Finally, an image from 2023 - segueing into a new set now of more recent images. Note: This is NOT a black and white conversion; it's a full-colour photo.

My friend Madonna had driven me to a health clinic to get an assessment re. some issues I'd been having, and on the way home I felt pretty good, so we stopped at a few promising locations. I liked the look of this grove of trees, coated in thick hoarfrost in a vast, white world.

Photographed in Beaver Valley, Saskatchewan (Canada). Don't use this image on websites, blogs, or other media without explicit permission ©2023 James R. Page - all rights reserved.

Tags:   landscape winter white trees grove hoarfrost snow snowy cold beauty not a black and white pic pano panorama stark prairie Beaver Valley SK Saskatchewan Canada copyrighted James R. Page Explored

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Last shot in the series of small prairie communities in winter. This is located just north of Ponteix (seen in yesterday's post). This is a HUGE Virgin Mary; you can see how small the benches at her feet are. I shot close ups but ended up liking this more distant view, through a partial screen of iced branches.

It was really cold that day, with some wind. Bitterly cold. So typical of the winter prairie.

Photographed near Ponteix, Saskatchewan (Canada). Don't use this image on websites, blogs, or other media without explicit permission ©2023 James R. Page - all rights reserved.

Tags:   roadside shrine winter white snow snowy cold January Virgin Mary Catholic middle of nowhere branches prairie Ponteix Saskatchewan Canada copyrighted James R. Page 2023

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Whenever I wake up and see hoarfrost, I leap into action. This phenomenon is uncommon, occurring only a few times each year. It transforms the ordinary into something breathtakingly beautiful.

We're looking at the border hills, in the remote southern part of Grasslands Park - as far south as the roads go. From here, the traveller is on foot, and it isn't far to the Montana border. Three miles? I'm guessing. Certainly not much more.

The Frenchman River runs through that big valley in the middle distance, flowing right to left (north to south). I can't see it in this shot, so perhaps the near ridges have blocked it from view. Last summer and fall I hiked along the river, on two occasions, through the wild prairie landscape that always uplifts me when I submit to its charm and stop worrying about whether I'm getting great photos. That concern, after all, is just another distraction. Push too hard and something unknown pushes back, as if to suggest there's a better way. Open yourself to simply being present, and images will stream toward you unbidden. This has been my experience, and why I usually do better work in a receptive - not aggressive - state of mind. Aggression works well for football photographers and paparazzi, but it will only carry you so far in nature. Btw, I photographed a lot of football back in my younger days...

This is still a "transition season" image; most of the snow melted away, and has since be replaced by new snow. It's obviously weighted toward the winter side of the transition. As I sit at my monitor, it's very cold outside and my furnace is going strong. Definitely winter. But I have a week of "transition season wildlife" to share before moving on to something else.

* The map is lying again. This is Canada. I am certain.

Photographed in Grasslands National Park, Saskatchewan (Canada). Don't use this image on websites, blogs, or other media without explicit permission ©2022 James R. Page - all rights reserved.

Tags:   landscape snow snowy frost frosty hoarfrost early winter spectacular beauty beautiful cold white frozen wild prairie northern prairie border hills remote Grasslands National Park Saskatchewan Canada copyrighted James R. Page

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From last spring, a Golden Eagle glides past. It was a white world that day: white sky, and snow on the ground once again reflecting light back up at any bird that cruised by low enough. Most of our snow has melted away over the past week, so it may be a while before I get to use this phenomenal natural lighting again.

Photographed at Rosefield, Saskatchewan (Canada). Don't use this image on websites, blogs, or other media without explicit permission ©2022 James R. Page - all rights reserved.

Tags:   Golden Eagle Aquila chrysaetos wildlife bird raptor eagle magnificent in flight glide wingspan white sky bounce light snow below Wow! wild prairie Rosefield Saskatchewan Canada copyrighted James R. Page 2202

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Last shot in this quick trip around and through the prairie seasons. On Christmas Day, Madonna and I decided to go hiking. Snow was falling and it was -22°C; we didn't last long. Just as we set out, a balloon blew past us, ten or twenty feet off the ground: a birthday balloon. Well, apparently it was someone's birthday, at least symbolically.

At any rate, the prairie was extremely beautiful that morning, in a stark sort of way. I really like the effect seen in this photo, where the tall grasses and low growing shrubs contour the rolling hills and reveal their outlines. And this is aided by wind keeping the higher, exposed ridge tops partially clear of snow.

Photographed in Grasslands National Park, Saskatchewan (Canada). Don't use this image on websites, blogs, or other media without explicit permission ©2021 James R. Page - all rights reserved.

Tags:   landscape winter white snow snowy snowing cold sub-zero below freezing beauty beautiful stark wintry nature coulee wild prairie hiker hiking Laouenan Coulee Grasslands National Park Saskatchewan Canada copyrighted James R. Page

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