trudging through farmers fields! Here's a few of my daffodil images from the Central Saanich area I shot today:


Central Saanich claims to be the "Daffodil Capital of Canada"


Rainbow and dark storm clouds over a field of Daffodil blooms


A field of Daffodils

Check out more photos of Daffodils and other farming-related subjects in my Agriculture Photos gallery.

Even with this rain and hail, it's starting to feel like summer isn't too far off. I'm looking forward to it, and to bringing more of my photos your way. Hope you're enjoying them - I'm enjoying sharing them!


Cheers, Josh
Copyright © 2009 Josh McCulloch.

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Dallas Road Waterfront

Took a trip into downtown Victoria today to run a few errands, and checked out the waterfront along Dallas Road since it was such a nice day to see what was happening.

A few blocks from the water, you could start to see the fog rolling in off the water, and by the time I got to the waterfront, visibility was down to a few hundred feet. I must've arrived just as the weather was changing, and the fog started to lift. As the sun started to come out I got this cool shot of a jogger on the Dallas Road Breakwater:


Runner on the Victoria BC Breakwater

Check out more outdoor sports photos, including running and jogging in my Outdoor Adventure Sports Photos gallery.

Once the fog was completely gone I got a really great series of landscapes with the grass blowing in the wind and the Olympic Mountains in the (distant) background:


Dallas Road beach and the Olympic Mountains

I have to say that since moving from Downtown last year, I do miss coming down to the water as often as I did...

Check out more landscape photos, including other images taken along Dallas Road in my Nature and Landscape Photos gallery.

Cheers, Josh
Copyright © 2009 Josh McCulloch.

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Olympic Mountains and Race Rocks Lighthouse

After I posted about the Sol Duc Falls in Olympic National Park yesterday, I recalled another image I shot recently with a completely different perspective on the area.

This image was taken across the Strait of Juan de Fuca from Witty's Lagoon Regional Park near Victoria and is of Race Rocks Lighthouse and the Olympic Mountains. Definitely captures a great "west coast" mood.


Race Rocks Lighthouse and the Olympic Mountains

After taking a closer look, I noticed that the bottom half of the freighter is cut off (see enlarged crop below), and the only reason I can think of as to why this happened is due to the curvature of the earth. I've never actually seen this in any of my images before... very cool.


Earth's Curvature as seen on the Ocean

Check out more of my Vancouver Island Photos, including other lighthouses on Vancouver Island, in my stock photos section. I also enjoy shooting freighters and other large boats while I'm out and have lots more images like this in my Industry and Transportation Photos gallery.


Cheers, Josh
Copyright © 2009 Josh McCulloch.

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Revisited: Sol Duc Falls

As an outdoor photographer, I'm privileged to get to go to a lot of cool places. One of my personal favourites also happens to be just a short trip from home...

Olympic National Park is a special place. I've been able to see the Olympic Mountains from Victoria all of my life, but never made it over there to explore until just a few years ago. What an amazing place! I've never been to a place that feels so pure and pristine, which is surprising given how many people visit the park each year. There are a lot of cool places in Olympic National Park, but one of my favourites is Sol Duc Falls (also spelled Soleduck Falls - I've seen both on signs & maps). A perfect three-pronged waterfall on the Sol Duc River spills into a deep gorge in one of the most spectacular rainforests I've ever been in...



Sol Duc Falls



Sol Duc River & Waterfall

And after a day of exploring in the damp rainforest of the Sol Duc valley, there's nothing like soaking in the Sol Duc hotsprings, only 5 minutes from the trailhead! If you ever get the chance to explore the Olympics, do it! Check out more photos of Olympic National Park in my Washington State Photos gallery.


Cheers, Josh
Copyright © 2009 Josh McCulloch.

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Parksville Beach & Mount Arrowsmith

Had to make a trip up the island to Parksville to visit one of my greeting card retailers yesterday, and had a few minutes to get a couple of images of the famous Parksville Beach. The light wasn't too spectacular, but it was beautifully clear yesterday, and Mount Arrowsmith was looking great in all its snow-capped glory.


Beachcombing in Parksville BC


Daffodils blooming with Mount Arrowsmith in the background, Parksville BC


Walking the dog along the Parksville waterfront


The view from Parksville across to the Coast Mountains on the BC mainland

And I added a new panorama to my collection... I'm really having fun shooting these. This one's a little smaller than some of the others I've done lately: (only) 7 frames stitched together.


Parksville panorama with Mount Arrowsmith in the background.

Check out more of my Parksville Photos in my Vancouver Island Photos gallery.


Cheers, Josh
Copyright © 2009 Josh McCulloch.

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Revisited: Greenhouses in Central Saanich

Just came across these greenhouse images in my archive that I shot last spring just a few minutes from my house on the Saanich Peninsula. The day was an odd mix of weather, a bit grey and some blue sky too, so I focused more on the details rather than the big picture, and was pretty happy with these images. Since moving out here to Central Saanich, I've taken a keen interest in food production, as we're pretty much surrounded by it. I love living out here, lots of great photo opportunities...


Saanich Peninsula Greenhouse & Mount Baker


Central Saanich Greenhouse


BC Greenhouse Agriculture

Check out more of my greenhouse and Agriculture Photos in my stock images archive.

Cheers, Josh
Copyright © 2009 Josh McCulloch.

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Revisited: Bowen Island Artist

I've been working on processing many of the images I took last year, so I've decided to start a series of Posts titled "Revisited:". Most of these images are feeling old to me, but they're most likely new to you. You'll be seeing more of them in the future, and I'll start them off with a few images I took of BC painter Ian Fry on Bowen Island last summer while shooting a job for the Knowledge Network.

Ian's a Scot (love that accent), a great guy, and a very talented artist. It was a pleasure hanging out with him in his studio and seeing his work. Here are a few images from that afternoon:


Bowen Island Artist Ian Fry


Bowen Island Artist Ian Fry outside his Studio in "Artisan Square" near Snug Cove


Bowen Island Artist Ian Fry

Check out Ian's work on his website here.

Check out more of my British Columbia Image here: British Columbia Photos.

Cheers, Josh
Copyright © 2009 Josh McCulloch.

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Vancouver Panorama Photos

Lately I've been shooting specifically with the intent of stitching images together in post to make large panoramas, and thought I'd share a few with you from a recent trip to Vancouver...

The first was taken on a beautifully clear day from the BC Ferries terminal at Tsawwassen just south of the City of Vancouver, and is almost 30,000 pixels across stitched from 16 different frames in total. Below that is a crop to show some of the detail from the area marked in red in the panorama. The main Vancouver panoramic photo covers the skyline from West Vancouver to Port Moody, and includes Cypress Mountain, Grouse Mountain and Mount Seymour, the Cities of North Vancouver, Vancouver, Richmond, Burnaby, New Westminster and Coquitlam.


Vancouver BC and Coast Mountains Panorama


Crop of City and Mountains

Here's another one from the Vancouver area, taken from a moving ferry. This is Howe Sound and the BC Coast Mountains. The large mountain right of center is Mount Garibaldi just north of Squamish BC:


Howe Sound Panorama and Mount Garibaldi

Check out more of my Vancouver BC Photos here.


Cheers, Josh
Copyright © 2008 Josh McCulloch.

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