Not Skiing at Snowshoe

“Skiing combines outdoor fun with knocking down trees with your face.”
― Dave Barry

This past weekend, my family and I finally went on a ski weekend that we have tried unsuccessfully for one reason or another to take for the past three years.  This year, it finally worked out.  We packed the car Friday, after work, and headed to Snowshoe Mountain, West Virginia.

This trip was especially important to me since it will be the last winter break my son, Jeremy, and his girlfriend of five years, Abi, will have as they are graduating from the University of South Carolina in May.  Everyone in our group loves skiing.  That is, everyone except me.

I went skiing one time in high school.  Although I have wiped most of the experience from my memory, I remember lying on the ground looking up at the sky in the wet snow more than anything else.  There was also the humiliation of the tow rope having to be stopped to get me out of the way before continuing.

So, shockingly, I decided I would spend the time while my family was skiing to explore using my camera.

Of course, I took pictures of my skiers.

While my family was skiing, I had an amazing time exploring with my camera.  I wanted to see things before me differently.

When I looked closely,  I noticed the patterns in the groomed snow.

We were fortunate to get just a few hours of snowfall before skiing Saturday.  I started out by taking pictures through the window.

The next thing I wanted to try was using my neutral density filter to see what I could capture using longer exposures.

I learned so much along the way.  Bright colors worked much better than darker colors.  Gestures that showed movement were very important, as well.

I enjoyed every second of experimentation.  The thing I liked most about what I tried was using in-camera multiple exposures.  Using the camera, I combined images of people on the slopes with an image of a snow-covered tree outside of my window.  Here are a few of my results.

I am not quite sure who enjoyed the ski trip more:  the skiers or the photographer.  I did enjoy trying new things while spending time with the ones I love.