2022 Calendar
Photography of BC

I thought it would be a great idea to write stories about each image in my 2022 calendar so that if you purchased one (or just want to read the stories) you have an intimate knowledge of how I arrived in the situation to take that particular photo. Let’s do them in order!

January 2022

This photo is from Princeton, the day before I broke down. Living in a van, I was always using the app iOverlander to look for parking spots for the night. There was a rest stop north of the Similkameen River, a few kilometres out of town along Old Hedley Rd. I got there and the pullout was buried in several feet of snow. Apparently they don’t plough rec sites in winter. The scenery was spectacular though, and I didn’t mind catching photos of the winter wonderland. That night I stayed near the Weyerhauser Plant. Less quaint but easier to get out of. That night the temperature dropped to -20 and my furnace and starter weren’t happy. There’s a video that I recorded but never ended up posting about the day my van broke down in Osoyoos. Maybe some day. This horse (and a few others) were on the way to the original rest stop. My purpose of going there was, obviously, to see the winter wonderland.

February 2022

Denman Island. In Google it’s described as: Island destination for picturesque nature views & a small community with a quiet village atmosphere. This is where I spent my birthday in 2021. Christin rented a studio and was there for a month. I took Armondo and drove there to have a roof and shower for a few days (and see my friend on my birthday!) Prior to this trip, I had always thought of Denman as the place that makes chocolate that you pass through on the way to Hornby Island. Both facts are still true but there’s more to it than that. We stayed on the north shore, looking at Hornby, and went on several little hikes/walks. This one was to the Gladstone Way Beach Access point, the beach apparently has no name that I can find. I could do a calendar with pictures from this area alone.

March 2022

Elfin Lakes! I absolutely love this location! Actually taken during fall of 2020. Shhhh, don’t tell anyone. I hiked up here with two friends, and learned that my hiking boots hurt my feet a lot. We saw a bear on the way back down, literally ON the path. We had to very carefully walk around him (or her) but he/she seemed happy eating berries and wasn’t bothered by us. The hut you see here was closed due to Covid, but the tent pads were spectacular, overlooking Garibaldi Park.

April 2022

During one of my trips to the Sunshine Coast, I happened to be dining at Canoe’s on the waterfront in Sechelt at Davis Bay. The sky started doing this pink thing and I ran to grab my camera from the van. I’m so glad I did! I may have put an excessive amount of sunsets in this calendar, but, I like them. I’ve since started using this particular sunset in other images and making interesting pixelated versions of the sky. I may do a blog post about that at some point in the future.

May 2022

Welcome to the “hidden waterfall” at Sombrio Beach. My cousin Junne sees a man in a hat in this picture. Hi Junne 👋🏻 Despite the fact that it is listed in Google, I may not have found it had it not been for a couple I met along the way, who hiked with me to the beach and knew where the waterfall was. It is almost identical to a waterfall in Iceland that I saw in 2019 called Gljufrabui! I should probably do a calendar of Iceland, or at least a blog post. I don’t actually think I’ve even finished looking at all my pictures from Iceland.

June 2022

Birches in Northern BC. Imagine my surprise and delight to see hundreds of kilometres of birch trees along our bike route last summer! This was one of the first photos taken on the “great cycle trip of 2021” from Prince George to Watson Lake, YT. I can’t tell you how happy they made me. I have more images of these trees than I care to admit, let’s just say I’m glad it was digital so I didn’t have to carry extra “film”.

July 2022

Klein Lake at Sunset. This is a bit of a magical spot, and I wouldn’t post it except I don’t think all that many people read my blogs (due to extremely infrequent posting). In any case, I love how the sunset reflects in the water. I like the lens flare. It’s kind of a cool peaceful sunset. I’m surprised that no one was in the lake at that moment. Maybe I should have jumped in. This was taken during one of my van adventures on the Sunshine Coast.

August 2022

The Pine Pass, in the Hart Ranges of the Northern Rockies of British Columbia, connects the Peace Country of the province’s Northeastern Interior. If you look on my Instagram you will see Bijoux Falls. I’ll never forget seeing the windy road snake uphill from the beginning of the pass. Oof. This is our reward for cycling up and over our first pass, Lake Azouzetta. Also the second and final calendar photo from the Epic Bike Trip of 2021 with Christin. I’m lucky I managed to arrive in time to see this. I left late that afternoon, and rolled into the campground moments before sunset.

September 2022

Here we are, back in the van (Armondo) after the bike trip, and heading back south through the Okanagan because I had to return bike gear to someone I borrowed it from. Obviously I stopped at this lookout over Kamloops Lake to enjoy the epic landscape and sunset. You can barely see it in the picture, but there’s a train on the opposite side of the lake, creeping around the north side. Coming from a rainforest, I really appreciate the arid landscape of this region. Since all this driving around, we had that storm in November which wiped out the Coquihalla, a road I frequented. I’m eternally grateful I got to experience the province so intimately.

October 2022

Sunset from Cortes Island looking over at Vancouver Island. Also the cover shot. I don’t think I would ever be able to figure out what mountain this is, but I know it’s in Strathcona Provincial Park on the Island. Never having been on Cortes before, I’ve never seen this angle of those mountains. The sun set just to the right of the peaks. Let me know if you want to see that picture. This will also prove to me that people occasionally read my posts 😁

November 2022

Oh look, a sunset. This one is at Jordan River on the west coast of Vancouver Island. This is another spot I have a bajillion photos of. Also taken during my #vanlife phase, all of the campgrounds were covid closed on the circle route from Lake Cowichan through Port Renfrew to Sooke. I drove past this point a few times (see this blog post image) and saw vans parked there. Eventually I pulled over and parked there. People were having a fire on the beach and everyone was really friendly! I made some overnight friends, and when the sun set, the tide was out, and I ran out with both cameras to capture both wide and close up shots of nature and lumps of sand (and reflections, obviously).

December 2022

This was taken in September 2021, on the Sunshine Coast. I was working for Hipcamp as a photographer, and I went to “Christian Park” where this man has spent the last ten years landscaping a gorgeous plot of land, and building this cabin. The sky cleared and I was there alone so I sat outside on the lawn for a good 30 minutes taking various photos of the milky way. This was my last month of vanlife, and probably one of the last trips I went on in Armondo. I returned home shortly after and sold him the following month.

Now it’s your turn, feel free to let me know what you’d love to see in a calendar for next year!

I have photos of Iceland, macro nature shots, tropical locations, trees. All the trees. Thanks for reading!

Last summer I was incredibly flattered to be asked by Vancity to capture a series of nature images from the lower mainland, for them to print and post on their stairwells to encourage people to take the stairs. Amazing idea, for them and for me! I loved it because I spent three years working at Vancity and left only to pursue my photography career full time.

The project expanded to include interior walls of various sizes they wanted covered to give employees a dose of nature. I really couldn’t have asked for a more fulfilling commissioned project. Nature photography for a purpose! I went hiking all summer in areas that Vancity has branches (mostly), and captured many gorgeous images that are now on the walls at the Vancity Head Office on Terminal. Two of the images are 30′ long!

When I walked around to see the finished product, it was breathtaking. Truly a gallery of my work. Everything is larger than life and so beautifully displayed. I feel like it adds such a personal touch to the project, knowing that people I know will be seeing these art prints and knowing that they were specifically taken by me for them. I love Vancity for not going with generic stock photography, but hiring an ex-employee to capture images specifically for them. The murals were beautifully printed and installed by Ampco Graphics.

I wanted to write a press release about all this but eventually realized I’m not a writer. I’m hugely grateful to Lesley Diana and The Promotion People for writing a fantastic article about the project and the trend of installing nature prints in businesses and public spaces, which I now know has the name biophilia.

I am now inspired to install my favourite forest print on my wall at home ❤️This is the one. It is the background screen on my computer, and is from one of my favourite forests on the Sunshine Coast. I also have this picture listed on Society6 where people can purchase things with it (okay, maybe I’m the main person interested in having a forest shower curtain…)

You will see several samples of images from the finished product in the corporate portfolio section of my website.

Some clips from the article.

Vancouver photographer Suzanne Rushton is bringing the breathtaking beauty of the outdoors, indoors, through her photography prints. As businesses move towards a cost-effective solution to “green their offices” by installing large format nature photographs on their walls, Suzanne’s work offers the perfect pieces to adorn said walls. The trend, called biophilia, suggests that humans possess an innate tendency to seek connections with nature and other forms of life. Biophilia, also called BET, is the direction that Suzanne is encouraging clients in Canada and worldwide to venture towards.

Vancity Credit Union commissioned Suzanne for a pilot project to bring nature indoors at their Vancity Centre location in Vancouver. The project included adding nature photos on the risers of their stairwells to encourage employees to get exercise by taking the stairs rather than the elevator. From there, Suzanne was asked to create several local nature feature walls as well. The final installation was well received by staff.

As employers continue to become more aware of the scientific research, the mental and physical benefits to their workforce, and the growth of their bottom line due to sustainability and increased performance, the more important biophilia will become in today’s world. “I think they are amazing and bring calmness and beauty into our space,” says Vancity’s Wendy Worrall about the art.

A number of published articles are linking nature images to happier, more productive employees, helping to create workplace satisfaction. Biophilic design can reduce stress, enhance creativity and clarity of thought, improve our well-being and expedite healing; as the world’s population continues to urbanize, these qualities are ever more important.

It is her love of nature that has inspired Suzanne to take thousands of photographs and images on her hikes in British Columbia and around the world. Some of Suzanne’s recent travel photos have been selected by the Curacao Tourism Board for their new website. Suzanne provides designers, businesses and residential properties with nature wall print wraps. By both consulting with clients and subsequently delivering the photos, Suzanne plans to bring her photography to buildings, hospitals, offices, airports and homeowners who want a nature feature wall. “This new trend is a perfect combination of my experience with interior spaces, and my love of nature photography.”

Lesley Diana | Lesley@thepromotionpeople.ca| 604-726-5575