Cherry blossoms after a hard winter
Finally feeling a little more alive again
April 23, 2026
This felt like an especially hard winter. I'm not entirely sure why. It kind of started a little early, and though it had some enjoyable thaws did drag on. The Toronto area saw near record 24 hour snowfall, upwards of 60cm one day. In general I just didn't make enough time for creativity, namely photography. Here is some Fujicolor Pro 400h:
But that is changing. Spring is finally here. Our garden has come to life, hyacinths and daffodils are blooming. The valley by our suburban home is full of trout lily in their full splendor, and as of yesterday trillium are beginning to open. I took a couple cameras out to do a little hanami on a chilly overcast Sunday. My trusty Leica MP with the Zeiss 35mm/2.8 - my favorite outdoor walk around lens, and the Pentax 645n2 with the 120 macro. Here is some Kodak Vision 3 500T:
It's kind of an odd pairing, the essentially fully mechanical camera with the extremely automated SLR. But it sort of works. Snap a quick picture with the MP, focus your craft and steady your hand to compose a picture with the Pentax. I sometimes enjoy having two very different tools because they make you see the world in very different ways.
While our neighborhood has a few young trees, I think Hamilton actually beats Toronto for cherry blossom photography. Toronto's High Park (and a few other sites in the core) have some great mature trees, but they attract massive crowds which can be nice but isn't always the vibe I want. Meanwhile Hamilton (and the Royal Botanical Gardens) have some spectacular trees that are often much more serene. Here is 400h again:
It really felt good to go out and just have some dedicated camera time in nature. Some winters I do a better job at maintaining a creative outlet, this year not so great. But spring is here and I am back in my element and happier because of it. A series of forms on 500T:
