“I tried to discover, in the rumor of forests and waves, words that other men could not hear, and I pricked up my ears to listen to the revelation of their harmony.” 
― Gustave Flaubert

Around a bend in the path, I found myself faced with a planted pine forest. A large ‘grove’ if you will. The trunks were thin and straight, with no foliage except at the very top. Among this tall pines, a few hearty maples have began to grow, their bright leaves appearing in waves across the image, each branch creating a luminous layer against the dark backdrop of the pines.

Enhancing the effect of the maples is the pine’s slow ascent up a small hillside as if trying to reach higher than the maples. It was quite a sight, the play between the trees and their unique characteristics.

Eventually the cultivated pines will be harvested for pulp or logs and the maples will remain, taking over the hillside and, no doubt, completing with pine seedlings, which are plentiful. Victory will go to the species best suited to grow here.

This was a shot I was uncertain of. The bright maple leaves dominate the scene and attempts to underexpose the image took away too much of the magical glow they displayed. After a bit of agonizing, I decide to proceed with it as is, since it is so close to what I experienced in the pine grove, inside the green veil of the summer forest.

Nikon D800
Tamron SP AF 90mm f/2.8 Di Macro 1:1 (272ENII)@90mm
1/4 sec, f/25.0, ISO 200 

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