Winter Wonderland Landscape Photography at Roger Williams Park in Providence, Rhode Island
As many Rhode Islanders snuggled deep in their beds this morning my wife and I made a pre-dawn trip to do a little photography. Last night a winter storm dumped as much as a foot of fresh white snow across Rhode Island, and I have been wanting to do some photography of the winter landscape for a while. I knew that historic Roger Williams Park in Providence would be the perfect place to create the photographs that I had in my mind.
I bundled up heavily for the trip in my fleece lined jeans , warm boots, winter jacket, and my new Freehands Gloves. Fortunately, the streets and the park had been plowed really well, and after only a few minutes shoveling i was out of my driveway. Within a matter of 15 minutes, I was standing almost knee deep in the winter wonderland. While Roger Williams Park is located in the city of Providence, it felt like I was hundreds of miles out in the country.
My first destination in the park was the Temple of Music, and under the dawn sky it was a beautiful sight. The colors in the sky did not pop the way that I had hoped, but the slight hint of magenta in the sky gave a soft, almost dream like feel to the landscape.
One of my favorite things to do when out shooting before the sunrises is to incorporate the moon into my photography. Today was no exception, and the nearly full moon looked beautiful over the show. After walking the park a bit I found a tree full of snow that seemed to anchor the moon in the sky nicely.
This photograph might very well be my favorite one of the day, and a reminder of one of my favorite techniques. When out for sunrise and sunset photography we often get caught up in what is happening in the sky in the direction of the sun. Often times, you can find amazing light by simply turning around and seeing what exactly that sun is hitting. In this case, it was a tree on a hill. As the sun came over the horizon it hit the snow and branches on this giant tree, and the golden color was just breathtaking!
In the final photograph, I aligned my camera so that the tree that I was photographing was blocking out the sun. I liked the effect, although sometimes I find it does not always work so well.
Thanks for stopping by, I hope you have enjoyed my photography of the winter landscape, and that it invokes some fond memories!
6 Comments
Thanks for sharing, I’m a transplanted Floridian from RI, as beautiful as these pictures are, the 50 degree temps this morning at 730, were cold enough for me.
LOL. Again thanks for sharing and the memories of how beautiful new fallen snow looks, and the Park goes without saying.
Thanks Ray, I am glad you enjoyed the photos. As much as I love Rhode Island I can honestly say that I would not mind spending the winters somewhere a little bit warmer!
Mike, Mom and I just love the pictures. It is interesting that you had the sun on the tree and also the sun behind the other tree and using both the sun and the moon. Very creative. “Reminds Mom of “The moon on the breast of the new fallen snow”. Nice work. Love Mom and Dad.
Thanks! I was really enjoying the way the light was playing with the snow and the trees! It was a really beautiful morning!
Hi Mike,
BEAUTIFUL photographs! I really love the tree with the moon in the background!
Jerri
Thanks Jerri, I am glad that you liked it! Roger Williams Park is such a pretty place, and I love the color of the sky just before the sun comes up!