February Light

We have had a good winter this year in south-western Ontario with few storms or messy thaws. The ground has been snow-covered since December although Toronto, just 60 kilometers to the east, has had little snow. This is the first week of minus double digit cold temperatures with significant wind chills, so walking in the woods is far more comfortable than walking across a field. I use Activator poles when walking outdoors for stability and also to add an upper extremity and thoracic spine workout. Our dog, Raven is almost 10 years old (!). I have no idea how the past decade went by so quickly. She and I were approximately the same age sometime in the past year if a dog year equals 7 human years. Fortunately she is healthy, full of energy and does not act like a geriatric dog. She loves a good romp in the snow.

Sunny days in late January and February are my favourite of the  winter season. Daylight hours lengthen appreciably as we approach spring equinox. But the sun is still low enough in the sky to create interesting light and shadow for photographs. Lately, most of my photos are taken with an iPhone 11 which outperforms every camera I own now except for zoom capability. (The live photo options are fun too)

The portrait of two of my favourite trees was taken about an hour before sunset on a trail at the confluence of the Grand and Speed Rivers in Cambridge Ontario. This is the time of day when the colour of the sky is reflected on the snow and cold blues and whites are softened by golden light. Lovely indeed!