Chickadee Photo Art » Scenic

Sedona, Arizona

Sharon — Sat, 31 Mar 2012 11:00:45 +0000

If you have never been – GO! This picturesque town in the Red Rock area of Arizona is just south of Flagstaff and the Grand Canyon area making it a high tourist area and is home to the Javelinas. I truly enjoyed the sights around Sedona. There are interesting shops and galleries and very good restaurants to choose from. My son and I noted when there that the town was very dark at night with very few street lamps. We overheard a waiter explaining to some other visitors this is intentional so everyone can enjoy the clear starry skies over the magnificant red rocks. Many westerns were filmed here as well featuring stars such as John Wayne and Jimmy Stewart to name a few.

Enjoy!

~Sharon

Manitoba Scenes

Sharon — Sun, 11 Dec 2011 02:06:03 +0000

Today a few scenes from various locales in Southern Manitoba. We are fortunate to have such a variety of landscape that ranges from wilderness to farmlands. It is always interesting taking a drive in any direction from Winnipeg as there will always be something of interest that one happens upon.

Below: Wind turbines producing power along highway 75 near the U.S. border

Below: early evening on the outskirts of Winnipeg

Below: Shimmering silver tracks of Via Rail entering Winnipeg.

Enjoy!

Sharon

Sunsets & Star trails

Sharon — Tue, 08 Nov 2011 12:00:33 +0000

Sunsets are always beautiful to see and depending on the time, sky conditions and cloud cover sunset colours can vary like our weather. Today some of my favourite sunset photos and night skies.

Below: Star trails on a clear summer night in Nopiming. If you have a camera with a bulb setting, a sturdy tripod and can get away from city lights you can try star trail photos on clear nights when the moon is in new stages.

Below: There was lots of smoke from forest fires in the sky this day and I think this is why the skies were pinker than usual.

Manitoba Scenes

Sharon — Fri, 21 Oct 2011 04:51:47 +0000

** New Photos Gallery has been updated **

Got a little delayed in updating postings here as a new grandson arrived a few weeks back so you can imagine that I have been a little busy lately. Anyway, I have so many new photos to share from this past summer and will be posting as usual every four days. Today I thought some late summer & fall photos of rural Manitoba would be timely. With the winds we experienced last week most leaves have blown off the trees now but fall is still a most beautiful season and happens to be a favourite season of mine and many people that I know.

Below: Cooks Creek

Below: Canola Field in the Interlake area

Below: Country church near Portage la Prairie

Below: Farm Field in the Carberry area

Enjoy!

~Sharon

Reflections

Sharon — Wed, 14 Sep 2011 11:00:30 +0000

When waters are still I like trying to shoot reflection photos. Below are some of my favourite reflections.

Enjoy!

~Sharon

Pleasant Valley

Sharon — Sat, 18 Jun 2011 11:00:49 +0000

Found in southwestern Manitoba, the Pleasant Valley features rolling hills and wandering rivers and streams. It is home to moose, deer, coyotes, pelicans, bluebirds, hawks & falcons, herons and many other beautiful birds. Only a few hours from Winnipeg it could make a great day trip for bird watchers. It is a unique and beautiful area of Manitoba. Below, a country road and the Pelican River from Pleasant Valley taken early in spring.

Enjoy!

Sharon

David Thompson Highway – Alberta Vacation

Sharon — Wed, 04 May 2011 11:00:27 +0000

Perhaps you will decide to visit Alberta this summer and if you do a great road to travel is Highway 11 – the David Thompson Highway. There are many sights and attractions along this route. From Red Deer, this highway will take you to Rocky Mountain House, Nordegg and will end at the Saskatchewan Crossing where it meets the Icefields Highway. You can then go either direction to Banff and Lake Louise area or to Jasper. The Columbia Icefields are found here also. Today, a few photos from the Nordegg area along the David Thompson route. The enormity and beauty of the Canadian Rockies cannot be put into words and the colours of the mountain lakes are spectacular. We stayed at Aurum Lodge, an eco-friendly lodge overlooking Abraham lake – very peaceful and relaxing location away from the high tourist zones.

Below: Abraham Lake

Enjoy!

~Sharon

River Otters of “Sunset Country”

Sharon — Tue, 19 Apr 2011 11:00:00 +0000

I came across this playful and curious otter on a morning drive in Sunset Country ( N.W. Ontario ). The otter was enjoying a swim in a lake where the ice had melted away. I stopped to watch and in typical otter form it swam towards me to take a look and then carried on with its business of diving and frolicking in the ice cold water. The otter’s broad and lengthy tail is used like a rudder and it also has wide feet with toes that are webbed. They are agile simmers that dart around in their underwater playgrounds. It just amazes me how nature has protected our animals in such ways that they can live in the icy cold and frozen lakes and rivers. Otters can be found all through the winters slipping in and out of openings in the ice.

Check out a previous blog on this website from August 2009 called ” A Once in a Lifetime – An Otter Story” for some really unusual otter photos. You can see all posts related to otter by clicking on the “Otters” category on the right side of this page as well.

Enjoy!

~Sharon

Ice Circles – Not “That Wierd or What”

Sharon — Thu, 14 Apr 2011 11:00:42 +0000

Last March I posted a Blog on “Unusual Ice Formations” – Ice Circles. You need icy cold rushing water with little eddies on the side to produce these ice platters. As it happened, I noticed on a television program this past year “Is That Wierd or What” – William Shatner’s TV show, that they featured Ice Circles. Canadian born William Shatner of Star Trek fame was visiting a United States Army lab facility where they were attempting to form and explain these unusual ice formations. They did in fact produce some in the lab but definitely not as beautiful as the naturally formed ones shown below. As it happens, we have them occurring right here in Manitoba and it is likely they are not that uncommon if you get to the rivers at the right time of spring thaw. It is clear that the froth generated from the rushing ice cold water gathers in the eddies and swirls around forming the circles which then freeze up because of the water/air temperatures. Eventually these ice circles free themselves from the eddies and float downstream where they melt. So once again – here are some recent photos of our made in Manitoba Whiteshell ice circles.

Enjoy!

~Sharon

Interlake Autumn Drive

Sharon — Wed, 17 Nov 2010 12:00:57 +0000

These photos were taken on the drive up to Steeprock, Manitoba. On the way back we stopped here and there and cut back across a few country roads. It was a lovely autumn day for our jaunt out to the Interlake country. Above: Old wooden doors on a shed flanked by some autumn coloured shrubs. Below: An abandoned farmhouse, a lone bunch of wild asters growing in an open field, two black bullies in a pasture and some horses with braided manes.

Enjoy!

~Sharon