Some birds may seek shelter when the weather is inhospitable, but sparrows seem to be active and busy all of the time, like this White-throated Sparrow (Zonotrichia albicollis) that I spotted in the snow this past Friday at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge.
It is a bit of a challenge to get a proper exposure when so much of the frame is filled with white snow. As I understand it, the camera would like to render everything to a neutral gray, so it is necessary to overexpose the image or adjust it in post-processing. In my initial RAW image, the sparrow was very much in the shadows and the snow had a grayish-blue tinge to it. I cranked up the exposure to the point that most of the snow turned almost pure white and I was left with soft bluish shadows that I really like. I am also pretty pleased with the sparrow’s pose as it paused for a moment to survey the landscape.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Mike Powell 
You did well with the exposure for the snow, Mike. I too had to make adjustments for the snowy mountains and it’s a challenge we are not really used to!
Thanks, Chris. I hope you are enjoying France. I spend my junior year of college in Paris and still speak pretty fluent French. I haven’t been there in about six years and long to return.
Wow I did not realise! On devrait alors parler français tous les deux. J’espère que tu retourneras en France bientôt.
Le jour viendra, mais je ne suis pas certain exactement quand je aurai l’occasion de revenir en France.