Abstracts in the Winter Landscape
Two months into winter and my photographer’s eye is starting to adjust to the winter landscape. With the general absence of color I find that I need to see differently to find interesting photo subject matter. Here are a few recent (December 2012) photos:
Between Water and Ice
Bridge Rail I
Rusty Blue Drum
Bridge Rail II
Nature’s Magic
test
Trees, Snow and Ice – Mid-February Black and White
This past week (middle of February 2012) I have been drawn back to black and white nature photos as I wandered the ravines and river valley in Edmonton. Here are five of my favorite images:
Tall and Bare
Fallen Logs Across the Creek
Black and White Trunks
Shadows Across Frozen Creek
Against the Sun
Do you have a favorite amongst these image? If so, which one and why?
Northern Winter (Black and White, part 1)
Winter, in Edmonton, Canada typically means a fair bit of snow and temperatures in the minus 15 to 30 Celsius range. The 2011/12 winter has been atypical. Except for a week in mid-January where temperatures fell to below normal, most of the winter has featured daily highs around freezing. Nonetheless, there has been snow on the ground since November.
This series of photos are some that I took during the last week of January and the first week of February 2012 the the North Saskatchewan River valley in central Edmonton (in fact most are in Dawson Park). Dawson Park lies on the north side of the river valley meaning it gets a lot of sun and the snow can melt (or blow away) relatively quickly on the exposed ridges.
The Ridge
The Steep Path Up
Dawson Park seen from the south side of the river:
The North Bank
One of the fascinating things about Dawson Park is a section of “hoodoos” a geological formation more famously associated with the badlands of southern Alberta near Drumheller.
River Valley Landscape
While the exposed areas have just a touch of visible snow, the sheltered trails are well covered with snow and very wintery in appearance.
Birch and Snowy Path
Winter – Naturally Black and White
Of course there can be color in the winter landscape, you just might have to look a little harder for it. In this post though don’t strain yourself looking for color as I am featuring 5 black and white photos. Although there has not been a lot of snow in Edmonton in this winter of 2011/12 there has still been enough to keep the ground basically white. On the day I took these images the sun was out and the sky was deep blue – which with a color filter in the black and white conversion, yielded a deep dark sky on some images.
Packed Snow Field
Two and the Forest
Lichen
Reach to the Sky
Frozen Bend in the River
Technical Notes: The photos in this group were all taken in the early afternoon on January 7th, 2012, near Laurier Park in Edmonton. I used a Nikon D80 with a 18-55 lens and a polarizing filter. Post processing including conversion to black and white was done with the Capture NX2 software.
November Ice
Three abstract images from photos taken this morning in Edmonton’s river valley but first the natural look of the river:
The North Saskatchewan River in central Edmonton on Nov. 25
This long exposure photo was taken from near the same viewpoint but also included some brush from the near bank:
November River Abstract
This next image captured the river at an angle with a snowy foreground:
River and Snow
and finally another composition featuring bands of color from the open river, frozen river, river bank etc.:
River Bands
Ice in the Morning (Undersea Dreams)
At this time of year (early spring in Edmonton) there is a daily thaw-freeze cycle – by noon snow and ice are melting, running and sometimes collecting in puddles. With the below freezing temperatures overnight, that water refreezes so that in the morning there are some delightful patterns to be found in the thin layers of new ice. This photo set is all about the ice.
Abstract 110405-2752 (Ice Shards)
Abstract 110405-2769
Abstract 110405-2767
That previous photo reminds me of oceanside waves and I am amazed at how many others of these photos somehow remind of something I’d expect to see underwater.
Abstract 110405-2756
Does this last image look familiar? It is the color version of the first photo in this set.
All of these photos were taken and processed using an iPhone 3GS. PhotoShop Mobile and CameraBag were the two main apps I used for manipulating the images.
Do you have any favorites from these images? Is so, please leave a comment to let me know.
More of my photos can be seen on my Flickr Photostream.
The Continuing Beauty of Winter
It is the first week of March and still very much winter in Edmonton, as evidenced by a deep blanket of snow everywhere. On one hand you could think that would make for boring photography but I take it as a challenge – and that is the fun. You can see from these 7 photos, all taken in one day, that there is lots to be seen, lots to be captured and different ways of presenting the final image.
White on Blue
Not Coral
Three Twigs
Grass Arc
Nest
Melting Dirty Ice
Shadows of a Picket Fence
