Torngats 2015 - Where Nature and Culture Connect 12

How Many Blues and Greens Are There In An Iceberg?

Turquoise, azure, indigo, teal, cerulean, aqua, sea-green...  

...as the light changes, the colours shift.   

Icebergs were something we were interested in seeing up close, and we saw quite a few of them. These 15,000 year-old mountains of fresh water float south into the Atlantic Ocean, melting as they go. Most of their beauty goes unseen and unappreciated. Thanks to Muriel Edmunds for the closeup photo of the light shining through the base of the iceberg.        

Everything Looks Different at Night - Day 21

Willow Pollen     

Pussywillow Buds Sprout Into Pollen     

- creating strange new flowers.    

Not-quite dark and not-quite a silhouette, these willow buds stand out against a dusky sky.       

Everything Looks Different at Night - Day 20

Sunset Clouds     

Sunset Over the River    

- and the clouds and the distant shore are disappearing into the darkness.    

Sunset can be a disorienting time of day, when the familiar shapes of distant hills become a dark mass and when clouds loom low and heavy with shadows. Sunset forces us to pay attention in different ways than we do in full daylight.       

Seeing What's Not There - Day 13

School Window Reflections

Reflections on School Windows

-  on a sunny Spring afternoon.         

This was not the school I went to, but I think of the many pairs of eyes that have looked out longingly from these windows onto a sunny day in spring, their owners battling Spring Fever, or else succumbing to it. 

Seeing What's Not There - Day 7

A Pale Sun    

On a Dull Overcast Day

- a pale sun shines like a star in the slush.         

Overcast days may not look promising for photographing either shadows or reflections, but if you keep your eyes open, you never know what you may see!   

Take It To The Streets - Day 31

Parking Lot Splash    

"[in Just-]  spring... 

- ...when the world is puddle-wonderful..."    

For little kids, splashing in a spring-time puddle is natural fun, for cars, the splashing is mostly unavoidable, but for pedestrians, it represents a real problem. Unless the pedestrian is a kid at heart and loves the anticipation of a spray of water! 

quotation from the poem 

[in Just-]

by ee cummings

.      

Take It To The Streets - Day 30

Spring Melt    

Droplets of Water  

- drip from melting icicles    

Cool overnight temperatures froze yesterday's melting snow into icicles on the eaves, and the afternoon sun is melting it, drop by drop. By late afternoon, all these icicles were gone.      

Take It To The Streets - Day 29

For Rent in a Boom Town    

For Rent Signs Spring Up  

- as office space become hard to find     

With a large construction project underway, people in our town are finding it difficult, and increasingly expensive, to get good locations for offices . For Rent signs go up and come down rapidly.     

Take It To The Streets - Day 26

Icicle Wall   

Snow Melt from the Roof 

- freezes into icicles in the cold air   

A wall of icicles acts like a light catcher as it creates patterns of light and shadow against the side of the building. Signs of spring are around, but we're not out of winter yet. 

Take It To The Streets - Day 25

Pigeons Make a Soft Landing   

Overwintering Birds Look for Sand and Grit

- wherever they can find it   

The warmth of the afternoon sunshine is stripping the top layers of ice and snow off sidewalks and parking lots. Pigeons and other birds of all sizes and species are drawn to spots where earth and grass are exposed, so the birds can add some much needed sand and grit to their digestive systems after the long winter.

Take It To The Streets - Day 24

A Slushy, Sandy, Spring Street  

Warm Afternoon Sunshine Reveals the Winter Accumulation of Sand

- and reflections of trees and poles in the puddles   

Daytime temperatures are still below the freezing mark, but the warmth of the sunshine is skimming the top layers of ice and snow off streets and roads. The ridges of sand will disperse as soon as the road dries, leaving bare pavement.  

     

Take It To The Streets - Day 22

Clearing the Intersection  

A Municipal Snowblower Makes A Tight Cut

- to widen a street intersection   

When the roads are cleared, where does the snow go? It gets piled up along the sides of the roads. After a while, roads and intersections need to be cleared, and that's what this snowblower and its skillful operator are good at doing.   

     

Take It To The Streets - Day 21

Icicles Melting  

Icicles Melting into Water Droplets

- in the Springtime Sunshine   

Today Spring started. Today we have equal periods of daylight and darkness, and the daytime temperatures are noticeably milder.  In the mid-afternoon sunshine, icicles which were formed by snow melting off the roofs of buildings, were themselves melting off the eaves. 

     

Take It To The Streets - Day 19

Snow Melting into Icicles  

It's still below freezing, but the snow is melting  

- and forming icicles   

The snow that has accumulated over the past little while is starting to melt in the heat from the daytime sun. But the air temperature is still below freezing, and so icicles form, as drops of melt-water run off parked cars and other surfaces that have absorbed heat in the sunshine.

     

Take It To The Streets - Day 14

Heavy Snowfall at the Car Lot  

A dull overcast day   

- relieved by flakes of white  

The weather forecasters predicted heavy accumulations of snow, and by this afternoon the snow was coming quickly, and and it began to accumulate fast. 

At the motor vehicle dealership, fresh snow accentuates the shapes of the new trucks parked in a regular line, and creates light and dark patterns all down the lot.    

Take It To The Streets - Day 12

The Town's Steam Truck Clears A Frozen Water Line  

Extreme Cold and Too Little Snow Cover     

- causes water in underground pipes to freeze    

This winter has been a cold one. Water lines have frozen all over town, and municipal workers go outside at all hours to clear blocked pipes. There are smiles all around when the water starts to flow again.   

Take It To The Streets - Day 10

Glare and Drifting Snow  

"Snow Snakes" 

- on the road    

Reflected light from the late afternoon sun reflects of the ice on the road, but the glare is cut by drifting snow making "snow snakes" slither across the surface. 

Take It To The Streets - Day 8

Walking the Dog  

Brilliant afternoon sunshine 

- and brilliant color against the snow    

Although the temperatures have been cold, the sunshine is bright and inviting. Dogs need to be walked no matter what the weather, and their owners need the exercise, even if it is a bit of a job getting dressed to go outside. Then, once you are outside, it's certainly worth the effort.

Take It To The Streets - Day 7

Red, White and Blue  

Red pants, white snow and blue shadows

- a winter color scheme    

The sun is strong on clear winter days, and the shadows are cast in saturated blues. The pedestrian was walking through the parking lot of the corner gas-bar - and the colors were brilliant in the sunshine: Red, White and Blue.  

Take It To The Streets - Day 6

Cold Walking Today  

The only people who are outside

- are the people who have to be out     

Whether you measure the temperature on this sunny winter's day as -30 degrees Celcius or -20 degrees Fahrenheit, it's cold. Anyone who is out for any length of time has to be well-dressed against the chill. Jacket, sweater, cap, gloves, snowpants, boots, everything has to be windproof and warm, and this fellow is set for it. I said "You look cold, can I take your picture?" He agreed and he even gave me a warm smile.