Ice on the Trees

Ice, Ice Baby

Ice-covered needles hang from a pine tree in our horse pasture after a recent ice storm came through our area.

Some of us old-timers in this area get a little nervous when ice is predicted. We had a bad ice storm in 1994, actually on the same day of the year that we got this ice this year. That 1994 storm caused lots of power outages, and Laura and I were without power for three days during that storm. This time around, we were only without power for 45 minutes. That is much better.

Also, you can’t tell it from this photo, but our house is now a different color. More on that some other time.

Because we rarely get ice like this, I thought it was a good idea to get a few photos. I liked these frozen drips off of the horse pasture fence. As if the water drops were frozen in time, getting caught just before they dropped from the wires. Yes, this post is titled “Ice on the Trees,” but I liked this non-tree photo, too.

You can probably already tell, but photos of ice like these are fascinating to me. That is probably because we do not get that much ice. I am definitely not complaining about that. But I figure I better take some photos when I get the chance.

Last one for today. And yes, it is very similar to the previous one. I couldn’t decide which one I liked better, so you get them both. You’re welcome.

Sights and Sounds

One thing that these photos do not capture is sound. If you have not heard it, there is a very distinct sound when the wind blows these ice-covered pine branches. Sort of a crinkling swish sound, if I had to try to describe it. It is definitely an icy sound, too. If you have heard it before, you won’t forget it.

Another sound that goes along with these photos is the sound of tree limbs breaking. That starts with a “craaack”, followed by a “whooosh” sound as the branch covered with ice falls. We heard that several times due to this ice. Several limbs fell from our trees, but fortunately we had no damage other than to the trees. When the weather warms up, we have some yard cleaning to do!

Fortunately, we did not hear the sound of transformers popping after hearing the sounds of limbs breaking. Definitely not a pleasant sound!

All of this ice was a reminder to me to be thankful for what we have, or for what we do not have. During it all, we still had safety, and we did not have a prolonged power outage. Plus, school was canceled for the day, so we had a family day at home. It is all about looking for the blessings sometimes.

Bible Verse

Oh come, let us worship and bow down; let us kneel before the Lord, our Maker! For he is our God, and we are the people of his pasture, and the sheep of his hand. - Psalm 95:6-7

About the Photos

When I grabbed my camera for these photos, the 50mm lens was still attached due to the previous 50with50 photo. As I mentioned in that last post, even though that series has ended, I will still use the 50mm lens. All of these photos were taken with that lens because I wanted to get some good detail shots with lots of bokeh. You can especially see that on the fence wire photo. I think it looks cool.

Also, I did not linger long outside for these photos. It was cold. But not as cold as it would be a few days later when some snow would come. Photos from that next winter weather event coming soon…

Plus, sorry about the “Ice, Ice Baby” heading above. I couldn’t resist.

Photo: Each photo is a Raw exposure processed in Luminar AI. Read more about photography tips, photo software, camera gear, and more at Steve’s Photography Tips.
Camera: Sony Alpha A7 II
Lens: SonyFE 50mm f/1.8
Date: February 11, 2021
Location: Home, Williston, Tennessee