At the beginning of the month our daughter was playing in an adult soccer tournament in British Columbia, so we tagged along for the weekend to watch her play. On the way we spent a night at the small city of Salmon Arm, located on the beautiful Shuswap Lake. The hotel was located next to the lake and a bird sanctuary, so I decided to get up around sunrise to walk the area. As I have mentioned before, I’m not a morning person, but I will have to try harder, because the light in the early morning is so fresh and lovely, promising the start of a new day. A different feeling than the equally beautiful end of day light.

Enjoy the serenity of a sunrise walk along the lake!

Great Blue Heron, I believe. I love watching these birds hunt, patiently watching for a fish or frog, then grabbing them with their beak.

It took awhile, but finally the sun broke over the surrounding mountains.

The Serenity Project is a collaborative photography project featuring images that bring a sense of peace and calm. Please continue our circle to to see what has brought my friends serenity this month.

Next in the circle is Iris Nelson, a Metro Phoenix photographer

Click the link to see what serenity looks like for her this month! Thanks for being here.

At the end of April, I attended my very first destination landscape photography workshop. You know, the ones where the entire workshop is centered around chasing the best light, so mornings are early, evenings are late and sleeping and eating are secondary to the shot? And at the end, you are exhausted, yet exhilarated.

The workshop was held in the Columbia River Gorge, Oregon with Don Smith and Gary Hart, both seriously talented landscape photographers. Sunrise shoots meant waking up extremely early! I am not a morning person and when that alarm went off at 4 am, I won’t lie, it was hard to get myself up and dressed! I had myself extremely organized with all my gear and clothing set out for the morning, so I could spend as many precious minutes under the covers as possible.

Our first sunrise location was Trout Lake, with snow covered Mt. Adams (actually a volcano) in the distance, standing tall and reflecting in the calm water. As we waiting for the sun to rise, we were treated to the sounds of birds, geese and ducks waking up and starting their day. The colours of the sky slowly changed and as the sun rose higher it painted the volcano and the foliage with light.

This is one of those locations, that if I had access to it regularly, I’d want to shoot in all 4 seasons, as I can imagine how different it would look in each season.

Once that initial shock of the 4 am wake up call wore off and I was standing in nature, watching and listening to the world awaken, I could appreciate the serenity of an early morning.

Next in the circle is Nancy Armstrong, Kansas Photographer. Click the link to see what serenity looks like for her this month! Thanks for being here.

August Serenity Blog Circle - Lakeside Morning In British Columbia

May Serenity Blog Circle - 4 AM wake up calls

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All photographic images are copyrighted to Lori McLellan