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| The pier at Port Dalhousie in St Catherines, Ontario Randall Romano, 2011 www.randallromano.com |
GPS Coordinates: 43.2109N, 79.2635W
Later when I started to photograph it, I realized what a great place it was. Not only did it have a unique character, but it also provided great views of Lake Ontario. Early morning on either one of the two piers is a highly productive place to make images.
Historical: The history of Port Dalhousie begins with Twelve Mile Creek, which was the tributary that emptied into Lake Ontario. The Neutral Indians has a large settlement on the area surrounding Twelve Mile Creek in about 1650. It was an area abundant in fish and the lands surrounding the river made good agricultural land for crops such as corn, beans and squash. The Neutral Indians, who had avoided conflict with the Huron’s to the north and the Iroquois to the the south, eventually were destroyed by the Iroquois who had successfully destroyed their enemies the Huron, weakened by the French and the spread of smallpox. The Neutrals were quite simply annihilated by the Iroquois and the Mississauga tribe, who were Ojibwa in heritage, soon filled the resulting absence of natives in the area.
The first white settlement in Port Dalhousie were the United Empire Loyalists who were granted land in the area as compensation for their loyalty to the British in the American Revolution and because of their property losses to the Americans. Many were from the Butler's Rangers a British army corps formed to fight Americans during the American Revolution. Some of the officers received grants of land around the Port Dalhousie area. The area was initially settled in 1796 and in 1826 was called Dalhousie after a Governor
General. Growth and life in the settlement was tough, until the first Welland Canal (1829) was constructed, which resulted in an influx of construction workers. Shipbuilding was also facilitated in the area because of good stands of timber along the lakefront and grew as the first, second (1851) and third canals were eventually opened. Over time as the size and sophistication of the canals increased the route was changed to enter the lake at Port Weller, avoiding the traditional route beginning at Port Dalhousie.
With the ending of Port Dalhousie as a canal entrance for the Welland Canal the marshland, having been filled from construction of the original canals, was transformed as a recreational park, attracting tourists by boat from Hamilton and Toronto. The park grew to become a major amusement park and party location with full beverage facilities, during a time of temperance. The park became a destination for paddlewheel and ship traffic. Eventually with modernization, the railways took over with links that continued to bring tourists. Boats fewer in number continued to bring people to Port Dalhousie until well into the Second World War. The new location of the Welland Canal to Port Weller slowed down traffic to the area and the eventual tightening up of shipping regulations, because of the deadly fire on the Noronic in Toronto Harbour in 1949 reduced lake traffic. In the late 1960's the amusement park was closed and the rides were sold. The City of St Catharine's bought the site and preserved the famous carousel in 1978. Many of the original buildings are still preserved and two of the original locks still remain. Two original hotels and a little stone jail exist, as well as some of the original drinking establishments. Two lighthouses still mark the entrance to the port. Port Dalhousie remains a historic and cultural mecca in this part of Ontario and there are a variety of really good photographic locations for shoreline landscape, as well as townscapes and architectural gems.
Favorite Shooting Locations
1. Michigan Beach Park: This beach is named after the workers who looked after teams of horses. In the early days of the Welland Canal, boats had no mechanical power and were dependent on being pulled up the canals. The workers who looked after this stayed on the east beach area. During the winter periods, when the canal didn't operate, they would go to Michigan in the USA to work in the timber mills.
There is a public parking lot right on the main harbour off Lighthouse Road. Lighthouse Road is accessible only from Lakeshore Road 87 and cannot be accessed from the town of Port Dalhousie on the other side of the bridge. From the parking lot you can walk along the pier past a lighthouse in the park area out to the working lighthouse at the end of the pier. This long pier and lighthouse were initially built for the entrance to the first Welland Canal.
The lighthouse and the pier for that matter is a fantastic place to photograph because it is so far out into the lake. Sky and water surrounds you allowing a full view of sunrises and sunsets. I have experienced both sunrises and sunsets at this location and it is one of my favourite places. In the morning you are virtually alone with the sky and water, apart from some runners and walkers. In the evening on a nice warm evening the pier is alive with people. Some are exercising, some are walking and others are engaged in fishing or other recreational activities, like say photography.
In the evening sunsets you can photograph the adjoining pier on Lakeside Park and the variety of people who are walking. They shapes and movements become silhouette against the setting sun. Bring a variety of lens for sunset shoots if you want to photograph the people walking on the opposite pier. I also advise you to use Graduated filters at this location as the sunrises and sunsets are directly in front of you and will greatly affect your foreground exposures.
When: Early morning pre dawn and at dawn. Sunsets about an hour before and 30 minutes after. Anytime of the year is a good time to photograph at this location. Nighttime shooting can also yield some good results.
2. Lakeside Park: Historically this location was an amusement park and beach. It is still a very busy beach and recreational area, drawing many people during the warmer months. An old antique carousel still exists and is in use during the summer. Children can still have a ride for a small fare. The pier, which adjoins the park, runs parallel to the Michigan Beach pier. It is somewhat wider and has many benches to sit and enjoy the lake. Because of its proximity to the Lakeside Park it is vastly more popular and as a result is a great place to photograph people doing a variety of recreational activities. The wooden benches mentioned already are great to use as foreground elements. This pier is also a great place to enjoy sunrises and sunsets. It is especially in a favourable location to photograph the Michigan Beach Lighthouse at sunset.
When: Early morning pre dawn and at dawn. Sunsets about an hour before and 30 minutes after. Anytime of the year is a good time to photograph at this location.
3. Historic Downtown and Buildings: Port Dalhousie has many significant historical buildings in the downtown area and throughout it's residential area to the north. Many of the downtown buildings were associated with its amusement and boat building past. Walking its tree lined and quite residential streets, particularly along Dalhousie Avenue and the Waterfront trail designated streets, illustrated some amazing architecture.
Some of the historical buildings to look for include: Port Mansion, Murphy Building, Locktender's Shanty, St Mary's Star of the Sea, Roman Catholic Church, and a variety of homes on Dalhousie Avenue. For a map to all the historic buildings go to the Tour St. Catharine’s web site and look up Old Town Walking Tours. Walking down these back streets of Port Dalhousie is not only relaxing but also is full of historic architecture.
When: Best time of the year to do the walk and exploration of the historic downtown and residential areas is during the warmer summer months as the homes and buildings are more alive with vegetation and the walking is much more pleasant. Try to plan your walking at earlier or later times of the day if your main photographic goal is architectural photography. When the sun gets higher in the sky it becomes much harder to deal with contrast, especially creating shadows in the balconies and columns of the homes.
4. Henley Course and Park: Port Dalhousie and the Henley Rowing course is Canada's premier rowing location. It is home to Canada's top rowing regattas and has been the training ground for countless Olympic athletes. If you are not aware of the sport of rowing, I can tell you that it is one of the toughest, requiring tons of physical training and a mental toughness that is unmatched. Winning a rowing competition is a huge accomplishment.
I have had the experience to photograph many rowing events, as three of my four children participated in high school rowing programs. I have also photographed at the Henley course on many occasions and find the best location either from the Grandstand, as low to the water as possible or from the Henley Island where the crews are launched. Photographing at a regatta is extremely difficult and is an overload. I much prefer to photograph the crews on their morning training run. If you go to the Henley Island and walk to the tip your can get good images of the rowers go by, as well as them coming back off the course. Make sure you use at least a 300 mm lens and remember that you need to make a lot of images to get a few keepers. The faster lens the better. I would recommend at least an f/2.8 lens or faster. This is a challenging type of photography that can yield great images if you work hard and are persistent.
The Rennie Park on the other side of the course is a great place to walk and photograph regattas, as it is not as busy as the island. The other great thing about the island, during an event is that it gives your the feel of the sport and allows you great images of crews launching boats and carrying boats. If you get deeper into your subjects, I find you tend to understand and better portray them in your images. Therefore I highly recommend if you want to photograph a rowing event that you first go to the Henley Island and get a feel for the sport.
When: Rowing events happen from May through November at this location. The Canadian High School or School Boy regatta happens in early June every year. The Royal Canadian Henley Regatta, Canada's biggest is usually in late August. The Canadian University Championship usually occurs in early November at this location.
Recommended Places to Stay
2. Old Port Bed and Breakfast 73 Main Street, St Catharine’s, ON 905-934-5761
3. Wooton House on the Water 2 Elgin Street, St Catharine's, ON 905- 937-4696
Port Dalhousie Lighthouse at Dawn
Randall Romano Canadian Documentary and Environmental Photographer, 2010
Port Dalhousie sunset,
Randall Romano Canadian Documentary and Environmental Photographer, 2010
source : http://canadaphotodiary.blogspot.com, http://fb.com, http://docstoc.com
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