Icicle, a photo from Bergamo, Lombardia

Photographer's Note

Ice can refer any of the 14 known solid phases of water. However, in non-scientific contexts, it usually describes ice Ih, which is the most abundant of these phases in Earth's biosphere. This type of ice is a soft, fragile, crystalline solid, which can appear transparent or an opaque bluish-white color depending on the presence of impurities such as air. The addition of other materials such as soil may further alter appearance. The most common phase transition to ice Ih occurs when liquid water is cooled below 0 °C (273.15 K, 32 °F) at standard atmospheric pressure. However, it can also sublimate from a vapor with no intervening liquid phase such as in the formation of frost. Ice appears in varied forms such as hail, ice cubes, and glaciers. It plays an important role with many meteorological phenomena. The ice caps of the polar regions are of significance for the global climate and particularly the water cycle.
An unusual feature of ice frozen at a pressure of one atmosphere is that the solid is some 8% less dense than liquid water. Ice has a density of 0.917 g/cm³ at 0 °C, whereas water has a density of 0.9998 g/cm³ at the same temperature. Liquid water is most dense, essentially 1.00 g/cm³, at 4 °C and becomes less dense as the water molecules begin to form the hexagonal crystals of ice as the temperature drops to 0 °C. (In fact, the word "crystal" derives from the Greek word for frost.) This is due to hydrogen bonds forming between the water molecules, which line up molecules less efficiently (in terms of volume) when water is frozen. The result of this is that ice floats on liquid water, an important factor in Earth's climate. Density of ice increases slightly with decreasing temperature (density of ice at at -180 °C (93 K) is 0.9340 g/cm³).
When ice melts, it absorbs as much heat energy (the heat of fusion) as it would take to heat an equivalent mass of water by 80 °C, while its temperature remains a constant 0 °C.
As a crystalline solid, ice is considered a mineral.
Ice can also form icicles, similar to stalactites in appearance, as water drips and re-freezes.

From Wikipedia

Model: Canon DIGITAL IXUS 50
Software: Adobe Photoshop CS2 Windows
Exposure Time: 1/501
F-Stop: f/5.6
Focal Length: 5800/1000 mm
Date Taken: 2005-12-29 14:35
Metering Mode: Pattern
Flash: Flash did not fire, compulsory flash mode
File Size: 181 kb

bnallama, riclopes, dolin, ChrisJ, supereira, don_narayan, bibiweb, rbcy1974, talikf, vts_ch, vinicio, andante, firelord heeft deze opmerking als nuttig gemarkeerd

Critiques | Translate

RGatward (20108) 2006-03-07 3:40

NIcely done simple seasonal macro. I like the glint of sun on the tip.

greg64g (11193) 2006-03-07 3:42

hello Paolo

Superb picture, colors are amazing , simple but very attractive.
ciao
greg

bnallama (3763) 2006-03-07 3:42

Beautiful compo!! with very informative note! Thanks. Bala

jinju (14265) 2006-03-07 3:43

MMMMM this is superb. What a macro! Your camera can do magic. This is really splendid stuff, and I like it so much that Im putting it in my favorites.

pastadog (13111) 2006-03-07 3:47

Ciao Paolo, a great shot of this icicle, that seems to be alive, or part of something alive; the blue background seems perfect to enhance the ice texture and the drops; thanks for sharing! Daniel

sined (4523) 2006-03-07 3:47

fresh water drops to drink !
and a wonderful tap ...

Gerrit (62042) 2006-03-07 3:48

Hi Paolo,
beautiful capture of a melting icecap around a branch.
Decicive moment could also be added.
Thanks and regards, Gerrit

riclopes (35577) 2006-03-07 3:56

Ciao Paolo,
Amazing macro shot of this icicle. Superb details, sharpness and colours. The diagonal of the composition is perfect and your note is simply excellent. Congratulations for this spectacular image!
TFS,
Ricardo

tjanze (5674) 2006-03-07 4:00

Hi Paolo!
Great simple composition.Beautiful idea.
Why you dont wait a little?
Drop in air,works better than on icicle.Anyway fantastic shot.
I see your intro photo.Congratulation.
Have a nice day. Vlado

dolin (7369) 2006-03-07 4:16

Hi Paolo.
Joli ca, ca claque et c'est bien fait.
La goutte qui est entrain de se détachée, le côté brillant et lumineux, ces deux teintes...
Simple mais très accrocheur.
Joli
Fred

bantonbuju (51815) 2006-03-07 4:33

hi paolo,
you surprise me every day, now you turned your attention towards macro photography, how interesting;
very beautiful simplicity, and attractive image;
have a nice day,
jerzy

PixelTerror (0) 2006-03-07 4:49

Ciao signore,
euh... aspetta una piccola minuta...
... OK I'm back, I went to put on my cap to avoid the splash on my head ;-)
Superb detail isolation, the colors are nice and well contrasted and above all the excellent sharpness makes it very vivid and refreshing.
Buona giornata,
Jean-Yves

gigi (2668) 2006-03-07 5:09

buongiorno Paolo
questa foto e una meraviglia
uno vero capolavoro
bravissimo
ciao
jean louis

Quentin (5280) 2006-03-07 5:25

Hi Paolo
The first reflex I had when I saw your image was to drink my
glass of water which was next to my keyboard :-) Then after I
realized how great was your photo! The light, colors and
composition all are excellent! Well done!

Quentin

fabio_ts (13696) 2006-03-07 5:50

Semplicemente perfetta Paolo, come colore, come taglio, come composizione, definizione ..e chi ne ha più ne metta, ..ottimo lavoro!!!

ciao,
Fabio.

supereira (9576) 2006-03-07 6:03

Beautiful shot.I like it!I like the reflections the sun in the water.Good composition and framing.Good job!

feather (51130) 2006-03-07 6:47

When I see shots like this it reminds me I don't use my Ixus enough. Fantastic composition with the icicle emerging from the top corner and so well timed just before the drip dropped off. At first I thought it was a wierd caterpillar ;)
Kath

Modacolor51 (1309) 2006-03-07 6:50

hallo paolo.
Excellent colors and a great composition!
well Done:)
yılmaz..

AmiBe (6042) 2006-03-07 6:56

Ciao Paolo,
simple but very effective.
Excellent contrast and colors.
Maybe even better if the first drop was sharp.
Anyway, a good shot.
Well done

flydragon (0) 2006-03-07 7:32

Hello Paolo
simple, minimalist and so beautifull
thx for the pics thx for the note
regards
••simon••

don_narayan (2014) 2006-03-07 10:17

Hi Paolo. Really cool photo great macro, the clarity is wonderful. nice work.

Narayan

carper (96) 2006-03-07 12:25

raely a nice shot Paolo,
a fantastic macro, the pov is realy great and the capture of the drop is very nice, good details fantastic job.
gr. jaap

peck (2779) 2006-03-07 13:43

Hi Paolo,
Wonderful macro image :)) I like the simply composition and cold colours with sunny accent! Well done!
greetings
Gregory

naxius (16685) 2006-03-07 13:46

Splendid Paolo!
I really like the focus and the drop that is getting down slowly..
Excellent quality of work.
Alex

tinamunk3 (6408) 2006-03-07 14:49

Wow, this is a fantastic shot, Paolo. The light and the deep blue colour - and the ice...just amazing.

:) Tina

rbcy1974 (20758) 2006-03-07 18:32

Hello Paolo
Wow
This is pure poetry,
everything is just perfect,
I really like your latest work.
Regards
Daniel

bibiweb (8) 2006-03-08 3:50

Ciao Paolo,
This shot is just stunning! I think everything has been said already so I'll just add that I love it! :-)
Have a nice evening.
Brigitte

ChrisJ (171252) 2006-03-08 4:12

Ciao Paolo

Fantastic graphism of the icicle against the blue sky. It looked like a catepillar in the thumb-nail. Bella photo!

eco (112) 2006-03-08 4:42

Hi Paolo

fantastic colors and lights
I like this composition, very good crops
brawo, best regards, rafal

talikf (1290) 2006-03-08 7:55

This shot is amazing, I wonder how much time you spent there waiting for the drops to fall...

arindam_thokder (3987) 2006-03-08 12:05

WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOW

vts_ch (2624) 2006-03-08 18:27

So you are the on how did this shot, I saw it many times in favorites.
I am impressed by the macro quality, the lightning mastering and the reflection in the droplet is neat. Perfect shot

vinicio (23423) 2006-03-09 1:32

Che dire... e' bella, complimenti.
La nota e' grandiosa, anche se non e' farina del tuo sacco, complimenti per averla scovata, bravo per entrambi i lavori.
Ciao
Vinicio

donluicu (24741) 2006-03-11 8:32

ciao Paolo
che fantastica foto..
i love the pov, it's quite a studio picture..
well done
loic

Stepan (27210) 2006-03-12 4:25

The ray of light in the drop is impressive ! The frame is excellent and you even created a good perspective on such a small ice stick !
Impressive, sensitive and poetic.
Stéphane

marietom (34611) 2006-03-12 5:47

Superbe photo de détail. Belles couleurs, bonne compo.
Belle galerie par ailleurs.
Marie

CRATEOS (7278) 2006-03-12 7:21

Macro the power of it..... you done perfect!!!!GNGRS !!!! Nikiforos

capthaddock (28790) 2006-03-17 10:04

Hi Paolo - well this is certainly unusual, brilliant idea, 2 things especially stand out: the sunshine captured in the drop, and the way the drop looks next to the frozen drop to its left.

Anna-- (7801) 2006-05-28 5:33

Quando l'acqua prende forma...
Complimenti
Ciao
Anna

sabin (0) 2007-01-21 6:27

Simple but effective macro. Great colour!

Photo Information

Copyright: Paolo Motta (Paolo) (41258)
Genre: Plaatsen
Medium: Kleur
Date Taken: 2005-12-29
Categories: Natuur
Camera: Canon D Ixus 5.0
Belichting: f/5.6, 1/500 Seconden
More Photo Info: view
Fotoversie: Originele versie
Thema's: Your favorites, Alta Valle Seriana, Kasia's Favourites 2 [view contributor(s)]
Date Submitted: 2006-03-07 3:39
Favorieten: 3 [Zicht]