2024 · Film Photography · London, Ontario
This photo was taken in the winter of 2024.
It was my first winter after moving to London.
I only wanted to photograph snow.
That was all.
I was walking in Thames River Park.
It was quiet.
The ground was fresh white.
Then I saw my shadow.
Long.
Simple.
Falling across the path.
I pressed the shutter without thinking.
Later, I understood why this image stayed with me.
Moving to a new country changes small things first.
How far you walk.
How your body reacts to cold.
How light feels different.
You don’t notice it immediately.
But something adjusts.
Film makes me slow down.
I cannot take many shots.
I have to decide.
Standing there in the snow,
I was aware of my steps.
Not in a dramatic way.
Just aware.
The tire tracks were already there.
Someone passed before me.
The snow will erase everything soon.
But in that moment,
I was there.
This photo is not about snow.
It is about being in a new place,
and slowly learning how to stand in it.
That is reorientation.