cbifilms

Crazy winds bring big waves and whiteout conditions to the beaches in Toronto. Going for a walk is a real challenge, but as long as you keep you back to the wind you can see and just standing still keeps all your muscles working. This is not the ocean, it's a freshwater lake, but you could be ocean side based on the wave height and ice spray!

2018 was one of the most amazing years for the ice surface on Church Lake in Nova Scotia to date. Several cycles of rain and subzero temperatures forged a thick, smooth ice, hard for skating and ice boating and strong enough for an ATV. The ATV here looks like a toy as it careens across the ice, while ice boats and skaters enjoy the slick surface. Shot from various aerial and ground perspectives, the sense of speed and fun is captured in this video.

The Elf on the Shelf is up to some mischief. It is Christmas time again, and a return of the Elf on the Shelf. As told in this adorable Super 8 Film by 7 and 10 year old Cirrus and Severn and their Dad, the elf on the shelf can be a bit mischievous and threatening, but it doesn't take too much to scare him right back onto the shelf. This film won an honourable mention at the Atlantic Film Co-op Christmas Super 8 screenings.

This is one scary monster story, as told by a two year old with a vivid imagination. Mommy has to get the monster right away before it eats the baby, and mommy has to keep her fingers away, too. It's all pretty serious stuff and the sense of urgency and danger is quite clear! The monster might be hard to see but you better believe it is there.

There is nothing more beautiful than taking a small sailboat out on a perfect day and going for a silent slice through the waters. The capri is a small 2 person sailboat, similar to a laser, built in the 1980's and recently restored by me. It has great characteristics, moves fast and has good stability. This is a sail on Church lake Nova Scotia in the early fall. This model of Capri is no longer made, but there are a few around. I had to do quite a bit of fibreglass restoration to get it fully operational, but it sails quite beautifully. It can take two people comfortably but three is a crowd. One adult and two kids works well two. There is only a mainsheet, no jib. Draft is about three feet with the keel.

Who knew that eating french fries and fish sticks could be so funny! Young Severn certainly thinks so, as the food disappears into daddy's mouth, and his brother gets in on the action too. Gut and belly laughs ensue!

A group of lego friends have fun camping at Church Lake Nova Scotia. Eight year old Severn's vision of fun times camping on a lego Island at his home in Nova Scotia. Three friends sit around a fire enjoying life and the beautiful scenery, then the fire goes out and it's time for bed. As the sun sets and the crickets chirp, the three buddies lie down for a night's sleep.

While out flying in my plane the other day, I encountered my first UFO. I didn't see it, but the action camera on the wing picked it up....

Spectacular views from a hang glider up to 1000 feet above West Bay Nova Scotia. The whole flight was 3 1/2 hours and these are a few excerpts taken from the flight.

Here's how to run a waterfall in a canoe, the right way and the wrong way. This kayaker at Bears Falls does it once successfully, but let his guard drop the second time and picked the wrong "line". The results are evident!

Winter is an unusual time of year for rockets, but the weather finally broke to calm winds and reasonable ceilings, so we decided it was time to take out the rockets for some fun. The right low angle shots gave us some hyper-realistic angles on the take offs and we gained some serious height.

My 10 year old son goes absolutely crazy over the Monster Truck show at the Skydome stadium, he's the biggest fan in the place. "He's gonna do it, He's gonna do it...."

On a lazy summer afternoon, there's nothing much better than chilling out with a friend. A foot makes a great chin rest, too.

An annual face off on the Halifax harbourfront involves cute pirates and water, no gunpowder needed for this pirate battle. Kids, water guns and tall ships are all that's needed for a fun day on the water.

It is winter, it is cold and desolate, but two zombies (played by adorable children) fight to the death on the arctic wastes. Who will reign victorious? This was inspired by a snow fort... and the story grew from there.

On a paddle of Lake Ontario, our family sees the usual boats and waterfront sites, but then we come across the world's largest rubber ducky...

A juvenile sparrow showed up hungry and aggressively begging for food. These loving people fed him and helped him for a couple of days before he went on his way. Awesome! The family housed the little bird in a box overnight, to keep him away from predators and fed him some hamburger. The timid bird looked quite at ease with the human, seeing how it sits on the palm of the man's hand and chirps. The birdie felt better the next day so they let him go, but he came back for some more food for two days after. He would just casually sit on the box he was housed in and waited for the humans to hand feed him some bread. The young fledgling kept coming to his human rescuers' house, probably feeling quite at home, but here are a few things you should know, if you ever do come across a fallen bird. First, make sure that it is actually an orphan. If you find the bird under a tree and it has no feathers, then it is a nestling and it probably fell from the tree you found it under; check for a nest. If it does have feathers on it, then it is a juvenile fledgling and you should leave it there, unless you fear predators, in which case just perch it on a branch to be safe. Taking care of a wild bird is a tedious task, one better taken care of by a professional. So in case you do find a fallen or injured bird, make sure to bring it to your local wildlife shelter.

Here you have some wonderful footage of a family sailing on the tall ship 'Kajama' in Toronto's harbor. Lots of beautiful scenery to gaze your eyes upon here!