Patterns in the thaw

Winter is often portrayed in pictures displaying mid-distance or panoramic features  –  fields, trees, buildings coated in snow.  But  as I looked out through the kitchen window yesterday morning, my attention was drawn to the many ‘micro-landscapes’  –  mini winter scenes  –  formed by the thawing snow, and all just a few feet away.

I’ve presented a small but varied selection below.  Each of the areas photographed was less than 1 metre square.

Click the photo to enlarge.

In the first, the ice crystals glisten in the sunlight like jewels in a tiara

Sometimes there is a suggestion of frozen movement

The third presents a scene of contrasting textures and colours.

All change!

The snow was around for perhaps 72 hours.  It disappeared as quickly as it had arrived, washed away by an extended period of rain.  The farm track beside the sheep field became virtually impassable, but the sunlight on the puddles produced interesting abstract patterns.

After the snow

As if by magic, the thick carpet of snow and ice completely disappeared overnight.  A significant rise in temperature and continuous rain removed all evidence of the wintry scene.  Bright skies and sunshine replaced the heavy grey clouds of past days.  At the edge of the neighbouring sheep field a series of small puddles formed, each creating its own ‘world’ and reflecting the blue skies above.

As in an earlier post, I have used a touch of watercolour filter.

Click on the photo to enlarge if required.

The Thaw

In recent days we have had snow, fog, ice and now the thaw.  As the carpet of snow shrinks other elements of  beauty are displayed.  See the changed texture of the snow, the ice crystals at the edge, the patterns on the lawn as individual blades of grass reappear.