Wings of Light

For years after falling in love with photography and before my passion for capturing Canada's natural landscapes on film turned into a full time career, I intensely studied thousands of images from scores of books in hope of unlocking the secret to creating great photographs.

Amongst the most memorable works, it was the slightest subtleties of light that often made the difference between an ordinary photograph from one that would be considered a work of art.

While wandering the rural countryside in Quebec I came upon this lovely cascade in which the silky movement of the falling water had a simulated appearance of wings in flight.

After carefully positioning my large format wood camera near the churning water my first attempt at a three-hour moonlight exposure failed when I accidentally jarred the camera during the process. With no remaining light to work with, I returned early the next morning to find the waterfalls shrouded in a heavy mist.

For hours I watched the distant island of trees appear and recede in the continuous ebb and flow from the shifting veil of mist as the cool monochromatic scene slowly gave way to the dawn of a new day.

Suddenly the powerful rays from the rising sun diffuse with the hazy landscape and for a brief moment transform the cascading water before me into a beautiful ribbon of gold as the moment is captured on film. As quickly as it appeared the subtle radiant glow and haunting mist were lost to the intensifying sun, instantly reverting the once outer-worldly scene back to that of the mundane.