Photographer Jan Erik Waider is primarily known for his sweeping landscape photography that focuses on the wintry environments in Iceland and Greenland. But his series The Frozen Colors of Winter is an intimate look at the small details that are characteristic of the winter season. Taken closer to home in Germany, this icy macro look at winter is a fascinating peek at the shapes and geometry of the season.
Waider took full advantage of the environment, showing the leaves and grass trapped under ice. Frozen in place, they sit immobile until the inevitable passage of time frees them. The images are tranquil and comforting, most likely because anyone who lives in a cold environment will recognize the air bubbles trapped under a frozen puddle or the way an icy crystal spreads out like a spider. For Waider, the work is a chance to keep his creativity sharp while he’s not on the road and to experiment with macro photography.
“I love walking along frozen watercourses for hours with my camera and looking for exciting details in the ice,” he tells My Modern Met. “For many motifs, you simply have to take your time, as it’s easy to overlook them in passing. For me, this search has an almost meditative quality, and the motifs that are created on my doorstep have a special meaning for me.”
Waider also hopes that the series will encourage others to get out their cameras—if only on their smartphones—the next time they are on a walk. “Just take a closer look at the icy puddle or the frost on the leaves and the fragile ice crystals. Winter offers an incredible number of exciting and ephemeral photo opportunities: moments that are only short-lived, and that’s what gives me so much pleasure—it’s always a unique journey of discovery.”
The Frozen Colors of Winter is a macro photography series focusing on the tiny details of winter.
Photographer Jan Erik Waider is known for his dramatic landscape photography in Iceland, but he uses his time close to home to work on this project.
“Winter offers an incredible number of exciting and ephemeral photo opportunities: moments that are only short-lived, and that’s what gives me so much pleasure.”
