March 1st, the first day of spring – at least according to the calendar. A degree or two above 0 C, fog and even some rain for the first time in ages. I went for a photo walk in the afternoon despite feeling tired only because I could then put my photos in a new folder named ”kevät” (the Finnish for ’spring’).

My mood changed for the better as soon as I got out. The fog looked nice, and it was not cold anymore. I could get appropriately gloomy photos! In the end, the photo walk was wonderful – no matter how soaked my socks, shoes and trousers got while walking through the wet snow and slush. I visited the goshawk forest and saw the old female and the male (pictured). It looked like they were already having some couples time near an old nest of theirs. Unfortunately I accidentally spooked the female and it left. Damn, I should have been more careful. I took a few photos of the male as it does not mind people and then left them in peace. Still, it was very exciting to see that they both survived the winter.

I then headed to a golf course in Tali to see what it looked like in the mist, taking photos of the ugliest scenes I could find along the way. Derelict office buildings, fences, and melting snow revealing what it has collected during the winter. At least I can’t see any “land mines” (dog poop) in the photo. The golf course looked quite spooky in the mist. There were a few people skiing in the distance, and I even found castle ruins.

#helsinki
#finland
#tali
#eurasiangoshawk
#accipitergentilis
#spring
#march
#photowalk
#birds

my fav team <3
#masseffect #tali #wrex

Another stroll today with the goal of taking bird photos. I managed to find a few bullfinches but, as it started snowing more and more, I lost interest in looking for other birds. Then I was distracted by cross-country skiing. There were a lot of people skiing so I started photographing them instead of birds. By the way, I guess you all know what road rage is but we have taken that a bit further in Finland – we call it 'laturaivo' ("ski trail rage"). People sometimes lose their mind over trivial things while skiing. Hey Sweden, Norway, and Central Europe! Does this sound familiar to you? Fortunately I did not see anyone throwing a fit today.

#crosscountryskiing
#helsinki
#tali
#finland
#january
#winter

Happy #WorldHypnotismDay! Here's my sona with four video game crushes of mine, celebrating the day in style! #hypnosis #hypnoart #hypnoartist #hypnosiskink #hypnokink #harem #hypnoscream #mortalkombat #kingdomhearts #darkstalkers #masseffect #talizorah #tali #jade #felicia #aqua

It's getting colder and snowier in Helsinki, finally. Today the sun peeked through the clouds in the morning so I decided to check what the golf course and manor in Tali (a neighborhood in Helsinki) looked like. Quite pretty, actually. Beautiful light and a little bit of snow on the ground.

Then it started snowing properly. Yes! Even better, the temperature should remain below freezing for a while.

#helsinki
#tali
#finland
#snow
#winter
#december

December 20th, a warm and mostly overcast Saturday in Helsinki.

Dogs, a mysterious pumpkin, and a creature you should not see this time of year. I saw and heard quite a few birds as well, such as a sparrowhawk, two goshawks, a black woodpecker, robins, and a wren. I only managed to get poor photos of the sparrowhawk, not much else. My slow telephoto lens struggles with the lack of light.

Oh, I found the pumpkin next to a creek. What witchcraft.... Perhaps an offering to Ahti, a water god in the Finnish mythology, in return for fish. I've seen people fishing near that spot.

#helsinki
#tali
#finland
#photowalk
#dog
#dogsofpixelfed
#doggo
#snail
#eurasiansparrowhawk
#accipiternisus

A late night photo walk yesterday. Mist, a light sprinkling of snow, a few hares, not a lot of people...

I went for a customary Wednesday evening run and then realized I should have gone for a photo walk instead as the weather was a bit unusual: mist and snow at the same time. I got back home at around 9 pm, changed clothes and grabbed my camera.

I ended up walking for a couple of hours in Tali and Munkkivuori until my fingers were frozen enough to call it quits. I am not particularly happy with any of the photos – mostly of empty streets as I saw only a few other people. There were brown hares though...

#brownhare
#lepuseuropaeus
#helsinki
#finland
#tali
#munkkivuori
#november
#fall
#autumn
#photowalk
#nightphotography