Attention!

It's nice to see a sense of humor from the City of Oak Bay Recreation Department. This sign is posted on the entrance to the beach at MacNeil Bay. This beach is usually nearly deserted - it's really only a narrow strip of rocks and sand below the esplanade. Earlier this year MacNeil Bay hosted a visiting Gray Whale thoughtfully recorded by N. Wemyss and posted to YouTube by NorthOlbo.

Can You See It?

When I took the camera down from my face the gentleman visible sunbathing just left of centre in the above photo waved and pointed again. I walked over a little closer and he continued to point to the rocks just below him and then I saw something move. To the right you can see the Harbour Seal pup that had hauled itself up on the rocks to rest. Its dappled coat fits in so well with its surroundings that if it had not moved I doubt I would ever have seen it. The point of land jutting out in the above photo is Holland Point, along the shoreline below Dallas Road in the James Bay neighbourhood. The ocean is the Strait of Juan de Fuca and the mountains in the background are on the Olympic Peninsula in the USA.

You Are Invited...

...to the Ross Bay Villa Lawn Party. Above is Ross Bay Villa, one of the few remaining houses in Victoria dating from the 1860s. It is also one of the few that is essentially intact. Ross Bay Villa has been undergoing restoration for some time now under the auspices of The Land Conservancy, a non-profit, charitable land trust that works throughout the province of British Columbia. The Lawn Party is to celebrate the completed restoration of the dining room and will take place from 1 pm until 4 pm on Labour Day Monday, September 6, 2010. Admission is free. House Tour and Cream Tea will be $7 each. Ross Bay Villa is located at 1490 Fairfield Road across from the Ross Bay Cemetery. I'll be there! 63% of the people who kindly voted in yesterday's poll suggested I should go and photograph Craigdarroch Castle again and the result is to the right. I think it was worth the trip. Thank you to everyone who took the time to give me his or her opinion.

One more....

Many thanks to the 25 visitors who participated in yesterday's poll and left comments. This was very helpful. The overwhelming preference (72% at this point) was for the bottom close-up of the castle from the corner rather than the straight-on view from further back. (See yesterday's post) This is the reverse of what I expected since I assumed the inevitable distortions arising from the super-wide angle view would turn most people off. Anyway, here's a third view of Craigdarroch Castle and another question. I like this perhaps better than the two views I posted yesterday except for blown out sky over the right side of the photo. What do you think - is it worth another trip to the castle to shoot this one again under a clear blue sky?

Shoot this one again?
	Yes
	No
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Help!

Canadian Geographic Magazine is having a photo contest for pictures of National Historic Sites, which is one of the reasons this blog has been experiencing a quite a few such photos lately (Fort Rodd Hill and Craigflower Farm to name two). Here's another National Historic Site located in Victoria, Craigdarroch Castle. I went up there yesterday and took photos of its exterior from every different angle. Above and below are the two views I prefer. Please use the poll below to help me decide which is best. Thanks!

Do you prefer the above or the below?
	Above
	Below
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