I began the New Year very hopeful for the future of my photography and excited for the remaining months of winter. As the first month of the year flew by, I began to be uninspired by the landscape around me. The weather was just short of miserable except for the one snowstorm that blew through Michigan. This mid-January snowstorm felt like my only chance to capture a compelling photo during the month or even the entire winter. I watched the weather forecast very closely in the 24 hours leading up to the storm hitting. The storm was due to hit in the middle of the night and would continue through the following morning. With this forecast, I knew exactly where I needed to go to shoot. Since October I have had my eye on a tree that stands on its own on the top of a hill. I envisioned a snowstorm blowing through, causing a whiteout, allowing me to take a minimalist photo of the tree. This forecasted snowstorm had all the ingredients for the photo I wanted to capture.

On the morning of the snowstorm, I peaked out my bedroom window to find fresh snow on the ground and more snow coming down. I eagerly got in my car and headed to my desired location. I arrived with plenty of time to spare before the snow would eventually turn to rain due to the rising temperature. After hiking out into the snow and arriving at the tree it became very apparent the falling snow was quickly becoming more and more like rain. The temperatures were rising a little quicker then I had hoped. Every snowflake that landed on me or my camera instantly melted and turned to water. This made things a lot more challenging then I had anticipated. Also, the rate at which the snow was falling had slowed down, improving visibility, which was exactly what I didn’t want. Neither less, I was on location so there was no reason not to try.

To deal with the moisture of the wet snow I used my rain jacket as a cover for my camera. With lens cloths in hand, I framed the shot by barely peaking my long lens out from under the jacket. Once my composition was ready and I had the focus nailed I began to take my shots.

Five-second timer, press the shutter, lift the jacket, shutter clicks, drop the jacket back down.

Rinse and repeat.

I continued this over and over again, carefully inspecting my lens every few shots for water droplets. This went on for about 45 minutes until I realized I was completely soaked, my gear was completely soaked, and the mighty snowstorm I had hoped for was not so mighty anymore. I packed up and hiked back to my car feeling very uncertain about the outcome of the photos I had taken that morning. Ultimately after getting the files onto the computer and doing some processing I ended up being unsatisfied with how the photos turned out. I simply didn’t get the conditions I had hoped for. Although conditions weren’t ideal, I’m glad I went out on that very wet morning, it was a very challenging shoot but I’m thankful for it. I learned a lot about how to deal with really wet falling snow, so the next time I’m presented with a similar shooting situation I will be fully prepared.

As for the Photo of the Month for January, the tree you see above is actually not the tree I have been rambling on about this whole time. This photo was taken on my very first visit to a location that is a little bit farther out of my local area. I feel the above photo does a great job of representing the kind of photo I wanted to take during the snow storm. A simple, clean, and minimalist photo of a lone tree on the top of a hill.

But I know what you’re probably thinking, why tell that story if it’s not even about the photo of the month? Well, because that experience helped remind me that I need to continue to push the bounders of my photography and get out of my comfort zone. Whether that be shooting in tough conditions, trying new techniques, or visiting new locations, I need to continue to push myself in order for me to improve as a photographer. Without that reminder I probably wouldn’t have visited this new location. This location is a bit out of what I would consider local to me so I was a little hesitant to drive those extra miles, but I’m so glad I did. Even after just one visit I can tell it has a lot of photographic opportunities for both landscape and wildlife. It has a nice woodland area, large grass fields, and big hills with lone trees on top. My first visit to the location I would consider to be a success. I was able to take a really nice photo, scout a large part of the woodland, and spotted a couple other areas for me to explore on my next visit.

As for whats to come, I hope in the next month the weather takes a turn for the better (at least what I consider better) by bringing snow and ice. I feel my galleries are really lacking winter photos and I want to change that. So hopefully mother nature finally brings winter so I can get out there and capture some nice wintry scenes.