Hoar Frost. December 14, 2012
Posted by littlebangtheory in Art and Nature, macro photos.Tags: Florida MA, hoar frost, macro photography, Sigma 50mm f/2.8 lens
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Along a frozen dirt road in upper Florida MA, a weeping shoulder pushed its wetness skyward as the dry sky demanded tribute:
Hoar frost is by its nature dirty, and this black and white rendition dodges the visual complication of the coarse mingling of water and earth.
That one’s thanks to Ziggy, my Sigma 50mm lens, which has the shortest minimum focusing distance of the lenses in my kit, as well as a very small aperture. This was shot at f/40 for maximum depth of field without employing focus stacking HDR.
Morning Fog. December 3, 2012
Posted by littlebangtheory in Art and Nature.Tags: deerfield river, Florida MA, fog
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Here’s a quick black and white photo of a typical morning fog in the Deerfield valley, as seen from upper Florida, MA:
Light posting tonight, I have an early morning planned. 😉
The Upper Cold. January 24, 2012
Posted by littlebangtheory in Art and Nature.Tags: cold river, Florida MA, snow
3 comments
The upper reaches of the Cold river lie in a deep valley, sheltered from the winter sun for all but a few hours a day.
I hiked down into that rift today, negotiating stream crossings, following bear tracks for a hundred yards (they were too melted out to photograph,) and finally descending the steep ledges hemming in the river.
The emerald green waters flowed nearly silently beneath pillows of snow clinging to the larger rocks, and I picked my way gingerly out among them, poking with my ski poles to ascertain the safety of my path.
I got only this for my efforts:
…not that it’s a bad shot, but I had hoped to come away with more.
Well, at least I got a little bit of exercise!
Florida Mountain Turnips! December 21, 2011
Posted by littlebangtheory in Dinner with TCR.Tags: Florida MA, Florida Mountain Turnips, Laurentians, Mike Gancarz, rutabagas, rutebegas, turnips
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Among the local wonders of this season are the World *ahem* Famous Florida Mountain Turnips.
Now, if you’re a “Turnip Person,” you’ll really appreciate this. If you’re not a Turnip Person, this might be a good time to go clean the refrigerator.
So. Florida Mountain Turnips are grown up the hill from here in Florida, MA. They’re more properly (and widely) known as Laurentian Purple Topped Rutabagas, on accounta they were brought here from the Laurentian mountains in North Central Quebec, they have purple tops, and, um, they’re rutabagas (Brassica napus, a cross-breeding between true turnips and cabbages. ) They’re a soft, pale yellow on the inside and as sweet as root crops of the cabbage family get, due to the early and frequent frosts up there. I could plant them here, within ten miles of their Florida home, and they just wouldn’t come out the same.
Damn.
Lucky for me, several Florida growers sell them. I stumbled upon this sign along Route 2:
…and followed it to the home of one Mike Gancarz, who sells said “fresh” turnips.
“How Fresh,” you might ask? Well, here’s Mike:
Here’s The Snatch:
…and voila!  Fresh Florida Mountain Turnips!
“You can’t get them any fresher than this,” he proudly proclaimed.
“I could if I wanted to get down on my hands and knees and eat ’em out of the dirt,” I replied.
We both laughed, then I paid the man $18 for 20 pounds.
Not bad for the Real Deal.
Come Christmas I’ll be bragging about how good they were.
OK, you picky flatlanders can shut the fridge and sit back down. I’ll find something for you-all presently.
Good Morning! December 17, 2011
Posted by littlebangtheory in Art and Nature.Tags: elk, Florida MA, Mohawk Trail, Mt. Todd, route 2, sunrise, veterans memorial
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Sunrise along the Mohawk Trail, Route 2 in Western Massachusetts:
The big bronze elk at the Veterans’ Memorial at Whitcomb Summit:
The snow is mostly gone from the high country for now, but will doubtless return soon.
Enjoy!
Morning, Hereabouts. October 25, 2011
Posted by littlebangtheory in Art and Nature.Tags: deerfield river, Florida MA, river fog, sunrise
7 comments
On the way to work today, I snagged a quick shot of the sun threatening to rise over the Deerfield river valley:
If you’ve been watching this site for a while, this shot will bore you – I’ve taken dozens of such photos from near here, but somehow the sight just keeps me snapping away, past shots be damned.
Later this week we’re anticipating our first snow, which will again transform our landscape into something magical.
I can’t wait!
I’ve Forgotten What. October 17, 2011
Posted by littlebangtheory in Art and Nature.Tags: Florida MA, red berries, swamp brush
4 comments
I used to know what this stuff was, shrubbery rising ten or so feet above its swampy roots, but I’ve forgotten:
…but at any rate, I expect its abundant red berries will fill the bellies of many birds who opt to spend the winter here. There are a lot of those berries, and if the frosts don’t get ’em, the birdies will.
It’s Winter! December 30, 2010
Posted by littlebangtheory in Art and Nature.Tags: Berkshires, Florida MA, ice, New England, Pudding Hollow, snow, Spruce Hill
7 comments
Like most of the Northeast, we’re having a bit of winter here in The Berks. It’s pretty up in the hills, with scenes like this one, a late afternoon shot of a shoulder of Spruce Hill up in Florida:
We didn’t get as much here as many nearby areas did, but the roads were nonetheless slick with blowing snow for a couple of days, and the streams descending through hushed cascades offered me an opportunity to break out Gizmo for a few close-ups:
…and:
That last one was taken beneath a heavy overcast; I really liked the textures and palette which came through.
Pink. December 9, 2010
Posted by littlebangtheory in Art and Nature.Tags: Florida MA, pink, pink clouds, winter
3 comments
Evening light up in Florida:
It was cold and windy, with strange little clouds blowing by a crescent moon:
It’s dark so soon after work that sunsets are all I’ve been getting.
Thank God for weekends. 😉
It’s A-Comin’! November 8, 2010
Posted by littlebangtheory in Art and Nature.Tags: Berkshires, Eastern Summit, Eliot, Florida MA, freezing rain, ice, tilt-shift photography
3 comments
…Winter, that is.
Last night the wind blew and the sleet and freezing rain pelted the house; this morning’s ride over the mountain to work was slow and nerve-wracking, as I’m waiting ’till after my December auto inspection to put my studded snows on.
Still, I’m a big fan of winter. I’m amazed by it, by the aesthetics of shimmering ice, of the remnants of Autumn entombed in sparkling light, of steely skies swirling over a landscape lit by the long, low rays of a cold sun.
I broke out Elliot to snag this shot on the way home:
I’m always struck by that deep-blue-horizon thing which happens as a storm recedes eastward.
I’ll apologize ahead of time for boring you all to tears with this stuff, but I just can’t get enough of it, and Lord knows I need the practice ! 😉
Little Bang Theory 