Peter Valkenburg's beautiful 911 on a ride for charity.

Vintage Race Day

September 06, 2017

Vintage racing at its best.

A Day at the Races

June 12, 2017

My first time at Mission Raceway.

Snowy day in Stanley Park

February 04, 2017 in Art, Landscape

Snow day in Stanley Park

North Korea

October 14, 2016

I've always been excited to travel and explore new lands. If you've followed my past blogs you would have seen that I've been lucky enough to visit a number of different places in my life. However, none of these places were to compare to North Korea.

A year has passed since I stepped off of the plane in Pyongyang, the capital city of the Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea. The trip was a year in the making, A trip I will not soon forget.

When it first sunk in I was going to one of the most closed off and secretive countries in the world. I have to admit I had my anxieties and a few sleepless nights. So I did some reading and leaned on the experience of some new friends to get passed it. By the time we finally boarded our Air Koryo flight in Beijing I was excited, I was ready.

It was a whirlwind trip which lasted six nights in total. Five in Pyongyang then one last evening in Kaesong, a small city not far from the South Korean border. There we visited the North Korean side of the DMZ (Demilitarized Zone). I tried to take as many photos as possible. At times I was asked not to photograph certain things due to their more sensitive nature. Being seated on a bus due to the torrent pace of going from place to place didn't lend itself to much time composing photographs. There are certainly some photos I'm definitely proud of. It was a fun but hectic time.

Please enjoy.

Kim Il-Sung and Kim Jong Il statues at Mansudae Grand Monument

Victorious Fatherland Liberation War Museum

Early morning with the towering Ryugyong Hotel

The streets were covered in patriotic flare.

On the escalator going down to one of the deepest metros in the world

One of the many pins worn by North Korean citizens

Portraits of their past leaders are never in the dark

Juche Tower to the right, 150 000 seat Rungrado May Day stadium

Kim Il-Sung standing watch to the south in the morning fog

This was the only statue of Kim Il-Sung that we saw without the vibrant smile

#ShareLove Pride of Vancouver

August 04, 2016 in Portraits

Hi guys,

I just wanted to pass along some photos of a quick project I did in tandem with Vancouver is Awesome and Telus for Pride week here in Vancouver.

I was asked to take a few of portraits the week before the Pride Parade. The individuals I was lucky enough to have the opportunity to meet are all local leaders who exemplify the inclusion and visibility of the LGBTQA2+ community.

Danny Ramadan – Author, journalist and Volunteer Coordinator at QMUNITY, Vancouver Pride Grand Marshal 2016 — Danny Ramadan – *Author, journalist and Volunteer Coordinator at QMUNITY, Vancouver Pride Grand Marshal 2016*

Shanda Leer – Performer, BRATPACK — Shanda Leer – *Performer, BRATPACK*

Tru Wilson – Trans-rights activist, one of Vancouver Magazine’s 2015 Power 50 — Tru Wilson – *Trans-rights activist, one of Vancouver Magazine’s 2015 Power 50*

Mandy Randhawa – Event producer, Flygirl Productions — Mandy Randhawa – *Event producer, Flygirl Productions*

Brandon Yan – Program coordinator, Out in Schools — Brandon Yan – *Program coordinator, Out in Schools*

I'm sure a few of you have had the chance to see the images already, but I wanted to compile their images together here on my blog. It was a cool little project and a bit more eye-opening to me as I am not quite aware of everything and everyone that is a part of the fabric that is the lower mainland. I'm always interested to hear about the lives of individuals and what amazing things they are doing to change our community for the better.

You can find out more about these amazing leaders here.

http://www.vancouverisawesome.com/2016/07/29/sharelove-danny-ramadan/

http://www.vancouverisawesome.com/2016/07/29/sharelove-brandon-yan/

http://www.vancouverisawesome.com/2016/07/27/sharelove-shanda-leer/

http://www.vancouverisawesome.com/2016/07/27/sharelove-tru-wilson/

http://www.vancouverisawesome.com/2016/07/26/sharelove-mandy-randhawa-of-flygirl-productions/

-Broda

Iceland

July 20, 2016

Such a fantastic camping trip through Iceland

Simon Fraser University

June 30, 2016

I'm finding more and more that I'm falling deeper in love with concrete. The look and feel have now captivated me for a couple of years. I never really gave it much attention until I began taking an interest in photography. I now love the way light saturates it and then creates amazing shadows and contrast. The pale concrete feels so complimentary to any surrounding colours.

A couple of weeks ago I was walking around the Simon Fraser University campus at the top of Burnaby Mountain. There SFU sits as a beacon in stark contrast from the surrounding green rain forests. The deftly positioned concrete slabs of Arthur Erickson's first mega structure was designed and built in 1964. Finally opening eighteen months later in September of 1965.

I found this small excerpt from SFU's website regarding the final design.

"Erickson's design was regarded as innovative in several key aspects. Its mountaintop location inspired Erickson to reject multi-story buildings, which he felt would look presumptuous. Instead, Erickson turned for inspiration to the acropolis in Athens and the hill towns of Italy, where the mountain was incorporated into the design itself. This concept is evident in many aspects of the university's design. For example, the manner in which the buildings are terraced to remain in harmony with the contours of the landscape and the emphasis upon the horizontal rather than the vertical expansion of the buildings themselves."

I'm really quite taken by the construction of this place. I love large structures and objects and I often find myself staring at them for long periods of time. This must be a fantastic place to go to school. Although I'll likely never attend. I do enjoy going up from time to time.

Please enjoy the following images, It was a fun process to showcase the two main areas.

-Broda

Dress for Success

May 03, 2016

Giving back is something that I always have on my mind. For a number of years now I've wanted to try and donate my time and help out people that are less fortunate. The last couple of years since I've switched to becoming a professional photographer full time, I've realized that I now have a skill to offer. I love taking portraits and Dress For Success kind of fell into my lap. I've been lucky enough to be working with DFS Vancouver the last 3 years. I've very much enjoyed these shoots the last 3 years. For me as a photographer, it has given me another opportunity to further my own skills whilst providing photos for DFS Vancouver's yearly fundraiser Impact 360.

The first year I helped out, the first woman I photograph cried when I showed her how beautiful she looked in the back of the camera. It was quite a startling moment for me. Such a simple thing for me, but I hadn't realized how impactful it could be to someone who's confidence and self-image weren't as high as we'd all like to have. This was a moment I realized that I was very willing to help these women and help Dress for Success Vancouver with showcasing what a fantastic charity they are. Since that day I've been hooked and helping where I can.

It was a great day getting to chat with all of these women, I feel honoured to have created these portraits. I hope you enjoyed the images. These beautiful, courageous and lovely women deserve our attention.

-Broda