Iceland Never Disappoints

So how did this image happen? Allow me to tell you the story!

In early 2017, my friend’s son Noah had the urge to go on an adventure. I had recently quit my job and sold my business at the time. Robin asked me if I’d go with her son on a travel adventure because she couldn’t go, and didn’t want him travelling alone. Noah was 19 at the time.

So, with time and some money on my hands, I agreed.

Noah’s original plan was to tour around a bit in Central America. We did some initial research and then there was some bad headlines in the news about the stability of the region. So we decided we had better choose some other place.

Then, like a light bulb turning on, Iceland popped into our mind.

We learned all we could about Iceland. Booked some preliminary accommodations and flights on Iceland Air. What an adventure!

This photo was taken on Day 2 of our trip. As beautiful as this picture is, is doesn’t do justice to actually standing there, taking in this beautiful meadow with a glacier melt river running through it, with multiple waterfalls.

Our adventures entailed a flat tire, gale force winds, meandering through caves and crevices, crazy and narrow mountain roads, natural hot springs, and so much more!

If you fancy a trip to Iceland, you won’t be disappointed. However, be forewarned, it is not inexpensive!

I recently re-worked this photo to create a large print for a client. I am really looking forward to seeing it hang on the wall!

If you’d like to order a print, simple get in touch with me via the Contact Menu!

Tea Time on Lake Superior

Ice and Rocks Detail | (C) 2021 Thomas Detert

Over the years, I’ve seen many videos on YouTube of people undertaking an outdoor winter adventure. They hike somewhere breathtaking beautiful and enjoy a fire with a hot beverage.

Well, I live in Northern Ontario, and I figured, Hell, I can do that!. So I did, last Sunday.

You can watch our adventure in the video at the end of this blog post!

With the enlisted help and company of my friend Jake Cormier and his trusty furry companion Hudson, we embarked on a winter adventure.

We drove up to Lake Superior Provincial Park on a chilly Sunday morning. The air temperature was hovering around the -9 C (16 F) mark, with very little wind. We parked at the Orphan Lake trailhead and set out with two backpacks, with sandwiches, snacks, an ultra-light camper stove, some mugs and tea.

Overlooking Orphan Lake | Lake Superior Provincial Park | (C)2021 Thomas Detert

Once we reached the Orphan Lake Overlook, it was time to break out the sandwiches. Lunch sure does taste a whole lot better when you worked up and appetite and earned it! As we ate our lunch, the cloud cover broke up and left us with a spectacular view, with some of the weirdest lighting and cloud formation I had ever seen!

Weird light and clouds over Lake Superior. (C) 2021 Thomas Detert

The Orphan Lake Trail meanders its way down to the shoreline of Lake Superior. When we got there, it was time for tea. Jake scooped up a pot of ice cold Lake Superior water, and set it up to boil on his very small, ultra-light isobutane camp stove. Several minutes later, we were enjoying peppermint tea on the beach, on a cold winter’s day, on the shore of the largest freshwater lake in the world!

I was also most pleased with the snap I captured below. It is definitely one of my most favourite black and white photos I have ever taken!

Icy Patterns on a Sunny Day (C) 2021 Thomas Detert

As Jake put it, this day and adventure were one for the books.

If you’d like to share in our adventure, watch the video blog below!

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Thomas Detert is a landscape photographer based out of St. Joseph Island, Ontario, Canada. You can view more of his work, or reach out to him at https://www.tomsview.ca.

Sunny Ice Sheets

Morning sunrise creates interesting effects on the panes of ice forming on the north channel of Lake Huron.

Living in Canada, particularly in Northern Ontario, it is difficult to avoid winter. Sometimes it comes in a little late, with a mild start. But it eventually gets you: The cold, biting winds. The freezing rain. The snow drifts. It may lead one to question why I live here. And then you get to see images like this one above, but only right before your eyes, in real life.

This image was taken on the morning of January 8, 20201, as the sun was rising. We had not seen the sun in quite some time. The weather had been a dismal grey overcast, but mild. But after a high pressure system cleared the skies, the temperature, of course, plummeted overnight.

When I awoke that day, I heard a cacophony of sound emanating from the water. Dull groans, mixed with shrills and shrieks as the ice plates were lazily bumping into one another. I looked out my window and saw this beautiful site of fractured ice panes piling up on the shore, and then larger panes still floating out in the channel. It was all so very peaceful.

I won’t lie, winter is often very cruel and unpleasant here on St. Joseph Island, but there are days that redeem it.

I hope you enjoyed this little story about the photo.

This print, and many others in my gallery are available for purchase for you to enjoy at home, or to give as a gift to someone you care about. Just click on “Contact” to get in touch!

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Thomas Detert is a landscape photographer based on St. Joseph Island, Ontario, Canada.

You can enjoy more of Tom’s work at www.tomsview.ca.

Icy Reflections

The Story Behind Icy Reflections

Icy Reflections by Thomas Detert

It was a beautiful, sunny and relatively mild winter day in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, Canada. My friend Jake Cormier and I decided to take a drive north of the city, along Highway 17 to explore the Lake Superior Shoreline.

As we headed north, we lost the sunshine, and the vast majority of the wind.

We drove all the way up to Agawa Bay, located in the southern end of Lake Superior Provincial Park. The experience was surreal. The lake was completely open and with the exception of some snow in spots along the shoreline, it looked and felt like a cool summer day.

You could see the sand, the sand bars, and even some remnants of the grass blades growing out of the sand.

We worked our way down south, back towards Sault Ste. Marie.. We stopped at a popular photo spot known as SawPit Bay. It was at this location I photographed “Icy Reflections”. We were losing the light. However, the darkening light and sky made for a nice somber mood to photograph little microcosms in the bay.

Icy Reflections is the ultimate photo from the day’s shoot. I really love the mood it captures.