Photography: My Olive Branch Offering to My Winter Nemesis, Ice

The last few winters my winter nemesis has been ice.  All kinds of ice have been out to get me (black ice, shiny ice, smooth hard ice, crunchy ice, ice mixed with snow).  You name it, all kinds of ice have caused me an assorment of falls including sliding down my front stairs fully armed with multiple bags (twice) and my legs completely falling out from under me while carrying a laundry basket filled with laundry!   These falls have resulted in a colorful (and quite impressive) array of bruises, weeks of soreness, and a grimace from my acupuncturist as she watched me painfully try to swing myself up on the table.  

Despite my understandable increased dread of the ice, I decided that this year I would try to make a peace offering with Mother Nature.  Holding out photography as an olive branch my deal has been:


"I'll appreciate your beauty during the winter if you promise not to attack me!"


Arming myself with my camera, I have tried to discover, appreciate, and capture the beauty of my winter nemesis, ice.  




Icicles

1.  Icicles particularly fascinate me.  I think that it is really cool how water can drip down, forming a long spear of ice that clings onto the gutters and the edges of houses and buildings despite the onslaught of the winter elements of snow, rain, and wind.  In this picture, extremely long icicles hang down from the side of my house.  They are what my friend's daughter calls "killer icicles". 

I am also intrigued by the fascinating shapes of icicles.  In this picture, a claw-shaped icicle has formed from water dripping off of a drainpipe by the side of my house.  

A few days later, after the fifth winter storm of the season, the icicle morphed into the following shape:

Frozen Spy Pond

When Spy Pond freezes over in the winter, it is a beautiful place to take pictures.  I'm particularly interested in how the ice captures the sunlight.  In this picture, the ice shimmers.  The sunlight seems to skip across the ice, highlighting the numerous textures of Spy Pond.

What was really exciting was that this picture was recently published in my local newspaper!

The ice in the pond can even look really beautiful when it's breaking.  My friend, Caroline, commented that there is a violent feeling about this picture, yet it's so natural and innocuous at the same time.

I'm also fascinated by how ice appears to change colors.  In the picture of Spy Pond, below, the ice seems to take on the pretty blues and pinks of the sky.

And in this picture of Spy Pond, only parts of the pond are frozen, creating a neat effect of water and ice that take on the brilliant blues of the sky.

Being mindful of the beauty of Mother Nature in the winter has helped me to come to appreciate the ice more.  Although I still dread forecasts of wintry mixes, freezing rain, and black ice, my hatred of the ice has lessened.  It has been exciting to capture intriguing aspects of ice including the amazing shapes of icicles, the way that sunlight illuminates and skips across ice, the way that frozen ice in a pond can hold onto the pretty colors of the sky, and even the beauty of broken ice.  While ice is still my winter nemesis, photography has helped me to be mindful of its beauty.
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To readers of this blog:  I am interested in hearing from you about how engaging in an art form (visual art, music, writing, acting) has helped you to see the positive in and appreciate something that you previously and/or continue not to like.   I am also interested in hearing from you about what you like about ice in the winter.   If you feel so inspired, please leave a comment.  I look forward to hearing from you!