Here goes the oddest month of January I ever spent in Belgium! Normally, during January we get one or two snowfalls and I rarely venture outside if it merely rains. However, this year didn’t bring us any snow and frankly, it resembled too much to spring. In fact, so many sunny days fast-forwarded my anticipation of spring! It looked like it was right around the corner. So I found myself outside quite often, in fact, every single day. Needless to say, Miles was very happy this month!
On the very first day of this year, we went out to take some photos. Which is uncanny for us, especially when it doesn’t snow. However, the sun was setting over still frosty fields of tall grass and I fell in love with the landscape. Usually, dry winters never inspire me much. But this year I found myself drawn to those flat brown landscapes. Since the sun was shining all day long, the sunset provided great light for photography. I never thought I would be satisfied with non-snowy photos taken in the dead of winter but here we are!
Usually, during January, I spend more time inside reading books. This year though, a bit less than the previous one. Simply because the sunny weather urged me to go out. In fact, during one photography outing, we expected it to be chilly. In the end, we took quite a long walk under the sun and felt warm. The wool skirt pictured here is one I purchased a few months ago. And after seeing the trailer for Little Women, I couldn’t help but see how similar it is to the one Jo wears! It goes without saying that I am ecstatic about seeing the film at the cinema next month! While I have seen way too many period films, sometimes merely for the costumes, I am impatient for this adaptation even more because of the great reviews.
A couple of days later, I spent a full day in Ghent in the company of my lovely friend Tijana. After more than a year, we finally got to spend a whole day and as might be expected, it was amazing! We caught up with everything that happened in our lives in the meantime and planned some lovely things for the future. I also took some photos of her working on her illustrations that I’m a big fan of. All in all, an ideal day spent in the perfect company! If you’re interested in more photos, Tijana actually posted a blog post on her blog!
On the last weekend of January, I hoped to get some sunset photos once again. So we went up to my by now favorite place near home called Malchamps. As the sun was slowly setting behind the horizon, at the same time, a fog started rising from seemingly nowhere. We couldn’t locate its source and by the time the sun disappeared, the fog engulfed the entire landscape. It was mesmerizing! I’m always wishing to shoot more in the fog but it’s just impossible to plan that ahead. At least here, foggy weather is quite flimsy and it’s never a guarantee it’ll stay foggy long enough. Therefore, I couldn’t have been happier with the photo results that day!
Overall, the first month of the year turned out surprisingly inspiring. But as much as I loved the photos we took during January, I must admit I’m looking forward to warmer weather. Mostly because it would be nice to have more time for it. We basically did a few 10-minute sessions because frankly, it’s impossible to do it for any longer! Especially in those open fields that I love so very much, the wind is just too harsh. And we always talk over the photos and figure things out together while shooting them. So I’m eagerly awaiting slightly warmer days for more creative outings with Grégory. I never thought I would say this, but now I’m hoping for no snow next month!
