Parting Shot

When I want to take a sunset photo, there are only a few places that I consider but almost all of them are along the Ottawa River.

Of course, I'd love to be on a tropical beach for sunset, but this Ottawa lad is being realistic.

My go-to place tends to be Andrew Haydon Park, where Holly Acres Road meets Carling Avenue, nestled between the neighbourhoods of Bayshore and Lakeview Park. I always park in the east parking lot, as close to the eastern path as possible. From there, it's a short walk to the eastern pond, where, in my opinion, is the best place to capture sunset.

There are beautiful trees on the opposite banks of this pond, and a wooden windmill turns effortlessly in the breeze that blows in from the river. They cast a perfect silhouette and reflection.

Last Sunday, after dinner, I grabbed my two D-SLRs and headed to this park to capture the sunset. I've barely snapped any sunset photos all year—save for a couple on my smartphone and one evening in January. And, since January, this was the first time that I had specifically set out to capture the sunset.

Expectedly, the park was busy, but not so busy that I could keep my distance from others. And, once off the path, by the side of the pond, no one was near me and I felt I could take my mask off.

Also, as expected, the view was beautiful and the lighting promised for great sunset shots. I'll share those, next Wednesday, as they aren't the focus of my Photo Friday.

As soon as the sun dropped below the treetops across the river, I made my way back to the car. Though I had brought my tripod to the site, I wasn't planning to take any blue-hour photos, especially because the bugs were out and were likely to be hungry.

I'm a mosquito magnet.

As I crossed a small footbridge to get to the parking lot, I looked back toward the fading light and saw the windmill through the dense growth of trees, still glowing in warm light. I took one last parting shot.

Happy Friday!