If VanDusen Botanical Gardens Festival of Lights doesn't get you in the seasonal mood, I can't think of what would! Dull rainy days of Vancouver winter got you down? The first winter I spent here was difficult after working in Saudi Arabia! So how did I contend with the gray days of winter? ... My camera and photography classes kept the excitement churning. Always something new to learn and photograph. So take your camera to this winter festival of lights and get in the spirit! Take a minute, watch the video. I think you'll agree.
Start the video, then take your mouse off the screen to make that pesky little bar disappear! It comes back each time you put your mouse on the video.
Make sure you take in the Dancing Lights shows on Livingston Lake. They start at 4:30... two different shows and they alternate. One's on the hour - the other on the half hour. So many photo and video opportunities. A Gingerbread Wood, a couple of elves to keep the youngsters entertained, Candy Cane Lane and a model train... ... and all kinds of food, hot cider and hot chocolate. Yep, I went for the hot chocolate and that blew my diet! But it was GOOD. By the way, all the concessions were cash only. VanDusen Botanical Gardens is one of my favorite gardens at any time of the year, not just for this seasonal festival. Take a look at more photography at this botanical garden on this page.
Vancouver Weather When I packed all my camera gear into the car I wasn't thinking about rain, but by the time I got to the gardens and found a parking space... you guessed it. And I wasn't prepared for it. Not good planning on my part! If and when you get to the VanDusen Botanical Gardens Festival of Lights, keep in mind that the weather here can change on a dime. Maybe it's just me, but packing around three cameras, lenses and a tripod is a pain even in the best weather. Raining on my cameras does nothing good for my mood! Any way to make things easier is alright by me. But I haven't tried this out yet.. you can actually get an umbrella that fits on to your tripod! Can't give you an idea on how well it works but you can get other photographers' opinions - just search online. Might have allowed me to get more video and photographs at VanDusen Botanical Gardens that night.
 This building sometimes houses bonsai. Here its Santa's living room where the jolly fellow met with the kids 4 times every evening! Wonder if there's a present in that bag for me? When I came inside the warm room, my lens fogged after the cold humid air. I got a few photos before it completely cleared. Guess you could call it a natural soft filter! By the way, moisture isn't good for your camera and lenses! I let the lens dry out and warm up before I put the lens cap on. Make sure you don't trap any moisture inside. You won't like what it does to your camera.
This pond is at the main entry to the VanDusen Botanical Gardens, right outside the giftshop. It was lucky for me that rainy evening that there's a huge covered porch. Its high enough to give great views of the garden lights for most of the video and photos I took. A few things about this composition... The rope fence around the pool creates diagonal lines - one way to lead the viewer's eyes through the scene. There are lots of other lines here, too. For instance, the triangular lines of the 3 trees. Isn't it great when you get some reflections in your images? I really like the glow of lights and trees on the water in the pool. All that rain has made the blocks around the pool really wet so there are lots of colorful reflections on the concrete.
 This is the same view as the introductory image on the video --- except the focal length is different. My first photo was much tighter on the pergola and I missed out on most of the reflections! These photos are better with the reflections on the wet sidewalks. My favorite lens is 28-200 mm. A lot of photographers use a fixed focal length, like 105mm. or 35mm, maybe 50mm. A 50 mm lens records a scene as if you were looking with your eyes. If you have a telephoto lens, pay attention to what focal length you're using. I check that its not in the middle of, say, 35mm and 50mm. For instance I don't want it at 43mm. If I set it to 135mm and it needs a small adjustment, I use my feet to make the scene fit! Try to pay more attention to the picture you're composing and this is one way to make you do that.
Accessibility - VanDusen Botanical Gardens is wheelchair accessible although there are a few steep or rocky areas in the 55 acre site. They have a few wheelchairs available and you can ask for one at the main entrance - at the gift shop. Cost - In the winter and late fall, adult admission is $7.50, children and seniors $5.50. There are special group rates for more than 10 people. Call them to book a group.
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