Snow covered Wagon Wheels Fence - Janice Dugas Photography 2010

We join spokes together in a wheel,
but it is the center hole
that makes the wagon move.

We shape clay into a pot,
but it is the emptiness inside
that holds whatever we want.

We hammer wood for a house
but it is the inner space
that makes it livable.

We work with being,
but non-being is what we use.
—The Tao Te Ching

KODAK Travel Bag Black |    KODAK ESP Office 6150 All-in-One Printer

123RF Banque d’images

Source: Journal Vert - Edition#97- Vol2 - Aout-Sept 2011

This spectacular shot was taken at the entrance of Katlian Bay, in Alaska. The whale came up to the surface to gather food from a bank of herrings. (They are visible around the kayak.)

The kayakist, a dentist from Sitka, has not been injured and survived this terrifying experience.

The shot was immortalized by someone that was inside the ferry terminal who couldn’t do much more than shouting encouragement words to the sporty kayakist enticing him to paddle faster, while keeping his fingers crossed.

OUF!

That’s what we call a close-up view of a whale!!

Whale Watching Tour in Zodiac Boat on St Lawrence River - Tadoussac, Quebec

It reminds me of some thoughts of fear that creeped to mind while whale watching on the  St-Lawrence River in the beautiful Province of Quebec, Canada, last year.

Departure from Tadoussac Harbor -Whale Watching- St Lawrence River, QC, Canada | Photo Scotiana.com 2011

We were 12 people + the captain, in a zodiac embarcation, and were not too assured that a whale could not lift us up in the air if it so wished!

Whale Watching on the St Lawrence River, near Tadoussac, QC, Canada | Photo: Scotiana.com 2011

Difficult to say what kind of whales we’ve seen here, given the fact that we can see so little of the beast. There were many “common rorquals” for sure and maybe a blue whale. There  seemed to be two distinct species swimming there.

Whale Watching on the St-Lawrence River, near Tadoussac, Quebec | Photo: Scotiana.com 2011

Just in front of us… a few yards only! It suddenly came to our mind that they might be swimming under the boat… Mightbe or maybe?!

Anyway, it’s magical time!  Everything is so quiet!  So luminous!

That’s really a great moment on our Blue Road adventure! We’ll never forget it!

Whale Watching on the St Lawrence River inside a Zodiac boat near Tadoussac, Quebec | Photo: Scotiana.com 2011

All went fine and we came back safe and sound with the most fondest memories of this very spectacular adventure.

Talk soon!

Have a great week.

Janice

PS: Don’t forget to bring your camera where ever you go

Update:

Surfing can lead you to BIG encounters! Watch this short video where surfer was almost swallowed by a whale!

Wow….I’m floating on a cloud this morning…

I’ve just watched the most beautiful video I have ever seen in my life….truly a ”coup de coeur”!

Dewitt Jones, professional photographer from the National Geographic’s team, reveals the Power of Essence in this magnificent film titled:  ”Celebrate What Is Right In the World“.

Enlightening, empowering, revealing, moving, inspiring and so much more.

It’s all about how to look at the ordinary and see the … extraordinary.

Do click on the arrow below to watch this short video and be prepare to receive waves of serenity along with the revelation on how you can create the life you really want to live by being the best for the world ( not the best in the world, but the best for the world).

Let alone that his photography leaves you breathless. Truly magnificient…in all aspects.

Had to remove the video as it was under copyrighted law. Will shortly replace it with a program clip. Stay tuned! Please accept my apologies for this unforeseen inconvenience

Many thanks to Bob Jenkins (@bobtheteacher) for tweeting about Therese Sparby’s (@radicalleader) article on her blog, Awaken Your Essence, in which she shared this video with her readership. In turn, I’m happy to share with you this awesome and priceless boost!

Do not hesitate to post your comments below as I would love to hear what you think about the “Celebrate What Is Right In the World – The Power of Essence“.

Until next, take care and all the very best!
Janice

Today is a great day as we are leaving for a journey that will take us from Montreal to the Northern East Coast of the Province of Quebec (near Labrador) and then to the marvellous Gaspésie and along the banks of the majestuous St Lawrence River back to Montreal.

We are so excited about this trip!

The opportunity to make great pictures on so many different subjects is a real joy. Stay tuned …

You can read more about our journey  by logging to our ”Everything Scotland” blog :

http://www.scotiana.com/following-the-blue-road-on-the-steps-of-kenneth-white-in-quebec-episode-2/

Scotianas-Blue-Road-Journey - Modified Google Map

Talk soon,

Janice

Just had an ” Ah Ah ! ” moment !

Have you ever thought of using “Alphabet Photography” to create a framed photo display delivering a specific message?

I have to show you what Michelle King, from In Our Own World blog, created as a farewell gift for her friends.

One of my newest interests (also pertaining to photography) is Alphabet Photography. I have seen this type of gift before and thought it was so unique. Here’s a example of what I’m talking about. I figured it must not be that difficult to do, you just have to be creative enough to look for the letters. So, I decided to try make my own. I thought it was the perfect farewell gift for our friends who were leaving Quito. I wanted to use “letters” from around Ecuador to remind them of their time here. This is the finished product:

The King Family - Photo by Michelle King

Isn’t that a great idea? To read more about it, log on to  Ronnie and Michelle blog at In Our World, The Everyday adventures of our crazy family. You’ll find lots of ideas and great pictures.

Personnalized Camera Strap by Michelle King

By the way, while on their site, you can read about creating a camera strap . I’m not good at sewing, but would be delighted to have my own personnalized camera strap. I’ll ask my sister Judy (she’s an arts & crafts do it all lady)  if she wants to help me out.

Talk soon.

As you might notice, it’s been a while since my last post. Not because I was running after time, nor because I forgot about it, but simply because I was suffering of the “white page syndrom” which keeps yourself, even though you have zillions of subjects relating to digital photography that you want to talk about, from writing.

For the last week, each sentence typed was “back spaced” to the beginning of the line.

Pffffff…..

While talking about this mental block with my best friend, Mairiuna, she suggested that I should, each day, walk around the block, bike or jump into my car and go take photos. Then, come back and upload one to the blog.

Hum…not a bad idea ! I think I can do that   Well, my dear friend, I will take you up on this.

Cup of coffee - Photo by Janice Dugas

I did not have to go very far before something stroke my fancy this morning : my cup of coffee and first breathing of fresh air gave me the subject for today’s photo.  Well…well…well…

Did you know that the term “cup of coffee”  has it’s own little story?

Let me share it with you .

As defined in Wikipedia, ” a  cup of coffee is North American sports terminology for a short time spent by a minor league player at the major league level. The idea behind the term is that the player was only in the big leagues long enough to have a cup of coffee before being returned to the minors, or simply to describe a brief stint served with a professional team.

One example of how this term is used in a sentence was during the 1996 film The Fan, ( with Robert De Niro ) in which the lead character, a middle-aged former pitcher, says, “I was in the bigs for a cup of coffee myself until my arm went south.”

Cup of Coffee Aside Scotland Map - Photo by Marie-Agnès Leducq

My friend Mairiuna (who lives near Bordeaux, France) and myself ( living near Montreal, Quebec)  are authoring a blog devoted to Everything Scotland.

Hop over and come visit Scotiana.com to find resources and information about all aspects of Scottish lifestyle, inland and abroad.

Mairiuna, (which is the gaelic translation of Marie-Agnes’s first name)  with husband Jean-Claude, have travelled almost yearly to Scotland since 2000. I joined them for the 2006 and 2007 expedition and we all three plan to return again soon.  A wealth of photos coming up!

Talk soon,

Janice

Original bell from the 1898 built vessel SS Hebrides -Photo Janice Dugas

In the  previous post we explored  Mailboxes photography collection.  Yet, another communicative topic for a photographic collection is ship bells.

I had the opportunity to take this picture while boarding the third and current Caledonian McBrayne ferry SS Hebrides from Uig Bay to Tarbert in the Scottish Western Isles.

It’s the original bell from the first 1898 built vessel SS Hebrides!

Can you imagine how hard it was to resist the temptation of tapping the bell ?

If anyone is aware of a soundtrack taped from it, kindly share the information by leaving a comment.

It will be greatly appreciated.

Talk soon,

.

Once in a while, I will share with you some of my own shots. If they sparkle a thought or two in your mind, do not hesitate to leave a comment on them.

This photograph of a simple task of life, such as cleaning our boots, can lead to creative websites when searching for more info on the subject.

Bootitude - Photo Janice Dugas

“What type of boot personality do you have ?”

Well..well..well..what a question !

“What’s Your Bootitude? “

I didn’t even know this word existed ..until I came across a site called Boot-Heaven.com.  And you know what?

They even have a quiz you can take that will tell you what boot personnality you are!

That’s not all. Once your answers are tallied, you will gain access to online boot stores where you can use discounts coupons given by the site to save on your purchases.  Now let the quiz begin…

Have fun!

PS: My score was 28 . You’re only a click away to discover an aspect of my personality.  ;-)