Bright light, blinding white snow, and temps in the single digits actually make for some beautiful photos.  I love to use these conditions to get some really great stop action shots.

I shot these all at ISO 125 with my 35mm lens  (check out Borrow Lenses if you’d like to try this lens before you buy it!).  I used an aperture of f4.0 in AP mode (aperture priority) for all except the one of her face – which was f4.5 (just wanted a bit more detail in her eyes).  I laid on the ground at an angle to get them zooming by – make sure you pan when you photograph these types of scenarios.  Keep shooting as they go by – don’t stop to look at your camera to see what you captured.  Some of the best moments come after they pass!

Since it was so bright, and I was shooting down at f4.0, the shutter speeds were very fast – which created these stop action photos.  Most were 1/4000 – a few were 1/8000th.  Overkill? Maybe – but this is how I love to tell the story.  I isolate elements of the image with lower aperture numbers, and stop important parts with high shutter speeds.

.As always – if you need help with some of the photo basics with your camera – check out Photography Concentrate’s Camera Essentials guide.

Happy shooting!