PLANT OF THE WEEK
An astronaut's earthly pleasure
October 18, 2008
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Sonia Day
SPECIAL TO THE STAR
Toronto's trees. They're on view again in the Toronto Tree Portraits Calendar – and how lovely they look. Yet capturing the city's trees on film isn't easy, according to Roberta Bondar. Canada's first woman in space was invited to illustrate the latest calendar and apparently spent "hours and hours" studying her majestic subjects before clicking the shutter.
"Power lines tend to get in the way of photographing trees on main streets," she says. "Then there's the light and the wind. It meant waiting till just the right day."
Bondar doesn't use digital equipment for her nature photography. She prefers a Linhof plate camera with a massive lens. Most of the long narrow pictures in the calendar were taken in Mount Pleasant Cemetery right after it had rained. They feature everything from a northern catalpa to a copper beech.
The desk calendars are produced by the Toronto Parks and Trees Foundation (a non-profit outfit) to raise funds for preserving the city's trees. They cost $15 each at Book City, Sheridan Nurseries, Mountain Equipment Co-op, Toronto Botanical Garden and other locations. To order online, go to torontoparksandtrees.org.
And although this glimpse of Mother Earth by our first female astronaut makes a great stocking stuffer, the real photos look so much better. If you get a chance, drop by the FCP Gallery in First Canadian Place where Bondar's remarkable portraits – each measuring five feet long – are on display until the end of October.
soniaday.com
Toronto Star