I came across this comment about my recent gallery in Ottawa. I am very glad that I can reply to it publicly. Please read my replies below after a short introduction.

A few weeks ago, I got a wonderful opportunity to travel to Ottawa and photograph the Canada Freedom Convoy taking place there. As a photographer, I am always trying to cover important news around my home. Being able to shoot at such a historic event felt like it was bought to me on a silver platter. Too bad I wasn’t blessed with good weather, as my cold fingers and toes didn’t allow me to concentrate and use the best angles and composition. So in a way, this is actually quite a chaotic gallery. Nevertheless, I am proud of my work.

I have been taking photos since 1998, and constantly learning this very versatile field. I have been mostly concentrated on various events, including weddings, workshops, concerts, etc. However, I have learned it all by myself – by doing, reading and watching. No newspaper work experience, nor a photographic education in the field. But what I have learned is to always be objective of whatever I am taking photos of. I am not so almighty to bend the events which roll in front of my eyes and manipulate them in order to change their course. I am just taking photos of what I see.

My reply to the comment left above:

More Photos. The ones from Kerly Ilves. So, so many of them. You could lose your head in them. – Every media outlet can edit the photos sent to them, they do not have to share it all. In this case, they used all of them. This is out of my reach.

Why are there so many pictures of happy people engaged in kind friendly everyday human activities immersed in colourful environments of support and plenitude showcasing all sorts of massive, expensive ‘trucks’ with the occasional ‘Fuck Trudeau’ mixed in for variety? – There are so many photos of happy people, as they were there and they were happy.

Why is this newspaper running all of these? – Obviously as they run under the same rules of good journalism – you are objective while sharing the news without taking a stance.

This is all propaganda, especially the aesthetics (and it recalls most of all of the beautiful, sentimental aesthetics of fascist regimes (Saul Friedlander, Reflections of Nazism). It is a very skilled photographer at work. – Thank you kindly for your comment.

In this case, show us some photos of people dying in hospitals or spending the rest of their lives suffering chronic health problems because they contracted a virus from people around them who, like these truckers, won’t get vaccinated. – Nobody would grant in this country the right to take photos of dying patients in the hospitals at the time of a pandemic. Unless this is a special case of a very much-needed journalistic story. One can only take photos of the events that happen in front of their very eyes and are accessible to them. Also, I am not here to judge or take sides or God forbid – fabricate the events I am taking photos of! My idea as a photographer is to deliver the events as they are, without adding my own opinion. I was looking around with open eyes as usual and I took photos of what I saw.

The protest is incoherent, not picturesque. Now if the photographer photographed that, it might be worth looking at. – It was picturesque as you admitted it yourself, as you could only say it after looking at the photos.

Dear reader, do not kill the messenger, be open to different opinions, as every coin has two sides.

I got an awesome chance to travel to Ottawa and experience the current situation there. It was a bitterly cold day and doing some great photography wasn’t really an option, but I was able to snap something to share with whoever may stumble upon this gallery. I made some vegan sandwiches for the truckers and handed them out thanks to my dear close ones. It was a wonderful chance to meet the people who are fighting for Canadian freedom.

Below is a little overview of what I saw accompanying the photos I took.

As of today, Canada Freedom Convoy has been in Ottawa for 12 days. This wide protest has largely paralyzed Ottawa’s everyday life. Large trucks have completely blocked the main streets around government buildings. All trucks etc., are decorated with Canadian flags and with slogans calling to end all mandates. Some drivers allow you to leave your wish on their car or truck. This offer has been diligently used by visitors.

It is a peaceful protest. Truck drivers have promised not to leave until the mandates have been revoked. Every day, a large number of people go to support their mission. The view that one will see in Ottawa during the weekend is more reminiscent of a fun family event with an exhibition of powerful trucks, cars and tractors from 2019 when people moved in crowded places without a mask and kept a 6 feet distance. Visitors come every day to support with red and white flags and self-made posters. Many of them have put together small aid packages, made sandwiches and baked cookies, which they kindly handed into the bare hands that fell from the truck windows. It was possible to talk to the truck drivers, shake hands, honk their truck horns, sit in the cab and hug them. The messages shared were loving, supportive, emotional – people all seemed to breathe and think the same.

With the help of supporters, several million dollars have been raised to support the truck drivers. There are food tents at the larger intersections, which offer a wide range of food items, as well as clothing, wool socks, books, batteries, household paper, propane and coal, and of course fuel. There are various counters set up on the initiative of citizens offering hot food, where everyone, in addition to food, can pamper themselves with hot coffee and hot cocoa. The weather in Canada has been cold and snowy for some time, so this kind of interaction and support is very heart-warming. -16 degrees but sunny weather did not seem to keep anyone away from experiencing this historic moment during the weekend. Rather people seemed to be coming in with the temperature dropping and the evening arriving. On the big stage in front of the parliament building, the program took place from morning to night with musical performers and speeches, dances to keep the cold away. Those who needed some extra warmth entered the subway stations to rub their cold feet.

For Estonian times like these in Ottawa are reminded of the times of liberation from the rigid regime of the Soviet Union, when people came together to support each other and their views and joined hands in the Baltic Chain. Will the wish of Canadians be fulfilled, as of the Estonians at that time, only the future will show. In the meantime, a nice family event with plenty of food, support, and visitors will continue in Ottawa at its own pace.

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What a great month has started – February! The short month, the love month and the Black History month! So much joy and what else there is to do than celebrate! Don’t you feel the lightness, positivity and love in the air? Celebrate winter, life, love. Appreciate diversity, compassion and wisdom.

Take care of your loved ones, but do not go to the dollar store to buy cheap plastic items. Give experiences to them. Take them for a walk, cook a meal together or support a local business. Create something together, watch the photos of your joint memories. Just be present and appreciate what you have.

Celebrate life, celebrate you!

I got a wonderful assignment of taking photos of Elmar Tampõld‘s many blueprints from the ’70s. They were drawn on tracing paper, drawing paper, film-like sheets and printed on special large format architect plastic/canvas sheets.

Elmar Tampõld was an Estonian-born Canadian architect. He got his education at the University of Toronto and become a very successful architect. You can admire two of his biggest creations on Bloor Street West, between Spadina and St. George: Tartu College and Rochdale College. Will share photos of both of these buildings later this year.

The coolest part of taking photos of these blueprints was when I got to see the film-like sheets. They had most of the times tracing paper drawings taped on. I was thinking about how to take photos of these to show their best qualities. So I decided to tape them on the window. It was a nice sunny day and the backlight really gave a good kick and made these drawings alive. I took some of the whole views, but the final files show the tracing paper drawing and the end look was really clean and sharp.

The moral of the story – try to look out of the box and make the best of what you have. Also do not forget the angle of shooting as well 😉

So this is it! The new year is here. Happy New Year! Enjoy the winter beauty that the cold and sunny days may offer.

How wonderful it is to start fresh! Time for new year’s resolutions and time to leave all you do not want to drag you down to 2021. Make sure that you do not overcrowd your list and put down the things that you REALLY want to achieve this year. The list should be somewhere visible, so you can always revisit it and make a mental note of your success.

Not sure what to put down on your list? How about writing a book? Learning a new language? Clearing out your inbox? Or dedicating more time to your hobby and family. Or go vegan? Better for the planet, better for the animals and better for you! Whatever you are choosing, be determined and keep your eye on the end goal, as this is the only way you can make it really happen. Daily little notifications on the right upper side of your computer screen don’t work. I can tell it from my own experience.

Hot chocolate is still a thing, hopefully for the next few months. Or not, as I forgot. At least not for the first 11 days of the new year, as I am not eating or drinking anything with refined sugar in it. So no cookies, no cakes, no hot chocolate etc. Just a little restart and after 11th, I will try to eat less processed stuff altogether.

I can’t believe (as every year) that another year is almost done. I re-opened my photography website on this year’s May and it seemed like I just did so. Though I love being present, I can already say that I have some new material to share in the new year, as I have been busy this year, but not so busy sharing the current up-to-date works.

I feel like I am repeating myself, but indeed some wonderful things will happen. Just stand your ground, dream on and believe in a better tomorrow. The holiday season is on and magical things happen. Oftentimes the best moments are free and can’t be taken home. Like this scene, which I consider my best winter shot so far.

The pumpkin flavour is replaced by hot chocolate with marshmallows, a vegan kind of course, as who wants to put pork gelatine in their drink. Help yourself with a cookie, if not sure, which kind, then let me make it easier for you. Choose something from Vegan Very Much and you will not be disappointed. Definitely find time for yourself and your loved ones, take it slow and do not rush, finish the books on your nightstand before the end of the year. And wait for the snow.

I went through my photo archives of the best shots I have put aside, but I realized that I do not have any photos from November. Wow, seems like a really slow month for me. So I decided to choose something else instead. Something that will describe how I feel at the moment.

Lots of smoke, but no fire. Yet. It will come. Some wonderful things will happen. Just stand your ground, dream on and believe in a better tomorrow.

I still recommend getting your pumpkin flavour on, grabbing a cookie and getting comfy with a book on a sofa. And wait for the snow.