Fisgard Lighthouse 2

Here's a shot from the other side of the lighthouse pictured yesterday, looking towards the Strait of Juan de Fuca. This coastline is so lovely it is sometimes difficult to remember that it is a dangerous coastline for sailors. Picturesque installations like the Fisgard Lighthouse were erected in response to the many wrecks and disasters that befell ships in this area. While the Fisgard Lighthouse has not had a resident keeper since 1929, the automated light still guides sailors safely into Esquimalt Harbour.

Fisgard Lighthouse

Finding a new angle to photograph Fisgard Lighthouse is almost as satisfying as sighting a new species of bird or wildflower. Here's what our iconic lighthouse looks like from Saxe Point through a 300mm telephoto lens. I am impressed by the choice of paint color for this lighthouse in that it seems to be the perfect complement and contrast to the dominant blues and greens of the scene. This lighthouse is my favourite model. If you want to see it as I have seen it over the last 4 years, CLICK HERE.

Fisgard Lighthouse

Here is the back story to yesterday's photo of two children: They were standing on the rock that is in the foreground of the above photo. I took this photo then walked lower down and to the left to take some shots of the lighthouse from the side. Meanwhile a man and his two sons passed me. He posed his boys for a photo in front of the lighthouse and I snapped yesterday's photo from below and behind them. This building is one of the best known and most picturesque of local landmarks, the Fisgard Lighthouse. It's the oldest lighthouse on Canada's West Coast and is a Canadian National Historic site. It's a photographer's dream subject that looks good in any light, any season and from any angle.

Fisgard Lighthouse

Under blue skies and bright sunshine I went out today to Fort Rodd Hill and Fisgard Lighthouse National Historic Site. I was pleased to discover that in celebration of Canada's 150th Birthday this year, all National Historic Sites have waived their admission fees. The entrance fee to Fort Rodd Hill has always been quite modest but the feeling that I could come back again, often, subtly changed the tenor of my visit, so that I was able to concentrate on one part of the site and reserve the rest for further visits. Above is a slightly different view of the Fisgard Lighthouse viewed from Fort Rodd Hill.

Fisgard Lighthouse Revisited

Fisgard Lighthouse is perched on a rock to one side of the entrance to Esquimalt Harbor. Those of you who follow the news are aware that a large ship full of Tamil refugees has been approaching our coast for several days now and I thought that with any luck I might get to see the Canadian Navy escorting that ship into the harbor, thus giving my photos a newsworthy relevance generally lacking. Well, I don't know what the navy have done with that ship but they didn't bring it in while I was watching so you'll have to settle for another shot of my all-time favorite subject, the Fisgard Lighthouse.

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Note: Apparently I was too late since the ship in question was brought in early in the morning. Click here to see a video news broadcast that gives further information.

Fisgard Lighthouse, Again!

The last couple of days' posts have been from a days' shooting out at Fort Rodd Hill and Fisgard Lighthouse during May 2010. Aside from the pleasure of spring colors the reason I've been spending time in that archive is to find and prepare one of the photos taken that day for a Canadian Geographic Magazine special edition on National Historic Sites and National Parks. Another photo of the Fisgard Lighthouse, slightly different from the one above, has been shortlisted for the special edition and a hi-resolution copy was needed. The photo in question is one that originally appeared on this site May 23, 2010 and you can see it by clicking HERE. The reason I'm posting the photo above is that although it is nearly the same as the one I submitted to Canadian Geographic, I think I prefer the one above....

Fisgard Lighthouse 5

This is what I consider the classic view of the Fisgard Lighthouse. It is taken from the seaward side of the lighthouse with sun behind me so the sky and the clouds always have better definition than shots taken from the other side. Nevertheless, as I stated in the first post in this sequence, this lighthouse looks good from every angle and in any light.

Fort Rodd Hill

Yesterday's photo of the Fisgard Lighthouse is the default photo for this area although there are actually two distinct National Historic Sites at Fort Rodd Hill. The photogenic Fisgard Lighthouse of course gets the most attention. For photographers, the other National Historic Site that you walk through on your way to the lighthouse, Fort Rodd Hill, is a greater challenge. It's not very dramatic or colorful and in place of the sentimental and inspiring connotations of a lighthouse on the rocks, the rather gloomy cement battlements hugging the ground give rise to inescapable associations with conflict and bloodshed, although Fort Rodd Hill was only intended for defense. Nevertheless, those holes in the walls were for riflemen to shoot through should the Fort ever have been attacked. The big guns pointed out over the water, guarding the entrance to Esquimalt Harbour, and we'll have a look at them tomorrow. The top photo is inside the Lower Battery. The photo to the right was taken inside the Upper Battery where a few wooden guns have been provided for visitors to aim through the embrasures. Below is a wider view of the Lower Battery. The small red-roofed building on the right of the battery was the canteen.

From Saxe Point

I'm still cruising the archives - it's just too cold to be creative outdoors these days. Here's a photo of a favorite subject, the Fisgard Lighthouse. What gives it its special interest for me is that it is a view of the lighthouse from an unusual angle. The photo was taken from Saxe Point Park. The lighthouse looks rather closer than it actually is because of the 300mm telephoto lens I was using. Fisgard Lighthouse is a favorite subject for me because it always looks good, from any point of view. This photo was taken in April 2012.

Fisgard in the Fog

Those of you who visit here regularly will know my fondness for the Fisgard Lighthouse. Thus you will understand why I was happy to see it on a foggy morning recently. I have not photographed it in the fog previously so the first thing I did when I arrived at the Fort Rodd Hill/Fisgard Lighthouse National Historic Site was take some shots of the lighthouse. It was only later I noticed the Steller's Jays and the deer romping around.

Fisgard Lighthouse 3

Here's a couple more images I shot while out at the Fisgard Lighthouse. This Canada Goose and another were zealously guarding this rock near the shore below the lighthouse. It wasn't until the goose stood up that I realized why they were being so protective. Below is the goose when I first saw her, while a sailboat glides past on her way into Esquimalt Harbour and provides a nice segue into this weekend's big event, the Swiftsure Sailing Races. The races kick off on Saturday morning so let's all keep our fingers crossed for a nice sunny day with generous winds for the sailors.

Photogenic Fisgard Lighthouse

Living close to the Fisgard Lighthouse is like having a beautiful model available to one at any time and it would be foolish not to take advantage of such a situation. Consequently, regular visitors to this blog have already seen several photos of this lighthouse and can expect to see many more. Last time I was out there I tried to find some new angles by walking around it several times. It looks good from every angle. I like this shot particularly because of the tiny cruise ship visible on the horizon to the left.

Fisgard Lighthouse and HMCS Calgary

I went out to the Fisgard Lighthouse because it's an unfailingly picturesque scene and it's a delight to photograph something that always looks good at any season, any time of day, in any light or weather. However, that also means it's a bit of a challenge to try and see it from a new perspective. I had some help yesterday from the Canadian Navy when they sent the frigate HMCS Calgary through the entrance to Esquimalt Harbour while I was photographing the lighthouse. Esquimalt Harbour is home to Canada's Pacific Fleet.

Fisgard Lighthouse

On January 2nd I posted a photo taken from Macaulay Point with the Fisgard Lighthouse just visible in the far distance. Here from nearly the same vantage point but with a much more powerful lens is a closer look at my favorite model. To the left of the lighthouse one of the gun emplacements on Fort Rodd Hill can be seen.

Fisgard Lighthouse

Regular visitors here will know that I never miss a chance to photograph our famous local lighthouse and last week was no exception. Usually I try to see it f rom a new angle or in dramatic weather but for this shot I opted for the classic postcard view. Fisgard Lighthouse shares its grounds with another National Historic Site, Fort Rodd Hill. This photo was taken from the top of the cliffs where the Fort Rodd Hill gun emplacements are. There's lots to see out there and we'll have a look at some new developments later this week.

Fisgard Lighthouse

Not having much birding luck on Victoria's eastern shores a few days ago I decided yesterday to venture westwards to Esquimalt Lagoon. I guess they're doing some work on the bridge that goes over the lagoon entrance because the road was closed. Fort Rodd Hill and Fisgard Lighthouse, however, were close to hand and the lighthouse was looking particularly beautiful in the late afternoon light.

Fisgard Lighthouse 3

With this photo of the Fisgard Lighthouse I like it that the lighthouse itself, though nicely placed as the center of the composition, is blurred while the foreground trees are crisp and sharp. That reversal of priorities creates an interesting dynamic.

Windblown Mergansers and Some Notes on Composition

The Common Mergansers (Mergus merganser) pictured above are posted just to give some idea of the weather yesterday - a nice bright day but VERY windy. Below I discuss what little I have learned about composition.

Composition
I think of composition as what is inside the frame and how it is organized. That seems a little vague but it addresses what I feel are the big problems I face when taking photographs. First, "what is inside the frame," is a consideration for me because I tend to want to get everything possible into every picture. You know, here's a picture of Jack standing beside the dinosaur and the two of them are standing in front of the parliament buildings over which the Blue Angels are flying in formation to celebrate the eclipse of the sun just visible to the left near the tornado.... There are probably six good pictures there but how often I end up trying to get them all in one frame still amazes me. However, I have learned a little bit about editing and the rule here for me is to decide what the picture is about and then (if possible) get rid of everything that doesn't lead the eye or mind to that subject. When taking photos that usually means zooming in or moving closer or narrowing the depth of field.

At home, cropping can often solve the problem of too much stuff in the picture. In the Fisgard lighthouse picture below cropping the bottom and the left side removed most of the distracting driftwood and the equally irrelevant Esquimalt Naval dockyard.Insofar as how the remaining information is organized inside the frame the two rules I generally go by are leading lines and the Rule of Thirds. There are lots of lines in the world - the horizon is one, but there are lots of fences, roads, pathways, shorelines, windrows and drifts, treelines and snowlines, etc. What I look for when framing a photo through the viewfinder is lines that will lead the viewers eye into the photo and towards the subject of the photo. In the lighthouse photo the two main lines are the shoreline that pulls the viewer's eye from the bottom left and the road that does the same from the right. Though they are less distinct, there are a couple of lines in the sky that also lead down towards the lighthouse. This is one of those things that you really have to concentrate on when taking a photo because if you don't get the lines in the right place there is not much you can do about it later when processing the photo. Of course there may not be any lines in the environment or they may be useless for your composition in which case you have to do without.

The Rule of Thirds has to do with where the subject of the photo is located. Space inside the frame is divided into thirds by two lines drawn across the frame and two lines from top to bottom making 9 boxes. The rule of thirds advises that the most pleasing or interesting compositions are when the subject of the photo is situated where two of these lines intersect. Most of us naturally put our subjects in the center of our photos when we point our cameras. I'm getting better at framing things when I take the photo now and managed to place the lighthouse in this photo almost exactly on the lower right intersection. I've also emphasized in green the leading lines in this photo that pull the eye towards the lighthouse.Another rule I often use for landscape photos is something I read somewhere: "foreground, middle ground, background." In other words, a landscape photo with something fairly close, something a little further away, and something far away makes a more interesting photo than one in which everything is very distant. If you're on the summit of a mountain, try to get a bit of the summit in your photo of the vast view. It gives the viewer a place to stand and puts everything into an understandable perspective.

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There is a great deal more to composition. Above are just a few guidelines I understand and use regularly. Sometimes, as in the photo below, I am very pleased with how it all works.

Fisgard Lighthouse Reprise

I had occasion to be digging around in the archives yesterday and came across this shot of the Fisgard Lighthouse taken from Fort Rodd Hill last May. It was one of those days with glorious light and a few puffy white clouds and a landscape bursting with spring green. In this cold gray weather we've been having I'm happy to have this photo to remind me of spring.

HMCS Winnipeg

On any excursion out to Fort Rodd Hill and Fisgard Lighthouse I am always reminded of Victoria's strong and lengthy association with the navy. During the city's earliest years it was of course only accessible by ship and many of the early ships visiting here were Royal Navy vessels. Canada's main Pacific Naval Base is located in Esquimalt Harbour, directly across from the Fisgard Lighthouse. On my last visit out there I was lucky to see the frigate, HMCS Winnipeg, leaving the harbour. This vessel has been active in anti-terrorist operations in the Persian Gulf and against piracy off the coast of East Africa. It is also used for policing the waters off our Pacific Coast.