This one time I got to paddle around a big ‘ol lake in the middle of an Amazonian national park. There were all sorts of creatures residing in, on, above and around this lake. This group of birds of an unknown species were doing just that, and having a time of it by the looks of things.

Ohhhh dang. I never in all my years thought I was going to be able to see one of these little fellas in person, but lo and behold! I live an awesome life.

This candle was on a table at a Peruvian hostel we stayed at that did not have any electricity. This was much less rare than you may think.

I want to you take a moment to think about the angle required to get a photo like this. Rather steep. Perhaps 70°? More? I’m not sure. I shot this trekking in Peru in the Colca Canyon, which is twice as deep as the Grand Canyon. The paths going down the canyon were around a metre wide, and occasionally had straight drops over half a vertical kilometer. This shot was down one of those cliffs, and across a river. I wish I could convey the feeling of being perched on the side of this massive canyon, but it is entirely futile to attempt. It is an indescribable feeling you will only get if you have the luck to experience something like this for yourself. For your sake, I hope you all do.

If you attempted to check 390nm yesterday, you may have noticed you were redirected to a webpage explaining what SOPA is and why it is bad. 390nm lended it’s small help towards a cause undertaken by such giants as Wikipedia and Google. This cause is keeping the internet free of censorship in the form of opposing SOPA and PIPA. The fact that the United States senate is still attempting to pass such an Orwellian law, despite it going directly against the constitution, not to mention the pleas of nearly every expert in the field, is nothing short of deplorable. The bill has not yet passed, but nor has it been thrown out. All must stay vigilant, especially you Americans reading this. Write a letter to your congressman. Seriously.

In other news, this is the ugliest rooster I have ever seen in my entire life.

Peru, you have the best fruit. Seriously.

I know I just wrote about the Amazon fairly recently, but seriously the place is unreal. The diversity of plant and animal life is hardly exaggerated. I mean, look at the colour of these flower petals. It’s rare that you see synthetics that are that vibrant. The animal life is no less spectacular. I could show you pictures of caymen, or perhaps some more monkeys, but instead I have this shot of a predatory bird. To my Canadian eye, it looks rather like an osprey but I’m reasonably sure that is not the case. Any of you bird watchers out there feel free to enlighten me as to the species of this little fellow.

Ahh dang. Here’s some Peruvian grass for y’all.

This is my dad kayaking in the Amazon last September. I am very pleased with how this photo turned out as I wasn’t at all looking through the viewfinder. Instead, I turned around the camera and blindly took the photo over my shoulder. Note my raggedy shirt pictured in bottom left and in the top, the tip of my goofy hat.

I also like this photo because it shows how incredibly vibrant the Amazon is. I did not doctor this photograph whatsoever; no, the vegetation is actually that green. It is absolutely beautiful.

I have lately been finding it interesting to shoot simple patterns. I’m not entirely sure what it is; perhaps taking a complex situation and simplifying fulfills something within. Who knows. Anywho, here are two shots from my recent trip to Peru. The first is the underside of a gazebo-esque structure at the bottom of the Colca Canyon.This other fella was taken in the midst of a fish market on the coast of the capital city of Lima. Behind this stack of colourful crates there were hundreds of small fishing boats, all of which looked like they were barely keeping afloat.