June Newsletter
Bull Kelp is a marine plant that grows in the ocean in masses, known as a kelp forest. It is found in the Pacific from Alaska to California. An essential food source and habitat for many marine life. Bull kelp is an annual seaweed, meaning it grows from a spore to maturity in a single year. It can reach heights of up to 30 m (about 100 ft) and grow at a rate of up to 25 cm (about 10 in) per day! The upper part of the stalk is a gas-filled float that enhances exposure to sunlight and promotes photosynthesis. This structure allows for the long, flat blades to sway in the current.
In the winter, when kelp die, they wash up on the beaches of the West Coast in masses of tangled matter. It is really a neat thing to see. When you step or jump on these bulbs they make the most satisfying pop. It is delightful.
I encourage you to engage is something that is delightful to you this month.
Ali xo
May Newsletter
May 2025
This photo was taken in my dear friend, Melanie's dance studio.. bathroom. Melanie is someone that I admire. She is always rewriting her life story with panache. A photographer, whose business, like mine, was heavily impacted by the pandemic, decided to create a space where people could come together to dance. Her photo studio wasn't being used for photography- so she opened it up for salsa and Latin dance classes. Like wildfire, the word spread and she now has two beautiful studios.
I was visiting her after a year of opening the new studio and she was showing me all of the renovations that had been done which included this awesome stencil of the bird on the old wallpaper- which I love.
This was the first image that I selected for the calendar. The soundscape that you just listened to was recorded in January, at the studio during a party. I was in the bathroom with my recording device to get the accurate sound of being in there, uh because I was. The flush was a "found" sound that I incorporated afterwards. Thanks Mel for the inspiration.
See you next month!
April Newsletter
Spring is in the air! Birds are chirping, the air is fresh and life is everywhere! (to my Ontario "peeps" it's coming) I want to celebrate my favourite season with this image and these sounds. The egg- symbolizing new life and this fun, disco background- all spell joy to me. This image was never intended for show. It was simply a lighting exercise. I was in my studio many years ago playing around with light ratios on the egg. I had this flimsy metallic paper and popped it in as a backdrop and voila!. All in camera, no photo shop here. I think it is fun to look at- it makes a sound, it's spring. Enjoy and I'll see you next month.
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Ali ox
March Newsletter
March along! This month's photo was taken from the window of a ferry traveling from downtown Vancouver to Nanaimo. The photo was taken with a shallow depth of field- the focus is on the salt spray which is dried on the window creating a pixelated effect to the scene. The background is the district of West Vancouver, it's buildings terraced up the mountainside.
What I find interesting is how we can trick our brains into seeing past what is directly in front of us and look beyond. I like how the further away I view this image- the clearer it becomes. A metaphor for the current events around us?
See you next month!
Ali ox
February Newsletter
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February. When I saw this image, the first thing that came to my mind was a heart, you know the beating organ in our chest. The black lines made me think of veins, and it almost has a 3D quality to it.
It is an image of sand on the beach with water flowing through it. The sound that made sense to me was the crashing waves on the beach and the beating heart merged together, so that's what I made. I hope that you are enjoying the sounds so far! See you next month!
Ali ox
2025 Calendar Newsletter
January Sound
2025 January Newsletter SOUNDS
Are you ready for the sounds? Click on the video
Rise and Shine! Welcome to 2025!
This year's calendar theme is Sounds and I hope that you have enjoyed the first one.
It may be cliche to begin this way but I love a new year! A fresh start with every intention to make changes, to right past wrongs, to do and be better. This image and the soundscape compels me to do just that. I hope that during this month you find inspiration to make that change, however big or small it may be. Ali ox
Happy New Year and Cock-a-Doodle Do!