One of the major temples in the Gyeongju region is Seokguram where a large statue of Buddha is carved from a single piece of stone. Photography is prohibited inside the temple, but the intricate roof details shown here were quite interesting.  I just love all the colour they put into everything!  The attention to detail is incredible and I can only imagine how much effort they must have put in to construct these temples, and even modern structures.

This ancient Korean observatory is apparently the oldest in Eastern Asia. I’m not entirely sure why they needed to build a massive stone structure to sit approximately ten to fifteen feet off the ground (couldn’t they make a treehouse of sorts and save a lot of effort?) but they did.

I was really lucky to snap a shot of this traditional Korean warrior. While waiting for my Korean tour guide to finish her Korean spiel on the site, I turned around to see this warrior on horseback riding past. Apparently I had just missed some reenactment of some sort and they were leaving. Luckily I had camera in hand and was able to snap a few quick shots!

These hills are actually royal tombs where the ancient rulers of Korea are buried. These are located right in the middle of the city of Gyeongju where I was staying. As this was taken in winter, the grass was brown, but still makes for a scenic landscape. In total there are 35 royal tombs in this area and plenty of others. In fact, one can see recent burial mounds located throughout the country, on road sides, in woods, and in fields.

An historic graveyard in Boston, MA. A number of the USA’s founding fathers are buried here, including John Hancock and Samuel Adams.

Some colourful fishing boats docked at the marina at Cape Cod.

Since it is now autumn, I thought this photo was somewhat appropriate. It’s the roof of an auditorium at MIT, in Boston. It has a striking resemblance to a leaf (it’s even green in colour). Not sure if it’s the architect’s intent, but I think it’s fairly eye catching.

A giant Coca Cola sign above the grandstand in Fenway Park, Boston.

A look up through the stairwell of the Pilgrim Monument in Provincetown, MA.

The old lifesaving station at the tip of Cape Cod, MA.

These Canadian geese did a low altitude fly-by in front of me while I was photographing the Canadian International Airshow in Toronto. I guess they were feeling left out and wanted some attention as well!

Luckily for me, the camera was set to AI servo and was able to focus quickly as I panned to catch the birds in my viewfinder. A lucky shot indeed!

Taken just after dawn, the water was almost as smooth as glass. Post processing was done to give the photo an aged look to warm it up and add a timeless sense to the photo.

On a recent sailing course, we anchored for the night near Waupoos island in Lake Ontario (near Kingston). The cloudless sunset was short-lived, but the colours that appeared at dusk were worthy of a photo, like the one above.

Thousands of paper butterflies fill the Rogers Centre at a Coldplay concert in Toronto on July 30. The butterflies were launched during the song Lovers in Japan / Reign of Love. This was one of the highlights from a wonderfully interactive and generally amazing concert.

A bed of lush green fern found on the Fundy Trail. Slight exposure and saturation boost was employed.

These are the Fuller Falls, located near St. Martins, N.B. on the Fundy Trail Parkway. The falls are at the bottom of a ravine, accessed via a cable ladder that leads you straight down the steep slope. It’s more like stairs with handrails, but it’s all made out of wire cable and slippery wood rungs. There is a handy observation deck at the bottom, complete with sturdy handrails that I used to rest the camera on for the slow exposure. Without the handrails, this photo would not have turned out.

The overcast skies and fog annoyed me at first, as I thought they would hinder any good landscape shots. But they actually helped out here as the reduced light allowed for longer exposures of the falls. This helps create a nice soft and smooth feel to the water. A circular polarizer was also used.

This is the trail down to the Hopewell flower pot rocks, shown in my last post. The forest was so green and lush I just had to take a picture of it. Only slight saturation adjustments were made to the image to try to convey the lushness of the forest.

Located on the Bay of Fundy, the Hopewell Rocks are unique formations that can be explored both by sea kayak or on foot, thanks to the world’s largest tides. I managed to arrive at low tide (or slightly thereafter) and was able to walk around the many “flower pot” formations, such as the one pictured here.

Of all the shots I took today, I think this is my favorite. In general, the lighting was difficult with the sun casting most of the rock formations in silhouette. The masses of tourists also didn’t help, as they were constantly in the shots. The location of this formation allowed it to be lit from the side, providing some detail in the rock. It was also located away from most of the other formations so the tourists didn’t find it (except for me of course!).

As seen from the 54th floor of the TD Centre, the First Canadian Place tower (home to the Bank of Montreal) is Toronto’s tallest.

The white tiles are made of marble and are slowly being replaced as required. One tile fell 60 floors back in 2007 which prompted road closures and periodic investigations. The darker ones are older and the whiter ones are newer, which makes the building look a little worse for wear.

Went to the TD Centre in downtown Toronto this weekend to tour the 54th floor as part of the Doors Open Toronto event. More to come from the 54th floor, but this shot was taken at the ground level plaza, in between the tall towers that make the centre.