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Am I crazy? Cold winter day blues... Should I go or not...

Should I go to the outdoor dance event (temperature -22 Celsius)

  • No! You are crazy

    Votes: 2 22.2%

  • Yes! Follow your gut feeling

    Votes: 7 77.8%
  • Total voters
    9
  • Poll closed .
Sherlock77

Sherlock77

Well-Known Member
V.I.P Member
Should I go to the big outdoor dance party downtown for my photography, temperature about -22...

The story: Halfway through the month of February, every single day has been well below average for the Canadian prairies, I know we're not alone... We've had an epic cold snap that is getting to be very annoying for me! There were/there are a bunch of outdoor events that are taking place this month, and this stupid cold weather has wrecked all of them! Again, I know I can do nothing about the weather does, except I suppose how I react to it, and I'm starting to get really bad cabin fever

This afternoon I went to an outdoor curling bonspiel, probably at -20 Celsius or colder, spent four hours taking photos, chilly... Now tonight, there is an outdoor dance party downtown, as part of a winter festival... The logical part of me says, I should hibernate inside the rest of the day, but then I know I will be itchy knowing I could be at the dance party to photograph it... Knowing what epic photos I might be missing out on... Or I might show up to hardly anyone being there because of this crappy winter weather... Of course I have enough winter wear to even do this...

In general I'm frustrated with how this crappy winter weather is wrecking what would have been the photo opportunities I was counting on... And maybe overstating it, but I feel like its wrecking my life right now... There appears to be very little light at the end of the tunnel with this weather
 
You certainly got hit this year in this west, with cold. But those days seem to have become usual, somehow. You wouldn't be a northerner if you were not ruled by the weather. When it gets sunny here, everybody goes out in the double digits below zero and drives around. It's been oddly so 'snowy' in my part of canada that you can't see the houses anymore. The snow piles reach up, we create our own hills of snow. The plows are out every day for more than a month now. It will be over soon, the cold, the sun is stronger than it was. And soon the clocks will go forward.

Have missed taking photos so many times. Perfect opportunities, perfect shots, good light. I take them to paint or draw from as inspiration. And I stand there looking, wishing I had my camera. Trying to not forget and take it all in. An elderly couple sitting outside in the summer with laundry blowing in the wind, a dog's jump, a deers eyes, a balloonist floating by, a snowshow race. Spring is on it's way.
 
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It's not 20 below here so don't go by my vote. :) I'm sure living where you live you know how to dress warm, so if you want to go, go for it - just be smart. Cold isn't as likely to keep me inside as much as the hot.
 
Go if you like. I think it might be fun! Anyone who goes in this weather has to be an adventurist. So, you will meet the best people there tonight. :);)o_O
 
My gut feeling failed me... I did go, but there was zero energy anywhere, and crowds were small, probably due to weather, admittedly...

Biggest waste of a bus fare ever, and a waste of time too... Feel like a failure... Photography was uninspiring, one sample from a different part of the festival, and hardly even worth posting anywhere...

Glowfest 03.jpg
 
Know its not your usual thing, you seem to like to do Veteran's day portraits. Yet, it really is a place in time, that gives you a sense of everyday life in your city. It's a record. When you think in terms of that, it becomes more about art.
 
Sorry it didn't turn out as you had hoped. Your photo says a lot though. It shows the cold in everything you look at and that's cool. (not meant to be a play on words.. lol)
 
You aren't crazy. Whoever sets up a outside 'dance party' in artic temps is crazy. But it had potential for interesting photos so going made sense. Its a form of hunting. You have to be able to weather the times it doesn't work out with an 'oh well, maybe next time' attitude.
 
One reason why I went... A few years ago there was a similar evening, with similar temperatures, when lots of people still showed up... I was hoping for a similar story, I guess it wasn't meant to be... Just have to keep at it, but still feel frustrated...
 
The way I see it, if you are down and depressed with a guitar in your hands, there's no telling what you might come up with. But when talking about something like a paintbrush or a camera...to me that's considerably more problematic.

In essence my personal sense of creativity hits a brick wall when I'm in such a mood. Where I simply refrain from even trying. When the mood hits you, go for it. But if it doesn't, don't feel bad about not bothering.

Besides, at those temperatures your digital camera may perform adequately- or not. Where battery depletion can be excessive and LCD performance potentially erratic.
 
Judge said:
The way I see it, if you are down and depressed with a guitar in your hands, there's no telling what you might come up with. But when talking about something like a paintbrush or a camera...to me that's considerably more problematic.

In essence my personal sense of creativity hits a brick wall when I'm in such a mood. Where I simply refrain from even trying. When the mood hits you, go for it. But if it doesn't, don't feel bad about not bothering.

Besides, at those temperatures your digital camera may perform adequately- or not. Where battery depletion can be excessive and LCD performance potentially erratic.
Click to expand...

Digital cameras work fine in cold temperatures, film cameras struggle more, but that is beside the point

My biggest "issue", if you want to call it that, is that I am primarily drawn to outdoor photography, and when we get this much arctic air for this many days in a row, just being outside is a chore, anything outside is a chore, my hands can get very cold in mere minutes... And when I'm just slightly obsessive about my photography I feel restless because I want to be out more taking photos...

Another different photo, with gloves on, within five minutes my hands were freezing! My car was right behind me... And I also enjoy moody winter photos that may or may not be "pretty" or "beautiful" like a natural landscape

New Horizons 01.jpg
 
I'm incredibly picky about winter photography. Where I'll only take a shot of something if it "pops".

Something interesting in terms of composition. Something with great contrast. Otherwise you're dealing with a lot of white and grey hues. Though I love black and white photography as well. Won't hesitate to desaturate a color image if the mood hits me.

Which reminds me....I have a few winter shots I took with that consideration. Just haven't downloaded them yet.
 
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You know, @Sherlock77 you've inspired me. I have to go to my granddaughter's birthday party today (just turned 7). It's at some game place that's loud, bright lights and bright colors, germ filled, kids running around uncontrolled and a child here and there throwing a tantrum. I can't really imagine much opportunity for creative photos, but I will go with the attitude of trying to capture something good with my camera, instead of the 'oh, I so don't want to do this' attitude. :) That is IF I have the opportunity and not dragged around by any of my grandkids who want me to 'watch this'. lol But if you can go out in -20 degree weather for photos, I can go out in a huge room filled with kids. (And then over the next week, see how many of us come down with colds or flu or some other virus).
 
Sherlock77 said:
Digital cameras work fine in cold temperatures, film cameras struggle more, but that is beside the point

My biggest "issue", if you want to call it that, is that I am primarily drawn to outdoor photography, and when we get this much arctic air for this many days in a row, just being outside is a chore, anything outside is a chore, my hands can get very cold in mere minutes... And when I'm just slightly obsessive about my photography I feel restless because I want to be out more taking photos...

Another different photo, with gloves on, within five minutes my hands were freezing! My car was right behind me... And I also enjoy moody winter photos that may or may not be "pretty" or "beautiful" like a natural landscape

View attachment 51943
Click to expand...
Love this one. But it reminds me of once in Akron, Ohio I had driven out to this shopping center in the cold and snow and when I got there your photo is about what the parking lot looked like. I parked, went in and when I came back out - the lot was still empty except for a car that parked directly behind me and a car that parked directly in front of me. lol
 
Judge said:
I'm incredibly picky about winter photography. Where I'll only take a shot of something if it "pops".

Something interesting in terms of composition. Something with great contrast. Otherwise you're dealing with a lot of white and grey hues.
Click to expand...

I know what you mean, I don't watch a lot of movies, but one of my favourite movies is Fargo (not referring to the TV show), just something about the bleakness of winter portrayed throughout the movie... The mood of winter...
 
Sherlock77 said:
I know what you mean, I don't watch a lot of movies, but one of my favourite movies is Fargo (not referring to the TV show), just something about the bleakness of winter portrayed throughout the movie... The mood of winter...
Click to expand...

Oh yaaaaaaaaa. "Fargo". Yoo betcha! ;)
 
A story to share: Many years ago I was at my parents' house in New England. From the kitchen sink, there is a huge picture window looking out onto the back yard. It was winter and a lot of snow covered the yard. It was late afternoon, overcast, and the mood was dreary. My aunt, who was visiting at the tim, looked out into the yard and said "Oh, isn't that beautiful". I wasn't sure what she was referring to. All I saw was a messy snow-covered yard with footprints from my father to and from a bird feeder near a stone wall. My aunt added "Just like a Japanese print". I was now even more confused. What she noticed were two birds on the snow eating seeds that had fallen from the bird feeder. This was a serious epiphany for me. Where I saw dreary/messy, she was focusing on the two birds and found beauty in the dreary gray scene. And, when I looked at the birds myself, they were reminiscent of nature scenes in Japanese block-prints. This experience helped me view the environment with a more critical eye. Beauty hides in plain sight.
 
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