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I’ve been working on the cosmic ice and cosmic cement series for a few years in digital format but I had been photographing them even in my film days. Doing these series makes me think about how little my personal photographic style has changed over the years. These photos come very natural to me so I think if you want to change you have to make a conscious effort to do so. This new series represents the merging of the existing two series.
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I love the way the ice is fracturing, like a wave breaks, as it meets the concrete. A natural ‘dissolve’. Well shot, Ken.
Thanks, Andy. This was in an area where a lot of people walk and I think that accounts for some of the nice fractures.
To see ones own development is always interesting, to look into the archive and discover that one actually has developed… It’s not always that easy to see it for yourself when “you’re in it”. It’s also interesting to see what one chose to photograph then… (and how) and what one chooses to photograph today (and how).
Wonderful images, Ken!
I hope my English isn’t too bad… 😉
Thanks, Malin. Your English is fine and very encouraging.
Man, that ice looks amazing! Nice contrast between it and the concrete area. I like this pattern.
Thanks, Jimi. Two hours after I shot these they were all melted away. But I’m sure there will be more.
I like it very much Ken, particularly the second one !
Thanks, Chantal.
Not much ice around here, cosmic or otherwise, but it is an entertaining series. The top photograph is wonderful. I love the gazing at the various fracture lines and wonder if it is encroaching or receding, taking over, or giving in. Very nice!
Thanks, Paul. We are having a pleasant day today but are in for another cold blast. No worries, though, we have plenty of ice to go around for a long time.
In the second one I like how the pine needles and the whateveritis seed repeat the lines in the ice.
Thanks, Linda. The seed pods are courtesy of my neighbors’ tree but the needles are mine.
Beautiful, Ken.
Thanks, Ash.
Very nice.
The wallpaper on my phone is a picture of a thin layer of ice from a puddle that had receded, and played with in Pixlr to make it look like a galaxy.
I do love ice photos.
I do, too. I have 229 of them.
Don’t know my count . . . more than 100 and less than 1,000 (maybe)
Wonderful shots!
Thanks, Harrie.
Definitely the first one. I like the symmetry the ice displays in this shot.
Thanks, John. I almost didn’t include that one.
“…if you want to change you have to make a conscious effort to do so.”
I totally agree with you. It’s easy to take the paths we’re use to but we shouldn’t change just to be changing. We need acknowledge where we are and to recognize the course, extent and worth of any perceived changes — as well as adopting a reasonable plan giving us a chance of success. If it sounds like a lot of work, it is. But the rewards can make it well worth while.
I prefer the first image. I think the leaf and pine needle distract from the abstractness of the image.
P.S. Got my D600 body back from Nikon yesterday – 13 days turn around including shipping to Melville, NY. Replaced the shutter mech. plus a complete cleaning and checkup.
Thanks, Earl. I include the second image because the leaf and needle gives it a more “earthly” look, rather than cosmic.
I sent the 600 to Melville, too, and it arrived today. I have been experiencing spots soon after I started using it but the local shop I purchased it from cleaned the sensor for me each time. (It’s a free, lifetime service they provide and their prices are the same as any of the big NY stores). The D80 is a great backup but i really miss the 600.
This is a very “cool” idea for a project, Ken. And I like your thoughts about consciously changing your approach. But I think there is also an evolutionary or unconscious change that happens as our vision develops or matures. You could almost argue that it’s unconscious changes that are “true” to our vision or personal styles, but I think both approaches have merit.
Thanks, Tom. Of course there is evolution in everything we do and I see it in my own work, especially when looking at photos made 10, 20, 30 years ago. It’s a slow process but I think, with an effort, we can accelerate it through education, observation and practice. Just like any other art form.
Great shots Ken. The first is my favourite, really really beautiful 🙂
Thanks, Jocelyne. That’s one of my favorites, too.
I guess it all depends on how we ‘see’. Abstractions we create do have their own signature that people can recognise after a while, and there’s nothing wrong with that, in my view! As long as you keep experimenting, and you seem to do that. I like these images because I think and feel that Nature produces Art we can never reproduce; it lasts only for a short while, so you were very lucky to have captured these, for posterity!
Thanks, Janina. I’ve always thought that there are patterns in nature all around us but they only seem abstract to us when they are viewed out of context. If we look for them we’ll find them everywhere.