Here's the valley of the Red Deer River, with its surrounding badlands and a nice dusting of snow. It was Christmas Eve. The sun had just dropped out of sight behind us; the air was still and cold. I thought the chances of a good shot were pretty slim, but set up the tripod at a lookout anyway.

I didn't last long. I'd spent the day driving from Val Marie (SK), with a lot of stops en route, I wasn't wearing my warmest clothing, and I knew a warm hotel room awaited me in Drumheller. Sometimes, though, working fast is the way to do it (the tripod doesn't slow me down that much). It was a great first look at the valley in winter.

Photographed near Dorothy, Alberta (Canada). Don't use this image on websites, blogs, or other media without explicit permission © 2017 James R. Page - all rights reserved.

Tags:   landscape panorama pano winter cold very cold frozen subzero snow snowy river badlands wild prairie valley Red Deer River Dorothy Alberta Canada copyrighted James R. Page dusk beauty nature beautiful wow ice icy winding hills Explored

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We had a perfect winter day in the badlands despite the cold. The snow was so fresh and clean that it looked like dessert. In addition to being in a spectacular place, we were the only visitors, so there were no footsteps in the snow, and we checked with each other before tramping across a hillside: "Is this okay? Have you got your shot?" Basic photographers etiquette.

We had to step carefully. My cheap ice cleats from a pharmacy proved useless; Sandra had proper crampons from Mountain Equipment Co-op. (Note to self: be proactive. Think a little harder about winter comfort and safety.)

Photographed at the hoodoos area south of Drumheller, Alberta (Canada). Don't use this image on websites, blogs, or other media without explicit permission © 2017 James R. Page - all rights reserved.

Tags:   landscape winter badlands hoodoos white snowy snow cold clean pure beautiful sandstone erosion pillars eroded wild prairie Drumheller Alberta Canada copyrighted James R. Page pristine Explored

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I was in Drumheller, Alberta, over Christmas, photographing with a Flickr-pal from Toronto. Despite the crushing cold, we had a great time. On this spectacular morning, driving south from town we stopped to photograph a gorgeous sun pillar from a bridge over the Red Deer River. Hand holding, because it was just too cold to unfold the tripod legs - and we were concerned that the pillar would fade if we wasted time - we shot fast and intuitively. Sometimes that is the best way to capture a moment!

Sun pillars may occur on very cold, clear mornings when tiny - generally microscopic - platelike, asymmetrical ice prisms refract the sun's rays.

At minus 34C it's possible to be shoot outdoors, but little problems easily become big, and one's problem-solving capacity is less than optimal. When we drove up to the top of those hills, we were above the river valley, with windswept prairie in all directions, and at that point five minutes was about the maximum we could manage outside the vehicle. And yes, I had fun.

Photographed south of Drumheller, Alberta. Don't use this image on websites, blogs, or other media without explicit permission © 2017 James R. Page - all rights reserved.

Tags:   landscape winter cold blue snow ice pre-dawn sun sun pillar ice crystals prisms prismatic refraction beauty beautiful wow c-c-c-c-cold very cold wild prairie badlands Red Deer River Drumheller Alberta Canada copyrighted James R. Page Explored

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