I am back where I belong, finally, enjoying the balmy northern New England winter. As much as I think about going out and taking pictures of the frozen streams and all the intricate ice patterns it is just too darn cold to really get my skinny little butt out the door. It’s not the driving to the nearby streams or even the walking down to them to find a good subject, it is the standing there is sub-zero windchill as I fiddle around with the composition, gloves stuffed in my pockets and thoughts of a warm car dancing in my head.
I have played this winter freeze game before- the colder it gets the better the ice but the harder it is to manipulate the tripod, push the buttons on the camera and stand around and wait for the best light. And since I don’t like photographing wearing gloves or mittens I can only stand to be outside for so long.
All this adds up to me sitting inside my warm house thinking about me standing outside to photograph. That’s okay, I can live with that (sort of).
To ease my guilt I do two things- 1. Get out my camera which I haven’t used in more than a month and just play with it. I use the different buttons and different settings. I try the video and special options, I look at my menu and reset everything. I even take some silly pictures just to play and keep familiar with all the controls.
And 2. I look at my past winter photos I have taken and think about a) how I can take a better picture next time and b) how good a photographer I once was. And then I have a glass of chocolate milk, take a nap and start all over again.
Welcome to my winter!