Ian Andvaag A35 submission

Ferruginous Hawk Nest

I found this nest on a hike called “The Valley of 1000 Devils” in the East Block of Grasslands National Park. Hiking in the back-country is nice as you cant point your camera in nearly any direction without including any sign of human development. The English transliteration of the Latin scientific name for this bird is “Royal Buzzard” — surely Saskatchewan’s most impressive grassland bird.  Here it has used some bones to construct its nest. I wish I had a half stop less exposure here.

 

Narrow Hills Esker View

This one is a bit sad for me. I took this shot in Narrow Hills Provincial Park. It was a bit smoky the year I took this photo from forest fires further north — you can see the lack of contrast in the distance. (You can also see a blurry log in the foreground due to insufficient DOF, but try not to focus on that too much!) Well, during the summer of 2025, a large fraction of the park was burned in a forest fire, including this area. I guess it might be kinda interesting to go back and take some photographs after the fire.

 

Alley After Spring Storm

Back Alley Fence After Storm

Sorry for the two similar views, but I’d like to get your feedback. After a spring storm, the clouds cleared right around sunset and there was some really wild light. I was totally overcome by the atmosphere that I found myself immersed in. There were lots of wonderful wet reflective surfaces and great textures highlighted by the low angle of the sun peeking out from the clouds. I knew I only had a few minutes before the sun set, but I didn’t know where to point my camera. I was just around my house in a suburban environment and the neighborhood is rather photographically uninspiring ). I knew I had to try to shoot something in 3D, so I grabbed my TL-120 and ventured down the alley. I’m curious if you’ve ever found yourself in a similar situation. How would you approach shooting this situation? Do you see any potential compositions in these two slides that I overlooked?

 

Cheers and thanks for the many wonderful images this round!

Ian Andvaag D27 submission

70-Mile Butte

Taken on a hike on the west side of Grasslands National Park in southern Saskatchewan. The trail is only a couple miles long, and the trailhead is about 15 miles from the US border, so I’m not sure what the name refers to. The sun beats down hard and there is very little rain.

Boreal Floor

A close-up from Prince Albert National Park in central Saskatchewan. I blew the whites a bit, and a blade of grass is blowing in the wind. MF3D is tough to get right!

Bergenia in Wild Light

I was unsure about submitting this image (barely made the shortlist), but my test audience liked it, so I thought I’d see what the pros say. This was taken after a spring rainstorm. The clouds cleared away right before sunset and I had 15 minutes of absolutely crazy light. I couldn’t travel too far since time was short, I took a couple shots in the alleyway and this bedding plant. The dynamic range far exceeded what Velvia offers. This would have been clear candidate for an M-chrome.

Dickman Mill Ruins

These are some remains from a sawmill constructed in the late 1800s. Taken in Tacoma, WA during 3D-Con 2022. After mounting this slide, I did a google search to remind myself of the name of this location, and apparently the creosote treated pilings have now been removed.

Ian’s A34 Submission

My first three submissions this round are from Prince Albert National Park in the boreal forest of northern Saskatchewan. It’s one of my favourite places in the province, filled with natural beauty and quiet. There are many wonderful hiking trails. My brother is a new birder and I’ve been becoming more interested in it too. Last year we went to the park in June and enjoyed seeing some very colourful warblers. Unfortunately, the mosquitos were absolutely unbearable — literal clouds that followed you around. I don’t think I got a single MF3D shot. You had to keep moving and it takes me too long to set up a MF3D shot! I’m hoping that I’ll make it back there this summer and be able to shoot some slides.

Fisher Trail – Horsetail Marsh

Fisher Trail – Mushrooms

Gone Fishin’

My final submission is from a frosty day in Saskatoon along the river. We typically get maybe 3 days each year with substantial hoarfrost, so I try my best to take advantage of the uncommon occurrence and shoot some slides.

Frosty Saskatoon

Thanks for the great images, and thanks to Steven for taking over management of Folio A!

Ian Andvaag
Regina, SK

Georgetown Steam Plant, Seattle, Washington 2024

The Georgetown Steam Plant, owned by Puget Sound Energy, was built back in 1906 to power Seattle’s Streetcars and the small area of Georgetown. It ran until 1953, and then decommissioned in 1972. I was invited by a local camera club (through my coworker Sarah) to come by on a Saturday afternoon to visit. It reminded me of the abandoned hospitals and factories that I used to urban explore back on the East Coast. The only difference was that this was very clean, had lights on, was safe and most of all ‘legal’. This had been my first outing with my TL-120 in a long time. I had a ton of fun using it! I tend to use the Sputnik more often, thanks to it’s size and manageability. I was, and always have been, impressed by the sharpness and quality of the TL-120. Maybe I’ll become brave and take it internationally someday. Shot on Kodak E-100 Ektachrome.

Nut Thief

Nut Thief

Squirrel in Lincoln Park, West Seattle

I’m spending more time in Lincoln Park, across the street from my house in West Seattle. Decided to try for some close-ups of the squirrels that constantly hound you there. I brought the twin rig Hasselblads but that was a lot of work and something went wrong with the exposures. Operator error no doubt. The TL-120 images were more successful. Yes, there are problems with the background, but the flash isolates the subject in a way to make the background easier to ignore.

Ian’s D26 Submission

Owen’s Beach, Rushton Point, Tacoma, WA

I was struck by the lush green mossy branches and the cooler green ferns. It took me many attemps to parse a composition out of the complexity, and I’m not sure I really succeeded, but I think it gives the impression I was after.

Golden Gate Bridge, San Francisco, CA

I went on a business trip to San Francisco last year, and took a personal day to go walk around with a Sputnik. I haven’t developed the images from Chinatown yet, so I’m eager to see how those turned out.

Mount Rainier Pool, WA

This was taken during the excursion to Mt. Rainier during the 2022 3D Con in Tacoma. It was inspiring to be able to shoot in the same place where I’ve seen so many wonderful folio submissions, in particular Don’s. It was also a delight to be able to visit and photograph alongside Bob. Not to mention the many outstanding slides Bob brought to share on the bus ride. What a great day!

Douglas Park Lily, SK

I was hiking back to my car after a day of photographing the sand dunes at Douglas Park. The sun had nearly set and the light was fading, when I came across a handful of Western Red Lilies, which is Saskatchewan’s provincial flower in the undergrowth. The fiery colour was striking against the undergrowth. It was one of the rare times in Saskatchewan when there was hardly a breath of wind. I think this was a 10 second exposure. Evidently, there was a breath of wind, as observed in the white flowers, but I think it still came out OK, and I’m glad I had a roll of Velvia to capture the vibrant colours.

Tom & Small Cube

My friend Tom Noddy displays one of his more renowned bubble creations. The cube is constructed by blowing a bubble and catching it so it is hanging from his bubble wand. A second bubble of equal size is blown beneath, so it is attached and suspended below the top bubble. It looks like an hourglass, with a flat membrane between the two bubbles. Next four more equal sized bubbles are blown around the “waist” of the hourglass, so they connect. And finally a smoke-filled bubble is blown into the middle of it all.

This was shot with several flash units scattered around the room, and black velvet draped behind to isolate Tom and the Bubble.

Tom Noddy displays a bubble cube

Tom Noddy displays a bubble cube