in the bleak midwinter ...

So we finally got our first real snow ... ok well technically our second but it's the first one where i didn't have to work. & it snowed for over 12 hours. So yesterday morning i got all excited about a possible snow day ... well my dream failed but i still managed to head up onto the hills before work with the camera to get some photos. 

& oh was it cold out there (i've forgotten how it feels to be above freezing) ... last year i discovered a wonderful use for my ski pants, bought with the intention of skiing but well it hasn't happened yet. They're perfect for taking snow pictures ... keep me warm not to mention that i can get down in the snow no worries. The only downside is you know the lil dude kind of prevents them being done up but being as they come with "suspenders" it's all good!

Out on my "wander" i met a german guy out walking his dogs & we chatted for a little while. It turns out he goes up there every morning to get closer to nature. I can't lie when people say things like that i automatically roll my eyes but as we talked he mentioned the bench ... my bench ... & how he finds it so peaceful up there. Yes he interprets it differently to me but it was wonderful to meet someone else who finds this place i love just as peaceful as i do, & enjoys being out there with you know nature & stuff. 

So here's my first snow blog for the year ... i imagine there will be a whole lot more to come ... & also i'd like to introduce you to my new favourite tree. Now i know i'm not alone in having a favourite tree but by the end of the winter you might be a little bored of it as i try & come up with all kinds of ways of photographing it because there is something totally bleak, lonely, isolated about this tree. I think it was love at first sight!

morning stroll ...

To say my life has been a little hectic this past month is putting it mildly, i feel like i have gone from one thing to another (all good by the way) without stopping anywhere in between. Well this morning i got to stop, take a breather & i headed up onto the hills above our house with my friend Karen (who's currently living with us) & her dogs. & you can imagine the fun we had trying to get Shelby to stand still long enough for me to take this picture when she had all that wide open space to run around in!

Within that previously spoken of "few weeks" i feel as if autumn has passed me by & winter is obviously creeping round the corner with last night being our first frost. On many of the trees the leaves haven't just turned by disappeared & the hills where i ran this past spring & summer have taken on a whole new feel altogether.

We saw a number of roebucks (they're little deer) whilst we were heading up the hill, a sight that to me is still a little breath taking even though i grew up glipsing them occasionally. & as the weather gets colder we'll probably see more as they come out of the woods looking for food. The shot is under exposed but i wanted to include it as seeing them is always a little special to me.

I think i noticed the change in colours today for the first time, they are softening, becoming muted & the brights of summer are disappearing. It's both a little sad but wonderful in it's own way as winter appears & mother nature takes on a new feeling. Which in turn brings out new shades in my photos, colder colours are replacing the warm golden hues of summer.

Despite this there were moments of colour, maybe not as vivid as during the summer months but maybe the muted surrounding gave them the appearance of being that bit more brighter! Now you can't miss the occasional shade of red, pink or purple like a beacon calling out to you.

But i did have another reason for my wonderings this morning. A few weeks ago within Inspiration Avenue, the weekly challenge had been "shimmer" & it had seriously stumped me. So the challenge i had set to myself for the next few days was to catch up on some of those i had missed & the current weather seems to have inspired me, with the combination of morning dew & light creating these wonderful patterns on the grass. The ordinary we see every day takes on a new look as the light dances off it.

& whilst my initial idea for this challenge came from the grass, it is not my final image but the combination you see below. I admit i got a little carried away with my photos of the dew but what's the point of a macro lens if i don't use it to full advantage? Plus it is kinda pretty! in my mind though it's not just the dew that creates the "shimmer" but the white of the flowers. & on reflectiong, looking at this image makes me feel like winter's already here.

Hope you all had a wonderful monday!