Haus Ternell forest

Pine trees with snow-covered blueberries on the forest floor, Ardennes (Belgium).

* Canon EOS 5D Mark II, 16-35mm/f4 @ 22mm; ISO-200, f16, 1/4s.

Noir Flohay

It is good to know this wide area a bit better, so Andrew George team-up again and revisited the Hautes Fagnes (Hoge Venen). This time we went to Noir Flohay, a small patch of forest largely destroyed by fire a couple of years ago. We timed our visit with predicted snowfall, and so it was. A surrealistic place under these conditions, even the name has some magic in it. It was very impressive experience!

* Canon EOS 5D Mark II, 16-35mm/f4 @ 17mm; ISO-200, f16, 1/30s.
* Canon EOS 5D Mark II, 16-35mm/f4 @ 16mm; ISO-200, f16, 1/50s.
* Canon EOS 5D Mark II, 16-35mm/f4 @ 16mm; ISO-200, f16, 1/50s.
* Canon EOS 5D Mark II, 16-35mm/f4 @ 16mm; ISO-200, f16, 1/80s.

Brackvenn

The photographic year 2015 started with a visit to the Hautes Fagnes (Hoge Venen), Belgium. It is the highest point of the old Ardennes mountain range. Around the Brackvenn, a beautiful open and boggy area, is the snow still present. A good candidate for Belguim’s first National Park!

* Canon EOS 5D Mark II, 17-40mm/f4 @ 17mm; ISO-100, f16, 1/40s; tripod.

Glass house ruin

The last photo of the year, this one is may be a bit atypical. I like old things which are in a state of decay, it is a bit like nature reclaims them. The light plays a nice game with this gentle glass house ruin.

* Canon EOS 5D Mark II, 70-200mm/f2.8 @ 150mm; ISO-400, f9, 1/160s; tripod.

Jack Snipe ditch

Lovely morning after one of the coldest nights of 2014 (only -5°C). Good circumstances to search for Jack Snipes (Lymnocryptes minimus /Bokje), the master of camouflage. Luckily I find some (4+ birds) in a ditch with running water. Can you spot it too? The photo is taken just before sunrise, hence the bluish color.

* Canon EOS 7D, 300mm/f4; ISO-800, f4.0, 1/8s; +0.7 stop; tripod.

The snow must go on

Another Saturday morning in the X’mas holiday period, heavy snow and a fierce wind. Rare conditions these days, and excellent weather for landscape photography. Here is an ordinary path flanked with Poplars, which is so typical for Noord-Brabant. Photo is taken near the village Nistelrode.

* Canon EOS 5D Mark II, 70-200mm/f2.8 @ 135mm; ISO-800, f7.1, 1/250s; +0.7 stop; hand held.

Foamy beach

Stormy weather on this first day of the X’mas holiday. So I decided to go to the Dutch coast, in the good company of Andrew George. Last summer (July 2014) I spotted a few nice places with beautiful wooden breakwaters, and I was curious how they would look in winter with this type of weather. Well this is it, one big foam party!

* Canon EOS 5D Mark II, 17-40mm/f4 @ 17mm; ISO-100, f14, 1/6s; ND2 hard gradient filter; tripod.