It's that time of the year again, winter, cold, grey, snowstorms, freezing rain...but don't despair! This range of weather offers various photo opportunities, whether you are out braving the wind and cold temperatures, or staying in from the elements. 

After a heavy snowstorm, when children are out building giant snowmen or tobogganing down mountains of snow, it's the perfect time to capture nature at its best. All the trees and shrubs are covered in a blanket of snow, outlining and highlighting the delicate shapes of branches and dried leaves, some of which we don't even notice at other times of the year. Here is one sample I found today after 15cm of snow shrouded the city.

Snow-CappedThis winter snowfall offered a perfect opportunity to capture all sorts of trees and shrubs covered by a blanket of snow.

Just a few days ago, the scenery was much different. It rained all afternoon and as evening approached, the temperature hovered around 0 degree. A veil of ice masked the city, including my room window. While it was treacherous to be walking or driving in this weather situation (I hope everyone stayed safe!) and kept me indoors, it didn't stop me from seeing the beauty in this scene. This is what a frozen streetscape looked like, including the towers across the street and the lights from cars stuck in traffic. 

Frozen StreetscapeAn evening of freezing rain kept me indoors, but didn't stop me from photographing the city under a veil of ice.

I continued to search for interesting patterns through my window, and soon enough, a car in the parking lot below started moving. Its brake lights became the glowing red sun in my winter sunset scene, a la Monet style. It has turned the sky into a peach tone over the water below. (This involved a bit of imagination and a vertical rotation of the original image.) 

Winter Sunset a la MonetContinuing to play with the freezing rain on my window, the lights in the parking lot below turned into a winter sunset Monet style.

What sorts of winter images have you been making? Whether realistic or abstract, the possibilities are endless!

Stay warm and keep safe in your winter photo shoots!