Rural landscapes: the frosty winter fence
FRIGID WEATHER NEAR GLENBOW RANCH PROVINCIAL PARK, ALBERTA
The temperature was -25C – perfect conditions to make authentic winter pictures, so out I went with the camera. It was so, SO cold that I couldn’t spend much time outside of the car. Thankfully, this beautiful scene was beside the road, so I had time to make several photos. This is the best of the bunch.
Nikon D7100, tripod, fill-flash (to make the fence ‘pop’ against the background)
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Natural landscapes: winter’s touch on the badlands
DINOSAUR PROVINCIAL PARK,
NEAR BROOKS, ALBERTA
I was hoping to find more snow at this remarkable place (a UNESCO World Heritage Site) on the prairies of western Canada. But even a bit is better than nothing to show what badlands are like in winter.
The park is well known for being one of the richest dinosaur fossil locales in the world. Almost 60 species have been discovered at the park and more than 500 specimens have been removed and exhibited in museums around the globe.
Nikon D7100, tripod, polarizing filter, graduated density (darkening) filter on the sky.
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Check out my coffeetable book THE ALBERTA BADLANDS: A Landscape Portrait”: http://bit.ly/HtBAW6
Natural landscapes: when ice and sunrise meet
THE BOW RIVER AT DAWN, COCHRANE, ALBERTA
It was a pretty cold morning, but I don’t recall much wind so it wasn’t hard to spend close to an hour working with all the ice formations along this western Canadian river. My biggest challenge, other than darkening the increasingly bright sky, was staying upright on some pretty slippery sections of ice.
Nikon D7100, tripod, enhancing filter, graduated density (darkening) filter on the sky.
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Natural landscapes: the artistry of ice
WINTER AT ABRAHAM LAKE, ALBERTA
This man-made lake in the Canadian Rockies is famous for the methane that produces cascades of stunning ice bubbles. I wasn’t there at quite the right time (a recent melt obscured many bubbles), but still managed to find compelling scenes like this.
Nikon D7100, tripod, polarizing filter, one or two graduated density (darkening) filters on the sky.
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Natural landscapes: the frigid beauty of a winter morning
OLDMAN RIVER AND HIGH LEVEL BRIDGE, LETHBRIDGE, ALBERTA
The fog coming off the river makes it clear just how cold it was that morning. But I was able to withstand it simply because the photo opportunities are usually abundant in bitter winter conditions and that was certainly the case here.
The low southeast sun created loooooong shadows and, eventually, I saw the value of putting my shadow into one of the compositions. That distant railroad bridge is one of the longest in North America. Here’s a closer view: https://wp.me/p2ccTX-22h.
Nikon D7100, tripod, polarizing filter, graduated density (darkening) filter on the sky.
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Want to buy this picture? Email me and I’ll make it happen! (fdking@hotmail.com).
Check out my coffeetable book, “Bring on the Light: Forty years of photography”: https://bit.ly/BringOnTheLight
Natural landscapes: welcome to the new day
WINTER SUNRISE, VERMILION LAKES,
BANFF NATIONAL PARK, ALBERTA
It’s easy to understand why this is one of the most popular sunrise photography locations in the Canadian Rockies. Hot spring water feeds this part of the lake and so it stays ice-free no matter how frigid the winter day.
Every time I’ve visited here, other folks are there with their cameras and tripods set up to capture the new day. That was the case this time, but I still found a good, unoccupied spot to make this picture.
Nikon D7100, tripod, enhancing filter, two graduated density (darkening) filters on the sky.
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Want to buy this picture? Email me and I’ll make it happen! (fdking@hotmail.com).
Check out my coffeetable book “BLUE SYMPHONY: Winter in the Canadian Rockies”: http://bit.ly/kFb3Xw
Natural landscapes: flowing through the snowy landscape
SINCLAIR CREEK, KOOTENAY NATIONAL PARK, BRITISH COLUMBIA
I liked the curve of the stream and the mix of rocks and white water, until I looked at the resulting picture in my camera viewer. Then I thought “meh, big deal.” When I got home, uploaded all the photos into my desktop and looked again, the minimalism of the composition really grabbed me. The only colour was the rocks, so I knew I’d create a monotone version to remove the colour distraction. (That said, here is the colour version for you to compare: https://bit.ly/SinclairCreekWinter.)
Nikon D7100, tripod, polarizing filter, neutral density (darkening) filter
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Check out my coffeetable book “BLUE SYMPHONY: Winter in the Canadian Rockies”: http://bit.ly/kFb3Xw
Rural landscapes: the prairie skyscrapers
GRAIN ELEVATORS
WARNER, ALBERTA
It was about -20 that afternoon, but there was no wind so spending time finding compelling compositions of this scene was quite pleasant.
Grain elevators, once an iconic sight on the Canadian prairies, are now quite rare. Most have been torn down and replaced by giant concrete storage units at strategic locations. So whenever I find an elevator, it becomes a photographic priority.
In this instance, the photo benefits from strong western sunlight and drifting snow on the railway lines.
Nikon D7100, tripod, polarizing filter
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Natural landscapes: the wall of snow and rock
WINTER LIGHT ON THE PRESIDENT, YOHO NATIONAL PARK, BRITISH COLUMBIA
I was many kilometres away from this peak but, standing on the shore of Emerald Lake, I was able to bridge the distance with a decent telephoto lens. Look at the trees along the bottom third; they’ll tell you this scene is a gigantic chunk of remote and raw real estate in the heart of the Canadian Rocky Mountains.
As usual, I made the initial photo in colour and I like that version (you can see it here: https://bit.ly/YohoWinterPeak), but I knew going monotone would heighten the drama. Do you agree?
Nikon D7100, 70-300 mm. zoom lens, polarizing filter, tripod.
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Want to buy this picture? Email me and I’ll make it happen! (fdking@hotmail.com).
Check out my coffeetable book “BLUE SYMPHONY: Winter in the Canadian Rockies”: http://bit.ly/kFb3Xw
Natural landscapes: topped with tasty white
BERRY TREE AFTER SNOWFALL, CALGARY, ALBERTA
It looks like whipped cream, doesn’t it? I spent all kinds of time around this tree, in the downtown of this western Canadian city, finding ways to capture the white-and-red combinations. The out-of-focus background berries serve as a nice secondary point of visual interest.
Nikon D7100, tripod, polarizing filter
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Want to buy this picture? Email me and I’ll make it happen! (fdking@hotmail.com).
Check out my coffeetable book, “Bring on the Light: Forty years of photography”: https://bit.ly/BringOnTheLight
Rural landscapes: the colourful decay
ABANDONED PRAIRIE HOMESTEAD NEAR STAVELY, ALBERTA
I spent nearly an hour finding various ways to photograph this beautiful old western Canadian property. Playing around with the results produced pictures like this, where I converted everything but the house into black-and-white. Makes for an impactful image, yes?
Nikon D7100, tripod, polarizing filter
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Rural landscapes: no moving in this weather
FROSTY ANCIENT WAGON
NEAR CALGARY, ALBERTA
Yes, it was absolutely as cold as it looked — in fact it was -25C with a wind chill that made it feel like -30. Thankfully, this wonderful old wagon was right by the road, so I barely had to walk 10 feet to quickly make several pictures. This is one of the best, in part because it doesn’t show any of the very modern house in the background. Going black-and-white was a no-brainer; there was almost no colour in this scene.
Nikon D7100, tripod, fill-flash
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Want to buy this picture? Email me and I’ll make it happen! (fdking@hotmail.com).
Check out my coffeetable book, “Frank King’s Southern Alberta“: http://bit.ly/1oUzd4A
Urban landscapes: Me and the frigid daybreak
FROSTY WINTER DAWN, CALGARY, ALBERTA
As soon as my eyes saw this western Canadian scene, I knew it would make a compelling photo, but only if someone was added to the composition. So I set the timer on my camera and galloped back and forth for several long exposures. This was the best of the bunch. Seeing as I was pretty much the only colour in the scene, I turned the rest of the photo into monotone. Want to compare? See the full-colour version here: https://bit.ly/TheFrigidDaybreak.
Nikon D7100, tripod
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Want to buy this picture? Email me and I’ll make it happen! (fdking@hotmail.com).
Check out my coffeetable book, “Bring on the Light: Forty years of photography”: https://bit.ly/BringOnTheLight
Natural landscapes: the snowy solitude
BADLANDS AT WRITING ON STONE PROVINCIAL PARK, NEAR MILK RIVER, ALBERTA
One of the great things about making pictures in winter is the solitude. As I spent hours exploring the incredible hoodoos and badlands of this western Canadian park, I don’t recall seeing even one other person. It was a wonderful time of photography, peace and prayer in a stunning part of God’s cathedral.
Nikon D7100, tripod, polarizing filter
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Check out my coffeetable book THE ALBERTA BADLANDS: A Landscape Portrait”: http://bit.ly/HtBAW6
Urban landscapes: a walk with the bridge
HIGH LEVEL BRIDGE, LETHBRIDGE, ALBERTA
Built between 1907 and 1909 (and still in use today), this 1.6-kilometre bridge is the largest railway structure in Canada and the largest steel trestle bridge in the world. A 100-man gang erected more than 11,000 tons of steel.
I’ve photographed High Level Bridge several times, always challenged to adequately capture its sheer, gobsmacking massiveness. I photographed this viewpoint without the footprints, then went for a walk to add in the tracks and see which version was more compelling. This one is the victor because it gives you a strong line to follow into the distance.
Nikon D7100, tripod, polarizing filter, graduated density (darkening) filter on the sky
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Natural landscapes: the intimate long exposure
SINCLAIR CREEK, KOOTENAY NATIONAL PARK, BRITISH COLUMBIA
This Rocky Mountain stream, running along Hwy. 93 for several kilometres, was fascinating to follow. Near the bottom it was free-flowing, but the further up I went, the more snow and ice showed up. So it was just a matter of making pictures where the water-ice ratio was just right. 🙂
Nikon D7100, tripod, polarizing filter and, possibly, a neutral density (darkening) filter
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Want to buy this picture? Email me and I’ll make it happen! (fdking@hotmail.com).
Check out my coffeetable book “BLUE SYMPHONY: Winter in the Canadian Rockies”: http://bit.ly/kFb3Xw
Natural landscapes: the snowy mountain sunrise
DAWN ON HIGHWAY 93, KOOTENAY NATIONAL PARK, BRITISH COLUMBIA
What a delight it was to make this drive over the Alberta border and into this Canadian Rocky Mountain park. Snow on the trees opens the door to many photo opportunities, such as this one just as the sun was coming up.
Nikon D7100, tripod, graduated density (darkening) filter on the peak and sky
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Check out my coffeetable book “BLUE SYMPHONY: Winter in the Canadian Rockies”: http://bit.ly/kFb3Xw
Natural landscapes: in a world of frost
WINTER GRASS, DINOSAUR PROVINCIAL PARK, NEWELL COUNTY, ALBERTA
In the midst of spectacular badlands, I found entire fields of wild grass covered in frost. When I found a nice mix of sunny grass and blue shadows, I set aside my wide-angle lens, slipped on a telephoto lens, and spent time searching out intimate close-ups like this.
Nikon D7100, tripod, 70-300-mm. lens
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Want to buy this picture? Email me and I’ll make it happen! (fdking@hotmail.com).
Check out my coffeetable book THE ALBERTA BADLANDS: A Landscape Portrait”: http://bit.ly/HtBAW6
Rural landscapes: Merry Christmas from Alberta
WREATH AND WAGON WHEEL, NEAR CALGARY, ALBERTA
I would have loved to scatter some snow on the wreath, but that would have intruded on private property and rural homeowners in this western Canada province are hyper-vigilant about security. (That’s understandable; it takes police much longer to reach country properties and criminals know it.)
All that said, I hope you find a way to have a merry Christmas in this pandemic world, and ponder the life-giving reason for the season:
“As I read the birth stories about Jesus, I cannot help but conclude that though the world may be tilted toward the rich and powerful, God is tilted toward the underdog.” – Philip Yancey
Nikon D7100, tripod, 70-300-mm. telephoto zoom lens
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Want to buy this picture? Email me and I’ll make it happen! (fdking@hotmail.com).
Check out my coffeetable book, “Frank King’s Southern Alberta“: http://bit.ly/1oUzd4A
Natural landscapes: in the footsteps of the fossil hunters
PHOTOGRAPHING BADLANDS AT DINOSAUR PROVINCIAL PARK, ALBERTA
I photographed this astounding mix of badlands and prairies just minutes before the setting sun disappeared behind clouds. Sensing the scene needed a little something extra, I turned on the ‘time exposure’ mechanism and stepped into the scene – first in the centre, then looking into the scene from the left. I like both, but this one seems a little more compelling. That’s the frozen Red Deer River in the distance.
Nikon D7100, tripod, polarizing filter, two graduated density (darkening) filters on the sky
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Want to buy this picture? Email me and I’ll make it happen! (fdking@hotmail.com).
Check out my coffeetable book THE ALBERTA BADLANDS: A Landscape Portrait”: http://bit.ly/HtBAW6
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