Photographs by Frank

15 January 2012

Snow on the Landscape… Finally

Filed under: Landscapes,Monadnock Region,Winter — Tags: , — Frank @ 12:59 PM

On Thursday and Friday, we finally got some significant (about six inches) snow… that is, if you don’t count the twenty one inches way back in October!

Yesterday dawned cold (about 20 degrees) and gray. However, about 2 PM, I noticed the clouds starting to break up as the expected cold front arrived; the temperature was still around 20. I headed out to the north end of “our” beaver swamp to see what would develop. I took my first photo at 2:35 and spent the next hour photographing the swamp in very changeable conditions; both the clouds and the lighting were in constant flux.

The sun went below the ridge of Robb Mountain just about 3:45 putting the foreground in shadow. Thus, I broke the tripod and my feet free from the ice, packed up and headed home as the temperature dropped rapidly.

It was about ten or twelve degrees by the time I got home. The temperature continued to drop into the night and it was right around zero when I rose this morning. As I write this (at about noon) the temperature stands at about five.

Today might be a day to prints some of the recent photos in my nice cozy studio!

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P.S. As I went to publish this, I notice that it is my one hundredth entry; my first entry appeared on 24 May 2010. The first anniversary passed unnoticed by all!

8 January 2012

The View from Robb Mountain

Filed under: Landscapes,Monadnock Region,The "New" Yard & Environs — Tags: — Frank @ 11:00 PM

Today we decided to climb Robb Mountain. This peak is the southern most part of the ridge “behind” (west) of our house; at 1,820 feet it is the third highest point in Antrim.

There has been extensive logging on the Robb Mt. in the recent past so the terrain is not pristine. However, the views afforded by the clearing are quite spectacular.

The clearest views (and thus best photographically) are to the south overlooking Willard Pond. Mount Monadnock is hidden behind Bald Mountain but Pack Monadnock, North Pack Monadnock and their connecting ridge are clearly viewable above Goodhue Hill.

The steep climb (and probably more so, the descent) are hard on the knees, but the view was worth it. The temperature was in the mid-thirties and it was windy “up top” but not unpleasant.

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7 January 2012

A Warm January Day

Filed under: Landscapes,Monadnock Region,The "New" Yard & Environs,Winter — Tags: — Frank @ 11:00 PM

With the temperature in the mid-40’s, we were tempted outside and on another hike this afternoon. Our goal was Willard Pond. We headed over there via the beaver swamp and came back via the “new” trail.

I spent a little time photographing the pond, but the light was not particularly good nor were the clouds. I spent much more time photographing the stream which feeds the pond.

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6 January 2012

Another Beaver Swamp in the Snow

Filed under: Landscapes,Monadnock Region,Winter — Tags: , — Frank @ 12:00 PM

Late yesterday afternoon Joan and I headed out for a “quick walk”. We ended up at a large beaver swamp that lies between the house and Willard Pond. There had been a couple of very light flurries earlier in the day, but just as we arrived at the beaver dam it began to snow a bit more earnestly. Nonetheless, I persisted in making photographs from a position just below the beaver dam.

The walk back, in fading light, was “interesting” as the snow made it difficult to pick out the icy patches along the road! We proceeded slowly arriving  back at the house in the dark.

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3 January 2012

“Our” Beaver Swamp

Filed under: Landscapes,Monadnock Region,Winter — Tags: , , — Frank @ 6:00 AM

We, and our neighbors, share the back of our lots with a beaver or two. The beaver swamp runs roughly north-south for about half a mile and we live at the southern end. There are two dams and two lodges. Last summer I spent a lot of time stalking odes in the marsh and around the deep water near the southern dam and lodge; these are probably on our property (although its hard to say for sure).

Yesterday afternoon, I headed out to photographed this wet land from the northern dam. In the afternoon, the light is better in this direction and as I headed out I was hoping for some dramatic clouds as the weather broke.

I was well rewarded for a mile-and-a-half (round trip) walk and the ninety minutes or so that I worked the scene; staying until the light in the foreground faded. The temperature was about thirty degrees and there were three or four brief periods of snow. The wind was blowing which meant lots of changing clouds. All of that sounds worse that it was, dressed properly and thoroughly engaged in “the moment”, I did not feel cold at all.

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Warning… photo geek talk ahead! Proceed at your own risk!

The right equipment really helps. Both of these images were taken with a graduated neutral density filter. I have had a couple of these filters for years. In the past, I often left them at home and ended up regretting not  having  them with me. The reason? No room in my backpack. I recently bought a much larger (and better fitting) backpack. This time I had the filter with me!

While on the subject of gear… On Saturday I put a winter coat on my tripod. Aluminum tripods make for good heat sinks and thus very cold hands (even with gloves on) . Thus the winter coat!

My tripod’s winter coat consists three pieces of foam pipe insulation of the appropriate diameter and a bit of duck tape. An eight foot length of the pipe insulation cost $3.49  at the hardware store. Less than 10 minutes after I got home, my tripod was fully clad with insulation on the upper sections of  each leg and ready to go. I even had enough left over for a fourth leg! Come spring, I’ll remove my tripod’s winter coat and store the pieces away until the following winter. Hopefully, I’ll be able to find them again!

25 November 2011

Gregg Lake — Last Light on a November Afternoon

Filed under: Landscapes,Monadnock Region,November — Tags: — Frank @ 12:00 PM

This photo was made at about 4:40 PM on Tuesday; sunset was about 4:15.

Joan and I were on our way to town to run some errands and she wanted to stop to see if there were any cranberries in the bog on the north side of the road. Thus while Joan was foraging, I was photographing.

Joan found many berries but all had gone mushy from too many freeze-thaw cycles.

I  noticed the patch of warm light at the far end of the lake. This provided a nice contrast to the cool blue of the rest of the sky. There was not much detail in the clouds… I would have liked more. Landscape photographers don’t have much control over these things.

[singlepic id=807 w=320 h=240 float=] (Click for larger view)

13 November 2011

East Washington / Bradford Bog

Filed under: Landscapes,November — Tags: — Frank @ 12:00 PM

Joan and I headed back to East Washington yesterday. The weather was better; a bright blue sky with scattered wispy clouds. My goal was the Baptist church I had “missed” the day before and the nearby Bradford Bog.

I had noticed the church on Friday. It sits atop a small hill less than a hundred yards from the Purling Beck Hall. I had even headed up towards it in the truck, but I was unsure if I was trespassing or not so I turned around. A bit of research on the web revealed that it was still publicly accessible. So, back I went.

While looking at the map after arriving back at home on Friday, I noticed the Bradford Bog, a white cedar bog, not more than half a mile from the Purling Beck Hall. Thus once we finished photographing the buildings in East Washington, we donned our blaze orange (always a good idea in hunting season) took a walk along the boardwalk in this delightful bog. The boardwalk ends at a raised lookout overlooking the bog ringed with hills. From this vantage the bog was not particularly photogenic in its suit of November gray. However, at other times of the year, I am guessing that it is very photogenic. I’ll be headed back at some point.

After the bog, we drove another back road loop getting as far north as Lake Sunapee before heading back south towards home. As we passed though Washington, the buildings on the green were unencumbered by signs of modernity but alas, the light was gone… next time!

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12 November 2011

A Back Road Drive

Filed under: Landscapes,November — Tags: — Frank @ 12:00 PM

Yesterday, I took a “back roads” drive through some of the towns just north of Antrim. My route took me through Windsor, East Washington, Washington, Lempster, East Acworth, Marlow and Stoddard.

The weather was classic November in New Hampshire… cold, gray and blustery; there were snow showers on and off all afternoon. The day was made for black and white photography.

The classic white clapboard buildings on Washington Common were surrounded by signs of modernity when I went by so I did not stop to photograph them this time. However, I “discovered” some other buildings of the same ilk in East Washington that were unencumbered. I also “discovered” the town hall in Lempster which is in the middle of a renovation but will make a nice subject in the future.

Here are the “keepers”:

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24 August 2011

A Hike Up Skatutakee and Thumb Mountains

Filed under: Amphibians,Odontates — Tags: , , , — Frank @ 12:00 PM

Yesterday was another prototypical New Hampshire summer day… low humidity and the temperature was just about 70 degrees.  We  spent the afternoon hiking up Skatutakee and Thumb Mountains on trails maintained by the Harris Center in Hancock. The summits of both peaks afford nice views of the north face of Mount Monadnock.

We encountered two different species of damselflies in the woods on the way up and the usual darners which frequent the peaks were found on both summits. We also watched two hawks soaring over the summit of Skatutakee while we ate our lunch.

Near the bottom of the Thumbs Down trail we encountered a porcupine on the ground in a lumbered area and a short time later we flushed a grouse-like bird from the underbrush along the edge of the same clearing. No photos of either animal though; both were quicker than yours truly!

We also encountered a rather large toad at the edge of an old skid road just before the Thumbs Down Trail becomes a real trail again. This “fellow” was well hidden under some ferns but I managed to find “windows” that afforded shots of both his left and right profiles. That done, I’m not sure that one could say that he has a “good side”!

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21 August 2011

Fox State Forest / Spoonwood Pond

Filed under: Amphibians,Odontates — Tags: , , , , — Frank @ 12:00 PM

Last Thursday we took a hike in Fox State Forest over in Hillsborough. Our goal was a black gum swamp which is a rare habitat. There was amazing little ode activity there, just a few meadowhawks. I’m not sure if it was the time (of day or year) or what!

When we got back to the parking area we decided that we still had a few miles left in us and we headed off to find the parking area nearest Mud Pond, a very scenic kettle pond despite its name. We had an adventure getting there (the parking area) in a embarrassingly roundabout way… the map was broken… well, out of date. anyway.. really!!!

The trail to Mud Pond passes through a meadow that had large numbers of odes and there were a number of very small toads along the trail in the woods.

Here are the photos:

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On Friday, we decided to exercise the upper body. We tossed the kayaks on the truck and headed for Nubanusit Lake in Hancock. Our goal was not actually Nubanusit (a large windy, motorboat-ridden) body of water, but Spoonwood Pond, a smaller (but still good-sized) body of water which is very short portage upstream.

The boat traffic on Nubanusit was actually not bad and there is a ten mph speed limit. We also saw out first bald eagle as we headed for the dam and portage. Spoonwood Pond is delightful, it is surrounded by conservation land and only one house way up on a hillside in Nelson is visible from the water. We saw a few other kayaks and one canoe (loaded with a father, young boy and camping gear) headed back from one of four Harris Center‘s campsites around the lake.

It was a windy day so odes were mainly found in sheltered areas along the shore, but they were fairly abundant. The photography was not so good… sitting in a wave-bounced, wind-blown kayak does not make photographing small critters a high yield proposition!

We also saw a second adult bald eagle, a juvenile bald eagle and an osprey. Alas, all were too far off to photograph.

The clouds were nice though as thunderstorms moved in during the latter part of the afternoon. The storms were mostly to the east so we were able to end our trip with only a few sprinkles.

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