Winter Landscape Photography Tips

Yes, I’m aware that it’s not winter in South Africa, but it’s very wintery here and if you are here, you might need to take some landscape pictures to record just how wintery it is right now. Fortunately, 500px has all the hints and tips you need to to take the perfect winter lanscape photograph. Unfortunately, much like their previous tutorials, it does seem to be advantageous to live in Scandinavia as a starting point. This effort of the Lofoten Islands by Stian Klo refers:

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Sadly, we’re fresh out of fjords here right now.
Still, while out on the hunt for snow this morning in the hills above Sheffield, I did get this, which I quite like:

It would probably look even better if I hadn’t just juxtaposed it with the best example of a professional landscape photographer’s winter landscape photography like I just did. Honest.

But it was bleak up there at Redmires this morning, so there wasn’t much opportunity to get much else as the wet, cold, near-horizontally blown snow closed in and chilled the kids towards an ugly and early hypothermic death. They’re not used to those sort of temperatures and I have to admit that I was struggling to hold the camera (or anything else) in the face of the icy blast. It wasn’t even nice snow – it was wet and heavy – but that didn’t bother them. They’ve never seen anything like it before and it was fascinating to watch their reactions.

As for my winter landscape photography, it’s back to the drawing board – and the holiday home in Norway – for me.
(Although in the meantime, I continue to update this Flickr set.)

Photos up

For those who have been eagerly awaiting some photos from our trip, they’re now available on Flickr.

Look, it’s winter and it’s cold, but we have already had a few nice days and today isn’t looking too bad either.

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But the cold and the winter is what we’re here for, so that’s just perfect.

Today: a bit of local industrial heritage at the Kelham Island Museum in town. Tomorrow, some Viking stuff in York.

Home and Away

Thanks for this comparison of current location and back home, Google Now:

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The kids have just found out that we’re (they’re) putting up the (real) Christmas tree this afternoon. Despite the chilly weather, their excitement is virtually tangible.
And let’s be honest: your average Norwegian Spruce would wilt under the African sun anyway…

Over Ukraine

As I’m currently flying over (or maybe around) Ukraine, so why not hit you up with a Chernobyl post?

For the attention of the residents of Pripyat! The City Council informs you that due to the accident at Chernobyl Power Station in the city of Pripyat the radioactive conditions in the vicinity are deteriorating. The Communist Party, its officials and the armed forces are taking necessary steps to combat this. Comrades, leaving your residences temporarily please make sure you have turned off the lights, electrical equipment and water and shut the windows. Please keep calm and orderly in the process of this short-term evacuation.

Here’s that video taken by CBS in Pripyat, showing the desolation and ruin caused by “the catastrophe that never ended” – their words, not mine.

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And, while we’re here, a reminder of Michael Jennings’ excellent account of his visit to the same place and another – more recent – essay on the same “dark tourism” subject which I really enjoyed reading.

Tomorrow: Less radiation, more England!