Here’s my new postcard design of skating on the Rideau Canal. This is an abstraction of an aerial view of skating on the Rideau Canal. The original photograph was taken with Kite Aerial Photography.
The postcard is offered for sale in my Zazzle store. Click on the postcard to go straight to page.
The Rideau Canal system stretches from Ottawa, Ontario to Kingston, Ontario. I’m not sure of the exact length of the canal, but it is 180 km to cycle from Ottawa to Kingston in the annual Rideau Lakes Cycle Tour. The city of Ottawa’s existence largely depends on the fact that this was the site chosen for where the canal would join the Ottawa River. For many years, Ottawa laid claim to having the longest outdoor skating rink in the world, stretching from Dow’s Lake to the National Arts Centre (our claim has recently been outclassed by the city of Winnipeg I believe). Weather permitting, the rink is open to recreational skating (and commuting) for several months each winter. The skating rink is one of the main focal points of the annual Winterlude festivities which is an important tourist attraction to the region.
This Kite Aerial Photography (KAP) outing includes pictures taken about 1 week after Winterlude ended for this year. I made several attempts to photograph this site during Winterlude. Twice there was sufficient wind for the kite but not for the camera. Once my remote control’s batteries were drained from being accidentally turned on in my pack sack the day before. On this, my fourth attempt, I also experienced equipment failure with my camera only recording the first 40% of the shots I thought I had taken.
Here are a few images from that outing:
Looking towards Bronson St. Bridge where the skaters go under to continue skating to downtown Ottawa.
Dow’s Lake Pavilion in the distance on the left. The taller building is Adobe.
Wave to the camera:
Overhead shot of snow drifts and people tracks on Dow’s Lake, Ottawa:
skating art / skating photos / skating greeting cards
You can see additional pictures from my KAP 2008-10 outing in the Kite Aerial Photography Gallery on my website.
My second KAP (Kite Aerial Photography) outing was to Brewer Park, or Brewer Skate Park as it is referred to in winter. The Ottawa Pacers Speed Skating Club hosted the Long Track Olympic Style and Mass Start Provincial Championships (January 19 and 20, 2008).
Brewer Park is situated on the north side of the Rideau River near the Bronson Avenue bridge and across Bronson Avenue from Carleton University.
Here are a few of my photographs taken using my camera in the sky:
This is an overview of the speed skating oval at Brewer Skate Park. Several outdoor hockey rinks can also be seen in the background.
The pulley suspension system usually helps the camera rig stay remarkably level. There are exceptions as you can see. I thought the perspective on this was interesting. Skating uphill is definitely harder than skating downhill. The turns can be tricky on the descent however. 🙂
The skaters are just coming into view at the top left and two of my photography buddies, Bruce Amos and Greg O’Leary-Hartwick, are poised for the action. You can get unexpected lines and patterns when shooting from the air.
One of the baseball diamonds is adjacent to the speed skating oval. The back fence complements the curves of the path and the skating rink.
Additionally I took a few images on the ground beforehand, but when the weather became more favourable (stopped snowing), I decided to get into KAP mode. Here are a few of the shots I took at ground level:
You can see additional pictures from my KAP 2008-2 outing in the Kite Aerial Photography Gallery on my website.
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