In the RAW

After dropping Jayna at daycare this morning, I pulled into a parking area behind the high school near our house, which was plastered with ice and snow. I figured I’d have to be able to get at least one decent picture, because the angle of the morning light was making everything look like it had been hit with a magical Bedazzler.

I jumped out of the car with my trusty camera in hand, flipped on the power switch … and was greeted with a screen that read “No CF Card.” GRRRRRR.

New rule: Jon must reinsert the CF card into the camera immediately after dumping photos off of it.

I could have said “The hell with it,” but it was a pretty breathtaking scene, and I’ve been anxious to take some nature shots in the wake of my recent exchange with Jon Armstrong, so I drove home, left the car running, grabbed the card, and returned to the location. (And during this drive, I suddenly went from being an average shclub with a camera to being David LaChapelle, because all I could think the whole time I was on my quest for the card was, “Hurry, dammit! Hurry or you’ll lose that magical lighting!”)

Now, I don’t know if it’s simply because the natural beauty of what I was shooting made it impossible to get a bad shot, but … this is the second Photo of the Day for which I’ve taken a picture in RAW format (as opposed to shooting hi-res JPEG), and I am inclined to believe that making that switch most definitely contributed to the final result, with which I am quite pleased.

No, it’s not necessarily framed all that well, but it’s one of the more beautiful shots I’ve ever taken, and it feels to me like a leap to the next level, in terms of my photography. We’ll see.

The furry looking white stuff on those little branches? Those are all tiny little ice crystals … not an ice coating, but thousands (maybe even millions?) of individual crystals clustered together.

I took a few more ice shots while I was there, so you’ll probably see some of those next week as I continue to try my hand at some more artistic fare for this here Photo of the Day thing.

Look out, Ansel Adams. (OK, maybe not.)