A hard question for some. Photography today quickly turns into showing pictures on social media and reaping “Likes”, “+1”s or thumbs ups. Once the hype for the picture is over it is mostly gone and forgotten. In many cases it will even be deleted from memory card or phone, never to be seen again. Facebook has the “n years ago…” memory feature, bringing back those pictures after some time, we are surprised we even took that picture, let alone posted it on social media.

Social media has become the collective memory of modern man. Without it, man will forget quickly and move on to the next dose of “Likes” to feed his energy.

Read more: The meaning of photography

Weekends are always too short. At least for those who are not retired. Most of my weekends are short and busy, last weekend was too short and busy. There will always be people that want to flee the cold and warm up somewhere else, waiting for the cold to go away here in the north. Others will embrace the cold and go out.

Embracing that cold only goes to far for me. I am said to be tough, but I also like to think I’m not stupid.

Read more: What a weekend

For those who love winter, it usually is spent on daytime activities and warm evenings in front of a fire with something or someone hot. For other people, like photographers, winter nights often spell magic, but outside. When the nights are cold and clear, photo opportunities are multiplied. It’s not just about clear starry nights, it’s what light and temperature can bring into a picture.

Let’s see what a winter evening and night can bring us.

Read more: Winter nights

It’s nice to be a photographer in winter, always something to shoot. What I like to shoot apart from wildlife, is human activity. Without activity of people around me, winter would be very sterile. To photograph activities in winter you need active people. So this time I will show some active people.

People who do something or leave a trace of something interesting to shoot. Preferably in the warmth of some place with a fire or some other form of heating.

Read more: Active in winter

‘t was a few nights before Christmas on a dark and cold night. A half frozen photographer was cradling his beloved camera out in the cold. He was desperately looking for something to shoot, but the cold had frozen his eyelids. As well as his camera shutter and battery. The lonely man shivered, he hadn’t shot anything for weeks and now the year was coming to an end. Never in his picturesque existence would he have believed that the end of the year could be so dark.

The squeaking snow under his feet suddenly lit up. He had arrived at The Forks in Winnipeg. As if by magic, someone had flicked the switch to light up all the trees and walkways around him. He was saved!

Read more: Festive lights

So, after having brushed off my nostalgia for the summer months, it’s time to see what we can do in the winter months. If I listen to some people, winter seems to be the time to stay inside or move to warmer climes. Most definitely no snow, ice or frigid temperatures, please. In Manitoba we can enjoy all seasons in a reasonable package during the year. Even if winter seems to have the upper hand.

Does that mean that we need to stay inside? Not for me.

Read more: Winter shooting

Ah, those nice, warm summer weekends! Old Man Winter has barely arrived and already we long to be back in summer. So what are we to do? Stay inside, huddled up by the fire and wait? Perhaps. We can also go out and enjoy the cold weather, but some people will have issues with that.

My take on it? Simple, go back to your summer weekend pictures and enjoy the memories.

Read more: Summer weekends