What does white bring to mind? If you live in Nova Scotia, and it happens to be January, it will most likely be snow. We watch it fall, shovel it, plow it, use it to make snowballs, snow forts and snowmen. It’s pretty versatile. Impressions in the snow are also useful in allowing us to track the movement of elusive creatures in our surroundings.
This past week, Scott at Views Infinitum asked his readers to use *white* as a starting point for a photography post. My images of white all show tracks in snow that I was able to find in my yard: Snowshoe Hare tracks at top; Bobcat tracks above; and below, some as yet unidentified five-toed tracks.
This last image is the most beautiful impression I was able to find. It looked especially glorious as it sparkled in the sunshine.
If it wasn’t for the tracks they leave in the snow, how else would we know that Seraphim had visited?
The golden moments in the stream of life rush past us and we see nothing but sand; the angels come to visit us, and we only know them when they are gone.
~ George Eliot
If you’re interested in accepting Scott’s invitation to post on the subject of white, you have until February 3rd to do so. All are welcome to participate.
Flandrum Hill 
Wonderful images as always Amy Lynn. The snow angel looks like it’s almost inside out if you know what I mean. Parts that should be “dropped down” are raised up. Most magical.
Sybil
I do know what you mean Sybil. Its torso reminds me a bit of the winged statue of Nike Samothrace at the Louvre:
Great response to Scott’s challenge.
I enjoyed trying to identify those elusive creature’s snow tracks. Having grown up in the North, I miss such activities.
Morningjoy, as enjoyable as identifying tracks on snow can be, I have a feeling that tracking on sand in Florida can be just as appealing 🙂 I found your response at
http://morningjoy.wordpress.com/2010/01/22/florida-snow/ very refreshing.
Snowshowe hares and bobcats, I’m jealous!
What a nice way to interpret the use of white snow in solving mysteries. Of course, you have one mystery left. Looks like some kind of weasel to me. The toes are too shore for a raccoon.
Scott, yes the snowshoe hares and bobcats are pretty cool to have in the neighborhood but it’s also sad for the animals. Ongoing residential development keeps encroaching on their wild spaces, resulting in loss of habitat.
You may be right about the tracks belonging to a weasel. I’ve seen them near here, but not yet in my yard. I too had discounted the possibility of them being raccoon tracks.
Yes, coyotes, deer and other wildlife are learning to live closer and closer to developments in order to survive. In many cases, people find them to be a nuisance or danger and ask officials to remove them.
I love the angel, Amy! Thanx for sharing her… 🙂
Cindy, the snow angel was made by my grandson so it’s probably a ‘him.’ 😉
I am amazed that you were able to photograph the tracks so beautifully. So often now I look at tracks and dismiss them because it seems hard to photographically portray what they really look like. Because they are more three-dimensional than the camera registers. The angel is divine…
Kathy, as Amy shows here, by waiting for the light to come in from an angle, the shadows help give the tracks a 3 dimensional look and definition.
These are excellent photos of a very hard subject to capture and she did a great job.
Kathy, what Scott says makes sense but I would never have been able to explain it as well as he did. Sunny days also allow for stronger shadows and contrasts in the tracks. If you’re having problems in Michigan you can blame it on what Gerry calls… the grey flannel sky.
Wow. What beautiful pictures. I wish it would snow here! Thank you.
Tacy C.
ruledaworld.wordpress.com
🙂 Tacy, you sound like someone who doesn’t own a snow shovel 😉 Thanks for your comment.
Oh my, it’s been a long, long time since I’ve made snow angels. May have something to do with my increasing difficulty getting up afterward.
Could the mystery critter be a fisher?
Gerry, another hazard of making snow angels is getting snow down your neck or up your back. Things that seem to be more of a deterrent as we get older.
I’ve never seen a fisher in these parts but you never know. It does seem to be some type of ‘mustelid.’
We don’t! We’re lucky if it snows every other year. 🙂
I did not know how much I missed snow angels. I must see if there are any in the snow out there.
Image #1 is perfect in exposure. You can see the ‘diamonds’ spread out in the snow.
Carsten, I hope you were able to find some snow angels. If not, you can always make some yourself 🙂
I love those diamonds in the snow and am always amazed when I’m able to capture them in a photo.
White is an elusive colour!
In a primary school art class I was assisting last week, some of the kids drew a swan. What colour to “colour in” a swan? The teacher suggested they should make the background very colourful, which would highlight the whiteness of the swan… One boy wanted to use a white pastel, then asked to have the lights turned off to see if the swan glowed in the dark… A girl coloured in her swan yellow, which was justified by the sunset backdrop…
White – and it’s opposite, black – seems to be a sort of absence of colour, but when you look closer, they are colours with as many shades and interpretations as any other colour…
Hmm… poignant, methinks!
Pepsoid, doing art work with children is ALWAYS enlightening.
As an art student, I learned that white is the presence of all colours while black is the absence of all colours. They both seem to reflect the other colours in their environment. Very poignant indeed 🙂
I’m with Carsten – I love the first one wth the diamonds in the snow.
Nicely done, Amy Lynn! Your snow angel looks 3D. (I created one a few weeks back and tried to photograph it but it was an overcast day so the details were lost and it ended up looking flat). Yours is perfect. 🙂
JenniferA and milkayphoto, thank you for visiting and leaving your comments 🙂 I was very lucky to capture both the sparkles and the snow angel.
I’ve enjoyed seeing everyone’s *white* photograph submissions. A recap can be found on Scott’s site – Views Infinitum – at
http://stphoto.wordpress.com/2010/02/10/assignment-5-recap/