IMPROVE YOUR PHOTOGRAPHY | Photo walk #1 at Lions Park, Fort McMurray

At least once a week I try to go for a photo walk or excursion! I typically choose a location and photograph whatever catches my eye. This weeks photo walk was at Lions Park in Fort McMurray.

I go for these photo excursions to practice my photography, relax and just get out of the house.

I did find myself agreeing with Chris Sale’s a landscape photographer from England in that filming YouTube videos can be a distraction when you’re trying to practice your photography. For me, I’m trying to film myself, film b-roll, and compose my shots and it can be hard. So in this try I wanted to focus less on filming myself and more on my photography all while still telling a story. Check below to see what I was able to produce!

When I get to a location I always look for a couple shots:

• Shot that will set the scene

• Detail shots

• Patterns or textures

• Something to shoot through

All images taken on the Olympus EM1 Mark II :)

ISO 200 | 1/200 | f/2.8

ISO 200 | 1/200 | f/3.2

ISO 200 | 1/200 | f/3.2

ISO 200 | 1/200 | f/3.2

This mural can be found at Lions Park in Fort McMurray (3 Tolen Drive). It was painted by Daniel J. Kirk and Ivan Ostapenko and was unveiled on September 18th, 2015.

ISO 250 | 1/125 | f/2.8

If I’m struggling to compose a shot I like to do one of the following things:

• Fill the frame

• Look for patterns or textures

• Get low

ISO 200 | 1/80 | f/3.2

ISO 250 | 1/60 | f/2.8

ISO 250 | 1/250 | f/2.8

ISO 250 | 1/250 | f/3.2

ISO 250 | 1/250 | f/2.8

ISO 250 | 1/200 | f/2.8

Towards the end of my photo walk I thought I would try some self-portraits!

ISO 400 | 1/200 | f/2.8

ISO 400 | 1/200 | f/2.8

ISO 400 | 1/200 | f/2.8

I found I was able to create significantly more photos in this try than I have in the past. This could be because of the location but it could be because I was dedicating more time to photography than filming.

Follow Along!

In this week’s video I take you to Lions Park in Fort McMurray!

FAVORITE PHOTOGRAPHY APPS | Editing, Planning & Creating

I split a lot of my photography workflow between my Macbook and iPhone. Typically, when I am posting images to my instagram account @beautifullywander I edit and plan on my phone and if I post on my website or YouTube I create on my laptop. Follow along to see what my favourite photography apps are!

Lightroom

I used to edit on VSCO for the specific reason that you could copy your edits and paste onto other images for free. However, a few months ago I started using Lightroom and recently purchased the paid version so I can edit images on my laptop and have the copy-paste version on my phone.

In the video I take you through how I edit my images in Lightroom to be posted on @beautifullywander.

Planoly

After I edit the images I want to upload to my Instagram I use Planoly to plan out my feed. I look for what images will allow me to keep a consistent and coherent feed.

You can schedule your posts in Planoly but I mostly use it to plan my feed.

Caption Kit

I used to put periods when I wanted line breaks on my instagram captions until I discovered Caption Kit! With this app I can copy my text from my notes app and paste it into the app, when you hit generate it will copy the text into your clipboard and when you paste into Instagram it will copy over.

Unfold

I love Unfold to create my Instagram layouts! I have a few favorites that I like to use (Ripped Paper and Northwell text). Like my Instagram feed I wanted to create a form of branding with my Instagram stories and this makes it possible!

Other Apps

Camera Connect Apps (Canon & Olympus)

I typically use the camera connect apps for transferring images wirelessly. I LOVE this capability now with cameras! I don’t always carry my laptop with me so it’s nice if I want to only transfer a few images to be able to do that and not have to wait until I get home.

You can remotely control your camera with these connect apps which I don’t use too often but I want to definitely try and use it more on our future travels!

Canon Mini Printer

I bought a Canon Mini Printer last Christmas so I can print photos for my journal and I love it! It connects to my phone so I can print any photo on my phone onto mini polaroid paper.

Squarespace App

I don’t use the Squarespace app too often on my phone - I mostly create my website content on the laptop but it’s nice having the capability to create or make quick fixes on the go!

Follow Along!

You can follow along on how I edit, create and plan my content for Beautifully Wander on YouTube!

Samples Images from the Olympus OM-D E-M1 Mark II

Unfortunately, the Buffalo’s weren’t out when I went to the Buffalo View Point here in Fort McMurray so here are some adorable pictures I took of my pup Pepsi!

ISO 640 | 1/500 | f/2.8

Those are my favorite photography apps on my iPhone for editing, planning and creating! I hope you enjoyed and see you next time! :)

OLYMPUS EM1 MARK II | MY SETUP + CUSTOMIZATION

I LOVE how much you can customize your setup in the Olympus system! There are so many buttons that you can map so when you’re shooting the camera feels natural to you! Feel free to follow along by playing the video where I walk you through the following steps and check out the actual images I have taken with this camera at the bottom of this page!

SHOOTING CONTROL PANEL

By clicking on the top left button it will bring up your entire shooting control panel where you can change your ISO, white balance, card slot reading, image stabilization, face auto detect, etc.,

I liked where this button is mapped right now so I have left it where it is.

ISO

You can change your ISO in the shooting control panel by going to the top left of the screen but I mapped ISO to the AEL/AFL button by:

-Clicking MENU

-Scrolling to the CUSTOM MENU (GEAR ICON)

-Down to B

-Over to BUTTON FUNCTION

-Down to AEL/AFL FUNCTION

-Selecting ISO/WB (where the back dial changes the ISO and the front dial changes white balance)

MEMORY CARD

The EM1 Mark II has dual slot memory cards that you can map as well by:

-Scrolling down to the MEMORY CARD 1 AND 2

-Selecting your preference

IMAGE STABILIZATION

Your Image Stabilization helps reduce the amount of camera shake when you’re shooting in low light or with high magnification and you can do this by:

-Scrolling down to the IMAGE STABILIZER ON THE LEFT HAND SIDE

-Selecting S-IS1 for all direction shake (if you want specifically vertical or horizontal shake you can select S-IS2 or S-IS3)

If you would rather you can also change the Image Stabilization by:

-Clicking on MENU

-Scrolling down to CUSTOM MENU (GEAR ICON)

-Scrolling down to C2

-Clicking on IMAGE STABILIZER and switching it to S-IS1, S-IS2 or S-IS3

FACE AUTO-DETECT

I have been primarily shooting landscapes and travel photos with not a lot of people so I turned my face auto-detect off by:

-Scrolling down to the SMILEY FACE icon

-Clicking OFF

AUTOFOCUS (AF) AREA

Out of the gate if you scroll to the AF Area it is by default set to cover the entire area but you can change it by using the back dial button to change your AF area.

SINGLE AF | CONTINUOUS AF | MANUAL FOCUS

Switching between the different modes of focusing is super simple by:

-Clicking on the AF BUTTON on the top left of the camera

-Scrolling to choose SINGLE AF, CONTINUOUS AF OR MANUAL

By default this button is mapped to do this function and I like where it is currently so I have left it alone.

If you would rather you can also change your autofocus in the MENU by:

-Scrolling to the CUSTOM MENU (GEAR ICON)

-Selecting A1

-Selecting the AF MODE and changing it to single, continuous or manual focus

MANUAL FOCUS CLUTCH

I do like switching between single autofocus and manual focus so I have left the manual focus clutch as operative. The Manual Focus Clutch is the feature on the lens of the camera that you can switch on and off between auto focus and manual. You can disable or enable it by:

-Clicking on the MENU

-Scrolling down to the CUSTOM MENU (GEAR ICON)

-Scroll down to A3

-Click on MF CLUTCH and switch it to OPERATIVE or INOPERATIVE

RESETTING CUSTOMIZATIONS

If you want to reset your camera to start fresh you can reset by:

-Scrolling to SHOOTING MENU 1

-Clicking on RESET/CUSTOM MODE

SHOOTING SETTINGS

You can change your shooting settings such as to self-timer, sequential, interval by:

-Scrolling to SHOOTING MENU 1

-Scrolling to the very bottom and select the mode you want

ANTI-SHOCK

Your Anti-Shock will help you prevent any small vibrations that occur when you press the shutter, you can set it by:

-Clicking on SHOOTING MENU 2

-Scrolling to ANTI-SHOCK

-Setting it to 0

AF AREA POINTER

If you want to display your frame while the shutter button is half pressed :

-Scroll down to CUSTOM MENU (GEAR ICON)

-Toggle over to A1

-Scroll down to AF Area Pointer

-Change it to On2

AF TARGETING PAD

By enabling the AF Targeting Pad you can use the viewfinder and use your fingers on the screen to change where you’re focusing, to do this in the CUSTOM MENU:

-Toggle over to A2

-Scroll to the AF Targeting Pad

-Switch to ON

AF ILLUMINATOR

To turn off the AF Illuminator:

-Scroll down to the AF Illuminator

-Switch to OFF

BUTTON FUNCTIONS

You can change a lot of the buttons on the Olympus and make it perfect for you!

Scroll down to B

-Toggle over to BUTTON FUNCTION

-From here you can go in and really change and map your buttons (I changed the AEL/AFL Button on the back of the camera to change my ISO and White Balance)

LIVE BOOST MODE

By turning off Live Boost Mode you can see the exposure settings and the image you see is the same as that of the final product, to do this:

-Scroll down to D2 in the CUSTOM MENU

-Turn the Live Boost Mode OFF

EQUALLY VALUE

I set my Default Setting to Equally Value so when I preview my image and zoom in it directly goes to 1:1 ratio, to do this:

-Scroll down to Default Setting

-Set it to Equally Value

AF CONFIRMATION BEEP

When you are shooting and your autofocus is confirmed it will by default beep, to turn it off:

-Scroll down to D4 in the CUSTOM MENU (GEAR ICON)

-Toggle over to the first selection (AF CONFIRMATION BEEP)

-Turn it OFF

NOISE REDUCTION

You can change the amount of noise reduction performed at high ISO sensitivity by changing the Noise Filter - I don’t shoot a lot right now in high ISO so I’ve turned mine off:

-Scroll down to E1 in the CUSTOM MENU (GEAR ICON)

-Toggle down to NOISE FILTER

-Turn it OFF

JPEG IMAGE QUALITY MODE

I’ve switched my JPEG Image Quality Mode to superfine by:

-Scrolling down to G in the CUSTOM MENU (GEAR ICON)

-Toggle down to JPEG Image Quality Mode

-Set the first image (second box) to SF (superfine)

KEEP WARM COLOR

I also turn my Keep Warm Color Off and change the color space to Adobe RGB by:

-Scrolling down KEEP WARM COLOR

-Switching it OFF

-Scrolling down to COLOR SPACE

-Switching it to ADOBE RGB

EVF AUTOSWITCH

When you are using the Olympus camera you have a viewfinder and a screen that you can see what you are capturing, by default it is set to automatically switch when you put your eye to the viewfinder and when you bring it down it will switch to the screen, to turn this off:

-Scroll down to I

-Toggle over to EVF AUTOSWITCH

-Turn it OFF (I like this feature so I leave mine ON)

PICTURE VIEWING

To save battery I have heard that you can turn the image viewer off - I do this when I am travelling and its important to conserve battery, to do this:

-Scroll down to the SETUP MENU on the left hand side (TOOL ICON)

-Scroll down to REC VIEW

-Scroll and choose what you would prefer - 0.5 seconds, 0.3 seconds, OFF, etc.,

SAVE CUSTOMIZATIONS

To save any of your customizations that you make on the camera for next time:

-Click on the SHOOTING MENU 1

-Toggle over to RESET/CUSTOM MODES

-Scroll down to ASSIGN TO CUSTOM MODE

-Select which CUSTOM MODE you want to set it to C1, C2 or C3 on the top dial (I’ve set mine to C1)

Follow along!

Feel free to follow along with my video on how I setup my camera!

Sample Images from the OM-D E-M1 Mark II

CHOOSING A CAMERA

Last week I posted a blog post and video about my unboxing of the Olympus OM-D E-M1 Mark II and today I wanted to share:

• How I chose which camera to buy

• Why I picked the Olympus system

• Why I chose the EM1 Mark II over the Mark III

Scroll down to the bottom if you’d rather watch a video!

Choosing a Camera

When I started the journey to find the “perfect camera” I poured over YouTube videos watching everything and anything that would tell me what camera to buy - of course everyone had a different opinion.

I realized later that depending on what you want to shoot and what your photography niche is certain features of a camera are going to be more and less important to you.

So I made a list of what I wanted to photograph:

• Travel photography - streets, landscapes, culture, food, and architecture

• Storytelling photography - families and couples

• Social impact photography - events and companies that are doing great things for the world

I then made a list of what I wanted in a camera:

• Mirrorless camera

• Light and compact for travelling

• Budget hovered around $2000

• Front facing screen

• WiFi connection

• Use it professionally

• Solid lens selection

• Good quality reviews

• Aesthetically pleasing

• Produce amazing quality images

The four companies I looked at were Canon, Sony, Fujifilm and Olympus.

I watched several reviews on Youtube and researched Instagram accounts and what I ended up finding was that:

• I didn’t care for the mirrorless lens and camera selection for Canon

• I did have my eye out for the Sony A7III but I really wanted a camera with the front facing screen and the price point was hard to justify without this feature I really wanted

• I did love the Fujifilm aesthetic but I had hesitations on using it professionally

The Olympus System

The Olympus system ticked more boxes:

• It was a mirrorless system

• It had a front facing screen

• It was within my budget

• I was happy with my lens selection and camera lineup

• There were good quality reviews of the camera

• I could use it professionally

• I could upgrade easily

• It was light and compact

• Aesthetically looked good

Why I chose the EM1 Mark II over the Mark III

The primary reason why I chose the Mark II over the Mark III was because of my budget for the camera. Here in Canada a Mark III on Amazon would go for about $3400 and on Best Buy or the Olympus store would be around $3200.

The Mark II that I bought with the 12-40mm f/2.8 was on sale for $2000 at Best Buy.

To get the Mark II it would have been an additional $1200 to $1400 investment that wasn’t in my budget.

I also really wanted to purchase the 12-100mm f/2.8 so instead of waiting to have enough savings for a Mark III and an additional lens which would have taken a while I decided to purchase the Mark II.

I did spend a lot of time debating between the two because I wanted to produce that magic that I have seen other photographers create with the Olympus system. Although I watched a lot of YouTube on what camera to buy I didn’t find the numbers and technical details super helpful because I’m a visual learner/person so I wanted to see images of what this camera could do - so I found websites like The Wander Lens and Instagram accounts like Brooke Little Bear more helpful.

Of course, if the opportunity came along to upgrade to the Mark III I definitely would, but I am more than happy with my current purchase.

Sample Images from the OM-D E-M1 Mark II

Choosing a Camera + Why I Chose Olympus

See below for a video capturing how I chose my camera, and why I chose Olympus and the Mark II!

OLYMPUS OM-D E-M1 MARK II UNBOXING

In December 2019 I decided I wanted to pursue photography as a hobby and because I didn’t know which system I wanted to invest my money in I bought the Canon M100 as a beginner camera. It was small, affordable and it allowed me to learn about cameras and photography and venture away from automatic.

My first trip with this camera was Denver, Colorado - it was here that I really tried to pay attention to composition.

After returning back home I decided that I wanted to pursue photography more professionally and purchase a professional camera for my next trip - New York!

After hours of research, watching Youtube videos, reading reviews/articles, and scrolling on Instagram I decided to invest in the Olympus camera system.

Why did I choose the Olympus system over the other popular brands - Sony and Canon?

1. The Olympus system is compact and light for travelling. Often when I travel back home to Kelowna or internationally we fly carry-on only so everything that I bring needs to fit either in that or my purse that fits under the seat.

2. The camera body and lens have great weather sealing. On our second day in Athens it freakishly hailed a ton in the afternoon. We had just finished our Acropolis tour outside when it started so we were able to make it inside but you never know when you’ll run into some bad weather!

3. I wanted crisp images. I poured over Instagram accounts specific to Olympus, watched Youtube videos and read articles because I wanted to be able to produce those images with outstanding detail.

4. I loved the company behind Olympus! You can really see that they invest not only in their camera quality but their buyers and users too! I loved how they are constantly producing useful content for their users on their website and Instagram.

What was I looking for in a camera?

1. It needed to be light and compact for travel purposes

2. Full-articulating screen

3. Capable of producing crisp images

4. Within my price range

Camera unboxing!

See below for a video of my first unboxing!

I bought this camera in early March in anticipation of my trip with my mom to New York. However, because of the global pandemic (COVID-19) we did cancel our trip.

I hope you enjoyed this post! To come along on my photography and Olympus journey follow me on Instagram at Beautifully Wander!

MY BEAUTIFUL OASIS: WHITE LAKE

White Lake is the one place on this earth that I would repeatedly go back to every year! For me White Lake is more than a place…

I love driving down the windy road through the forest and seeing the set of mailboxes that indicate we’re here.

I love the features that shape this place - the turtles, lilly pads, the beautiful water and the familiar houses across the lake.

I love the night sky and the beautiful stars.

I love the family activities we do here - playing Sticks and Gaji and drinks by the campfire.

There are so many beautiful places in British Columbia, Canada, the world but White Lake is my favorite place because of the memories I make here.

We have been coming here as a family for years and that’s what makes this place so special.

This post is dedicated to my Grandfather - Noboru Ikesaka. It’s been 10 years since you passed. You are what started this journey, this blog. You are who I dedicate Beautifully Wander to.

“Even those who are gone, are with us as we go on”

Charity Sanoy, Cam Clarke, Ladysmith Black Mambazo

Happy Birthday Grandpa.