Reflection on Ice 1

[Donald]

Managed to get some time to go out this morning. We went up beyond a beautiful little town in Highland Perthshire, called Dunkeld. There's major nature reserve up there where Ospreys nest. However, there is still a thin sheet of ice on the loch after our December freeze.

This is actually a joint effort. I saw an old boatshed and thought there must be a picture in it. We stopped the car and walked back to the location. I just couldn't see an angle on the boatshed at all. I was blocked by trees and couldn't get into a position for a shot. Then Sheila said, 'Look at the reflection of the trees on the ice' and 'BANG', I saw what you now see below.

So, S went back into the car to read, I got the gear out of the boot (trunk) and set to work.

I think I got another couple of keepers out of this same location, but I'll look again later.

So, in the meantime ............


40D, 17-85mm f/4-5.6 IS USM Kit @ 85mm. ISO 100. 1/4@f22. Manual

ps - No, I didn't place that log there. That's how it was!

[tameigh]

Very nice. I had forgotten what ice looked like melted.

[jeeperman]

Wow Donald, I love it. Bold and subtle at once. Nice work!

[rob marshall]

Very good, Donald. very surreal in a way. I used to have a 17-85 - it takes good shots.

[jiro]

Very artistic, Donald. Very nice done. Cheers!

[Skitalez]

Only one question - how low was the temperature???? Pond just like.....milk... Why? or this is water on the ice?

[Donald]

Only one question - how low was the temperature???? Pond just like.....milk... Why? or this is water on the ice?

Thank you all for your comments.

Yegor - You are correct in your assumption. The ice is now thawing (probably before it freezes again, as we usually get our coldest weather in late January/February). There was a very thin layer of water on top of the ice. The temperature today was about 3 to 4 degrees centigrade.

[MiniChris]

Love the subtlety of the shadows

[Katy Noelle]

Pond just like.....milk... Why? or this is water on the ice?

I agree with Yegor, the pond is so milky and smooth. Really beautiful!

I'm glad that you're having some time to go out and play with your camera. I was worried that you might get buried in moderator duties and never reappear.

[DippyRebel]

I like it. A piece of wood and the ghosts of the trees it was once a part of.

(Oh dear, that sounds a bit twee, but it's what it made me think!)

[Camellia]

I really like that Donald. I get lost in the reflections. Good stuff!

R

[Donald]

Katy, Chris, Rachel, Raylee

Thank you for your comments. I was having to work over and through branches and thorn bushes whilst standing on a quite a steep bank, with a main road just behind me. So, it wasn't the easiest one to get.

[PopsPhotos]

Very nice, Donald. I quite like that one. The contrast between the ethereal and the solid is just right.

Pops

[Donald]

Very nice, Donald. I quite like that one. The contrast between the ethereal and the solid is just right.

Thank you, Pops.

It was quite an amazing scene to come across. As I wrote above, my partner pointed it our and, immediately, this almost-strange vision came into view of these ghostly sentinels looking out for this broken-off piece of wood.

[Wirefox]

Donald, this is the difference between a photographer and a Photographer. You have captured this scene beautifully. It would have been so easy to pass this by or make a real cats bottom out of this, but no, in the right hands it becomes a very memorable shot. Not being picky but do me a favour and get rid of the floaters at the very top of the image they are interfering with ones visual perambulations old chap

[Corros]

Great picture! I like the simplicia of the scene.

One thing is distantiëring a little bit and that's the top part of the picture. There are some black stripes on the ice which disturbe the serenity of the picture. But that's a very little point.

[Donald]

Steve, Cor.

Thank you both for commenting. Consider black stripes removed. I looked at those for a long time, wondering if they gave some definition/sense that this was close in to the edge of the water. They don't. So they go.

If truth be told, there's actually been a big clone job done on this already. There was quite a big branch coming in at the top left corner. Took me about an hour with image zoomed up to 200% to work it all out. It was a real struggle to get a shot at all, with all the branches and thorn bushes that were in the way. I took the shot knowing that the branch sticking into the frame would be cloned out.