Big Snow, Little Italy

Now for something that is a bit outside of my comfort zone - urban street photography.  

There is a small section of the large metropolitan area I live near called "Little Italy".   As the name implies, this was a very dynamic Italian neighborhood for the last 100+ years.   In more recent years, the area has become an arts district with trending shops, galleries and a wide variety of restaurants and famous bakeries.    The middle class feel of the area remains.  

Several years ago, I was visiting a friend who lives in the area during a heavy winter storm.   I was fascinated at the scene of piled snow and limited driving in the area.    I had thought of trying to revisit during a snow event to photography the scene. 

Finally the combination of available time and wintery conditions all came together.   I just had to battle the elements to walk and photograph the scenes.  

I really enjoyed finding and capturing the street scenes, but as I told some friends, unless I live near this area in the future, I'm not fighting the traffic again to photograph this scene.    The driving was terrible, but luckily I got home without any incidents and have some nice images to remember the scene by.

Cold Winter Survival

Winter is hitting us this year with ferocity.   Temperatures going down to -10 F (-23 C) have been with us on occasion. Entire weeks of temperatures well below 32F (0 C) have been common. 

This puts a strain on the wild life and creates unique photographic opportunities.  In the national park by my home, the river that runs through the heart of the park will still have open water flowing.   At these frigid temperatures, the warmer water vaporizes as it hits the much colder air and a frozen mist clings to trees, surrounding landscapes and the poor wildlife that use the river as there home. 

These are normally a very annoying bird in our area (Canadian Geese).  But during these frigid mornings, I have sympathy for there endurance and survival.   They hardly want to move and they hover around the open areas of the river as protection from predators. 

During one of these frigid mornings, I spotted one of the birds that was struggling with trying to remove a large block of ice that was literally frozen to its foot.

It struggled and given the temperatures it was unlikely this ice block was going to fall off anytime soon.   This hardship can hamper the bird from avoiding predators or moving easily.   Its chances of survival are diminished.    

It is a harsh reality check to see the conditions the wildlife endures during our cold winter.  I will not complain about being cold when I think of the animals surviving in the cold winter.