The question came for our daughter. “I have an opportunity to spend a semester in Guatemala learning Spanish, studying the history and culture of the Mayan people, doing part of my practicum. Should I go?”

With that Trudy and I thought - maybe we should go to Guatemala for our 30th anniversary trip? We started researching Guatemala.

I love coffee. My relationship to coffee has varied throughout the years, from enjoyed for its complex flavours to abused to fuel the caffeine- induced intensity that I needed to sustain my frenetic pace. So when Trudy and I were planning our trip to Guatemala in the fall of 2024, one of the short-listed activities was to visit a coffee plantation.

Small towns incubate creativity. This is one of my not-so-low-stakes hot-takes that I hold.

Factor number one—its lack of proximity to modern entertainment breeds a necessity to create your own amusement. The small town I grew up in had one general store/gas station, a post office, and a small hardware store. There was a 2-room elementary school and three churches.

“In English you have a saying, ‘Don’t judge a book by its cover’. Here in Antigua we have a saying, ‘Don’t judge a place by its door.”

Our shuttle driver introduced us to Antigua with these words.

Christmas time is a great time for photography. At its base form photography is all about capturing the effect of light in a moment in time. With all the decorations and lights this time of year allows opportunity to capture some interesting photos. Last night I figured I would do just that but with my drone.

It only happens twice a year.

Prior to the settlement of the prairie provinces in Canada, surveyors divided up the land into sections. The imperial mile was used to create a grid which follows the latitudinal lines. Thus, when roads were being created they tend to follow those straight lines separating the properties.

As I made my way to the middle of the field to capture a bevy of swans feeding in the midst of a gaggle of geese, I heard a noise behind and above me. Coming in to land were two more swans, wings out-stretched, calling out to the others that were on the ground. As they came to rest on the ground, the two swans began the dance.

A reflection on the faces of grief. This photo was part of the Dia de los Muertos processional in Antigua, Guatemala.

Telling the story of why this shot was on my bucket list of shots I wanted to create while on our trip to Guatemala.

Story about finding a great horned owl in an abandoned farm yard near Hodgeville, Saskatchewan. We were not sure what we would find when we arrived there but what was evident was the stories around every corner.

It is too easy for us to miss the obvious when we are in a hurry to judge. This article looks at the way in which religions are often merged together and that we need to take a more generous approach.

Just outside our hotel room in Antiqua, Guatemala is this courtyard. We’ve spent numerous hours here reading, writing, processing photos, and at times just listening to the bubbling water of the fountain.

We’ve arrived in Guatemala just as the rainy season has ended and the “dry” season has begun, which only means that it rains less now than throughout the summer months.

We all need our people to help us out of our funk.

Staying curious is at the core of what drives me in all aspects of my life. The story of this photo illustrates how staying curious can pay off in creating a beautiful life.

Sometimes our circumstances may look like failure, but they don’t need to cause us to be defeated. Let’s aim to do it next time with renewed determination and excitement.

Being a missionary’s kid sparked my interest in photography. A child of the 70s, the world was completely analog and cameras only used film. The life of a missionary family in Central America afforded few luxuries, so a single lens reflex camera with a hard shell case could easily have been interpreted at the time as somewhat of a luxury. In reality, that camera was a critical tool of the trade. 

We capture photos of special events in order to tell the stories. Perhaps we could do more to tell and listen to stories. This post tells the story of Trudy and I visiting London, England during Trooping the Colour in 2019.

Not always is it worth the wait. This time it was.

When I go out to shoot I most often go alone. Landscape photography requires thoughtful composition and the right conditions to make an amazing image. Both of those attributes require time and I hate to make people wait for me - thus I usually go alone. This day Trudy came along with me. Despite my concern that she would be bored, she brought a book and assured me that she would gladly wait.

The still water perfectly reflects all that is above. The naked trees standing on the lightly snow-covered island feature prominently in the image. The pre-dawn sky shows how the darkness is being chased across the blue horizon. Even a few wisps of clouds can be seen in the reflection.

The still water also hides so much more.

Explaining Jesus by Jordy Searcy is an artist’s apology for failing to communicate the truth of Jesus. It is one that too echo.