Winter Wonderland
With Christmas fast approaching I thought I’d share a couple of my favourite “winter wonderland” images. I’ve been very busy of late as I’m sure you all have too – it’s that time of year after all! I haven’t been out photographing many of my usual subjects though so apologies for the slow down on that front. I’ll tell you all about it when I get the chance.
In the meantime, the weather hasn’t been too kind this winter and my thoughts are with those in flood-affected areas. It has also meant that atmospheric images like these few have not been available for the taking yet. I’m sure I could find something if I travelled further north, but that will have to wait till things calm down in the New Year!
The first image I’d like to share is a favourite from a few years ago now. I love Robins, they are fascinating little birds that we have become so accustomed to that we rarely stop and admire them these days, despite their regular appearance on cards stamped with “Seasons Greetings”. This particular individual was a feisty one that I came across while on a riverside walk in Shropshire with my husband.
I had my camera with me to photograph the frosty conditions and a 70-300mm lens. When we spotted this Robin in the frosty grass it was too good an opportunity to miss. I raised my camera to my eye but was surprised that I couldn’t find it in the viewfinder until my husband told me to keep very still – the Robin had flown and landed on the end of my lens!! I slowly peeped over the top of the camera body and sure enough it was no more than 6 inches from my face – talk about a close encounter! In due course it flew onto my husband’s shoulder briefly before returning to its frosty surroundings where it puffed up like a feathered tennis ball with a tail and posed beautifully for a seasonal snap.
The next image was taken on a similar day in Bedfordshire. The light was absolutely gorgeous and golden so I threw on a coat and dashed out of the house, camera in hand. Walking up the road towards the church I could see that in a few moments the sun would be hitting the windows and giving a lovely glow so I quickened my pace and found a spot on the edge of the orchard from which to take the image. I had barely reached it when the sun rose to light the church and only had time for a handful of images before the glow was lost and the frost began to melt.
On another occasion here I witnessed the thickest frost I’ve ever seen – half an inch of rime on every surface. The sun was out but it was cold enough that even with a clear blue sky the frost was staying put and I took a ridiculous number of photos. This was my favourite from the experience – Guelder Rose berries glowing red beneath the ice crystals. The wind direction was clear too as all the frost was concentrated on one side, it was fascinating to see. I’ve had this printed up as cards this year – they’ve been very popular for Christmas.
Finally some pictures of animals close to my heart – dogs. For me, Christmas is a time to be with family and my family wouldn’t be the same without our dogs. The first a Spaniel named Dallas that I photographed for a friend, she was beautiful to shoot despite the challenges of exposing for a black dog against white snow and the fact that she wanted to come and say hello every few seconds! The second is my Mum’s Corgi, Bumble, taken on Christmas day a few years back.
I hope you’ve enjoyed these few wintry images and that they’ve got you in a festive mood. I will be taking a break from blogging for a couple of weeks over Christmas but will rejoin you in the New Year. So until then, I’d like to take the opportunity to wish you all a very Merry Christmas full of health and happiness.
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