Garden Portraits Newsletter, January 2006
Capturing Images of New Hampshire and Staying Warm
Audubon Center, Auburn New Hampshire
My favorite winter sojourn so far this season has been to the Audubon Center in Auburn, New Hampshire. Early in the winter, the open fields were full of seed pods from milkweed plants. The soft, cottony threads from the seeds shimmered in the sun against the brilliant blue sky on the perfect day I chose to photograph. The conditions were perfect for beautiful images, but with the temperatures hovering around twenty degrees Fahrenheit, they were a l ittle less than ideal for my fingertips. I keep my hands warm in a layer of thin cotton gloves covered with warm woolen mittens. The mittens are the kind that folds down so I can use my fingers. I keep my fingers toasty while looking for the perfect shot, and then cover them right up again after I've taken an image. But on days with perfect sunlight, where the photo opportunities are immense, I find it difficult to remember to fold up my mittens. Luckily, when my fingertips went numb I was able to shelter myself in the Audubon's outbuilding and warm up to head out and finish the job. I hope that you like the results of my expedition. I can't wait to return in warmer weather to sit and wait for the butterflies that are attracted to this incredibly beautiful plant.
Car Travels
I have stayed warm in other photography circumstances by using my car as a base. Trips when I rarely left my car -- through Candia, Manchester, Auburn, Goffstown, Raymond, Deerfield, Bedford, Milford, Wilton, Derry, and Londonderry -- were common in December. I perform these sojourns by driving down streets I've never before explored, looking for interesting waterways, drifts of snow, trees, and of course, shells of flowers. If I spot something that strikes my fancy, I stop and bundle up. I've got my gloves and hat, my scarf, my warm hiking boots, and my three layers under my down coat. I spend usually ten minutes at the most just walking down the street with my camera. Luckily, I have a car with heated seats and ten minutes out of it is not enough time for my seat to fully cool. Some of my most interesting landscapes have been made in this way, including my peaceful "Birch at Lake Massabesic". In fact, these drives are quite peaceful themselves. The silence when I exit the car allows me to focus completely on the task at hand quickly before the cold gets through my gloves to my fingertips. I'm learning to appreciate the cold and its effects on nature.