As soon as the inch that would fall that day began covering the urban grime; we headed for a local park. This park happened to be Clove Lakes. It is a popular park to walk through with dual large lakes with a stream connecting the two. Definitely a beautiful sight when a good snowfall starts to happen. The lake was accompanied by several male and female mallards. As well as what appears to be some hybrids that have mixed with loose domesticated ducks. There was a double edge sword of an issue with these ducks though. These ducks were so accustomed to humans that they would swim over to us. Not just that, but they would actually walk onto the land and look at us for food. Cute some might say, but it is also a bit tragic. The animals behavior has been altered and had now become dependent. So for the sake of the animal we hope these ducks will still be fed through the harsh winter months when people don’t venture out so often. The irony being that feeding them is the reason the ducks have gotten into this mess in the first place.

On the upside we did manage to snag some really fantastic black and white images. With the weather being an overcast sky, and the darkness of the trees my mind was screaming black and white. To add to the situation there was a great reflection in the lake adding to the strong verticals. I came home with 60 RAW frames ready to go to work in Silver Efex Pro. I started with a neutral setting and tweaked the brightness and contrast. Raising the brightness to bring rise to the highlights and contrast to make the blacks distinct from the gray. The use of the structure slider came in real handy. It provides a sharpening/contrast tool that really makes the image pop. One key item I find it also does is it can really bring definition to your skies. Especially when you feel the sky is flat and lacks the pixels that might just not be easily seen. The point system of being able to drop and effect specific areas is also a huge benefit to working on your photographs. Definitely a plug in that makes the ordinary extraordinary. That felt like a marketing quote…

>> Just remember it isn’t the camera that counts. It truly is the person behind it. <<

You can really see how the reflection adds to the image.

I personally like the focus on the depth of the forest. The white hill leads you away into the image but the reflection/shoreline brings you back.

Just as we were headed back to the car these pair of mallards caught my eye. I used them as a structural piece to the image. It adds an extra touch to the water below. The reflection of the bridge is a great highlight of its arch shapes. Distinct lines and shapes help catch the human eye.

This was one of the poor guys that was looking for food. Bred for human consumption, but left in the cold.