Randy Milanovic, Photographer and Survivor

Diagnosis. The doctor asked me if I had a will. “No”, I replied, “but I guess I better get one.” Now, if you know me, you’ll agree that I’m not the type to roll over and play dead. I fought that cancer with everything I had, enduring six months of chemotherapy treatments and a pair of painful bone marrow punctures. Throughout, I lived in an air-tight hospital room – about 6 months until the cancer was gone. The cancer had left me 60 pounds lighter and extremely frail. Pretty scary for a guy who would otherwise hike 25km at least once a week. Strengthening my body was a priority. I began with walks…at first, around the house, then around the yard, expanding to walks around the block. Eventually, I braved the 2 km pathway that snaked along the shore of a nearby pond. One day, a great blue heron floated in to land near me. Its odd, featherless shoulders caught my attention and I studied it from a park bench on the bank, lost in the moment. Watching how it moved, paused, moved again. It felt good to be outside. It felt good to be present. It just felt good for my soul.

Water. One afternoon a year after d-day (diagnosis), I asked my sister to take me to a nearby Canadian Tire where I purchased two kayaks. “Two?” she asked. “Yes”, I replied. “You don’t think I’m going out alone, do you?” Because I had been thinking about it for a while, wanted a reason to get on the water, and I wanted a new routine. But most of all, I wanted something physical that wasn’t a gym so I could build my strength back. I watched as she loaded them onto the roof of her SUV for me…because she was stronger at the moment. Then to the lakes, we went. The first trips were simple, easy launches. Short paddles on calm water where found. After all, the point wasn’t distance. The point was getting active, enjoyig my newfound freedom. A huge boost to getting my life back on track.

Exploration. Before that fateful year, I had visited Singapore, Brussels, Rome, Paris, Monaco, Pisa… the dark alleyways in Taipei, ruins in ancient Istanbul and the seaside of Croatia and before those, I’d explored far away Indonesia, Mexico, and even the Florida Keys. I’ve lost count of the countries visited past 20. But not the memories. Those remain vivid in my mind and I’m willing to share them, over a beer or coffee. Anytime. Some stories are funny. Some are uncomfortable. Some are just strange. And all of them are real. Travel has a way of sharpening one’s mind and has a way of proving we have more in common than not.

Canada. Since beating cancer, I’ve (mostly) kept my wandering closer to home. That wasn’t a compromise, but was a choice. Canada keeps pulling me back. Snow-capped peaks. Calm lakes. High mountain sunsets. Prairie sunrises. Flowers. Creatures. Wild weather. And the aurora. The aurora still stops me every time. It doesn’t take a passport to feel grounded. It doesn’t take a distant city to feel alive. I’ve seen real wilderness. Places where hardly a soul has tread. Big animals too. Cougars, wolves, bears, moose, elk, deer, mountain goats, pronghorns, and mountain sheep. Smaller ones as well. Badgers, pikas, groundhogs, weasels, wild rabbits, and other critters. And there’s no denying it. Sharing my hiking trail with a gigantic Grizzly in the fall of 2021 made me feel very much alive. While I did get photos, it wasn’t a photo op. That was an assessment. Distance. Wind. Options. Decisions. It was intense. It was also clean and clear. Nobody got hurt.

Moments. I’ve accepted that every experience I’ve ever had has been but a single moment in my life. The cancer diagnosis, chemo treatments, raisin cinnamon bagels for breakfast, and even walks in the park…moments. Some moments are loud. Some are quiet. Some are simple. Some change everything. They pass either way. I hope you enjoy sharing mine. I’m always down to share my experience, tips, and photo techniques. If something here helps, that’s enough. If it gives someone a push to get outside, even better. Photographing and editing the Aurora Borealis, Milky Way, Comets, Meteors, AirGlow, the Moon, and more using little more than a DLSR and remote shutter control on a tripod (optional star tracker) is a blast. It takes practice, but it’s not magic. It takes planning, but it doesn’t need to be complicated. A few good habits go a long way. The night sky always has something going on if you look for it.