(+ 5 insets) (please view large) :)

It was another crisp, frosty, and beautiful morning for my walk today! In fact, it was warm enough this afternoon that I took my bike out for my first ride of the season! Just for the 15 minute distance around the block but it was lovely and I got the chance to look for Saturday Self-Challenge "signs of spring" in case there might be a flower or baby animal to take a picture of. Not much to find but I had a great time!

Today I'm sharing an image I took yesterday on my hunt for "signs of spring" pictures. I wandered down to our seasonal pond in hopes that I might possibly spot a strand of frog eggs clinging to the algae. I knew it was a long shot but I thought I'd go see just in case I got lucky.

I took a long time slowly creeping around our pond, crouching down and staring intently into the water. In the water I found aquatic beetles in large and nearly microscopic sizes, water skimmers racing around on the surface and little gnats in tiny clouds here and there. I found lots of aquatic plants growing like crazy in the water and rafts of algae floating on the surface. But I didn't find any frog eggs…or frogs for that matter.

What I did find was an enormous sense of peace and serenity. Crouching silently, I could hear birds singing in the trees and I was quiet enough that a frog or two ventured a croak back and forth. Looking into the water was soothing, as were the soft plants I saw and the gentle movement of the insects swimming and flying around.

I made my way around the edge and spotted something white clinging to some weeds. When I got closer I saw that they were feathers! I took some pictures just in case they turned out to be interesting. When I looked at them on my computer I was surprised at the detail and wonderful bubbles that I hadn't noticed before. And, as I worked on this picture I realized that it was a perfect candidate for a black and white image!

I immediately thought of Valfal, who I'm dedicating this picture to. She's one of the admins for Saturday Self Challenge and a longtime friend here on ipernity. We'd had a really interesting conversation over the past few days about why we like black and white photography and why I don't often post them but I love the medium very much. This dedication is both a nod to our love of b/w and a tribute to spring. Ducks land in our pond to see if it's good for raising ducklings, but I'm happy to say they don't stay because it's not safe. However, I sometimes find a stray feather or two like this one and I've learned that pictures often turn out well! (I'm also posting a few of my favorite b/w images from my archives for you to see)

Pam, I know that you don't prefer black and white photography but I happen to know that you do love dogs that are black, white, and a mixture of the two! :D I found a collage of black Flicka and black and white Lucas that was an instant favorite when I saw it the first time…I covered it with notes because I loved it so much! What fun to revisit this wonderful gathering of lovely images of your dear Rainbow doggies. How we love them. hope that today has been treating you ok…I know you've been through a lot lately so I'm sending many virtual hugs your way!