So it IS safe enough to walk on? Who knows ... it looks awesome though. I like the muted colours ... the slightly more varied palette of those condo buildings (grrrr) add some interest. Not totally exciting, but it's well-done.
Posted by Gloria at March 17, 2005 01:43 AMthe scale, the scope, the paradox of it all ...
nothing short of brilliant.
Sam, this pic is absolutely beautiful. I don't have enough words to describe how it makes me feel. Exhilirating is a start.
Posted by Abe at March 17, 2005 01:53 AMhow small people can be comparing to their creation!! i find desaturation very good idea for this shot
Posted by orthodox at March 17, 2005 01:53 AMGREAT sense of size, tower vs. person. Love the human touch!
great work. Pity it was a cloudy overcast day. . .
that lake dosent look all that frozen to me.......thats one ballsy skater!!!
Posted by david macdonald at March 17, 2005 02:26 AMWow - it's hard to believe that someone could find such solitude in the centre of a huge city - great shot.
Posted by JamesK at March 17, 2005 02:46 AMi like the verticality. and the shades of grey. i wonder what film/digital process could enhance this greyness. i almost wish you had shot it in b&w :)!
Posted by vvoitek at March 17, 2005 06:11 AMUsually, I am one to be too lazy to comment on others' blogs. But I had to stop at this picture and just stare. It is one of the most beautiful photographs I have ever seen. The long perspective, the frozen lake, the skater, the city. Really, I applaud you on such a fabulous shot, and I continue to be a dedicated fan to your site. Thanks for the daily entertainment! Keep up the great work.
Posted by Gia at March 17, 2005 07:59 AMNow that's what I call a B I G skating rink!
Alice
Posted by Alice at March 17, 2005 08:06 AMSam, Congrats on your Bloggie win! It is really a "Thanks" to YOU for your photography skills and dedication in presenting these daily treats to us. I hope there are many rewards coming your way, including financial ones; you deserve it!
Thanks! Jim.
man, i miss hockey
Posted by ak at March 17, 2005 09:45 AMFor a color photo it looks awfully black and white. Such a sad looking photograph. But it really does bring out the size and strength of the CN Tower.
I'd be scared to skate on Lake Ontario... can't believe people actually do that.
Justin
Posted by Justin at March 17, 2005 09:46 AMi love it!
that skater certainly does have guts... i wouldnt trust a frozen lake right now either!
Posted by Jenny at March 17, 2005 09:53 AMmarvelous picture !!! I love the contrast between the skater and those massive buildings.
Posted by mot at March 17, 2005 11:10 AMAnother great shot, Sam!
Reminds me of the film, On The Beach (last man on earth).
Thanks, Sam, for "Lone Skater"; and for all you do to share fabulous images. When you present one like this, I am moved to single it out for a special "thank you". Then I realize that this applies to so much of your work that I say to myself, "So, I clicked on DDOI, what else should I expect?" Alright, I'm talking to myself
again.
You may be interested to know that when some of us were sailing wooden boats on Lake Ontario the top of the Royal York Hotel made a handy navigational reference point because, being so much taller than all around it, it really stood out clearly. Now,where did it go?
I've been lurking at this site almost since it's started and I've even pointed some people to it saying things like: "Wow, this one is great". Thanks for all the wonderful pictures while I'm at my mundane job not working!
I hope I bump into you tonight, my friend from (inconduit.com) invited me and I'd love to compliment you in person!
Ahoy!
Posted by Kristina at March 17, 2005 12:31 PMNice. I love the tiny little ice-skater guy. I usually like rich colors, but I also love coming across a picture where desaturation is appropriate. Great job.
Posted by J.Livingston at March 17, 2005 12:56 PMHey Sam, I'll try coming around tonight for the opening, gives me a good excuse to shave *laugh*
Posted by Lorin Halpert at March 17, 2005 01:01 PMI LOVE this shot, for all the reasons posted above!
And also, because I love to skate. But I don't think I'd have the nerve to skate there. I'll stick to the rink at Harbourfront, which is just out of the picture on the left. Maybe the lone skater escaped from that rink.
Thanks yet again, Sam!
Posted by Kathy at March 17, 2005 01:35 PMSeeing Toronto through your pictures is quite an adventure in itself.
Posted by Sri at March 17, 2005 01:46 PMGreat shot, including the (brave!) skater really helps you understand just how big everything else is!
Posted by Beth at March 17, 2005 05:23 PMgreat pic, the skater is so cool
Posted by vg at March 17, 2005 05:34 PMokay I hate to ask, but I have to ask. Was that guy skating photoshopped into the picture????? I just find it so difficult to believe anyone could be so foolish as to skate out there.
In all my life I have never seen a single person on the lake, ever. Yet you have captured people there twice. Amazing. Very interesting photos. I absolutely love the way these buildings are captured and the way it emphasises the size and scale of things.
Now back to the skater. Seriously, was this person trying to commit suicide. Was this a scheme to collect accidental death insurance??? You can see the water through the ice! Is this a mentally ill or disabled person? Who in their right mind could be so stupid as to skate on the lake when those waters are so cold? If they fell through, no one would be close enough to help and i doubt anyone would have even seen it happen, except for brilliant photographers with good eyes.
Posted by scott at March 17, 2005 07:13 PMTechnically, of course, he's not skating on Lake Ontario. He's skating on Toronto Harbour. The Harbour is protected by the islands, and so it can freeze. Lake Ontario never freezes.
Also, when was this picture taken? I live in one of the Harbourfront condos, and it has not been frozen like this for a couple of weeks.
That skater is definitely crazy. If you slip through the ice, who is going to rescue you? No boats can get there, and noone is going to run on the thin ice after you...
Posted by Scott at March 17, 2005 07:41 PMOnce again, you do a great job of handholding your camera!
Posted by Robert Schwenk at March 17, 2005 07:57 PMabsolutely inspirational - you are a true talent. i wouldn't even mess with the color on this, the desaturation is perfect.
beautiful.
Posted by dsjr at March 17, 2005 08:12 PMvery well seen, and well done
interesting looking lone skater
excellent
good shot !!!!
it´s very nice
this picture is phenominal.
Posted by ali at March 17, 2005 10:17 PMBeautiful.
Some sort of greyscale magical realism.
The skating figure's fantastic but impossible...
Shouldn't there be a warning label when the post-production involves pasting?
Posted by pw at March 18, 2005 01:29 AMI think your work is really awsome. Who cares about post production photoshop work? I think the skater, whether real or not, is a wonderful part of the composition. Why is the imagination limited to the single snap of a camera shutter? I like to look at this kind of work for its visual merits, not as if it were in National Geographic. One hundred and fifty years ago, the same argument was propagated about the invention of photography- only it was made by painters, who saw the camera as a threat to the visual arts.
Posted by TonyC at March 18, 2005 04:36 PMi'd be peeing my pants with fear, if that was me out there!! what a find!
Posted by lucie at March 19, 2005 07:33 AMAmazing shot - the city alone would have been good enough - but the ice skater makes it brilliant!
Posted by Inkling at March 19, 2005 09:59 AMQ: "UPDATE: there was no pasting involved in this shot! the skater was there exactly as it is! No photoshop work here! why do i get bombarded with people accusing me of adding stuff to my photos?!"
A: Firstly, you are great at what you do and people are not used to "great," so they assume you MUST have done something to make it better.
Secondly, though folks don't see a lot of great work, they see lots that has been manipulated (nothing wrong with that if it enhances the photo). It's almost become the norm (a recent altered photo of Martha Stewart on the cover of Newsweek comes to mind right away). I don't know if
many of this generation's photographers/photo journalists are so enamoured of photo manipulation that thay overuse it--I suspect so.
It's frustrating, but your work truly rocks so pls. try to ignore the dumb remarks and hopefully people with questions will go to your forum.
(My first comment. I'm an ex-pat. Your photos sometimes break my heart as I miss Toronto/Ontario so.
Many thanks, though. I feel closer to "home" because of the work you do.)
Awesome shot Sam.
Really admire your work.
CBC building on the left side is red and very cool.
But why did you flip the image horizontally?
Posted by Yatko at March 20, 2005 09:31 PMHermosa foto. Saludos desde Quito-Ecuador
Posted by diego sanchez at March 21, 2005 05:34 PMI love your photo!! Just absotulutly beautiful!!
Posted by susan at May 24, 2005 08:02 AMI never comment on anything, I just look. Your photo is obviously pretty special to reverse that trend, I love it!
Posted by Alan at July 2, 2005 02:53 AMI loved that picture and i had that experience. I´m brazilian but i lived in Toronto for 2 years. Nobody believes that we did that (me and 2 friends). We took a picture too but they came out really dark cause when we went i´t was around 5:30pm. Some people was walking there too. Some they went to Toronto Island walking on the ice....It´s was just great....
Can you send it to me, please?! Thanks
GREAT JOB