To Visitors to Regina

Regina is so beautiful! To be honest, if this city of 236000 people always offers surprises and spectacles like the ones I witnessed a week ago, I might even want to stay here for rest of my life.

Last Thursday, I decided to go on a photography exploration trip, one in which I will be putting my photography skills into use. I explored one of the most beautiful spots in my city, a bicycle trail in the largest urban park in North America. Every city has something to boast, and while some small towns take pride in their INSERT HERE , Regina residents has Wascana Park, a natural park bigger than Central Park in New York and taking up half of the city. In such a big place, there are, naturally, spots that are frequented by travellers and those that aren’t. One of the latter is a section of the bike trails that are merely three meters away from the highway, as shown in the map below.

I cannot describe the feeling I had other than to vaguely state it as a feeling of happiness and fulfillment. Seeing cars whizzing by at the speed of 100 km/h and saying hi to occasional bike riders make me feel being in the member of an exclusive club.

I went to that specific spot because firstly, this is in my opinion the most breathtaking scenery I have ever seen in Regina, and secondly, I went there specifically to experiment photography of fast-moving objects.  The first point is to highlight such a jewel in Regina to those residents who might be reading this. If you are not from Regina, I hope you enjoy the photos anyway (seriously, there is something spectacular in every city). 

Something I came across on my way to the trail beside the highway. Any guesses as to where this is?

Something else I came across. Someone forgot their shoes?

All pictures are taken with a Samsung Grand Prime, with minimal editing (some got Auto-enhanced by Google Photos). As you can see, most amateur photographers rely on the abundance of light to stage their art. This is a good place to start learning, as there is enough light nearly half of the time every day. I recommend getting familiar with different photography techniques in sunny conditions; then, deal with cloudy conditions; then rainy ones; then night time. Why? Because the less light there is, the less freedom the photographer has over how the photo will look, and the scene is generally more difficult to work with. Last Thursday was the “sunny expedition.”

It is funny. I took the images without much process of deliberate thought, and yet, after my selection of the images to post here, I found one common quality among them: the contrast of color. The first image is mainly a clash of light green and sky blue. The second, one of grey and blue. The last, a red subject standing out in a green background. In these set of images, the contrast of colours gave them life, which, of course, is exactly how the scenery felt in those moments–active and teeming with life.

Hmm… so this is how colour affects mood.

Another thought: the fact that three different pictures of different subjects share the same theme when I did not intend them to is remarkable. My trip would be more accurately described with a gallery than with one single picture. Tell me whether you think this statement can be extended to include or occasions.

Wait for future posts to find out how successful I was in capturing the motion of cars during the trip… (hint: I never thought it would be this difficult). Thanks for your support!

What is your favorite spot in YOUR city?