Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Matthew Hollett

@matthewhollett.bsky.social

330 followers 250 following 110 posts

✏️ Writer, photographer, walker 👁️ Optic Nerve (poems) published by Brick Books 🦑 Newfoundland / Ktaqmkuk

Posts Media Videos Starter Packs

Matthew Hollett @matthewhollett.bsky.social · 17d

A little dose of light in Beaches Path, Witless Bay, Newfoundland.

Dappled light shining through two red berries on a small plant, the camera peering closely across the forest floor.

1 6

Matthew Hollett @matthewhollett.bsky.social · Aug 19

Steam and sunlight

Steam from a pot glowing in sunlight from a nearby window.

Matthew Hollett @matthewhollett.bsky.social · Aug 18

The fireweed on the Bonavista peninsula is pretty epic right now. #newfoundlandandlabrador

A field of deep pink fireweed absorbing a wooden fence.

Matthew Hollett @matthewhollett.bsky.social · Aug 6

Of course this happens on the one day I don’t bring my good camera with me.

A gull perching on a plastic owl meant to scare away gulls, on a rooftop in Newfoundland, with the ocean in the background.

Matthew Hollett @matthewhollett.bsky.social · Aug 2

A couple of seals encountered on the southern Avalon, Newfoundland. These were taken with a 300mm lens and then cropped quite a bit. I only got a telephoto lens a few months ago and it's been really fun to revisit places and see them with more telescopic eyes.

A seal lying on a seaweed-covered shoreline, peering back at the photographer over its shoulder, if seals had shoulders.

A hefty-looking seal relaxing on a slab of rock by the ocean.

Matthew Hollett @matthewhollett.bsky.social · Aug 1

I love Escher's puddles! Someone has added a grey circle to this one, it's not part of the original image.

1 1

Matthew Hollett @matthewhollett.bsky.social · Aug 1

I feel like I levelled up in foraging this past week. I've picked bakeapples before, but never dewberries or wild haskaps! We also found a few creeping snowberries, but I forgot to get a photo. #newfoundland #foraging

Dewberries, bulbous bright red berries that look a bit like raspberries.

A handful of bakeapples, which are peach-orange coloured and bumpy.

A handful of wild haskaps, small dark blue oval-shaped herries.

1 23

Matthew Hollett @matthewhollett.bsky.social · Jul 31

I snapped this sundew yesterday on Newfoundland’s southern Avalon peninsula. It’s insectivorous! The sticky drops attract small insects that are dissolved by the plant’s enzymes. This one has a bit of fly stuck in its teeth.

Close-up photo of a sundew plant in Newfoundland. The plant is insectivorous and has a green center with red spines covered in sticky drops which attract and trap small insects.

1 5

Matthew Hollett @matthewhollett.bsky.social · Jun 14

The Chung, the King, His Night and Her Crawler

Matthew Hollett @matthewhollett.bsky.social · Apr 16

Another recent fox encounter on the hill trail. #newfoundland #wildlife #photography

A black fox standing on a rocky hill, almost silhouetted against a bright blue sky.

Matthew Hollett @matthewhollett.bsky.social · Apr 15

From a series of photos of traffic islands that I made while living in Halifax back in 2006-2008.

A triangular traffic island photographed from
above, with slanting shadows created by early morning light.

1 3

Matthew Hollett @matthewhollett.bsky.social · Apr 14

A large day on the hill trail. #northheadtrail #newfoundland #parkscanada #photography

A hillside trail in deep blue shadow, with two hikers silhouetted in the distance. In the background is a port city glowing in warm evening light.

1 10

Matthew Hollett @matthewhollett.bsky.social · Apr 12

Fox encounter on Signal Hill yesterday.

A black fox stands on a wooden staircase on a walking trail, peering back at the photographer as if assessing his possible value as a source of protein.

Matthew Hollett @matthewhollett.bsky.social · Apr 11

Snow tires, St. John's. #photography

A pile of tires at a dock, partially covered in snow so that the tires create black circular patterns against the white expanse.

1 6

Matthew Hollett @matthewhollett.bsky.social · Apr 10

Tallinn, Estonia. #photography

A cobblestone street at night, rounded stones shining bright red from the taillights of a passing car.

Matthew Hollett @matthewhollett.bsky.social · Apr 9

Found this little pal while photographing cherry blossoms in Montreal a few years ago. #montreal #photography #streetphotography

A small songbird bird perched on a wire fence, with out-of-focus cherry blossoms creating a colourful dappled background.

Matthew Hollett @matthewhollett.bsky.social · Apr 8

A walk on Signal Hill a few weeks ago. #newfoundland #photography #landscapephotography

A view of St. John’s Harbour from Signal Hill, Newfoundland. A bit of snow along the edges of a walking path. The city sprawling along the sides of the harbour. A gold-tinged lens flare.

Matthew Hollett @matthewhollett.bsky.social · Apr 7

Port de Grave yesterday. #newfoundland #photography #landscapephotography #abstraction

An almost abstract image, looking down into the waters of a port, with the hulls of boats reflected as looming shadows, bright orange floats dangling upside-down, and a flurried blur of bird.

Matthew Hollett @matthewhollett.bsky.social · Apr 6

My package arrived. #catscatscats

A cardboard box with a cat standing in it. The photo has a kind of fish-eye effect so the cat’s body looms large at the top of the image.

Matthew Hollett @matthewhollett.bsky.social · Apr 5

Seeing softly on a squishy springish walk. #walking #photography #vintagelens

Wild rose hips in winter, photographed barely in focus so they are almost abstract, a blur of red and pastel purple hues.

Matthew Hollett @matthewhollett.bsky.social · Apr 4

A snowy St. John’s film snap from yesterwinter. #nlwx #35mm #filmisnotdead #filmphotography

A retro-looking film photo of a snowy street in downtown St. John’s, car tracks curving into the distance.

Matthew Hollett @matthewhollett.bsky.social · Apr 4

Ha! To be fair, this poor reader was looking for a mystery to solve, so at least now they have one

1 3

Matthew Hollett @matthewhollett.bsky.social · Apr 3

Two years ago today I published my first poetry book! Optic Nerve, a collection of poems about photography and visual perception, was published by Brick Books in 2023. The cover image is by the wonderful Jon McNaught. #canlit #canadianpoetry #poetrybook #poetry

Several copies of a poetry collection titled "Optic Nerve", sitting on a wooden table. The book's cover image is an almost abstract graphical illustration of a tree reflected in a puddle shaped by paving stones.

2 8

Matthew Hollett @matthewhollett.bsky.social · Apr 2

Got a few rolls of film developed – here's a snap from my trusty Olympus Trip 35. I love this little camera! #filmphotography #filmisnotdead #35mm #photography #olympustrip35

A retro-looking film photo taken from the passenger window of a moving car. The photographer is visible in the rear-view mirror, with a blurry landscape with trees and hills in the background.

Matthew Hollett @matthewhollett.bsky.social · Apr 1

Flatrock as a snow flurry moved in. #flatrock #newfoundland #landscapephotography

A rocky coastal Newfoundland landscape, with dramatic sweeping rocks and a hilly headland in the distance.