When I began this website in the summer of 2008, its sole purpose was to share my appreciation of Beacon Hill Park. Over the years, Beacon Hill Photos grew to include other areas as well and it began to lose its focus.

I am now in the process of restoring this site as a place where people can learn more about Beacon Hill Park and all it offers. I am also creating a separate, new site with an expanded purpose: to honour conversations with Nature, wherever and however they may happen.

I invite you to visit and enjoy . . .

 

~Jim

When I took this photo in 2006, I was the only person there ― standing outside in the middle of the heavy, wet and quiet snow ― feeling as if I were witnessing the finish of Terry Fox’s Marathon of Hope.

~Jim

The words “nature” and “art” are inseparable. That’s the conclusion I arrive at every time I attempt to find the line between a natural photograph and an artistic one. I’ve seen precise photos that accurately depicted each detail and colour and yet were lifeless; and I’ve been deeply inspired by images that conveyed the nature photographer’s experience in artistic ways. 

A photograph is always a representation; it is never the l thing itself. Some photographers tell me film is superior to digital photography by providing a truer representation of nature, especially when the negatives are developed with no alterations in the darkroom. I always wonder if they forgot about the emulsions on the film that went through multiple (and variable) processes as a chemical developer, bleach, fixer, and stabilizer were applied to produce the final image.

I wrestled with these ideas for many years, hoping to find the right approach to nature photography so I could fully share nature’s beauty and the awe I experienced. Finally, I dropped all the ideas and rules and focused on simply reporting my experiences in nature as authentically as possible. Sometimes it happens through an unaltered snapshot and sometimes I spend countless hours revealing my experiences using artistic techniques that convey nuances at the edge of visual perception and mental recognition.

~Jim

 New High Definition Video Released! 

 On May 13, 2010, I made a promise to write a poem before breakfast every day for a full year. As I approach the fulfillment of that commitment, I am celebrating by releasing a Full HD video that combines Nature Photography with Nature Poetry to reveal even more of Nature's beauty, inspiration and beauty. This is just the beginning of a project that will use the latest technologies to create a book that can be shared in ways that do not require natural resources to be processed, packaged and shipped in order for it to be enjoyed.

The video is 10 minutes in length and it contains views, vistas, sounds and silences that stop me in my tracks and wonderful creatures that remind me of what it means to be genuinely wild and wise. Just click on the Full HD icon above to view it.

Enjoy!

~j  

During my hikes along the coast of Vancouver Island, I sometimes discover the work of anonymous carvers of stone and wood. These works of art are not for sale and you won't find them advertised in any newspaper or tourist guide. I love the transmission feel of them, as though something is being shared that is beyond words and personal identity.

I found this face carved in a boulder at the edge of the Salish Sea, in a place where many people walk by every day without noticing it. There's no name attached to it and no museum to protect it from the elements.

The weather has softened its chiselled features into a tender look that makes me wonder why I ever resisted ageing naturally, and why I spent so much time inside museums studying famous artists.

~Jim

Beacon Hill Park is filled with surprises. On a daily basis, the animals, people and scenery change, which makes it the perfect place to explore.

This time of the year, the changes in weather will suddenly transform the Park’s lush, green and warm vistas into stark, colourless and cold experiences that can reveal a different kind of beauty ― one that is both harsh and soft at the same time.

This photo was taken after an unpredicted snowstorm hid everything except the outlines of all forms and muffled all sound except my breathing and an occasional “wow.”

 
If you want to visit Victoria and Vancouver Island, but you aren’t attracted to the frenetic summers of tourism, then come in the fall or winter and discover the private amazement that Beacon Hill Park offers only to those lovers of Nature who appreciate such unexpected and wild changes.

~Jim

When my old Nikon crashed, I decided to wait until I could upgrade to a new full-frame (FX) camera, rather than spend money on repairing my old DX format camera. I went from shooting thousands of photos a week to none and the sudden change opened me to new ways of sharing Nature's beauty.

I'm also sharing some images there that I haven't shared here on Beacon Hill Photos. The new words fit so well with some old images that I combined them and now the first ones are available for you to enjoy at www.a-poem-before-breakfast.com.

~Jim

Effective immediately, all fixed pricing and predetermined fees on my website are gone. You are now free to take and free to donate. Neither is required. 

I’ve been a fan of Star Trek ever since Gene Roddenberry created the series in the 60s. Although I no longer have a TV, his story of living an intergalactic life without the need for money is still active in my mind.

The Captain (Picard) of the Starship Enterprise said it so well: "The economics of the future is somewhat different. You see, money doesn't exist in the 24th century... The acquisition of wealth is no longer the driving force in our lives. We work to better ourselves and the rest of Humanity."

I’ve created a new page on my website to begin this process. Check it out and let me know what you think. As always, I welcome your feedback and suggestions.

~Jim

Note: This is a shortened version of the complete article about imaginal cells found at
http://conversations-with-nature.com/imaginal-cells.

A caterpillar buries itself inside its cocoon and then slowly begins to transform into a butterfly or, more commonly, a moth. It doesn’t merely shrink and then sprout wings inside there; instead, it first disintegrates into a mass of ooze within the cocoon. If we were to open the cocoon halfway through the process, we would not find a half-caterpillar, half-butterfly creature, but a blob of goop (See, no technical terms!).

What happens next within this ooze is the appearance of a new type of cell, much in the same way a mental image appears in our mind. The pre-existing cells don’t change into these new cells; the new cells just seem to come out of nowhere. These are the imaginal cells.

At this amazing point in the life cycle, the imaginal cells “wake up.” During this activation, the imaginal cells are instinctively drawn to one another. When enough of them connect, they become the genetic directors of the future of the caterpillar. The exact amount of imaginal cells that must connect in order for the caterpillar-to-butterfly transformation to take place is unknown, but it appears to be less than 50%. At that crucial point, the other cells begin to putrefy and become a nutritive soup – feeding the imaginal cells while they create the miracle of the butterfly.

As the process continues, some imaginal cells change into wing cells, some change into antenna cells, some into digestive tract cells, and so on. In other words, they are no longer imaginal cells, but become specific butterfly tissue cells. By the time the butterfly emerges from its cocoon, it is impossible to find any imaginal cells in its body.

Read more about imaginal cells at at http://conversations-with-nature.com/imaginal-cells.

~Jim

Beacon Hill Park held a colony of Great Blue Herons for many years, with nearly 300 of the large birds gathering at one time in a few trees near Goodacre Lake. Three years ago they all left and the rookery fell silent. Now a few have returned and the huge nest builders have crafted their homes in some new trees near the lake.

I spent the afternoon there yesterday, watching the herons soar over the lake and listening to the excitement they generated in the visitors of all ages. There were plenty of other birds too, but the Great Blue Herons stole the show every time they spread their wide wings (that span up to 2 meters!) and took off.

Please note that these grand birds are on the provincial Blue List of vulnerable species compiled by the British Columbia Ministry of Environment, Lands and Parks. I’m hopeful we can learn from our mistakes to help these herons to once again thrive.

You can enjoy a wide variety of photographs of Great Blue Herons in my Galleries. Just click on the image of the heron below to see them. But if you can visit Beacon Hill Park and see them in person, do that instead. It’s a trip worth taking.  

~Jim          

The masterful musicians at Sunblossom Records, Kiki Carter Webb and Greg Webb, just released a music video of one of my favourite songs, Dear John (Lennon). Listening to the song by itself was a powerful and moving experience; but now that they have added the video —wow!

I was lucky enough to be invited to collaborate with them on this soulful endeavour and, if you’re familiar with my Nature Photos, you’ll recognize some of them during the last half of the video.

Their video, complete with lyrics, can be viewed here: http://dancinglight.us/dearjohn.html 

Enjoy!

~Jim  

Trees are poems that earth writes upon the sky,
We fell them down and turn them into paper,
That we may record our emptiness.
        ~Kahlil Gibran

Today is Earth Day – a day for demonstrating our love for Mother Earth. 

When I was a teenager, I planted a sprouting acorn in our yard. Today, there is a HUGE oak tree there and I am amazed and grateful every time I see it. Planting a tree is one of the most personally rewarding and environmentally beneficial things we humans can do. Beyond the pure joy of it, each tree we plant . . . 

¼  absorbs carbon dioxide, removing and storing the carbon while releasing the oxygen back into the air. 

¼  absorbs odours and pollutant gases (nitrogen oxides, ammonia, sulphur dioxide and ozone) and filters particulates out of the air by trapping them on their leaves and bark. 

¼  provides oxygen for us to breathe. 

¼  reduces runoff by breaking rainfall, thus allowing the water to flow down the trunk and into the earth below the tree. This prevents storm water from carrying pollutants to the ocean. 

¼  slows runoff and holds soil in place on hillsides or stream slopes. 

Celebrate this Earth Day by planting a tree! 

~Jim 

When I started this website, I chose the most environmentally friendly web hosting company I could find. That was over two years ago and I’m SO happy I made that decision back then because I have contributed far more to the well-being of our planet through that choice than through all the light bulbs I have replaced with energy efficient lighting.

My web host is 100% powered by Certified GREEN Renewable Energy Sources – in other words, TOTALLY GREEN! That alone would be worth it in my book to choose this web host but fortunately the benefits didn’t stop there.

I tried several other web hosting companies in the past and none of them gave me anywhere near the level of service and reliability that this one does. Plus, I use their free website builder to create and update the pages on my website all by myself! It’s a kind of website-for-dummies tool that lets me avoid having to pay a webmaster to do it for me. They also pay for my domain name (beaconhillphotos.com) registration and they renew it for me every year – all at no extra cost to me. If you have your own domain name already, they will even transfer it for you and begin to pay for it.  

Just click on the image of the Earth below and it will take you to a page on my site that will provide you with more information and access to the best discounts they offer. It really does make a significant difference to GO GREEN this way!

Many thanks,
~Jim    

If you are wondering what to do about climate change, here is the answer. The Climate Challenge is an interesting, informative and inspiring book. It is sub-titled, 101 Solutions to Global Warming; Getting Serious About Climate Challenge, and its author, Guy Dauncey, has simplified the issues of global warming and climate change so that all of us can get effectively involved, doing what we can, right where we are.