Posts tagged with “Surrey”

BC BuzZ is a magazine-style interview show that celebrates all things British Columbian. Art, artists, entertainment, events, movies, music and more, this series of videos gets up close and personal to showcase the best of arts and entertainment in our great province. It’s served up on Vancouver Is Awesome every week or so and aims to support local communities. @bcbuzztv

BC BuzZ: Sophie’s Place with Sophie Tweed-Simmons

BC BuzZ got to sit down and chat with the one & only Sophie Tweed-Simmons (Gene Simmons Family Jewels) about a new spot in town called Sophie’s Place.  Sophie’s Place provides physically, mentally and sexually abused children up to the age of 18 years with professional, compassionate and nurturing service from doctors, police and counsellors all under one roof in a child-friendly atmosphere.  To learn more about what they do, go to www.cdfbc.ca and make sure to support a wonderful cause which is located within theCentre for Child Development building in Surrey, BC

Support Your Local Charity!

SCENE AND HEARD showcases the independent music scene here in Vancouver. We post weekly guest playlists comprised of Vancouver artists and ‘Last Week in Music’ highlights some of the best concerts happening around the city…

It’s July! I’m not sure where June went, or where Summer is…but there is still LOTS of music going on.

This week I spent some time with beer, mud (again), and rain…with a sprinkling of music. The Summer Cask Festival, you’ll get to read about soon enough! The first photos this week are from the latest and one of the best in recent memory, Rain City Chronicles… And the last are from the rainy Lonsdale Quay, where a new series called Summerfest is happening, and where I saw Maurice play this Monday. Canada Day, I got a last minute job and had to miss Hannah Georgas and Sam Roberts (still bummed) in Surrey…BUT:

We have another guest photographer this week, Ryan Rose, who sent me several awesome shots of Hannah and Sam to put up in the blog. Check our Ryan’s work here…and esp take a look at the portraits of people in the music industry in BC (hey, where am I Ryan? :p )

THIS WEEK IN MUSIC: I’d first suggested checking out the Sad Mag ‘Vanimal’ party at the Colbalt on Thursday… On Friday the Be Good Tanya’s are doing at Musical Nooner at the CBC…and in the evening it’s The Washboard Union/The Crackling double cd release at the Waldorf. Saturday Japandroids return home to play an early show at the Biltmore w/ Previous Tenants. And like I said, every Sunday at Lonsdale Quay, there are shows for Summerfest. This Sunday it’s The Boom Booms from 1pm-3pm!

…READ THE REST OF THIS ENTRY>>>

Nicholson Road is an ongoing photo project aimed at sharing and celebrating the different communities in Metro Vancouver. Each week Vancouver Is Awesome will be featuring an image from the previous week, shot in one of the many ‘hoods around town in order to draw your attention a little bit outside of the hyper-focus that we usually have on the City of Vancouver. Metro Vancouver Is Awesome, and you should get out and explore it!

One of the goals for my Nicholson Road project was to show people you don’t need fancy cameras to capture interesting photos. I’ve never owned an SLR, and find their bulkiness more of a hassle than a benefit for most of my needs – the ability to whip a camera out of your pocket and snap a photo or two before hiding it away again let’s me spend more time looking around, and less time dealing with lenses/the added weight of a camera bag/the pressure to flawlessly capture something. Thus, my guidelines are as follows:

• There’s no rush: Compose the shot, and wait for the right moment.
• Without an array of lenses, make the most of what you have: Focus on the entire scene, not the small details.
• Process intelligently: A little contrast and colour adjustment in post can go a long way when you’re lacking camera features.
• Remember your goal: Try to convey the area as best as possible to those who may never visit, or even know of its existence.
• When in doubt, Instagram: Think of it like rapid prototyping for photographs.

This week the iphone snap and quick instagram edit won out, with a shot of Highway 99 from the new Pioneer Cycling and Pedestrian Overpass out in South Surrey. It’s one of two overpasses Surrey installed over the past couple years (you may have heard about it, or seen it thanks to its awesome animated LED light shows).

I just couldn’t help imagining myself in that motorhome (or maybe the bike behind it) headed off on some great adventure. Maybe they’re coming up from the border and it’s their first time in BC? The Pioneer Overpass is at the top of a hill, which is one of the first spots you really see the mountains when travelling north on the 99 before descending towards the Nicomekl River and Mud Bay. Or maybe they’re headed home after a whirlwind trip across the continent ready to enjoy the sunny days ahead back in Metro Vancouver.

#Icantwaitforsummer!

Archives of the Nicholson Road project can be found HERE.

This series had its genesis when I began photographing Vancouver area location shoots in the summer of 2010 to get over a post-Olympics funk. Film and TV productions like Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol, Fringe, Supernatural and Once Upon a Time showcase our city in similar fashion and sometimes put a celebrity actor or two in the frame. You can find more on my daily blog yvrshoots.com

The second season of sci-fi summer hit Falling Skies takes place three months after Noah Wyle‘s father of three boys boarded an alien spacecraft in a bid to protect his middle son. It’s said to be an even darker look at the trials and tribulations of a small band of insurgents fighting against an occupying alien force which has killed most of the world’s adults and captured their children. So it’s appropriate they filmed it in Vancouver over the fall and winter durng our Rainocalypse, instead of in the Toronto area over the summer and fall in the mainly sunny weather of season one.

Noah Wyle (from ER) is former History professor Tom Mason, the civilian second-in-command of a Boston insurgent group named after the 2nd Massachusetts of the American Revolution and made up of about 300 fighters and civilians. Mason, whose wife was killed in the initial attack, has three sons –  Hal, played by Drew Roy, and Ben and Matt, played by  Connor Jessup and Maxim Knight.  Middle son Ben has been captured by the insectoid multi-legged aliens known as Skitters and harnessed. These harnesses are attached to the children’s spines and act as some kind of biomechancial device that allows the aliens to control their minds. Much of the first season is spent trying to get Ben back and to figure out how to remove his harness without killing him. But even when they do get the harness off Ben, it’s clear he’s not free from alien mind control. And that’s why his father boards the alien spaceship in the season one finale to find a way to protect Ben and stop the harnessing of kids.

This is the family show in a post-apocalyptic setting that legendary director Steven Spielberg had envisioned. Other key civilians are Moon Bloodgood as pediatrician Anne Glass and Seychelle Gabrielle as Lourdes, who’ve formed a makeshift medical clinic for the group. Will Patton is Captain Dan Weaver, the military leader of the 2nd Mass and Mpho Koaho as Thomas (a former Boston cop) and Peter Shinkoda as Dai are two of its best fighters. Jesse Schram is Karen Nadler, who starts off as Ben’s girlfriend and fellow scout until she is captured and harnessed. Sarah Carter‘s Maggie takes her place on the frontlines of 2nd Mass and maybe as Ben’s girlfriend too in the upcoming season.

Maggie happens to be the survivor of a gang of marauders headed up by Colin Cunningham’s charismatic and wickedly funny John Pope, an ex-con who causes mayhem wherever he goes, nicknaming Tom Mason, “Papa Smurf”; Karen, “Sexy Freedom Fighter”; Hal. ”Strapping Young Man”; Anthony, “Black….Looks Like a Gangbanger”; and Dai, “Oriental of Some Kind” when they’re briefly in his custody early on. No one has better lines than Pope in this series, like his protest, “What am I? Canada”, when his 2nd Mass captors insist he go unarmed on a sortee. Here is Cunningham in character as John Pope on set in Vancouver.

At the Falling Skies panel at the Emerald City ComicCon last Friday in Seattle, new showrunner Remi Aubuchon (an SGU Stargate Universe writer/producer) and cast Colin Cunningham (SG-1′s Major Paul Davis) …READ THE REST OF THIS ENTRY>>>

Nicholson Road is an ongoing photo project aimed at sharing and celebrating the different communities in Metro Vancouver. Each week Vancouver Is Awesome will be featuring an image from the previous week, shot in one of the many ‘hoods around town in order to draw your attention a little bit outside of the hyper-focus that we usually have on the City of Vancouver. Metro Vancouver Is Awesome, and you should get out and explore it!

Designed by Chandler/Kennedy Architecture in 1990, the Surrey Public Market, located at 64th and King George Blvd (then, Hwy), was envisioned to be the ultimate local market destination for residents of Surrey and surrounding communities. A much older and more small-town ‘country’ style Surrey Public Market existed on the corner of this site from as far back as I can remember, providing space for 30 different vendors selling fresh fruits and vegetables, meats, crafts, and all the other goodies you might expect to find in a public market.

Built on a rather sensitive site, the south building of the Surrey Public Market – where the food vendors were located – is hugged by a small ravine carrying a fork of Hyland Creek as it emerges from beneath King George Blvd and continues under the bridge market – where the speciality retail and demonstration vendors were – before meeting up with the creek as it winds down towards the Serpentine River. The buildings themselves evoke that sort of Granville Island industrial character, complete with painted pipe-work, exposed metal beams, and cold, steel walls.

In case you haven’t gathered from the photo and my reference to where the vendors were rather than where they are, the new Surrey Public Market closed its doors after some leasehold disagreements in 1998 and has sat vacant ever since. Possible deals came and went, but each one fell apart at the last minute.

Fast forward to today and Surrey is a different place than it used to be. Newton Town Centre, just up the street, has plans for a re-integration with rapid transit (the interurban made Newton possible!) and a new ‘main street’ allowing for weekend markets or festivals, along with the residential density to support it, and the Surrey Public Market site has a new owner and is up for redevelopment with the possibility for new mixed-use buildings on the north end of the property.

Also, the local population has blossomed since the 90s with hundreds of families moving into new urbanist-style subdivisions throughout Panorama and Sullivan, desiring greater connection with their neighbours, their community, and an emphasis on living locally. Enter Jude Hannah and Revitalize Newton, or ReNewton (@ReNewtonNation), a group whose vision is to unite South East Newton and revitalize the old market into a bustling community gathering place.

Supported by a strong online presence, Hannah and co-chair Jen Robbins (@NtQtSouthSurrey) have decided it’s high time Newton gets its market back, and they’re forming a new community association in order to make it happen. In the process, connections are being made and a new neighbourhood identity is beginning to emerge.

It’s an exciting time, and I can’t wait to see what the future holds :)

Archives of the Nicholson Road project can be found HERE.

Nicholson Road is an ongoing photo project aimed at sharing and celebrating the different communities in Metro Vancouver. Each week Vancouver Is Awesome will be featuring an image from the previous week, shot in one of the many ‘hoods around town in order to draw your attention a little bit outside of the hyper-focus that we usually have on the City of Vancouver. Metro Vancouver Is Awesome, and you should get out and explore it!

Every now and then I find myself presented with opportunities to see some pretty amazing places. This past week, that meant visiting the rooftop of Bing Thom Architects‘ Central City tower in Whalley/City Centre, Surrey.

Talk about an incredible view.. you could see everything from up there! Including Coquitlam’s Austin Heights neighourhood we visited just last week (the strip of bright lights near the top left of the photo).

A little closer to home, you can see Tom Binnie Park in the foreground just to the right of the skytrain. The park includes the BC Lions Practice Facility, an awesome new covered skate park, and the Chuck Bailey Recreation Centre (which is home to one of the largest digital artworks I’ve seen in the Metro – Urban Screen). By the way, the rec centre also served as the Games Preparation Centre for the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games, meaning Surrey earned the right to be called a Venue City.

But facts and tidbits aside, sometimes all I want to do is be still enjoy the view.

Honestly, when you live in Metro Vancouver, there really is no place like home!

Archives of the Nicholson Road project can be found HERE.