Christmas is a great time for photos. Our family spent Christmas in a cabin on Mt. Baldy, near Oliver, B.C.. It gave me a lot of opportunity to get out into the snow and take a few photos. I particularly wanted to play with HDR, and I was delighted to find a few subjects that tend to work well in an HDR presentation. 
My son, William, and I went snowshoeing up to the top of the mountain to take some shots. It’s a marvelous view. It took us just over an hour to get near the top. Being later in the day, we needed time to be able to come down before dark, which is what we did. We got back to the village at last light and made it in the door just as it got dark. One of my favorite photos was of a tree that looked like a giant bird. There are bare spots on the trunks that look like knees, a branch that looks like a head, and great white fluffy feathers.
During the trip back to Calgary, I took some time to stop at a couple of the lakes to get some waterfront shots. The weather was mild enough that most of the lakes are still open, which is odd, since some looked totally frozen over. The beach shot here may seem inviting, but I wouldn’t have ventured to go into the frigid waters. Just a quick look at the snow on the mountains and the barren tree should give a gentle reminder that it was cold that day. It was above freezing, so I went out with just a light vest. I could have used the parka. It was probably for the better. Being cold made me work faster, which was good for my impatient family waiting in the van.
The last great adventure of the day was the heavy blowing snow from just East of Field B.C., right to the city limits of Calgary. It was mostly whiteout conditions for the last hour or so of a 13+ hour trip. I was definitely glad to be home.
Tags: Art, British Columbia, HDR, outdoor, Photography, Winter