Articles by Don Sutherland

Summer’s heat lingered well into September this year. The mercury soared to 97°F (36.1°C) on the 8th day of the month and 87°F (30.6°C) on the 18th. Yet, despite the sometimes furnace-like breath of stubborn summer, the days were growing steadily shorter. Each morning, the sun seemed to sleep a little longer. Each evening, the sun departed a little earlier. Each minute of daylight became a little more precious. Each hour of darkness seemed to stretch beyond what should have been allotted. Th…

Near the end of August, my family and I went to the New York Hall of Science in Corona (Queens). This museum features some 450 exhibits and displays related to science, technology, engineering and math. Outside the museum, is a nine-hole miniature golf course with a range of holes designed to teach basic principles of space science. For example, the first hole features a rotating circle with an opening. The goal is time one’s shot so that the ball passes through the opening when it is availa…

In 1878, Carl Sandburg wrote: The fog comes on little cat feet. It sits looking over harbor and city on silent haunches and then moves on. Nearly 140 years later on April 3, 2015, Sandburg’s descriptive poem transcended the paper on which it was written. The words leapt off the pages and a thick blanket of fog rolled across the Long Island Sound on “little cat feet.” For a time, it sat over the water, shrouding Long Island and also the landscape across Larchmont Harbor in…

The persistent and frequently severe cold that covered the New York Metropolitan Area produced average temperatures more reminiscent of the spread of the television in the 1930s than the era of smartphones, tablets, and WiFi. In New York City, the mean February temperature came to just 23.9°F (-4.5°C). That monthly average was a record 11.4°F (6.3°C) below normal. No month since regular recordkeeping began in 1869 had ever had a larger cold anomaly. Moreover, only 1885 (22.7°F/-5.2°C) and 1934 (…

I was badly shocked and saddened by the vicious terrorist attack that took place in Paris yesterday. I mourn its victims, those from Charlie Hebdo and the police officers who were murdered. I also mourn the policewoman who lost her life today, whether or not that incident was related to yesterday’s terrorist attack. My thoughts and prayers go out to the victims, their families, and to the French people. At the same time, I join the growing chorus of sentiment in proclaiming, “Je suis Charl…

Each year, the New York Botanical Garden (Bronx, New York) transforms its Children’s Garden into a Haunted Pumpkin Garden toward the end of September. The children’s emotions—ranging from joy to fright—are about as varied as the number of children who pass through the Haunted Garden each fall. Haunted Pumpkin Garden Haunted Pumpkin Garden “Mine!” (Haunted Pumpkin Garden) Haunted Pumpkin Garden In mid-to-late October, just as the last Monarchs are departing, giant pump…

One of the places I often visit to take photos is Manor Park (Larchmont, New York). Among other things, with its location on the Long Island Sound, it offers a great place to photograph the rising sun in all its glory. Its twin gazebos and Umbrella Point also provide a photogenic setting for capturing and preserving memories ranging from wedding portraits to snowy landscapes. Rumor has it that wedding portraits captured at Manor Park mean that the marriage will truly last till “death d…

In “The Four Seasons,” Vay-Hah-Ess wrote: Ernest went with his parents and several playmates to the nearest village, on a warm summer day; and they remained there the entire day. All around them they saw green cornfields and meadows, decorated with thousand fold flowers; also pastures in which young lambs were dancing, and wanton foals were skipping about.—They ate cherries and other summer fruit, and enjoyed themselves right well during the whole day. “Is it not true,” asked his father, on…

On the evening of July 23, I lost my beloved dad. During the closing weeks of his life, he demonstrated the kind of dignity, courage, and love that only made him even dearer to us, his children. Even into his final days, he would not let the advancing cancer temper his joy of seeing his children and grandchildren. Although his very youngest grandchildren could not comprehend the situation and behaved as toddlers and infants typically conduct themselves, they still brought a smile to his face.…

As I had noted in my previous blog entry , I traveled to China earlier this month. I spent a little more than two weeks there. The trip was both remarkable and enriching. Beijing provides a kind of sketch that illustrates the extraordinary progress China has made in its economic development in recent decades. The expansive city is filled with testaments to that progress. Sprawling commercial districts can be found around its historic and political centers. The city's subway lines have been g…

As I head out to China, a few quick thoughts on my first year at Ipernity. Yes, it has been a year since I joined the Ipernity Club. Time seems to have passed so quickly that it is difficult to believe that it actually has been a year. Overall, my experience has been a rewarding one. The combination of an evolving and dynamic community of photographers and a responsive Ipernity team have created an environment that is conducive to personal growth as a photographer, building and sustaining rel…

The long winter [seemingly endless autumn in much of Europe] of 2013-14 has yielded to spring. As if to shatter any lingering doubts about the seasonal regime change that has now taken place, the booming cannon of a thunderstorm reverberated across the now colorful landscape earlier today. Spring comes bearing two powerful messages. Through its remarkable transition, sometimes in the face of fierce Arctic counterattacks from retreating winter, it speaks eloquently of renewal and resilience.…

At one of the Ipernity groups, a somewhat lively debate has developed. How it will evolve remains to be seen. On one side of the discussion is the notion that people’s commenting on others’ photos is excessive and essentially not very constructive. There is also the complaint that some of the photos receiving comments are “far-from-perfect.” Of course, if perfection is truly the standard required for one to express appreciation for another’s works, there is probably no danger that people wi…

On February 7, I posted a photo of the illuminated leaves of a Japanese Maple taken shortly after sunrise on a late October day. And then: nothing more. The days passed. The weeks passed. A month passed. No photos. No blog entries. Nothing. It was not until April 1, before I posted another photo. Time will tell whether that posted photo was an April Fool’s joke. Perhaps I had heeded the timeless advice of the bears of Yellowstone National Park from one of my past vacations: “When it’s winter…

Even as parts of Europe remain locked in abnormal warmth in spite of the calendar’s having been turned to a fresh new year—Muscovites might be forgiven for wondering if the calendar forgot winter—parts of North America have experienced cold that has not been witnessed for almost 20 years in some places. An anonymous 16th Century writer once observed: This winter’s weather it waxeth cold, And frost it freezeth on every hill, And Boreas blows his blast so bold That all our cattle are li…

The Monarchs and hummingbirds have now departed for warmer climes leaving a kind of sad emptiness in their wake. Despite beauty worthy of a seat in First Class on any of the world’s leading airlines, these elegant insects and remarkable birds must instead undertake their lengthy and perilous journey all on their own. Along the way, they will battle storms, predators, fatigue, and many other challenges. Nevertheless, through heroic persistence and iron-clad determination that would make any triat…

The calendar has now moved into October. Canadians will soon be celebrating Thanksgiving Day and Americans Columbus Day. Leaves have turned across Ontario, Quebec, parts of Upstate New York and across northern New England. Farther south, some yellows and reds can already be glimpsed, but the best of autumn’s annual fireworks show still lies ahead. Some have already begun to pick pumpkins. Children’s dreams of an abundant bounty of Halloween candy are moving closer to fruition, though far slo…

The days are growing shorter now. Each morning, the sun rises a little later. Each evening, the sun sets a little earlier. In a matter of weeks, the Autumnal Equinox will be upon us. With summer now drawing to a close, it is a good time to reflect on the season that was. Whether one is in Canada, France, Germany, Japan, Russia, the United Kingdom, the United States, or elsewhere in the Northern Hemisphere, one is sure to have one’s own unique memories. Long after the seemingly endless days of…