Gold & Silver

December 13, 2013December 13, 2013 | drawandshoot

Mussel shells just under the surface and golden light on ice

A chickadee in flight and leaves in the creek

It’s quite cold here now. Yesterday I bundled up and spent several hours outside. The birds were very busy foraging for food and the chickadees were especially friendly. They would land on my shoulder or hand, unexpectedly, expectantly. A gentle whirring sound of wings in my ears. And the most tender questioning “peep peep” from a nuthatch that flitted close by, wondering too, if I had little seeds in my pockets. I did.

As it becomes very cold the landscape transforms in strange and wonderful ways. The ice forming at river’s edge is bordering on Seussian but I haven’t yet found a way to make good photographs. Photographs that show the magic of it. Part of the fun is trying to figure that out, I suppose. Anyway, if you are looking for gold and silver, it’s not far away. You just might have to dress warm.

Water reflections and starlings in flight ~ there seems to be a flock of them hanging around for the winter

Spirit

December 7, 2013 | drawandshoot

What the Water Sees 3

December 3, 2013December 4, 2013 | drawandshoot

The underbelly of migration. A blue heron that has long since left, layered with surface reflections of the autumn creek.

The Falls

November 28, 2013November 28, 2013 | drawandshoot

It’s hard to fathom the scale of this place from these photographs but there are tiny avian specks in there – seagulls, actually – if you look very closely. The first image is layered and the second image is what the camera saw. This is the churning water at the bottom of a 165 foot drop.

The Edge of Winter

November 24, 2013 | drawandshoot

Yesterday – A snowfall and a pond icing over. You can see a little bit of open water in the dark areas – Winter is closing in.

What the Water Sees Too

November 22, 2013 | drawandshoot

Surface reflections and a slippery fish …

Dances in Light

November 14, 2013 | drawandshoot

These little insects caught my eye while they were out playing in the shafts of afternoon light. There can’t be too many more days that will be warm enough for them to venture out but today was beautiful.

It’s not easy to focus on their flitting movements – which appear much like trampolining without touching the ground – but I like the tiny sunlit shapes, and their delicate presence signals a small reprieve from the cold.

© Karen McRae, 2013

Wintery

November 10, 2013 | drawandshoot

Passing glimpses of yesterday’s snowfall – the first of the autumn. This morning the temperature has been creeping up and the short-lived snow has been replaced by rain.