On occasion I like to create some photographic challenges for myself. Today I decided that I would venture out to a familiar area and allow myself only one photograph for each stop that I made. The challenge included being limited to one camera and one lens. I also set a time limit of one hour during which to capture all of my images. So… I grabbed a camera and headed out for my Niagara Parkway challenge.

NOTE: Click on images to enlarge.

It was a strange afternoon in terms of weather. As I drove on the QEW highway towards Fort Erie I hit some periods of rain… then breaks of sunshine. Since my E-M1X has excellent weather sealing I decided that regardless of the weather, I’d complete my challenge for the day.

I must admit after using my Nikon 1 gear exclusively for the past four years, it felt very strange not caring if my camera gear got wet.

The Niagara Parkway runs along the Canadian side of the Niagara River which forms part of the border between Canada and the United States.

I’m very familiar with the various pull-offs and parking areas along the route. As I approached each one I had to quickly decide whether I was going to use that spot for one of my designated photographs.

I quickly scanned the river front looking for trees, foliage, benches and other subject matter that could be incorporated into a composition.

It was also important to consider shooting perspectives along the river and the angle of the intermittent afternoon sun.

As I was quickly working my way down the Niagara Parkway towards Niagara Falls, I kept a mental note of the types of compositions I had completed. I didn’t want my challenge to end up with a series of images that looked identical.

As it turned out I finished my Niagara Parkway challenge 15 minutes early. Once I got to Niagara Falls I got back on the QEW highway and headed for home.

I find creating these little photographic tests like my Niagara Parkway challenge can be quite stimulating. They force me to rapidly assess subject matter and to compose my images quickly.

If you haven’t created these types of photographic challenges for yourself I heartily recommend giving them a try.

Technical Note:
All photographs were captured hand-held using camera equipment as noted in the EXIF data. Images were produced from RAW files using my standard process.

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