Night Light

February 12, 2014 | drawandshoot

Sometimes when I feel like my work or ideas are getting monotonous I try to think of my camera as a sort of sketchbook and think of ways I might capture ‘sketches’ of the landscape rather than more ‘representative’ photographs. I’ll try using double exposures, long exposures and/or maybe camera movement to get a different sort of feel happening.

These are a few images from a snowy winter evening when I went out to just play. No expectations or specific ideas – in my mind I was simply sketching the night and following my intuition as I experimented. I made setting adjustments as the camera gave me feedback. At times I used flash to capture the snowflakes and elements in the foreground along with exposures lasting several seconds, and at times also moving the camera to see what might happen.

In the first image you can see that I was moving my camera up and down which created light trails from a light source on the other side of the woods. A strange image but there is something about it that I find oddly appealing. Perhaps it reinforces the idea that a camera is a tool with endless possibilities and every so often I need to be reminded of this.

I wasn’t initially planning on posting these as they seemed to be more about process than result – technically they are quite noisy – but I sort of like the soft-focused, grainy look of them and in the end they really are sketches of a snowy winter night.

The Shape of Winter, Elsewhere

February 9, 2014February 9, 2014 | drawandshoot

In this version of winter you cast off your boots and bulky layers and place your feet directly on the warm sand. Sand that you have gratefully borrowed for just a week. And you can’t stop looking at those marine blues of the sea and the graceful patterns the water makes. You want them etched in your mind forever. Damn, we live in a gorgeous world.

A counterpoint to the previous post, I guess. I’ve been away – feet in the sand, head in the ~~clouds~~ blue sky.

[Near and far views of the shifting landscape of Exuma, Bahamas. Sigh.]

Cold Enough

January 23, 2014January 23, 2014 | drawandshoot

Cold enough for a rebirth of frost.

Shards assembling themselves

like a phoenix rising from damp ashes.

Cold enough for all-day sundogs

those almost rainbows – a compass around the sun.

Cold enough to feel alive

in the bright rays

in the cadence of the water

in the crisp beauty.

Cold enough to feel

until you go

numb.

Somewhere Along the Way

January 17, 2014 | drawandshoot

[Another series of photographs made while traveling in a moving car, although, I confess those birds flew into the first photograph during processing. There are other examples of this technique here and here]

Winter Garden

January 11, 2014 | drawandshoot

More of that surprising window frost that is etched onto glass during those coldest of winter days. It amazes me that the seeds of this garden are just the tiniest drops of water.

The First Few Days

January 5, 2014January 5, 2014 | drawandshoot

The first few days of the year have been very cold. I am frequently lured out in this weather – it is one of my favourite times to make photographs – as the landscape shifts in and out of light and the breath from the river envelopes everything in its wintriness.

The sighting of a robin used to be a harbinger of spring but it is no longer uncommon to come across small flocks of overwintering robins. These robin photographs were made on one of the coldest days of the winter.

In with the cold

December 31, 2013 | drawandshoot

This is what happens when an ice breathing dragon is trapped between 2 pieces of glass; your windows frost up and the temperature plummets.

Technically, this window has failed; there should not be moisture, frost, or dragons(!) trapped between the sealed panes, but I like to think of it as a literal ‘silver’ lining. Technical failure can lead to interesting things…

Happy New Year!

[These window frost photographs were made today – I have posted similar frost a few times last winter but it is always reinventing itself]

As busy as…

December 29, 2013 | drawandshoot

a beaver.

Where there is open water there is sure to be wildlife, but today is the first time I have seen a beaver in this part of the creek. It has obviously been busy in the area for a while, downing small trees and stripping off the bark for food. I’m not sure where its lodge might be located but I didn’t want to stick around for too long and be overly disruptive. Even with snowshoes on it is difficult to move quietly as the top layer of deep snow has a thick crunchy crust. Even so, some creatures are amazingly tolerant of the human activity on the periphery.

Two ‘Turtle Doves’…

December 22, 2013December 22, 2013 | drawandshoot

Or more accurately, a small flock of mourning doves. These photographs are from a couple of days ago and they were made while looking out through the ~~dirty~~ windows so they are not very sharp. Two of the doves were sitting at the foot of our back door pressing their beaks up against the glass, cocking their little heads and peering in. I wonder what they were thinking? : ) Perhaps they were eyeing the pot of herbs just inside the door.

The deep cold from several days ago has dissipated. It rarely stays that cold for too long here, although, it is sure to return. In the past few days we’ve had a lot of snow, a bit of rain, and now you can hear the gentle sound of tiny ice pellets falling on the deep snow. The weather is sure fidgety around here.

Wishing each and every one of you, peace and doves.