Welcome to winter 2023/24. Tonight at 10:27 the wobble of the earth that has been shortening daylight hours in the northern hemisphere since June comes to a halt, and the wobble back that eventually leads to summer begins. The winter solstice marks the beginning of winter and, for many of us, the increased hope for beautiful snow covered scenes like this. I confess to being a weather geek in that I love variety in weather. Storms bring energy and, very often, visually appealing subject matter for this photographer. Advancing storm clouds, retreating storm clouds, energized ocean waves, snow drifts, falling snow in a landscape or wildlife setting, foggy scenes, urban lights reflected in rain puddles, ice covered ponds, windswept beaches, the list of good photography possibilities goes on and on. I grew up in New England where white Christmases in the 1950s and ’60s were commonplace. Ponds had usually frozen by late December and hills were covered with snow so Christmas Day often included either ice skating on a pond or tobogganing at a local hilly golf course. There is little hope in southern New England now for a white Christmas and here, in Delaware, the idea that we could have a snowy Christmas or at least snow on the ground is a pipe dream. Here is a vision for winter beginning and the ground we wish we would see Christmas morning.
