Northern River Images

White pines, cool blue lakes, a red canoe, misty rain, rocky shores, a campfire, wolf howls, the eerie call of the Loon. Our natural northern heritage. It can take many forms for different people. However, it is the unique quality of a Canadian. Everyone deep down has a passion for our natural heritage.

It took my marketing guy to set the framework for how I was going to arrive at a name. It all starts in a name. It has to be well chosen. It, in itself, is a journey of identity and recognition. We went through many variations. I wanted a northern image. He suggested that it had to have a strong direction or flow. I wanted a bold and clear message. I wanted minimalism. Crisp, clean and simple. Like the Canadian north, I needed it to be away from normal naming conventions.

I was looking for something people could associate with and see that the depth in meaning came from wholesome values and that had a holistic identity. People need to see the vision and not a name.

I had suggested West Wind realizing the Tom Thomson affiliation. It wasn’t until after we settled on Northern River that I recognized the similarity. Both are Tom Thomson paintings. I have them in my home. I look at them every day. Everyone can see it in his paintings. I spend my solitude in his preferred place, Canoe Lake, in Algonquin. He has been recognized as the face for all that is the Canadian wilderness. It didn’t happen when he passed away. It took half a century before his pre-eminence rose.

When I decided on my original branding, I was reading a book about the mystery of Tom Thomson, Northern Light, by Roy McGregor. I was going through this subliminal process as I turned each page without realizing it. It didn’t dawn on me until I almost finished the book, that my new identity and vision would be drawn from here. I identify with his vision. I now continue that journey by adding Northern River Images to my lineage.

Northern River Images is not a new venture. I have been a wildlife photographer since I was a teenager. What I needed to do was escalate it and give Northern River Images a proper home. The vision and inspiration were there but it needed to be enhanced. People were asking for it.

I’ve been sharing my images on social media for a while. But I was just talking about it and not moving forward. Motivation from my many photography friends, especially my partner who is way ahead of me on her journey, got the fire lit. It took time to decide on a platform, but I did my due diligence, made my decision, and moved forward. Now I have solved that, my next task is to integrate my complete social media presence.

I’m almost there and want to sincerely thank everyone who took their time to provide sage advice, words of wisdom, invigorating ideas, and kind words. I feel fortunate to now be able to share the continuation of my photography journey with many more people. I roam to reason. It is an extension into my natural world. I hope to see you there and share the wonder of our wildlife and wild places.