Freezing Bubbles in Cold Weather

I'm embracing the cold this winter with some photo inspired projects. My Instagram feed occasionally features videos of bubbles crystallizing, exuding a sense of wonderment and magic. This became my first photography project for 2022.

 

 
When the mercury dips low in winter, people tend to retreat to the comfort and coziness of the indoors. But unique and fun activities can be experienced in the coldest of conditions. One such activity is creating frozen bubbles and watching the phenomenon of ice crystallizing in less mere seconds.

 

 
With temperatures expected to dip into single digits, I found tips and tricks to blowing bubbles in the cold. Since I know how much co-worker Tammy relishes any science-oriented activity, I brought my homemade bubble juice and bubble blower into work one Friday morning when the outside temperature registered 4 degF. We formed spheres in the Plant office breezeway and watched the ice crystals form on the skin of the bubble. Once formed, the bubble crystallizes in 10-20 seconds.

 

 
The crystals above grew from the base of the bubble.

 

 
A few mornings later, I tried again, this time outside my house on a glass table, and the crystals formed throughout the bubble sphere.

 

 
I even managed to take a short video:

 

 
And another one yesterday, at Minus 1 (-1) degreesF.

 

 
I used this website's resources to make my frozen bubble project a success: Create the Perfect Frozen Bubble

 

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Golden and Frosty December

December blessed us with many sunny days, lifting our spirits as we enter the shortest days of the season.

Since I am presently unable to run, I've been hiking out at the forest preserve instead, and bringing my camera along.


I was lucky this morning as a light sheen of frost tipped the prairie grasses.





All this "slowing down" allowed me to discover new single track trails carved off the beaten path. I learned that local outdoor enthusiasts, keen on maintaining the health of the forest, worked to clear the area of invasive trees and shrub and in the process, created these new trails and built rustic bridges across the waterway that meanders through the property.



I'm finding lovely woodland elements to fill my camera's frame.


And getting my fill of the outdoors, complete with some of that white fluffy stuff.


So long to December, the Year 2019 and the Decade 2010's! I await the new year and decade with continued optimism and thankfulness.

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Polar Vortex Activities

It's now Day 3 being house-bound due to blizzard / snow / icy roads and the Polar Vortex which has pushed arctic, sub-zero temperatures into our mid west region of the US. The temperature as I write this has risen above zero (it's 3 degF) and we are rejoicing!

With the sub zero temperatures, you are greeted by the simple crunching sound of snow underfoot when walking out to the mail box (yeah, a fruitless activity since mail service has been halted). The snow doesn't melt and there is no unsightly, dirty slush to step through or look look at. I have to say, the scenery is quite peaceful.



The sub zero temperatures have also spawned several new cold weather activities - because it's too cold to go outside and make a snowman.

The first one, Snow Ice Cream - gather a large container of clean snow. Mix together 1 cup of milk, 1/4-1/2 cup of sugar and 1/2 tsp of vanilla until the sugar dissolves. Mix in the snow, stirring constantly until the desired consistency.
(We didn't do this activity, but my friends did and it looked like fun).

The second sub-zero temperature activity - make your own snow! Boil a cup of water, transfer it to wide open container with a handle.
Go outside and throw the hot water into the air - away from you or anyone else. If it is windy outside, throw it with the wind. Voila! Watch the water turn to ice / snow / mist:

OK, so my son wasn't too excited about the whole thing, but I thought it was pretty cool and I did it three times. Even my daughter thought it was cool.

You can find numerous videos on this activity. Seems as if everyone was doing it yesterday!

Shared with Wednesdays Around the World.

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So Cold

Frost on the Sliding Glass Back Door - Winter's Impression

The first major storm of 2014 hit yesterday and we are literally snowed in. With yesterday's snow and high winds, the roads became impassable and all the Interstates, highways, city roads and county roads were closed down last night. Other than the Blizzard of '78 (in Massachusetts), I don't recall any circumstance that has led to the complete closure of "All Roads" in town.

The Polar Funnel has also put us in a deep freeze - it's -15 degF outside and with the winds blowing at 25mph, we are experiencing dangerously low wind chills - down to -45 degF and therein lies the greater threat of getting stranded in a vehicle that's gone off the icy road. Pretty much everything is closed - county offices, libraries, gyms, schools, health clinics, churches, many retail establishments. I haven't left the house in a car since Saturday....

I did, however, manage to get a short run in Sunday morning, just as the snow started to fall in earnest.
The weather wasn't really too bad - in the high 20's, with a light coating of snow on the ground. But I misread the wind and didn't don the proper protective gear and out in the open, running into the wind was simply painful. But nestled within the protection of the trees, the view was quite beautiful.

Now I wish I had run further, because it might not be until Wednesday before I can get a road run in.

For my local friends - stay warm and safe!

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Ice Haiku

ice barely noticed
until the golden sun shone
transformed to glitter

ice abounds, hanging
shimmering in the sunlight
delicate beauty



lucky to see you
luckier to capture you
twinkle ice shining



SweetShotTuesday
P52 with Tamar and Gina

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Macro | Shine Bright Like A Diamond

Yes, the song is overplayed, a bit repetitive and not even written by Rihanna, but like most of her songs, is catchy and thus, a veritable hit to remember the winter of 2012 by.

And that's what came to mind when I was shooting this macro - "shine bright like a diamond"...



Some tricks I've learned while shooting macros - use the AF on your camera to lock in the focus, but then adjust the position of the camera ever so slightly until you get the element you want into focus. Hold your breath and release that shutter.

In my example, I was fixated on the larger crystal towards the middle right. I know when I focused, that crystal wasn't sharp, so I moved until it was, and did my best to keep still while depressing the shutter. I think I got a little lucky - the two other shots I took weren't as sharp. I also admit to cropping away about half the original image, but I was able to do that because the crystal is in focus.

I've had the macro lens on my camera for over a month because I know I should use it more. It's not just for close ups - it is good for all purpose use, although it may be a little slower focusing. I've really enjoyed using it.

Linked to This or That Thursday.

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Topaz and Textures On Ice

This morning started out routine as routine as a Monday morning can be.... it was the last day of Christmas Break for the kids, so I relished one last stress-free morning by going to the YMCA for a yoga class, taking my time to get ready for work.

And taking some photos of the frost covered plants in the back yard. Yup neighbors, that was me this morning, in the freezing cold, hunched over the rosemary plant.



Taking photos of stuff that is obviously dead.


I thought the above looked like a sunburst, and I decided to have some fun with it in Topaz Adjust, applying the HDR Sketch preset. It doesn't look dead anymore, right?


For these Coneflower seed pods, I applied three textures:


Hope you had a great start to your week!

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Cold Winter

Ice, that once was snow:


Remnants of the salt used to melt that snow and ice, now crystallized on the garage floor:


And the winter sky as I was running Saturday morning - does it look chilly? Believe me, it was!


Sharing with Simple Things Sunday and Sunday Snapshot

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Winter Is Here - A Photo Scavenger Hunt

I'm participating, for the first time, in Ashley Sisk's Photo Scavenger Hunt. Each week, there are photo prompts to look for. For some reason, I actually remembered some of the prompts, and with the recent snow, was able to get some shots. This week we have Stacked Up, Winter Wonderland, Sweet, Hole and Frozen.

Stacked Up:


Winter Wonderland:


Sweet:



Hole:


Frozen:


This scavenger hunt was easier than I though - all the photos were taken yesterday, in the house or in the backyard. I think the key for me is to write down the prompts and have them in the back of my head while I am out and around. I hope to participate more in the future!

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Cold Snap Melt

After a chilly start to the New Year, it's warmed up (to 50 degF!), which means the ice that formed over the pond is going to melt away. I caught some of the melting ice before it was all gone.




Makes one appreciate a little cold snap now and then.

Linked to This or That Thursday

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Mosaic Monday - Ice

This past week, instead of two feet of snow, we received a lot of ice and just a little snow. Fortunately, no major ice damage was incurred and the ice is pretty on the trees.



It's Sunday night and we're watching the Superbowl. OK, really the Superbowl ads. But it's also Mosaic Monday time - so be sure to visit Mary at This Little Red House and the collection of mosaics there.

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Running on Ice

The news of the week - the weather. Things started Monday afternoon with freezing rain and sleet. The fun continued Tuesday with more ice, changing over to snow.

School was canceled Tuesday, so Erica invited some friends over and they tried sledding / surfing on the ice. I had fun playing with the video recorder on Brian's iTouch and captured this:


They worked hard building a ramp out of cardboard.


But in the end, they just had fun.

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Between Storms

We survived the two waves of storm systems that crippled most of the US this week. Truthfully, we didn't get hit as badly as the folks north of us, but 12" of the ice/granular snow/light fluffy snow combination was enough.

Monday evening's precipitation left us with an inch or so of ice on the ground. We could hear the pinging of ice/sleet hitting the side of the house all night long.

Tuesday morning we caught a glimpse of that ice, stuck inside the pine needles.



Amazing that perfect spheres of ice form in the clouds.

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Color in the Snow

I found the ornament in my neighbor's yard. I'm sure one of her boys (or my son) brought it out there for "some reason".



And more color and frost.

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326/365 - The First Ice Storm of the Season

Yup, this morning, completely out of the blue.

Because it was 75 degF on Monday, I think we were caught off guard.

After all, I ran outside in shorts on Monday. Today, I'm bundled up in my winter coat with a hood and I was still cold.



Fortunately, the temperatures have warmed up since this morning and the sheeting of ice that covered the cars at work. But it's still cold and rainy out there, so please slow down on the roads when traveling tonight!

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Waves of Frost

The frost on the patio table this morning.

Two duplicate layers, blending modes Linear Burn (90%) and Vivid Light (100%).

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POTD - Icicles

For whatever reason, icicles aren't very prevalent in our area. We probably don't get enough snow. Or maybe I've not sought them out.

I remember, growing up in Massachusetts, the abundance of those sparkly, pointy ice formations, growing from the eaves of the house. I remember opening up my bedroom window and breaking off the biggest, fattest icicle I could reach and then storing it in the freezer, until a bigger one came along.

I've never seen an icicle on our current house.

And these icicles are not from our house - they are from my violin teacher's house and the first thing I noticed today when I pulled into her driveway.


Icicles forming in several areas around her house.


I wonder if we'll ever get them at our house.

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20/365 - Freezing Rain

Brian and his school mates certainly didn't have Outdoor Recess today:


As a result of the freezing rain, all evening activities were canceled. So we're watching "Monster Quest" on TV right now. I don't have a say in tonight's programming, as I would have picked "American Idol". Oh well, I've been working on the computer anyways.

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Mosaic Monday - Ice Crystals

My first Mosaic Monday entry. Who knows, it could be my last [probably not, but it may be several more weeks until I get the chance to shoot another collection].

Yesterday morning, at -13degF, it was SO cold that all the moisture had been sucked out of the frigid air and crystallized itself on every exposed element outside. Of course, such cold temperatures are a result of high pressure air systems, which means abundant sunshine and - beautiful, shimmering trees, flower stalks, even mailboxes.

So I ventured outside to take pictures of all the sparkling beauty around me. When the winds kicked up, many of the ice crystals were swept in the air, causing the air to glimmer. It made being outside bearable.

For the mosaic, I modified a storyboard template from Rita at CoffeShop Photography. Rita's free tutorials, storyboards and actions are top notch. I've learned so much from her and you should check her website out.



For more Mosaic Monday, please visit Mary at Little Red House.

And stay warm - a "heat wave" up to 30degF is coming!

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POTD - Sedum in the Snow

The icy cold weather continues. I'm not venturing far from home in -13DegF temperatures, so the sedum by the backyard pond gets my attention today.

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