We had a few days of real winter this last week, including a little snow and some freezing temperatures. As a result, I had a few chances to go out and photograph snow, ice, and frost. It was great! Now, the temperatures are back to a spring-like feel and it looks like it’ll be that way for a while.

Who do I complain to about the winter temperatures being too warm? I don’t feel like I’ll get a lot of empathy from most people around me.

Well, anyway, here are some photos of actual gosh-darned winter conditions, in case you’re interested.

I had a nice morning at the little reservoir north of town. I didn’t come away with a ton of photos I liked, but I enjoyed being out. There was a trumpeter swan on the water, which isn’t something I see everyday, especially around here.

I also followed a little pack of tree swallows around and managed to get a couple photos, though I had to significantly crop them to make them look ok. Tree sparrows don’t usually let me get very close. Apart from that, my photography was limited largely because the ice wasn’t thick enough to walk on so I could only work along the edges of the lake and stream.

A day after I was at the reservoir, I headed to my favorite frozen wetland at the Platte River Prairies. The ice was (mostly) thick enough to walk on, as long as I took it slowly and backed up when I heard cracking sounds. Then, of course, if there was something I really wanted to get close to, I’d approach again, but on my belly, with my weight spread out as much as possible. (As always, I’ll remind you that the water at my favorite frozen wetland is only a foot or so deep, so my life was not in serious danger.)

As you can see from the above three photos, the ice wasn’t clear enough to produce a lot of ice bubble photos, which was a disappointment, but there was some decent frost to photograph. There were also some fun mysteries to ponder, including where the bug (above) came from and why/how it ended up on the top of the ice. I don’t need to know the answer – it’s just fun to imagine scenarios.

I was about ready to leave when I came across the feathers. Some good-sized bird (duck?) had met its demise and had been picked apart by a predator, leaving feathers scattered all over the ice. The combination of feathers and frost is a good one for photography, so I stayed an extra half hour and had fun with various compositions. This was one of those places where the ice was a little iffy, so all these were photographed from the prone position.

Well, now it’s warm out again. Some people would call it pleasant, and I’d agree with that if it was April. For now, it makes me grumpy. A little precipitation would make me feel better, even if it’s rain instead of snow. At this point, I’d be glad for anything wet falling out of the sky.

Well, not ANYTHING. I wouldn’t want soggy socks, for example, dropping on my head. Or sodden rolls of toilet paper.

Anyway, I want winter. Please? Just for a few more weeks.