If you happen to be at Lamoureux Park in the wee hours on a snowy night, it’s very likely you will run into Lee Ladouceur. The 34-year-old photographer loves to head out in winter in search of a great shot.
“I actually hate the cold, but I love trudging through deep snow late at night while the city is sleeping. Winter at night is a completely different world. If I head to Lamoureux Park during the day, it’s full of people. But in the middle of the night it’s like a clean canvas, blanketed in snow. The only footsteps I see are my own.
Freshly fallen snow has a way of making everything look more luscious and beautiful, more surreal. I love the textures that winter produces—icy rocks, frozen water, pillowy shapes. And light acts so differently in winter. It reflects off the water or shines right through it.
Heading out in the cold and dark is a meditative experience for me. It gives me the serenity, silence and stillness that I need to do serious work. Some people do yoga; I take photographs.”
Illustration: Kyle Beaudette