SNOW DAY!!!

Last Wednesday, January 12th, we woke to 8"-10" of snow. Usually, snow is not welcome in the middle of the week but as they go it was a nice snow that was dry and powdery. Most storms we get it takes many hours to clear my walk and driveway and those of my neighbors that I do, even with the snow blower. This time the neighbors got out early with shovels and such and did some of the work I usually do. So what was left was to grab the camera gear and get out and shoot some scenes!

            When it comes to scenery, Bucks County has as much to offer as any place else (unless you're trying to shoot rock formations of the desert Southwest). We have a river, streams, hills and so much history. Revolutionary Troops headed into and out of major battles through the country side. Washington crossing the Delaware River into the battle at Trenton and the subsequent battle at Princeton were pivotal in the war and morale of the troops. Twenty miles or less separate where he went into New Jersey and some troops returned from the victories. There are several buildings throughout your travels that were in place at the time of this history. And of course, we have the covered bridges. Bucks County has the largest concentration of covered bridges in the country (not county, country!). Within its borders are 12 bridges, all built from the 1830's to the 1870's, the longer ones are approximately 170 feet long. This I know because my second published magazine article covered all the bridges.

            My plan was to head north to some favored places that are photogenic any time of the year. While we could have stopped at Washington's Crossing park, my plan was to try for some of the covered bridges and a few other locations. We stopped at the Van Sants bridge and then traveled to one of our favorite stops, the Cuttaloosa farm. Owned for many years by famous impressionistic painter Daniel Garber, the present owners commendably keep the buildings and grounds in unbelievable condition in a charming country setting. One side of the country lane is the homestead and on the other is the mill with a wooden water wheel and another building where I would presume the miller lived. Also, there is the sheep's shed under magnificent old sycamore trees. I have seen pictures of this shed in books by many prominent photographers. As long as people don't encroach on his side of the property, the owners welcome visitors. We were lucky and for the most part smarter people stayed home in the snow so there weren't any foot prints running around. The roofs and fence lines were snow covered and the surrounding trees still had snow on their trunks and branches. As you can see from the picture, it should be a place you should visit.

            We traveled to some other areas but one of my favorite bridges is the Uhlertown bridge. Just beside this bridge is one of the canal locks that were used to raise and lower the water level to allow traffic to go north and south . Although not fully functional today, the stone work is still in place. I'm surprised how narrow the lock is but I guess the boats were built to take this into consideration. This bridge is one of the few with window openings to see out when crossing. Once again, only a few markings in the snow and they were cross country ski tracks.

            Photographically speaking, because of the bright reflections from the snow, it was important to view the LCD screen and to make sure you were adding enough exposure compensation (to the plus side) so the image doesn't come out grey and you get the white of the snow. For the most part we were not out in the cold long enough to effect batteries but care should be taken bringing your camera back into the warmth to prevent condensation from affecting the camera. Digital cameras are nothing but one big electric playground. Usually covering the camera to isolate it from the warmer temps is enough.

            So the next time it snows, take advantage of the possibilities and get out to chase the light!

            Always go to the light,

            Steve