The Photo Blogging Challenge theme for February 2021 is I Spy With My Eye, which lends itself to pretty much anything. I am grateful that during these ongoing COVID times, host PJ is choosing themes that make it easy to participate from anywhere. We are spending most of our COVID time in beautiful Canmore, Alberta, Canada, where we enjoy getting out and about for exercise and a daily dose of Vitaming N(ature). With health guidelines keeping us close to home for the past year, we appreciate that photography prompts us to keep a sharp eye out for new subject matter and new takes on the familiar. Some things that I spied this month:

1. Ideal Light and Contrast

Out for a long walk in Canmore, we were 7 or 8 km (roughly 5 miles) from home when I noticed how the flat light and overnight snow combined to make the surrounding landscape look like a pen and ink drawing. This is a multi-frame shot taken with my phone held in portrait mode and stitched together in Lightroom.

2. Abstract

I noticed this minimalist, natural abstract along Canmore Creek: 3 snow covered stones framed by the north bank and a sheet of ice. The negative space is open water, which means H2O is present in three forms: liquid, snow crystals and ice crystals. I figure the arrangement developed thanks to water depth and currents, and wonder whether the three stones follow the curve of the bank thanks to Mother Nature or a human helping hand.

3. Movement

A straightforward instance of movement on the landscape, here’s Mr GeoK, bundled up against the polar vortex and walking in the woods after a windblown snowfall. Other times this month, it was just a flicker of movement that attracted attention: deer in our backyard, coyotes in our backyard, an eagle in flight over the Bow River and a coyote in the big meadow in Canmore. It’s fair to say that Mr GeoK is better at spying wildlife. And it’s also fair to say that I’m pretty much always too slow to get a good photo of wildlife on the move. 😉

4. Here Today, Gone in an Hour

Spotted one morning above our deck door, these icicles were gone within the hour. The temperature rose well above freezing and they lost their grip on the eavestrough. Over years of practicing photography, I’ve learned that if I spy something photo-worthy, best to make the photograph in the instant, because so many sights are fleeting.

5. Outdoor Adventure Winter Hazard

I haven’t yet taken Avalanche Safety Training, but thanks to Avalanche Canada’s online tutorials, I know a cornice hazard when I see it. Apparently #MinifigMe hasn’t got to the part about cornices and overhangs yet. 😉 I’ve taken to slipping #MinifigMe into my left pants pocket when we head out, to add a another element to mostly #nearbynature photographs. She’s appeared in a couple of recent Relive video recaps created by Mr GeoK, including this one from our “posthole” walk in Canmore.

I spied a lot of great stuff this month. How about the rest of the PBC participants? To find out, head over to host PJ’s blog, A ‘lil HooHaa. Before you go, please consider joining the PBC fun in March. I will update this post with the new theme as soon as it’s posted. All you need are five photographs to include in a blog post that you publish April 1st. The amount of accompanying text is up to you!