One of the more difficult things with wanting to go out for some snow photography is the unknown. Our first real snowstorm of the winter season was just wrapping up in New Jersey, and I knew I had to head out. The big question was where? Where could I get to safely since the odds were low that all of the roads would be clear? The good news is that this is the exact reason why I traded in my Dodge Challenger for a Subaru Outback. The first stop was to stop by somewhere local to me and then get an idea of how the roads where.
At just after noon on Saturday the snows tapered off. This was an event that actually sparked something in me to actually grab my camera after a month of it sitting. Not knowing how the roads were was a bit of a challenge, but the Subaru drove like a champ. My first visit was to a nearby pack, Black Run Preserve, which is also called the ‘Edge of the Pinelands”. After grabbing a few shots there, I decided to hustle across Southern New Jersey for some shots along the Delaware Bay. It was a LONG and slow drive, and I was met with a constant wind that caused the roads to be covered in drifts. It was 20 degrees, but I’m going to assume that it was close to zero with the wind chill.
One of my favorite environmental sounds is walking in an area like this. The snow creates a great layer for sound absorption, so that far away noises are much more muffled. You become more aware of your immediate surroundings and it helps you focus on what’s directly around you.
I’m fairly certain that I spent more time on the road and in my car than I did actually holding the camera. I spent about 3 1/2 hours of driving, but only an hour walking in the forest and 5 minutes outside while at the lighthouse.
I arrived with about 30 minutes to spare which allowed for some heated car to car chat with friend and photographer Dante Fratto. I think we were outside of the cars for maybe 5 minutes the entire time and didn’t wait long after the sunset. The one shot with the sun setting shows the frigid bay water that was crashing into the rocks, and spraying up. I’m not kidding when I say it was literally freezing the water mid air, and rolling into us as frozen bits. While I was getting a ‘refreshing’ spray, I snapped a few shots and that was that.
Jason:: RE East Point Lighthouse: Great image. Can that area be accessed directly by car?….I’m limited in my ability to walk far…I do have a Rolator to carry my camera and TP for somewhat longer treks. Can you offer any info on your camera-lens used for this shot? I have D850 with a 14-24 Nikkor. Are you offering any local field trip workshops? Thanks in advance for any info Ben
Hi Ben! Good news is that area is 100% accessible from car. In fact from that spot I could have stayed in the car to take the shot … almost 🙂 It’s very easy to access from multiple sides. For this photo I used the Sony A7iii with the 24-105 lens and was at 50mm. The 24 works in this spot, but you’ll capture much more sky and bay water. I like to fill the frame with action so I went into 50mm. No local workshops, even though I do get asked often. I’m trying to get back into the swing of things myself. Once the weather warms up I may be up for a small workshop group. I’ll probably post details on my page here. Thanks again!
Jason: Many thanks for your help with the East Point LH info. Ben.
Nice work JFG! Love the East Point Light shot!
Mother Nature made me work for this one, thanks!
Beautiful photos of the snow and extreme weather! Eloquent article too!
Hi Sally – glad you enjoyed the photos. I feel like part-time weather forecaster needs to be paired with the title of photographer.