Ice Dreams, Part One

The Shindig and a rare weekend void of any volleyball tournaments brought me to Colorado this past weekend. I was lucky enough to get a ride up to Dream Lake by Bill Pelzmann and meet up with Jim Casteel and Rene. I have always wanted to shoot the ice since seeing Brent's amazing images about 5 years ago, so this was quite the day for me.... great conditions, great company, and lots of comps to shoot.

These are a few from the shoot. I was also able to convince Brent to go back up to Dream the morning after the Shindig!

I figure that you all have seen a ton of these ice abstracts over the years, so I really value your input. They all look so cool to me, but maybe that is because I have never shot them before... not many places freeze up where I live.

Thanks again for the Shindig. I had a blast.

#2.... Brent called this one Jimmy's Girl, as he thinks it looks like some sort of woman.

#3

#4

Great stuff Jimmy! I really like #s 3 and 4. I think the contrast between the blue and white is stronger in these two.

Cool shots -- The first couple are kinda ghostly. I can see how #2 looks like a woman, though maybe bearing a child Out of the other two I think I like #3 the best, for its simplicity. It was great to meet you at the shindig, it was great that you could make it out.

I like the first three a lot. The first two are more organic in appearance than the other two, sort of Picasso-like. Three is a great abstract with interesting lines and gradations. I think the last would be better without the three white areas. Otherwise it has interesting lines as well. Thanks so much for sharing and for making the trek to the Shindig. I very much enjoyed meeting you!

Great shots Jimmy. I agree with Pam about the first two they do have a Picasso look to them. I don't see the female in #2, maybe I'm not squinting enough. My fave is #3. I like the transition of blues from the lower right corner to the upper left. Glad you enjoyed your visit to the Co.

Hey, it was great to finally see you again, after all these years, at the shindig, Jimmy! I really like your abstract ice series here. I do see the female form in #2, and the abstract patterns in that one and the first one make these unique for me. The other two are good abstracts as well!

I'm actually partial to #1 and #4. 2 seems kind of incomplete or cut off with that crack at the top right and I prefer the lines with the white blobs in 4 as opposed to just lines in 3. Although 3 is nice and clean.... I could never pick just a few when shooting ice so what do I know. It would be cool to see them as diptychs or triptychs maybe if you have other takes.

Hey, it was great to finally meet you!

I never tire of seeing ice abstracts, and these are all very nicely captured and 'developed'.
My favorite is #4, and I think a triptych idea is a good one!

Now I feel guilty for not attending the shindig when someone from the Golden State can make it! I was bemoaning what an expedition it would be for me. Sheessshhh...

It was a pleasure meeting you, Jimmy.

I really like "Jimmy's Girl". Any possibility of recovering more detail in those whites?

Did you get anything worth while from the overlook at sunrise? Too bad we got there a few minutes late. I've got a few multiple exposure blends that I'm working on.

Hey, John, Momo made it up from New Mexico, so you have no excuse. See you next year.

Really dig #'s 1 &3. I never tire of abstracts. Nice work!

Jimmy, great stuff!!! I knew that TS lens was doing some magic over there. I think #3 is my favorite, I really like the gradient feel to it. #2 very close but my second favorite. I do find part of the URC crack to be a bit distracting, but not enough to do anything about it.

It was great meeting you, glad you enjoyed the ice so much.

Some nice comps, Jimmy! The blues are a bit strong for my tastes. It was good meeting you at the 'dig.

I like #4 but agree with Stand on the blue. It has good lines and comp.

I agree on the blue and have begun to reprocess the images.... I shot the original images using the tungsten white balance to get an idea of how blue things may get while out on the ice. However, I now see it was just a starting point. I am now processing using a daylight white balance as a base and then tweaking it a bit here and there. Thanks for all your great comments.

Matisse-like! Really neat.