Snowy Pier
Snow in the south is a special time. Some fear it, some revel in it, and the photographer can’t help but get the smile off their face. Snow introduces new elements to landscape features, enhances contrast, and gives you structure in a world filled with clutter. The problem being, it can be difficult to find fresh, un tramped snow, even in those remote locations we all love. Starting my day extra early, I prepared my gloves, headwear, multiple layers. Where I was going was to be cold, but perhaps remote enough to find unsullied ground. To my surprise, I did indeed discover such a place, though I quickly found, even my cold weather protection wasn’t enough…. Truly a frigid morning, and I would do it all over again.
This is a little pond near Max Patch, a mountain top overlook. It sits along the Appalachian Trail in Western North Carolina. I had driven down this road a hundred times, maybe more, looking for small forest scenes, but only once in the snow years ago. This was my attempt at finding a little beauty along that old gravel road. The elevation here was around 4,600 feet according to google, though I don’t know for certain at this location specifically. Regardless, I saw this out of the corner of my eye traveling down the mountain roads with a good friend. The composition popped out to me immediately, though originally I had flip flopped on whether I even wanted to try it. I was near shivering by the time I got back into the truck, but I think the work was worth it in the end.
The edit on this photo was interesting, the whole morning had a deep yellow miasma to it. So, naturally the first thing I did was adjust the color temperature, then adding large scale dodge and burn to the image. Slowly working to bring out colors and deepen some shadows, even creating new ones. I would edit for so long, then take a break. Taking a break really lets you get out of your head, come back to the shot with fresh eyes. It’s easy to do with images like this, so many little tweaks you can make in the wrong direction before you even realize you’ve gone wrong.
Until Next Time!
Aperture: f8
ISO: 640
SS: 1/80th
Focal: 32mm
Fujinon 16-55mm
