Photographing the Courtyard in the Cold

I had it in the back of my mind to take some photos of the courtyard of the restaurant on our main street. I wanted to do this while they were keeping the lights on at night although maybe they leave them on all winter. I can't remember. I wanted to do it while there still might be some leaves strewn about.

While I had this in mind for at least a week, weather and other things had thwarted me. One of the thwarting things in addition to much rain, is the fact that I slept in until 6:30 twice last week. While I guess I could have rushed out I chose not to. But on Friday, I awoke at 4:30, so even after taking my sweet time, which I surely do take in the mornings, I was out of the house by 6:30.

It was darn cold out, but I since I had driven to my destination, I made like brave soldier and took some photos while I shivered. They were long exposures, long enough to require steady tripod support.

This was the first attempt, taken at 1.6 seconds.

I decided to narrow the aperture to see if I could get more of a starburst (or light rays) effect. That meant that I had to increase the exposure time to 8 seconds to get about the same amount of light. 

I did the same at another spot. I think this angle is a better composition with the stairs and door more centered and we also have leaves leading in that direction.

I have also had a notion to photograph gas stations at night, and since there was one behind me on the opposite corner, I turned around and did just that. I blended several exposures to get a few light trails from passing cars.

I had come with all of my lenses and had been prepared to take different photos, but it was -3C/26F, and I was really feeling the cold, so I packed up and scurried back to the car. I usually don't think temperatures hovering near 0C as being all that cold, but I felt chilled to the bone that morning. Even around the house, I am suspicious that I am feeling the cold a little more this year as winter approaches.