If you are familiar with my work, you will know that I’ve had an eventful year. Most significantly with my photography, I would suggest that my SubFusc project had the most profound influence on the evolution of my style of portraiture, and it certainly also affected my methods when shooting weddings.
I abide by a few rules with respect to my portraiture: shoot RAW, shoot a LOT, and shoot WIDE OPEN. And more than before, look for good natural light.
Here you can see the results of work I did over the past year. Most of these photos were taken with a $500 Canon EF 50mm f1.4 lens I have had for more than a decade. Talk about earning its keep!
What will the next year hold, and what will be my priorities to continue my photographic journey?
Category Archives: Photos
2011 Portrait and Wedding Highlights
Arthur Wilson survives bullet that grazed his head
Bullets are coming through the house on NNSL.com
Caught in the crossfire of an early hours firefight Nov. 23, Arthur Wilson could not bear to look at the young man handcuffed and bleeding from a gunshot wound to the chest as the two shared an ambulance to Qikiqtani General Hospital.
Wilson was relieved to hear from emergency personnel that the bullet that woke him at 3:30 a.m. was not embedded in his head, but had only grazed his scalp.
“I was not very happy with this young fellow,” the 24-year-old said of the person he assumed had almost taken his life. “I heard the paramedic say, ‘Stop yelling,’ because he said the bullet had punctured his lung. ‘You have a bullet hole in your lung, save your energy.’ He was yelling a lot about his hands hurting from the handcuffs.”
Wilson and the suspect ended up in the ambulance together after the RCMP was called to the city’s 100 block for a report of shots being fired. The police arrived to find a male pointing a gun at them. Shots were fired and he fled the scene, a police press release said.
“I woke up with a very sharp pain in my head, like someone hit me over the skull with a baseball bat,” Wilson recalled. “Right after the pain, I heard two gunshots. So I immediately jumped on the ground, ducked for cover, crawled to the back bedroom where my sister and her family is, swung open the door and yelled, ‘Bullets are coming through the house! Get down! Get down!’”
He doesn’t know how many shots were fired or how many came through his house, but said one went through his pillows to graze his head, and another went through the wall two or three feet from his bed.
“As soon as it was over, I saw the blood on my hands and I bled quite a bit,” he said. “The shock started setting in, like, I’m going to die here. I have a bullet in my head. I was pretty scared for my life.”
Iqaluit, NU - Arthur Wilson, 24, had only been in Iqaluit two weeks before he was caught in the crossfire of a firefight
Nunavut Languages Commissioner Alexina Kublu
MLA wishes more non-Inuit would learn Inuktitut on NNSL.com
Welcoming Language Commissioner Alexina Kublu’s 2010-11 annual report, Pangnirtung’s MLA lamented the reluctance of new Nunavummiut to learn Inuktitut, recalling a time when “teachers, RCMP and clergy tried really hard to learn the language.”
Hezakiah Oshutapik made the comments as members of the Standing Committee on Oversight of Government Operations and Public Accounts heard from Kublu.
“Now that we have Acts, we have target dates for when Inuktitut will be used in government,” Oshutapik said. “But, the private sector and federal government don’t even try to learn our language.”
“This is not new,” Kublu replied.
However, private sector and federal agencies will be forced to provide services in Inuktitut eventually as part of the Inuit Language Protection Act. Some businesses have been progressive in complying, including Frobisher Inn, NorthwesTel, Nunavut Arts and Crafts Association, and Isuma TV, her report noted.
Iqaluit, NU - Languages Commissioner Alexina Kublu
Nunavut territorial badminton championships
Territory’s best in badminton compete in Nunavut News/North
I told my sports editor Richard McIntosh that badminton is one of the hardest things to photograph. It’s tough, but if you shoot a lot, you should be able to walk away with something decent. Quttiktuq MLA Ron Elliott called to thank us for the photos I took, and sent a PDF out in a newsletter to his constituents, which was nice. Don’t get a lot of feedback on our work here.
Iqaluit, NU - Miranda Qanatsiaq of Hall Beach competes at the territorial badminton championships at Inuksuk High School.
Iqaluit, NU - Jonah Oolayou of Iqaluit competes at the territorial badminton championships at Inuksuk High School.
Iqaluit, NU - Becky Aravluk of Hall Beach competes at the territorial badminton championships at Inuksuk High School.
Iqaluit, NU - Ippak Iqaluq of Sanikiluaq competes at the territorial badminton championships at Inuksuk High School.
Iqaluit, NU - Amanda Alariaq of Cape Dorset competes at the territorial badminton championships at Inuksuk High School.
Iqaluit, NU - Qavavuq Nungaq of Arctic Bay competes at the territorial badminton championships at Inuksuk High School.
Ranch Ehrlo Society volleyball clinic
Volleyball clinics hit the mark in Nunavut News/North
Any thoughts on the difference between the cover photo in the link above and the one below?
Iqaluit, NU - Andre Macheka at the volleyball clinic at Aqsarniit School in Iqaluit
Iqaluit, NU - Alookie Korgak at the volleyball clinic at Aqsarniit School in Iqaluit
Iqaluit, NU - Adamee Mathewsie at the volleyball clinic at Aqsarniit School in Iqaluit. "It was really cool," he said. "I really liked it."
Iqaluit’s Got Talent
Plenty of talent in Iqaluit on NNSL.com
Singers, guitarists and video artists showed their talents at Inuksuk High School’s Iqaluit’s Got Talent on Oct. 18.
The event raised $1,100 for the 2012 graduating class trip to Australia, New Zealand and Hawaii. Parents are paying for the bulk of the 17-day trip, but the school is fundraising $65,000 for incidentals for the 26 students. Half that amount has been raised already.
“This event provides opportunities for students to open up and not be shy,” said teacher Sheba Pikuyak, whose Grade 11 Aulajaaqtut class operated the event and cooked caribou stew and bannock.
“It’s incredible to see the depth of talent here,” said contest judge Pascale Baillargeon. “It’s just the tip of the iceberg of what we know about.”
Pianist Jari Aariak took the Top Talent award, while throatsingers Fayth and Grayce Zurheide shared the New Talent award with beat-boxer Jack Allakariallak. Brittany Masson, Alianai Niviatsiak and Jose Quezada shared the singing award.
Iqaluit, NU - Iqaluit's Got Talent at Inuksuk High School
Iqaluit, NU - Grade 11 student Christine Tootoo performs Quviasugitsi with the Inuksuk Drum Dancers choir.
Iqaluit, NU - Alianai Niviatsiak sings at Iqaluit's Got Talent at Inuksuk High School
Iqaluit, NU - Christine Tootoo sings at Iqaluit's Got Talent at Inuksuk High School
Iqaluit, NU - Throatsingers Fayth and Grayce Zurheide perform at Iqaluit's Got Talent.
Iqaluit, NU - Brittany Masson performs at Iqaluit's Got Talent.
Iqaluit, NU - Iqaluit's Got Talent at Inuksuk High School
Rotary runs final vet clinic in Iqaluit
Leaving them in stitches in Nunavut News/North
Iqaluit may have seen its last biannual Rotary Club veterinarian clinic, Dr. Robert Aucoin said, as Iqalungmiut veterinarian Dr. Leia Cunningham starts her mobile clinic service in mid-November.
“This may be our last time,” he said. “At least people will have vet services, which they badly need here.”
Cunningham will be working out of a 21-foot van that has full clinic capabilities, including X-rays, her father Duncan said. They are hoping to convert their Apex home into a permanent clinic by November 2012.
Aucoin has operated the Rotary clinic for three years, taking over from Dr. Don Floyd, who visited Iqaluit for 25 years, Aucoin said. Canadian North flies veterinary staff to Iqaluit, and the federal government provides a space for the clinic.
Half the proceeds from services go to Rotary, and the other half to Aucoin and his staff. With almost 300 patients per session, the clinics raise about $60,000 annually for Rotary, said member Mike McPherson, who organizes the clinic with his wife Angela.
“He’s exhausted by the time he leaves,” McPherson said. “He doesn’t stop.”
Despite this, Aucoin says he will miss his clinic visits.
“I love the North, the change of scenery and pace,” the veterinarian from Ste-Agathe-des-Monts, Que. said.
“We’ve made good friends and met a lot of nice people.”
Iqaluit, NU - Rotary veterinary clinic
Iqaluit, NU - Rotary veterinary clinic
Iqaluit, NU - Rotary veterinary clinic
Iqaluit, NU - Rotary veterinary clinic
Iqaluit, NU - Rotary veterinary clinic
Iqaluit, NU - Rotary veterinary clinic
Iqaluit, NU - Rotary veterinary clinic
Iqaluit, NU - Rotary veterinary clinic
Iqaluit, NU - Rotary veterinary clinic
Iqaluit, NU - Rotary veterinary clinic
Leona Aglukkaq opens Nunavut Research Institute
Enhancing Northern knowledge on NNSL.com
The world is looking North, says Nunavut Premier Eva Aariak, and the Nunavut Research Institute will help Nunavummiut be part of the conversation.
“There is a pressing need for cutting-edge research combined with traditional knowledge in the North, conducted by Northern researchers, and cutting-edge research requires cutting-edge facilities like this one,” Aariak said at the official opening of the $10.4-million research institute Oct. 12, noting the project was done on time and under budget. “The Nunavut Research Institute provides leadership in developing and promoting science to improve the well being of Nunavummiut.”
Along with the High Arctic Research Institute, the federal government is now funding 20 major research infrastructure projects across the North, Canadian Northern Economic Development Agency Minister and Nunavut MLA Leona Aglukkaq said.
“The new facilities will allow all Northerners to be fully engaged in designing and carrying out the scientific research that will affect the future of our people and communities,” Aglukkaq said. “Inuit have much to contribute, and Inuit can now participate fully in the research in how Inuit knowledge can be used to develop programs for the future.”
Nunavut is the focal point for discussions on climate change, Northern development, and the Northwest Passage, so it makes sense to invest in homegrown research, she said.
“Inuit have used the land for thousands and thousands of years, and can contribute to discussions on climate change, environment, wildlife patterns,” said Aglukkaq.
The Nunavut Research Institute has a research library, 15 offices, four laboratories, and houses the Nunavut Arctic College’s Environmental Technology Program.
Iqaluit, NU - Nunavut MP Leona Aglukkaq attends the opening of the Nunavut Research Institute.
Iqaluit, NU - Nunavut MP Leona Aglukkaq cuts the cake at the opening of the Nunavut Research Institute.
NTI calls for heavy investment to preserve Inuit language
Language survival requires heavy investment on NNSL.com
It has been forty years since one of the founders of the Inuit Tapirisit of Canada, Noah Qumak, warned Inuit ways, culture and language would disappear without political mobilization.
All these years later, it seems not enough is being done to ensure the Inuit languages of Inuktitut and Inuinnaqtun survive, according to Nunavut Tunngavik Inc.’s Annual Report on the State of Inuit Culture and Society, released Oct. 12.
“This report showcases the urgency of the efforts required for the promotion and protection of the Inuit language in Nunavut,” NTI president Cathy Towtongie told media on Oct. 12.
The report’s writers see three challenges: making Inuit language “cool” among youth, promoting language learning and use at home and developing a bilingual education system from kindergarten to post-secondary.
The preservation of language and culture, the report states, starts at home. If young people don’t view Inuit languages as “cool,” the report states, English will continue to dominate in use among youth. As most of Nunavut’s population is young and many are having children of their own, the report notes, it would be easy for the dream of a bilingual society to disappear if there are not enough educated Inuktitut- and Inuinnaqtun-speaking professionals and leaders in education and government.
“If you go to Quebec, the working language is French,” Towtongie said. “In Nunavut, the working language is English. By 2020, if we’re going to strategize, we want to see the working language Inuktitut, and look at the examples of the Inuit of Greenland and the Maori.”
Iqaluit, NU - Nunavut Tunngavik Inc. president Cathy Towtongie discusses NTI's Annual Report on the State of Inuit Culture and Society
Iqaluit, NU - Nunavut Tunngavik Inc. vice-president Jack Anawak discusses NTI's Annual Report on the State of Inuit Culture and Society
Our trip through Iceland, August 2011
(Available in 1080p HD if you can handle the bandwidth)
Iceland is probably the coolest place on the planet (no offence to everywhere else). For us, it felt like home, meaning everything we desire is reality there. For tree-hugging vegetarians, it’s a dream, believe it or not. Reykjavik, especially, was amazing for its selection of vegetarian and raw food restaurants, and the countryside is just so otherworldly, it’s hard to not want to stay.
We rented two cars (the first was a disaster and had to be returned, but I’m not going to name names; suffice to say, rent from a reputable national or international rental agency). With our second car, a VW Golf, we toured the southern coast as far as Vik, and returned to Reykjavik en route to the Blue Lagoon. Lots of gorgeous landscape, including the geyser at Geysir, the waterfalls at Gullfoss and Seljalandsfoss (great town for camping), the black sand beach at Dyrhólaey, and the famous volcano at Eyjafjallajökull (which caused air travel chaos in 2010). We didn’t get very far due to losing a day with the first car, but we made the most of it.
Soundtrack track “Tornado” by the fantastic Icelandic musician jónsi (with permission as per http://www.sigur-ros.co.uk/band/faq.php#13).
