Ice

After a long warm spell we got some colder weather, and with it some ice and snow.

But at the same time, the "spring" crocuses were blooming.

Another Spring Walk

It isn't exactly cherry blossoms, but I'm still happy to see the trees flowering.

And the geese looking for places to nest.

And hopefully the last of the ice photos for this winter.

This Mourning Cloak butterfly was more cooperative than the previous one. It might have been a little sluggish from the cold of the snow. It seemed like a strange place to choose to land.

This one was cruising up and down the back alley. I'm not sure if it was looking for food or mates.

This Ring-billed gull caught a crayfish. The crayfish put up a brave fight. When the gull put it down on the sand it reared up and waved its claws in the air. But a few stabs by the gull's beak and that was the end of the crayfish.

It was funny because earlier on my walk I had been thinking about how years ago I used to see a lot of crayfish claws and remains on the river shore. I was wondering if they were still around in the increasingly polluted river. I always assumed it was probably the gulls getting them, but I hadn't seen a gull actually catch one before. Clam/mussel shells also used to be common on the shore. I would guess  it was raccoons getting them. Nowadays it's mostly garbage on the shore - plastic bags, disposable cups, straws, and masks.

Ice

With spring around the corner, taking photos of the ice is a bit more palatable. (If the blizzard had been a few days later it would have made a great April Fools joke!)

And of course, some abstracts.

Icicles

Usually I don't resort to photographing icicles till the end of winter, but this ice around the pond at Innovation Place caught my eye.

See all 9 photos in this batch

Ice Crystals

One of my staff (thanks Barb!) stopped by my office to tell me there were nice ice crystals that I might want to take photos of. (They know me well!)

The ice crystals turned out to be on the side of the smoking shelter outside. It's unheated, a bit like a bus shelter but more enclosed. (Considering Saskatchewan winters, you have to really want your nicotine these days.)










The details are interesting if you get a chance to look at them on a larger screen.
(Click to view larger.)

There were crystals on the inside and the outside of the glass, making it problematic to get both in focus. And it was hard to make a decent background out of a parking lot. Wide angle would give the best depth of focus but the worst background, so these were all token at full zoom on the little ZS100 (250mm equivalent) They're converted to black and white in part to make the background less distracting.

By the River

Sunday morning I was walking instead of running, so I took my camera with me, just in case. I remember thinking I probably wouldn't take any photos because I've had enough of winter. I returned four hours later, with almost 800 photos. (Don't worry, I won't inflict too many on you!)

With the temperatures and the water level in the river going up and down, there is lots of interesting ice and icicles.



As the water washes in and out, it changes the color and light and reflections so I end up taking numerous shots of each subject (part of the reason for so many photos).



I got lucky on this next shot with the "shooting star" reflection in the river.



The weir was pretty with the early sun backlighting the fog against the blue shadows.



I can't decide if I like the fast shutter (freezing the motion) or slow shutter (smoothing) version of this wave. What do you think?





If any of these photos catch your eye, you might want to click on them to view them larger. There's interesting detail that you won't see in a small version. If you're on your phone ... never mind!

There were a few Canada Geese around. I always feel sorry for the ones that hang around all winter. (If I was a Canada Goose, I'd head south!) You can see the ice on the back of this one.



Sometimes I wonder why I keep taking Canada Goose photos. I already have a zillion of them. But I keep taking more, hoping, I guess, for something better, or at least different. Occasionally I get lucky. I just happened to have the camera ready when this one decided to stretch its wings. And the sun just happened to be in the right place. (I only had time for one quick shot and I didn't get lined up well so I almost cut off its head. I used Photoshop to extend the background, which it does amazingly well, and I don't feel too guilty about.)



The other common bird on the river in the winter are the Common Goldeneye. Although you often find them along the shore, as soon as you arrive, they turn tail and head away, making it hard to get anything but butt shots! This was one of the few that was a little more cooperative.



This one was either showing off, or just stretching its wings.



And just when you're about to take their photo, they dive!



There were also chickadees around, and flocks of sparrows, but not very cooperative. At one point I heard a bird call but couldn't see the bird. It sounded a bit like a crow or magpie, but also a bit different. Eventually I caught a glimpse and it was a blue jay. It didn't want its picture taken either.

I found a few reflections by the Prairie Lily boat.



And by the Broadway Bridge



And more ice on the way home.





It was a fun photo walk, with a good variety of results.

See all 40 photos

Last Ice

With the warmer spring weather I've been taking lots of photos. (Roughly 1000 in the last week, but don't worry, I won't try to share them all :-) Mostly they're of nature awakening, but I couldn't resist the abstract patterns and shapes of the melting ice.





Usually I try to be conservative with processing my photos. My goal is to make them look their best, without looking artificial. I'm a little more aggressive with my abstracts. Most of these ice shots were converted to black and white (which helps to hide the dirt) given a healthy dose of clarity and contrast, and then split toned slightly blue (because to me that's how ice looks).







Occasionally I get the urge to crank some sliders to the max and see what happens. Here's a couple of results.





To balance all this cold abstract ice, here's a few softer, more realistic subjects.







See all 21 photos