Bill Smith's Photography

Sometimes you don't have to wander far from where you are staying to get some great shots..... Camera: Asahi Pentax KX, SMC Pentax M 50 f1.4 lens. Film:  Kodak Portra 400 for colour film. Asahi Pentax MX, SMC Pentax M 50 f1.7 lens. Film: Rollei RPX 400, HC110 B. for black and white.

We had the best of intentions of going exploring, months ago doing some research I came across Limberlost Nature Preserve which is like a 10-15 minute drive away from us at Bella Lake. While the trip has historically has been built around Algonquin Park, these days Highway 60 has started to resemble the Toronto Eaton Centre Mall in downtown Toronto at Christmas time and we wanted to avoid the chaos. That was the plan,  hike Limberlost Nature Preserve, well that's where that phrase "Famous last words" comes into play. First off the weather forecast went from a nice weekend to a miserable one. I kept tabs on the Weather Network site with an eagle eye for a week before the trip. It was a miserable forecast for Greater Toronto/Southern Ontario, rain from Thursday to Monday. Cottage country was going to be dry until Saturday. It was dry from the Kawarthas northward. Combine the threat of rain with the fact it felt like "Summer Camp" for middle aged adults, we didn...

I never get tired of photographing Dorset Ontario to the point of being almost obsessive about it. The Lake of Bays is my favourite side of Muskoka and I have a family connection with relatives working at the Bigwin Resort back in the 1940s as summer jobs for university. If you ask me where paradise is, I'm going to point to the Lake of Bays part of Muskoka and points north towards the other side of Bella Lake between Huntsville and Algonquin Park. Love beaches and all but give me the woods and lakes any day of the week. Black and White shots: Camera: Asahi Pentax MX, SMC Pentax M 50 f1.7 lens. Film: Rollei RPX 400, HC110 B. Colour Shots: Camera: Asahi Pentax KX, SMC Pentax M 50 f1.4 lens, Film: Kodak Ultramax 400.

My second home other than Oakville, and this is the neighbourhood's main street. Camera: Asahi Pentax KX, SMC Pentax M 50 f1.4 lens. Film: Kodak Ultramax 400

A slightly different route this time. Camera: Asahi Pentax KX, SMC Pentax M 50 f1.4 lens. Film: Kodak Ultramax 400

Had so much fun shooting in the Don Valley from Riverdale down to the Riverside neighbourhood (or west Leslieville depending which real estate agent you talk to), I did it again only this time using Cinestill 50D. If you are up on Broadview north of Bridgepoint Health, check The Rooster Coffee House, I think I found my new favourite source of caffeine in the east end. Camera: Asahi Pentax KX, SMC Pentax M 50 f1.4 lens, SMC K 28 f3.5 lens. Film: Cinestill 50D