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Vernon photographer snaps way to climate summit

Tyler Martin one of four B.C. photographers whose work will hang during UK global climate summit in November
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Vernon photographer Tyler Martin snapped this photo of a chunk of ice on the rocks at Alberta’s Abraham Lake as a sign of climate change. The photo is one of eight chosen from Canada that will be featured in an exhibition at a world climate summit in Scotland in November. (Tyler Martin photo)

Walking with a buddy around Abraham Lake near Jasper, Vernon’s Tyler Martin noticed something a bit different on that particular winter visit.

He saw some odd breakage and configurations in the ice on the lake. Martin asked his friend if he’d ever seen formations like that before and the friend said no.

Taking out his trusty Canon DSLR camera just after sunset, Martin began snapping pictures. One of them shows a small wedge of ice on top of rocks in front of the lake with snow-covered mountains in the background.

“We figured the heating and cooling from the variety of temperatures made these formations, and it was a compelling image in my mind,” said Martin, 32, a subcontractor by day, photography enthusiast in his spare time.

“I saw this chunk of ice with the rocks around it, mountains in the background.”

Reading on Instagram about an organization looking for climate change photos, Martin sent two photos along, including the one at Abraham Lake.

In March, Martin got word that he and three other B.C. photographers have had their works selected by the United Kingdom government to illustrate how climate change is damaging the world.

Martin, Vancouver’s Amit Sharma and Sophie Pilkington and Matt Lazzarotto of Kamloops were named by the U.K. High Commission in Ottawa as finalists for the Capturing Climate photo competition which is held to celebrate the United Nations Climate Change Conference set for Nov. 1-2 in Glasgow, Scotland.

“I’m pretty honoured to be part of the finalists for such a massive event,” said Martin. “I’m quite thrilled they selected my photo.”

Eight Canadians had their photos selected. The other four photographers are from Newfoundland and Labrador, Alberta, New Brunswick and Quebec.

Martin is relatively new to photography. His wife takes portrait and family photos and has asked hubby for help taking pictures of her and their boys.

“She says I have a good eye for different angles,” said Martin. “I upgraded my phone and we went to Vancouver Island a couple of years ago. I started taking pictures and she said I should pursue this.”

Having his photo selected for a world summit on climate change gives Martin a big step to pursue photography full-time.

“It’s something I’m working toward,” he said. “This is definitely a step up on the ladder.”

Martin’s photos can be found on Instagram (@tylermartinphoto), Facebook (TylerMartinPhoto) and his website tylermartinphotography.com.

The COP26 climate summit was initially scheduled for last November, but the U.K. government postponed it to this November due to the pandemic.

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roger@vernonmorningstar.com

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Vernon photographer Tyler Martin is one of eight chosen from Canada that will have one of their photos featured in an exhibition at a world climate summit in Scotland in November. (Contributed)


Roger Knox

About the Author: Roger Knox

I am a journalist with more than 30 years of experience in the industry. I started my career in radio and have spent the last 21 years working with Black Press Media.
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