Sunny moments in the snow

Sunny moment in the snow
by Kristel Schneider

– A cloudy December Sunday
in the Livradois Forez –

Sometimes the weather is not very motivating to go out with your camera, like last Sunday, the weather was grey and dull.
But I am happy I changed my mind and around 3 pm I drove to the Haut Livradois, not very far from where I live. The temperature was below zero, which made the scenery frosty and cold.
The clouds were hanging low over the trees, many still  covered with snow from the heavy snow showers of 2 weeks ago.

What made me happy last Sunday  was the fast transformation of the light in the forest landscapes. The thick clouds were moving fast over the forest but when there was a tiny hole, these landscapes got a warm natural filter by the sun. Sometimes just for a few seconds and then the clouds would cover the sky again.  These light transformations did not last long at around 4 pm the sky was too thick and dark, no warm sunlight would appear anymore. So even when the weather does not look that great at first, when you have time, go out and just look for the light.

Images taken with Canon 5DMII- 70-200L lens in Auvergne,France.

Livradois-Forez-winter-scenery auvergneTrees-with-frostLivradois-Forez-winter-scenery_2Pine-trees-in-the-cloudsScotisch-pine-tree

Image: Frost texture – editors pick

NatureScapes.NET Macro and Flower Gallery : Editors Pick
by Kristel Schneider

Frost Texture
Taken in the pond close to my home

Frost-texture_2

Some feedback so far:

  • Lovely light and colors – pretty.
  • Very nice, the great light makes the image.
  • Just beautiful – the lighting and camera angle are working hard to craft a lovely shot .

editors-pick-frost

Image: Chiloza Waterfall – editors pick

NatureScapes.NET Landscape Gallery : Editors Pick
by Kristel Schneider

Chiloza Waterfall after the rain

 Auvergne,  France

 

Cholizas_8

After I published the blog post about the waterfalls of Chiloza I also put the image shown above on Naturescapes.net,
a nature photography forum. And today I got a message in my mailbox that the images was recognized as an Editor’s Pick.

Some feedback so far:

  • Lovely scene — I like the contrasts of the dark green mossy rocks against the white stream.
  • Oh this is SO beautiful!!!
  • This is so classy. Great tonality, superb flow and a delicate presentation. Excellent work. The fact that your logo looks like it is part of the scene is also a bonus. Superb image.
  • Pure beauty! Love it!

Editors-pick-waterfall

Other editors picks so far (2013):

Photographer in action

 
Photographer in action by Kristel Schneider


Me in Action during a photo-shoot for
Regional Nature Park Livradois Forez
 
 Kristel-Schneider-Photographe-_2

Last year I posted a blog post about my first big photo assignment in France.
The  start up was a bit slow as the weather in Spring did not make it easy to plan things.  But now, after a very busy Summer this assignment is reaching towards its end.  I have still some work to do this month and in Autumn, but the big part of the assignment has been dealt with.  And I can say that it was instructive and enjoyable at the same time.
I met a lot of very nice and interesting new people and I could explore some great (for me , new ) nature areas .  Later on this year I will make a ‘best -of’ of my  images in the final  selection and put it all on my website under portfolio PNR Livradois Forez.

In the meantime people outside the project scene ‘ noticed’ the photo project for PNR Livradois Forez. It all started with the request for models for a photo shoot at the lake in Volle Montagne. The local newspaper, La Gazette picked it up and made an article about the photo reportage in the park, featuring me in action at a local garlic producer.

Me-in-local-newspaper-lagazette_22aout2013

Moreover  the editor of blog: Vollore Montagne – Gazette des Montagnards had heard about the photo-shoot in their village and asked me if it was ok to do a photo reportage on the shoot in Vollore Montagne (see images, Michel MENSE).

Yesterday the photo shoot took place at 8 AM at he lake.
The subject was: recreational activities at the lake.
A nice family and a St. Bernard (dog) signed up to volunteer. They had a pic-nick, a family walk and  fun at the play ground. They also enjoyed the sun laying in a chair. Even though the ground was still very wet and the sun not very warm, they acted as naturally as possible, they did a very good job.Kristel-Schneider-Photographe-_3Kristel-Schneider-Photographe-_5

 
Kristel Schneider Photographe _1   Kristel-Schneider-Photographe-_4

Tuscany of the Auvergne

Billom-area

This summer I have not much time to go out and explore nature for myself. Working on a lot of reportage for the PNR Livradois Forez and the subjects are not always
nature related. Like this morning I was with the garlic pickers in the field.  Got up very early to capture the nice first light while they were working.

The image above I took in the same area, nearby Billom. They call it Tuscany of the Auvergne and especially in the first sunlight the farmer fields look very nice. This year the sunflowers are late, so the nice yellow tints still have to come.

ENJOY THE  SUMMER HOLIDAY SEASON!

Kristel

cat-and-garlic