malavoie1

[malavoie1]

Frog and Ant (Close-up)

A quiet moment at the pond where a frog emerges from among thick, velvety rosettes of water lettuce, its bright eyes catching the afternoon light. Overhead, a single leaf curls like a protective roof, while an ant explores its edge—hinting at the small, unnoticed dramas that unfold all around us. This little spot behind the old farmhouse where we lived for 15 years was always alive with frogs in the summer, and I loved capturing them in moments like this, half-hidden but completely aware.

This tighter crop of a previously posted image focuses more closely on that interaction.

Photographing it meant working with the play of dappled light and deep shadows, letting the layered patterns of the floating plants naturally frame the frog. I used a longer lens to compress the scene, helping the subject stand out while still preserving the rich texture of the pond.

Post-processing was kept minimal except for some careful dodging and burning to separate the frog from its busy background and to direct the viewer’s eye toward the ant on the leaf. For the ant, I followed the leaf’s veins with a soft diagonal dodge pattern, trying to echo its natural lines while adding just enough brightness to make the tiny visitor stand out—guiding the gaze without over-editing or losing the pond’s natural mood.

Processed with Affinity Photo v2 and Topaz Photo AI.

Camera: Pentax K-3

Lens: HD PENTAX-DA 55-300mm F4-5.8 ED WR

300mm / ƒ/14 / 1/500s / ISO 1600 Taken: Aug 27, 2016

[malavoie1]

The 1925 Maxwell Tourer

📍 Cumberland Heritage Village Museum ⧉

This vintage beauty is a 1925 Maxwell Tourer, photographed at the Cumberland Heritage Village Museum during their annual "Vintage Vehicle Experience". The crisp lines, tall windshield, and classic lantern-style headlights are pure 1920s design, a reminder of a time when automobiles were as much art as transportation. The period-correct 1925 Quebec license plate and the Maxwell badge on the grill help confirm it as one of the final models before the brand was fully absorbed by Chrysler.

Photographing the car head-on emphasizes the symmetry of the design and the polished chrome details. I closed down to f/8 for good depth of field across the grill and windshield while keeping the background slightly soft. Bright daylight meant I could use ISO 100 for best image quality, with a shutter speed of 1/125 to ensure no motion blur from camera shake.

Post-processing was minimal: just basic contrast, cropping, and sharpening to bring out the reflections and badge detail. I wanted to keep the look as faithful as possible to the feel of standing there in front of this piece of automotive history.

Processed with Affinity Photo v2 and Topaz Photo AI.

Camera: Pentax K-3

Lens: HD PENTAX-DA 55-300mm F4-5.8 ED WR

60mm / ƒ/8 / 1/125s / ISO 100 Taken: July 14, 2019

[malavoie1]

The Pup at Jessup’s

📍 Jessup's Falls Conservation Area, Plantagenet, Ontario ⧉

This happy smiling dog is settled in between a couple of friends at a plastic table on the grass, drinks in hand, chatting and relaxing. It’s got that big open-mouthed grin and bright eyes that say he’s loving every minute. It’s one of those easy moments you get at a laid-back outdoor event—this one at Jessup’s Falls Conservation Area—where everyone, dog included, is just happy to be there.

For the shot, I focused on that cheerful expression while keeping the people clear enough to tell the story without pulling attention away. The light under the trees was perfect for soft, even tones with no harsh shadows. Post-processing was kept simple and honest: true-to-life colors, gentle background blur, and nothing overdone—just letting that candid, friendly mood come through.

Processed with Affinity Photo v2 and Topaz Photo AI.

Camera: Pentax K-3

Lens: HD PENTAX-DA 55-300mm F4-5.8 ED WR

260mm / ƒ/7.1 / 1/100s / ISO 400 Taken: July 7, 2019

[malavoie1]

Weathered Snail Shell

📍 Larose Forest, Eastern Ontario ⧉

This photo shows a weathered snail shell nestled among wet twigs and moss along the edge of a pond in Larose Forest. It was November, so the debris was damp and dark, with earthy tones setting the mood. The shell itself is worn pale on one side and rich brown on the other, forming a tight spiral that immediately caught my eye in the tangle of natural litter.

I shot this using a zoom lens at 135 mm to get in close, and then used a tight crop in post to emphasize the detail and pattern of the shell. The overcast sky acted like a big softbox, giving even light without harsh reflections. At f/5.6, the background fades enough to keep the focus on the shell while showing enough texture to tell you it's pond-edge debris in late fall.

Post-processing was minimal — the tight crop to improve the composition and sharpening to bring out the lines on the shell. I wanted to keep the feel true to how it looked that day: subdued, damp, and just a little bleak, capturing the quiet moment on the edge of the pond in November.

Processed with Affinity Photo v2 and Topaz Photo AI.

Camera: Pentax K-3

Lens: smc PENTAX-DA 18-135mm F3.5-5.6 ED AL [IF] DC WR

135mm / ƒ/5.6 / 1/80s / ISO 200 Taken: Nov 11, 2023

[malavoie1]

First Ice at Larose

📍 Larose Forest, Eastern Ontario ⧉

Mid-November chill settles over a pond in Larose Forest, laying down an early, fragile skin of ice traced with fine, intersecting lines. Along the edge, faded yellow grasses lean out over the dark, frozen water, holding onto the last of their autumn color. It’s that in-between time when the landscape hasn’t given itself fully to winter yet, but the freeze has begun to stake its claim.

I shot this handheld in manual mode at f/4.5 and ISO 400—a choice to keep my shutter speed steady on a very overcast day when the light was soft and diffuse. That flat light was ideal for capturing the subtle detail in the ice without harsh reflections. In post-processing, I added contrast and clarity to emphasize the ice’s delicate, scratched patterns while recovering highlights to avoid glare. Shadows were lifted to hold detail in the dark water, and a bit of vibrance kept the lingering autumn color in the grasses alive against the cold surface.

Processed with Affinity Photo v2 and Topaz Photo AI.

Camera: Pentax K-3

Lens: smc PENTAX-DA 18-135mm F3.5-5.6 ED AL [IF] DC WR

40mm / ƒ/4.5 / 1/100s / ISO 400 Taken: Nov 11, 2023

[malavoie1]

The Frog and the Ant

A quiet moment at pond where a frog peers out from among dense, velvety rosettes of water lettuce, its watchful eyes glinting in the afternoon light. A single leaf curls overhead like a sheltering roof, while an ant explores its edge, hinting at the small dramas happening all around. This little oasis, out behind the old farmhouse where we lived for 15 years, was a favorite spot for frogs each summer, and I loved catching them mid-stare like this, half-hidden yet entirely present.

Photographing it meant working with dappled light and plenty of shadows, letting the natural patterns of the floating plants frame the frog. I used a longer lens to compress the scene and isolate the subject without losing the layered texture of the pond.

Post-processing was minimal except where I some dodging and burning to help the frog stand from the background and to draw the viewer’s eye more deliberately to the ant on the leaf. For the ant, I followed the veins of the leaf with a subtle diagonal dodge pattern, trying to echo its natural lines while brightening just enough to make the tiny visitor more noticeable; guiding attention without making the edits too obvious or losing the pond’s natural feel.

Processed with Affinity Photo v2 and Topaz Photo AI.

Camera: Pentax K-3

Lens: HD PENTAX-DA 55-300mm F4-5.8 ED WR

300mm / ƒ/14 / 1/500s / ISO 1600

Taken: Aug 27, 2016

[malavoie1]

Time Parked Here

📍 Ouimet Farms Adventure ⧉ / Vankleek Hill Tulip Field ⧉, Vankleek Hill, Ontario

The old truck, long retired from its chores, sits at ease now surrounded by tulips. Its flaking paint and weathered curves feel like the land reclaiming a part of its own story. Behind it, rain drapes the horizon like theater curtains — setting the stage for a moment that feels both timeless and transient. I came across this scene at the Vankleek Hill Tulip Field at Ouimet Farms, a colorful U-Pick spot in eastern Ontario.

The original background wasn’t quite as idyllic — just beyond the strip of bare earth was the back of a local school, all brick and metal siding. So, I took a separate shot of the trees, clouds, and that striking curtain of rain, then composited them in to replace the building. Both images were shot handheld with a Pentax K-3 at 135mm. That focal length helped compress the flowers, antique truck, and horizon into a tight, layered frame. I used ƒ/8 for clarity across the scene, and 1/1000s shutter speed to stay sharp without a tripod. The soft overcast light did the rest, letting both the flowers and the worn-out truck speak for themselves. Processed with Affinity Photo v2 and Topaz Photo AI.Camera: Pentax K-3 Lens: smc PENTAX-DA 18-135mm F3.5-5.6 ED AL [IF] DC WR40mm / ƒ/7.1 / 1/1000s / ISO 200Taken: May 25, 2025

[malavoie1]

A Tapestry of Tulips

📍 Ouimet Farms Adventure ⧉ / Vankleek Hill Tulip Field ⧉, Vankleek Hill, Ontario

There’s something almost surreal about standing in a sea of tulips, each row a new ribbon of color pulling you deeper into the scene.

I shot this at the Ouimet Farms Adventure / Vankleek Hill Tulip Field U-Pick field in Vankleek Hill. Light cloud cover turned the sky into a softbox, and I took advantage of the backlight to catch the glow in the petals without blowing out the vibrant yellows and whites. I underexposed a touch to protect the highlights—and it paid off.

Shooting handheld at the long end of the lens (135mm), I wanted to compress the space and flatten the perspective to emphasize the rhythm of the rows. At this focal length, the flower bands stack up like layers of paint—bolder up front, more diffuse at the back. The effect is almost abstract.

There’s no single subject here—just color, pattern, and light. And that was exactly the point.

Processed with Affinity Photo v2 and Topaz Photo AI.

Camera: Pentax K-3

Lens: smc PENTAX-DA 18-135mm F3.5-5.6 ED AL [IF] DC WR

135mm / ƒ/8 / 1/1000s / ISO 200

Taken: May 25, 2025

[malavoie1]

Old Steel, New Bloom

📍 Ouimet Farms Adventure ⧉ / Vankleek Hill Tulip Field ⧉, Vankleek Hill, Ontario

I didn’t just stumble across this truck — I composed it deliberately, drawn by the contrast between the rusted old body and the vibrant rows of tulips beyond.

The scene is from Ouimet Farms Adventure / Vankleek Hill Tulip Field, where the U-Pick operation transforms a few acres of farmland into bold sweeps of colour each spring. I framed this shot through the driver’s side window of the antique truck, letting the past — textured, weathered, and dull — surround the present: fresh tulips glowing in pinks, reds, and yellows.

I was drawn in by the interplay between decay and renewal, muted and saturated, man-made and natural. The window became a kind of portal. With the lines of the tulips pulling the eye straight through, the truck itself becomes a frame for the blooms beyond.

Shot handheld. this was one of those moments where everything aligned — composition, light, and subject — right down to the soft overcast that gave a painterly texture to both the sky and the rust.

Processed with Affinity Photo v2 and Topaz Photo AI.

Camera: Pentax K-3

Lens: smc PENTAX-DA 18-135mm F3.5-5.6 ED AL [IF] DC WR

40mm / ƒ/7.1 / 1/1000s / ISO 200

Taken: May 25, 2025

[malavoie1]

Trillium – Jessup’s Falls, Spring 2025 📍 Jessup’s Falls Conservation Area⧉, Plantagenet, ON

The white trillium isn’t just Ontario’s official flower—it’s also part of the Franco-Ontarian flag, where it shares space with the fleur-de-lys. Pretty symbolic for a forest floor bloomer!

Shot at Jessup’s Falls Conservation Area, I had to get down low for this one — knees in the dirt, trying to line up that perfect cluster of flowers. The shallow depth of field helped isolate the subject, drawing focus to those iconic three-petaled blooms while letting the rest melt into a dreamy green haze.

In post, I gave the image a subtle warm-up to match the glow I felt walking through the woods.

Processed with Affinity Photo v2 and Topaz Photo AI.

Camera: Pentax K-3

Lens: HD PENTAX-DA 55-300mm F4-5.8 ED WR

55mm / ƒ/7.1 / 1/1000s / ISO 200

Taken: May 10, 2025

[malavoie1]

Four Trillium – Jessup’s Falls, Spring 2025

📍 Jessup’s Falls Conservation Area ⧉, Plantagenet, ON

Every spring, Jessup’s Falls Conservation Area in Ontario transforms into a sea of white petals, and this year’s bloom was the most stunning I’ve seen in a long time. The Trilliums were at peak — thick underfoot and glowing in the forest shade.

Shot handheld with my Pentax K-3 and the HD PENTAX-DA 55–300mm lens at 77.5mm. I used a wide aperture (f/5) to keep the depth of field shallow — not just to isolate the four flowers, but to build a sense of layering throughout the image. From the soft foreground to the sharper mid-ground blooms, then to the scattered Trilliums fading into the background. Behind them, a brighter zone of forest light cuts through the gloom, striped with crooked tree trunks that add rhythm and contrast.

Composing this was tricky. With flowers everywhere, I had to keep circling until I found this quiet grouping of four that felt just right. Then to accentuate the layering, I had to lie down on the path to get a shot angled along the forest floor.

Processed with Affinity Photo v2 and Topaz Photo AI.

Camera: Pentax K-3

Lens: HD PENTAX-DA 55-300mm F4-5.8 ED WR

78mm / ƒ/5 / 1/1600s / ISO 200

Taken: May 10, 2025

[malavoie1]

A Forest Floor in Bloom – Jessup’s Falls, Spring 2025 📍 Jessup’s Falls Conservation Area ⧉, Plantagenet, ON

It’s hard to overstate just how spectacular the Trillium bloom was this year at Jessup’s Falls. I visited a couple of weeks ago, and the forest floor was carpeted in white – easily one of the best displays I’ve seen in years.

This frame was shot handheld using my 18-135mm kit lens. I switched to full manual mode to get the exposure just right—balancing depth of field with a fast enough shutter to shoot handheld and maintain sharpness. ISO 200 gave me a clean file with plenty of detail to work with.

The soft overcast light was ideal: no harsh shadows, just a broad, diffuse glow that brought out the delicate texture of the Trillium petals and the vibrant greens around them. I was especially drawn to the way the mossy log cuts through the frame, acting like a quiet stage between two layers of white bloom—sharp in the foreground, dreamy in the back.

Processed with Affinity Photo v2 and Topaz Photo AI.

Camera: Pentax K-3

Lens: smc Pentax DA 18-135mm ED AL [IF] DC WR

100mm / ƒ/5.6 / 1/500s / ISO 200

Taken: May 10, 2025

[malavoie1]

№ 122

📍Valenciennes, France

It’s like someone tore a strip straight from a paint fan deck book — door after door in variations on a theme of blue and purple. Cobalt, indigo, ultramarine — each one could have its own swatch card and name. Then comes that jolt of red pipe, like a misfiled sample, a cymbal crash breaking that colorful rhythm.

Shot handheld on an overcast day, with soft light that let the colors breathe. I nudged the saturation up in post — not to invent anything, just to help what was already there come through. These doors had a lot to say.

A quiet street in Valenciennes, but full of small harmonies: the geometry of glass panes, the echo of shapes, the rhythm of repetition. Even the street numbers seem to be part of the composition.

Processed with Affinity Photo v2 and Topaz Photo AI.

Camera: Pentax K-3

Lens: smc Pentax DA 18-135mm ED AL [IF] DC WR

21mm / ƒ/4 / 1/200s / ISO 100

Taken: February 26, 2025

[malavoie1]

№ 107

📍Valenciennes, France

There’s a kind of elegance here that’s not about grandeur, but about rhythm. The door at No. 107 is framed like script cast in wrought iron — scrollwork upon scrollwork, all etched with time and rust, giving every loop and spiral the texture of a forgotten memory.

The light was soft that day — an overcast sky acting like a giant diffuser. I shot handheld, and in post removed a bollard that had crept up into the frame and interrupted the symmetry.

What really struck me was the intricate ironwork, once painted white, now flecked with rust in a way that adds rather than subtracts. The flanking panels are sculptural—narrow vertical fields of repeating floral motifs that feel more embroidered than forged.

An acquaintance proudly proclaimed Valenciennes as “la plus belle ville du Nord.” (the most beautiful city of the North). After walking its streets, camera in hand, I get it. There’s beauty here that rewards the ones who take their time.

Processed with Affinity Photo v2 and Topaz Photo AI.

Camera: Pentax K-3

Lens: smc Pentax DA 18-135mm ED AL [IF] DC WR

36mm / ƒ/4.5 / 1/500s / ISO 100

Taken: February 26, 2025

[malavoie1]

№ 12

📍Valenciennes, France

There’s a quiet kind of drama in a door like this.

The turquoise paint is arresting on its own, but what truly sets this entrance apart is the sculptural detail that surrounds it. Above the arch, a lion’s head emerges with commanding presence — its mane flowing into an elaborate arrangement of leaves, vines, and clusters that feel halfway between heraldic and organic. It’s not just decoration; it’s sculpture, integrated seamlessly into the architecture, giving the doorway an almost mythic authority.

Flanking the arch are scrolling botanical flourishes that lend a sense of movement and depth, their carved curves echoing the lion’s mane and reinforcing the overall symmetry.

The lion reappears on the doors themselves, this time as a pair of knockers—smaller, cast in metal, but clearly in conversation with the stone guardian above. The repetition adds weight to the motif, like a chorus of watchful faces.

And then there are the little creatures tucked into the base of the doorframe—mythical or marine, it's hard to say. But their presence adds just the right note of whimsy to this otherwise regal facade, like sculptural footnotes in a story told in stone and paint.

Flat light might wash out lesser scenes, but here it only softens the shadows—letting every chisel-marked detail quietly shine.

Processed with Affinity Photo v2 and Topaz Photo AI.

Camera: Pentax K-3

Lens: smc Pentax DA 18-135mm ED AL [IF] DC WR

31mm / ƒ/4.5 / 1/500s / ISO 100

[malavoie1]

№ 18

📍Valenciennes, France

Walking the older quarters of Valenciennes felt like being let loose in a pocket-sized open-air museum. With its sculptural ornamentation and delicate ironwork, this door pulled me in. The carved vegetal flourishes above the door seem to crown the space, while the stained-glass tympanum — the oval medallion surrounded by sweeping forms — adds an almost theatrical touch.

This shot was taken on a very flat, overcast day — one of those skies that diffuses light to the point of dullness. That softness can be a blessing for detail work, though. It let the textures — the pitted stone, painted wood, and brick patches — stand out without any harsh shadows to complicate things.

Back at the desk, I teased more contrast out of the brickwork and cobbles to give the image some life, and added two gentle curves to the stained glass to lift out its rich but muted colors. The red medallion in particular needed encouragement to avoid disappearing into the scene. Oh — and yes, the corner of a trash can had to go. A little quiet digital housekeeping to keep my corners clean.

Processed with Affinity Photo v2 and Topaz Photo AI.

Camera: Pentax K-3

Lens: smc Pentax DA 18-135mm ED AL [IF] DC WR

48mm / ƒ/4.5 / 1/500s / ISO 200

Taken: February 26, 2025

[malavoie1]

Valenciennes No. 70 – Rue du Quesnoy II

📍Valenciennes, France

Walking the streets of Valenciennes with a camera felt like a treat. Ornamental facades like this one aren’t the kind of thing I get to photograph much back home. Everywhere I turned, there was something worth shooting—a sculpted flourish, an iron balcony, a timeworn door.

This window stopped me in my tracks. A finely arched surround with heavy baroque details—floral swirls and faces carved in stone—frames a set of tall wooden doors. The ironwork below holds its own, each curve and point like a line from a wrought-iron script.

I cropped in post to better center the symmetry, and corrected for some vertical distortion to restore the intended majesty of the arch. I also gave the sculptural elements a little extra punch—some local contrast to bring out the time-worn texture. The wooden doors got a nudge in the red channel and a pull from the blue to lean them into a warmer tone.

There’s a quiet formality in the composition: symmetry, texture, material, and craft all pulling in the same direction. A façade like this wears its age proudly — and that made it feel like a privilege to document.

This is an alternative crop of this image.

Processed with Affinity Photo v2 and Topaz Photo AI.

Camera: Pentax K-3

Lens: smc Pentax DA 18-135mm ED AL [IF] DC WR

31mm / ƒ/5.6 / 1/160s / ISO 100

Taken: February 26, 2025