It snowed today, the earliest New York has received at least an inch of snow in recorded weather history. I’d write more but honestly, not much else really need be said. Besides, after a night out (like a little bit of snow is gonna stop anyone) I’m in dire need of some thawing out.

Jack Frost isn’t done having his fun with the Northeast, it seems, and has decided to give it to New York for a little longer. Naturally, this meant I was compelled to run outside with my camera

and shoot the same damn things, all over again. Three snowfalls, three sets of photos from the same park. And I already used up my Waxing Philosophical card on the last one, so that’s out.

Chuck and Julie are two of my favorite people around. I have friends I’ve known longer or friends I know on deeper levels, but when it comes to just simple, unadulterated (keyword unadult) fun, Chuck and Julie are a tough act to follow.

In my last entry, one of the photos I posted was of the benches along the East River. I loved the shot, but one thing bugged me—the wire fencing to the right of the image. It broke the whole “pattern of repeating elements” aspect to the photo. If I had just moved up two benches, I’d have had no distractions from the seemingly-infinite line of benches and railing. Problem was, I didn’t notice it until long after I’d processed and uploaded the photo; there was nothing I could do about it. I determined to go out and re-shoot the scene after the next decent snowfall. To get it right.

Winter runners always make me feel especially lazy. I can’t be bothered to run when it’s nice out, and these guys are running in cold winter weather.

The longer you shoot, the more you get used to things like this, these “happy accidents.” Photos where the thing that makes it work the most (or at least one of them) was completely unplanned. It happens more often than one would think. For all the control you try to exert on your shoot, making sure that everything — the gear, the location, the talent, the lighting, the timing, everything — is exactly as it needs to be, randomness always manages to creep in.

My first update in over two weeks. The shame is so great, if this were feudal Japan I’d be forced to disembowel myself to regain honor. Luckily it’s not, and I get to keep my guts where they are.