Derik Giner headed to Stave Lake with a friend one April morning three years ago to watch the sun rise.He packed his camera, pulled on a sweater and headed east from his home in Vancouver.He had heard about the area from a friend, and was eager to photograph the scene. It was dark and Giner and his buddy fumbled through the trees until they came to a clearing and spotted the lake. An eerie sensation came over him as he sat and watched the heavy mist above the lake.As the haze lifted when the sun rose, it revealed an alien landscape with old tree stumps littering the ground and no signs of life.It was an experience neither Giner nor his friend would ever have again despite numerous trips back to Stave Lake.“We were in awe of the things we saw around us,” said Giner, a hobby photographer who spends as much time as he can on the road with his Nikon camera. “We were very lucky.”The northern portion of the lake is usually flooded with only the top of the stumps visible above the water, and what Giner and his friend came upon that spring morning was a rare scene. Giner wasted no time in capturing that moment with his camera, and later researched the area at the Mission Community Archives, where he was encouraged to contact Mission Arts Centre about putting together a show.Giner’s Stave Lake photographs were first exhibited in Vancouver about a year ago in the lobby of the architectural firm he works at, and will be featured at the Mission art gallery for three weeks beginning this week.There are 17 photographs on display of varying sizes; some are 30” by 42” and mounted, others are panoramic and smaller. There will also be some loose photographs, unmounted and unframed from other areas.The opening reception of Giner’s show takes place on Saturday, March 5 from 1 to 4 p.m. at the Mission Arts Centre, 33529 First Ave. Giner will be there to discuss his work. The gallery is open to the public 1 to 4 p.m. Tuesday to Saturday. For more information call 604-826-0029.

Mission City Record