Winter Wonderland
Mr. December indeed ;-)
It was a nice surprise to see one of my all time favourite photos of mine being used in the new 2015 super giant sized calendar from G-Technology. While I knew they were putting together another cool calendar for this year, I had no idea how nice the final result would actually be. The printed version is HUGE and that really makes the photos jump off the page.
You can download the whole calendar here: G-Technology 2015 calendar
It’s always nice to have my work showcased next to talented friends like fashion photographer Dixie Dixon, adventure photographer Lucas Gilman, and concert photographer Alex Reside. All the photos were courtesy of members of G-Technology’s elite G-Team of artists that they support. I’m in good company amongst the Emmy, Pulitzer, and Grammy winners.
This photograph of Florence was shot back in 2009 in… You guessed it, December! It was just around Christmas time when I went up to the top of the Florence Cathedral on one of those extremely rare days that it snows in this beautiful city. Compared to the times that I’ve been in Florence during spring and autumn, winter is a relatively quiet time in the city and an excellent opportunity to get spectacular photographs. Just being there at the top of the cathedral dome, taking in the spectacular view, literally brought tears to my eyes. Some days it’s good to be a photographer, some days it’s just downright awesome.
Now that I’ve got my fancy new calendar from G-Technology, the only thing I need now is some of their awesome new travel hard drives that were just announced. I’m talking about the new G-DRIVE ev ATC with Thunderbolt and the G-DRIVE ev RaW. These are perfect hard drives for photographers working in challenging weather conditions or transporting their hard drives with tons of vital digital information around the world… In other words, for people like me.
How did it get so late so soon? Its night before its afternoon. December is here before its June. My goodness how the time has flewn. How did it get so late so soon?
~ Dr. Seuss
- 1 – 1990 Channel Tunnel links UK to Europe
- 2 – 1804 – Napoleon Bonaparte is crowned emperor of France in Paris
- 3 – 1967 Worlds First Heart Transplant, South Africa
- 4 – 1998 International Space Station Assembly Begins
- 5 – 1933 Prohibition comes to an end
- 6 – 1917 Munitions Ship Explodes In Halifax Harbor Killing 1,800
- 7 – 1941 Japanese Attack Pearl Harbor
- 8 – 1980 Former Beatle John Lennon was shot dead in New York
- 9 – 1990 Solidarity founder Lech Walesa wins Poland’s presidential runoff
- 10 – 1948 Universal Declaration on Human Rights By United Nations
- 11 – 1946 UNICEF Established
- 12 – 1901 Marconi sends first wireless transmission over 2000 miles across the Atlantic Ocean from Poldhu in Cornwall, England, to Newfoundland, Canada
- 13 – 1995 Brixton Riots London England
- 14 – 1972 Last Men To Walk On The Moon
- 15 – 1791 US Bill of Rights ratified when Virginia gives its approval. Becomes amendments 1-10 of the US constitution
- 16 – 1707 Last recorded eruption of Mount Fuji in Japan
- 17 – 1903 Orville and Wilbur Wright made the first successful man-powered airplane flight
- 18 – 1271 Kublai Khan renames his empire “Yuan” (元 yuán), officially marking the start of the Yuan dynasty of Mongolia and China
- 19 – 1932 BBC World Service begins broadcasting as the BBC Empire Service
- 20 – Richard I of England is captured and imprisoned by Leopold V of Austria on his way home to England after signing a treaty with Saladin ending the Third Crusade
- 21 – 1913 First Cross Word Puzzle Published IN New York World
- 22 – 1891 Asteroid 323 Brucia becomes the first asteroid discovered using photography
- 23 – 1947 Bell Labs demonstrates the worlds first Transistor Radio
- 24 – 1968 Apollo 8 orbits the Moon, becoming the first manned space mission to achieve the featt
- 25 – 352 1st definite date Christmas was celebrated on Dec 25th
- 26 – 2004 A tsunami caused by an earthquake under the Indian Ocean leaves 216,000 dead in 13 countries
- 27 – 1949 Indonesia gains it’s independence from the Netherlands after 400 years
- 28 – 1612 First observation of Neptune – Galileo observes and records a “fixed star” without realizing it is a planet
- 29 – 1890 US 7th Cavalry massacre 200+ captive Sioux at Wounded Knee, SD
- 30 – 1661 Oliver Cromwell, Lord Protector of the Commonwealth of England is ritually executed after having been dead for two years
- 31 – 1857 Queen Victoria chooses Ottawa as new capital of Canada
December Facts
December gets its name from the Latin word decem (meaning ten) because it was originally the tenth month of the year in the Roman calendar, which began in March. The winter days following December were not included as part of any month. Later, the months of January and February were created out of the monthless period and added to the beginning of the calendar, but December retained its name. (source: Wikipedia)
- December’s birth flower is the narcissus.
- December’s birthstones are the turquoise, zircon, and tanzanite.
- The zodiac signs for the month of December are Sagittarius (until December 21) and Capricorn (December 22 onwards
There you go… More info about December than you actually need and you only have ten more months to wait to enjoy it all.
WOW! Beautiful winter wonderland with dreams…….I always dream of having a white Christmas somewhere with snow and I have made my dreams come true in England and in Europe! When I saw the 1st snow flake fell in front of me while walking on the road in one December in London, I was screaming in my heart “Hooooray!” I was walking and ‘skiing” across the freezing pond in Regents Park, to meet my friends to celebrate Christmas Day in one December in London, when all the public transport were stopped. I was carrying my camera to shot the flying pigeons in snowy winter in Green Park. I was walking on the road covered with 1 foot snow to go to work on 2nd day of the New Year in Birmingham, I was singing all the way in my heart because it was my Winter Dream :D
Awesome photography, Congratulations :)
Great picture and I love that there isn’t too much snow just enough to dust the beautiful city of Florence with a little powder but still allowing that distinct light brown of the town to show through. Very telling that it brought you to tears but that is what finding the right shot can do, because it is more than just an image, it is a memory of a time of perfect timing that just don’t come around that often. hope your 2015 is off to a great start!
Your image of Florence is beautiful. This is a destination that is on my bucket list to visit one of these days. Your image makes me want to move it higher on the list!
This is so beautiful and one of a kind! This honestly deserves more views and reads because it is quality content and obviously well-thought of! Amazing! Delightful winter wonderland with dreams… … .I generally dream of having a white Christmas some place with snow and I have made my fantasies materialize in England and in Europe! When I saw the first snow drop fell before me while strolling out and about in one December in London, my heart was overwhelmed with the amazingness over the solidifying lake in Regents Park, to meet my companions to observe Christmas Day in one December in London, when all the general population transport were ceased. What a crazy dream!