A quick shot of the frost on my home office window. Our cold snap of sub -20 C persists. While I don’t mind the cold, my camera equipment is not pleased. So, I look out the window, longingly, waiting for the promised respite that is due next week.
“Most misunderstandings in the world could be avoided if people would simply take the time to ask, “What else could this mean?”
― Shannon L. Alder
I left the title as is, my first impression, but then, I looked deeper, at the bright orange beech leaves, the richness of the tree trunks, and the pale clean blue of the snow and realized, it’s not bleak at all.
Perception, is driven so much by experience and the stimuli present, at the moment. At the moment that I made the photo, I was standing in a winter forest, the temperature was hovering around -20C and delicate snow, like sparkling fairy dust, fell between the frozen limbs of the bare trees. So, now, as I consider this scene and reflect on my own words, that initial perception of bleakness, which many sojourners into the winter forest experience, is simply now true. if you look past first impressions, there is so much more.
In fact, as I consider that day and the 7 km hike a took, blazing trails though undisturbed snow, several parts of the forest were surprisingly alive with sound and motion. Within a hemlock grove, the air high above was filled with incredible birdsong, as hundreds of hungry chickadees flitted between limbs. The sound was indescribable and permeated the forest as I stood and soaked it in.
Ah, winter forests, not what they seem to be 🙂
Nikon D800
Tamron SP AF 90mm f/2.8 Di Macro 1:1 (272ENII)@90mmm
1/4 sec, f/32.0, ISO 400
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“To focus solely on endings is to trade conclusions for the very beginnings that created them. And if this cycle should persist, we will likewise miss the beginning that will follow this ending.”
― Craig D. Lounsbrough
This year concludes, as it began, with a simple image of a hemlock cone. This was not intentional on my part, it’s simply how things work sometimes. It’s a different tree, in a different forest, three hundred and sixty five days apart.
The year for me as a photographer, artist, father, husband, and human has been wonderful. As I look back on that photo from January the first of this year, I had no idea where life was taking me. I’ve grown in my skill and resolve on so many levels and that tiny seed seems an appropriate symbol to reflect on. This diminutive seed has the potential to become a massive and wonderful tree, if the elements are correct, producing seeds of its own. So, as the year concludes, or rather, cycles into the next, I look forward to the potential outcomes and many more experiences which add to my life.
See you all next year!
Nikon D800
Tamron SP AF 90mm f/2.8 Di Macro 1:1 (272ENII)@90mmm
1/160 sec, f/6.3, ISO 400
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An icy hike, in -20 C temperatures, but glorious, nonetheless. I spend two hours breaking trail in this frigid wonderland. More images and thoughts to follow.
“Winters are a desolate time where all senses are wiped away, and here in Canada, this is especially true. All smells are sucked clean from the air, leaving only a harsh, icy crispness. Colours are stripped away, leaving a stark white landscape, a sky which stays black at night and gray in the day, a world of only three shades.”
― Rebecca McNutt
This is an image from yesterday’s hike in a nearby forest. Like the quote says, winter is reduced to three shades, with a hint of faded colour. This tangle of trees seems to say “Do Not Enter” as they fade into the distant, chilly darkness. Even the purity of the snow speaks unfriendly notes of warning as the forest is locked in a robe of ice.
It’s hard to imagine that mere months ago, I was swatting mosquitoes in this same spot as I photographed orchids along the trail. Though, I have to admit, I do like the change of seasons, as each reveals new aspects of the scenes before me.
I was going to say that yesterday’s hike, at minus seventeen degrees celsius was cold, which it was, but today dawned at a crisp minus twenty-seven, making me reconsider a hike today. It may be a sit back and read day.
Nikon D800
Tamron SP AF 90mm f/2.8 Di Macro 1:1 (272ENII)@90mmm
1/4 sec, f/32.0, ISO 400
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“We must leave this terrifying place to-morrow and go searching for sunshine.”
― F. Scott Fitzgerald
Though the forest image above is far from terrifying, at least for me, it can be a dark, foreboding place to many people, especially when you look deeper into the forest, as the tree trunks weave ever tighter and form a dark wall. Yet, even this wall has a gap and the sunshine pours through it, streaming into the path before me.
There’s something about winter light, it’s the coolness, perhaps, that makes it feel so much clearer. Definitely not warmer, but still refreshing in its own way.
The trails are now fully snow filled an I’m about to head out again to see what the day brings.
Nikon D800
Tamron SP 70-200mm f/2.8 Di VC USD@75mm
1/4 sec, f/14.0, ISO 200
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“I heard the bells on Christmas Day
Their old, familiar carols play,
And wild and sweet
The words repeat
Of peace on earth, good-will to men!”
― Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
Wishing everyone a very Merry Christmas. Hoping this find everyone healthy and happy and enjoying this time of the year in whatever way brings you joy, even through this Christmas post from the Secord Forest trailhead.
“It is growing cold. Winter is putting footsteps in the meadow. What whiteness boasts that sun that comes into this wood! One would say milk-colored maidens are dancing on the petals of orchids. How coldly burns our sun! One would say its rays of light are shards of snow, one imagines the sun lives upon a snow crested peak on this day. One would say she is a woman who wears a gown of winter frost that blinds the eyes. Helplessness has weakened me. Wandering has wearied my legs.”
― Roman Payne
Here it is, the first day of winter, the Winter Solstice. Though snow has been on the ground for a few days now, this is my first real venture onto the trails for a few days. I am now on Christmas holidays and decided that since work is done and presents wrapped, I’ spend a few hours on the trails just clearing my mind.
Today was bright, but overcast and quite chilly at -8 degrees celsius. This also meant that I had the trails to myself, which I prefer. With a few mild days before and the cold today the trails were a bit icy, but not treacherous, as they often get after heavy traffic packs the snow down. So, I was able to hike in boots, without the need of cleats yet.
The change that a bit of snow brings is astounding. Light appears in places that have been shaded all summer and the lack of leaves opens the forest up so you can see further and deeper, revealing the subtle changes that the previous three seasons have created. I’m also seeing things ‘more’. I’m more aware of subtle changes in the forest, since I’m out making photos all years and that has made me more aware of the things around me. So, I am experiencing this first day of winter with new eyes and a new perspective and simply having the time to fully immerse myself in it.
Nikon D800
Tamron SP 70-200mm f/2.8 Di VC USD@85mm
1/4 sec, f/25.0, ISO 200
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“The dream crossed twilight between birth and dying.”
― T.S. Eliot
This will likely be my final image from the ‘Night of the False Dawn”, as I have chosen to call it, though I did make many more images. This image shows a cluster of pine trees on the horizon with a background of brightly lit clouds. Keep in mind, this is around eleven o’clock at night.
The light, as my previous posts noted, are caused by light pollution from the city of Toronto and are the result of ice crystals in a low cloud deck reflecting that light. It has an unsettling, dystopian look to it, not a typical, cheerful winter scene.
Nikon D800
Tamron SP 70-200mm f/2.8 Di VC USD@82mm
0.8 sec, f/2.8, ISO 200
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“Melancholy were the sounds on a winter’s night.”
― Virginia Woolf
I thought I would do something a bit different and revisit a time and place I talked about yesterday, but from a slightly different angle and as a slightly different composition.
This lone oak tree is perhaps the most photographed tree in this area. Even to the untrained, it just calls out ‘Take my picture.”
As I said in yesterday’s post, this image, which appears as a sunrise, or a sun set was actually made at 11:00pm. The glow in the sky is the result of light pollution from the city of Toronto, some thirty miles south of this location. The effect, as already stated was unsettling, as it resembled twilight so closely. despite this, I spend several minutes making photos, trying to do it justice. I believe I accomplished that, as the colours you see her are exactly what I saw that evening.
Nikon D800
Tamron SP 70-200mm f/2.8 Di VC USD@200mm
1/2 sec, f/3.2, ISO 500
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“Beauty is seeing a flower bloom in a garden or in nature.
Artificial is seeing that same flower try and grow in a vase of water.”
― Anthony T. Hincks
The only words that came to me as I gazed across the horizon, while driving home from a concert last night, was that it looked like a gloaming false dawn. As you can see from the image, there are streaks of blue and red created by the reflected light of Toronto reflecting from a shifting, low cloud deck. It really looks like the sun is rising on the horizon, except this was close to 11:00pm!
I have seen this phenomenon (light pollution) before but nowhere as intensely as yesterday evening. The combination of low, frost filled clouds and millions of city lights, was ideal to create this effect. It also made me wonder, more than ever before, the effect that this amount of artificial light can have on us. The sky directly above me was dark, as I was travelling several miles north of Toronto, between the various town lights, yet I was surrounded by these false dawns, each one marking the a town or city.
As I drove towards my home town of Stouffville, the effect also manifested itself, but not quite to this degree. I made not eof how the light transitioned from darkness, and suddenly I was enveloped in this canopy of light. It felt like a dark, overcast day more than it did night-time. It was actually a bit disorienting and a bit spooky.
Nikon D800
Tamron SP 70-200mm f/2.8 Di VC USD@200mm
1/2 sec, f/3.2, ISO 500
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“May it be a light to you in dark places, when all other lights go out.”
― J.R.R. Tolkien
I can almost put myself in a Tolkien story when the elements combine to produce scenes like this. The forest seems imbued with its own stories of wonder. The more time I spend in the forest the more I become aware of this phenomenon. I have stood in deep spruce groves and witnessed a singular beam of light fall upon one single tree like a heavenly spotlight. It’s a surreal effect and really stops you in your tracks. It’s as if the forest is trying to impart some special message to me.
The isolation in light makes you really notice details previously washed out against the background. Much like the studio floral images that I have enjoyed making so much this year. The world around seems to disappear like so much noise and I have the opportunity to appreciate those singular wonders, only to later realize that this is only one element among thousands in the forest, yet it’s precious to take focused notice, even briefly.
Such it was with this bright orange leafed beech sapling growing from a tangle of fallen limbs within a dark grove of tall red pines. I happened to catch that brief moment when a ray of sun chanced upon it, making me pause and simply enjoy it, as well as saving the memory as a photo, presented here. It was not till I started editing the image that I noticed the small spruce growing in front of it. It’s so nice spending time with these images and appreciating the forest all the more as I begin to really begin feel the life that makes it such a draw for me.
Nikon D800
Tamron SP 70-200mm f/2.8 Di VC USD@78mm
1/4 sec, f/18.0, ISO 400
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“I cannot endure to waste anything so precious as autumnal sunshine by staying in the house.”
― Nathaniel Hawthorne
Even at this time of year, days away from the first official day of winter, I’m enjoying the sunshine of autumn. Especially this time of year when it is so bright and crisp, yet seemingly scarce, making it all the more precious.
As I spent a few hours out on the trails last weekend, the slight overcast sky opened up, albeit briefly, to let some of this precious light fall on the world around me. It has a particularly magical effect on the golden beech leaves which still cling with incredible tenacity to the branches that bore them through the summer. This wonderful gold on white effect is absolutely beautiful when the sun strikes it.
It was especially noticeable on this hillside of plantation red pines interspersed with young maples. In the mix of trees, a few young beech trees are starting to establish themselves, standing slightly apart from their companion trees. And, since they still bear leaves, they really stand out in the bare woods.
We just had a substantial snowfall this past week, so I am hoping to spend at least a bit of time hiking and photographing this forest, transformed once more, into something altogether different from a mere few weeks ago.
Nikon D800
Tamron SP 70-200mm f/2.8 Di VC USD@78mm
1/4 sec, f/22.0, ISO 400
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“When everything looks unusual around you, your eyes and your mind mostly need anything usual! Unfamiliar disturbs us; familiar comforts us! But for the wise man, unusual is more precious than the usual because it offers us a new way, a new vision, a new idea, a new world!”
― Mehmet Murat Ildan
Perhaps, what I enjoy most about creating these photo abstractions is that they slightly disturb. I can photograph a familiar scene and it suddenly appears different. The main elements are still familiar and recognizable, but there is a slight shift in what is being seen. The image takes on a whole new meaning and forces me to reconsider what I am looking at.
For example, this winding path is about a five minute walk from my house. I’ve walked it hundreds of times, in all seasons. Yet, when I view it rendered like this, it appears to be a different place. It still has hints of familiarity, just enough to evoke the memory of the place, but I find my eyes drifting across the scene, considering aspects of it that I had not noticed before.
As I consider most of my recent pieces, that same element exists in all of them: a hit of the familiar and the disturbance caused by a different viewpoint, created by the movement . Perhaps there is a lesson in this, as we live in our all too familiar world, passing by what we consider mundane and uninspiring. A little disturbance might just change our perception. Something to consider?
Nikon D800
Tamron SP 70-200mm f/2.8 Di VC USD@78mm
1/4 sec, f/10.0, ISO 100
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“Thank goodness for the first snow, it was a reminder–no matter how old you became and how much you’d seen, things could still be new if you were willing to believe they still mattered.”
― Candace Bushnell
As my hike last weekend proceeded, the day warmed up just enough for the exposed patches of snow to melt, leaving only traces in the shadows, but enough to remind me that more is going to come and that the seasons will continue their endless cycle.
I like this part of the trail, primarily dominated by large maples and interspersed with their younger offspring and the occasional red pine. There is something magical about the light and how it diffuses and bounces off the trunks. This image, I think, shows that well and also captures some of the remaining greenery, ferns mostly, defying the rapidly cooling days, as winter approaches.
Nikon D800
Tamron SP 70-200mm f/2.8 Di VC USD@78mm
1/4 sec, f/32.0, ISO 400
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“There is a crack in everything.
That’s how the light gets in.”
― Leonard Cohen
Truly, a crack in the clouds, and that’s how the light gets in. Despite the snow-covered ground and a cold snap to the air, a warm and wondrous light shines through the treetops, setting the beech leaves along the trail alight with gold.
It’s scenes like this that keep me coming back to the woods. Well, it’s more than that, actually, but the constant play of light in the forest as a very significant part of it and it brings me joy. Even on the coldest days of winter, a slight play and shift in light can change a cold, dark forest into a wonderland.
With this beautiful light ahead of me, I can’t help but travel further into the wood. Lately, I’m finding myself squeezing my forest time into weekends and hanging onto those moments to sustain me through the week. So, days like today, where the light shifted between cool, and slightly dull to bright and warm within a few hours makes the time on the trails even that much more special.
I’m looking forward to the next few weeks, with some much-needed downtime, and some moderate snowfall, to get me well into a likely chaotic January.
Nikon D800
Tamron SP 70-200mm f/2.8 Di VC USD@78mm
1/4 sec, f/20.0, ISO 400
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“I wonder if the snow loves the trees and fields, that it kisses them so gently? And then it covers them up snug, you know, with a white quilt; and perhaps it says, “Go to sleep, darlings, till the summer comes again.”
― Lewis Carroll
The first real snow has dusted the trails, changing the landscape and light. The temperatures have dropped and I expect this dusting will be the start of several snowy days.
The light today was really odd, not quite cool and not quite warm and it had a very odd effect on many of the trees. It accentuated the slight green cast caused by the fine film of moss that covers most of the smooth barked trees year round, yet today, the green was quite noticeable. I wondered if it would translate into my photos and it did. The effect is a bit bothersome, but that’s what it looked like and I chose not to push those levels down, rather, I kept them to remind me of this odd December light.
As my Saturday hike progressed, that light shifted again and the green became less noticeable. More to follow.
Nikon D800
Tamron SP 70-200mm f/2.8 Di VC USD@78mm
1/4 sec, f/18.0, ISO 400
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“December’s wintery breath is already clouding the pond, frosting the pane, obscuring summer’s memory…”
― John Geddes
Seriously, I could stop my post here with this all too appropriate quote. As I stood, gazing across the cloudy pond surface, northwest winds whipping past my face, summer was truly a distant memory. Yet, the beauty remains (and the bugs are gone).
I put just a slight movement into this image, just enough to add a misty feel, highlighting the brightness of the distant birch trees, which dominate the far shore.
As I stood on that shore, I wondered how many people just stroll past, walking their dogs or simply in their own worlds, and miss this lovely scene? I’ve made images from the same point and had local friends ask me where the picture was taken.
In this instance, the light and clouds play an integral part in the overall composition, combining with the yellowed grasses and rushes to create a feel of a cold autumn day. ducks and geese have long since migrated to warmer climes, leaving the water’s surface undisturbed and rife for a good freezing. SO, since we have had evenings well below freezing, the approaching winter is letting us know it not too far off, relegating summer and balmy days to fond memory.
Nikon D800
Tamron SP 70-200mm f/2.8 Di VC USD@78mm
1/4 sec, f/32.0, ISO 100
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“A day’s brightness is determined by the light in our hearts.”
― A.D. Posey
This ‘solitaire’ is not the same as the one I posted few days ago. Yesterday, after a morning of intense work, I needed to break free for a short time to regenerate, so I took to the conservation area just a few minutes walk from home and entered into the forest for some much-needed respite from the craziness of the day.
I’m frankly not sure what I would do if I did not have a forest close by to retreat into. Yet, I can still find myself uninspired in the familiar. This forest, at first glance, even at second, is a bit dull compared to the many other wonderful trails I have close by, but life does not always afford me the time to venture too far away, even briefly. So, here I stand, in such familiarity, within a commonplace wood, which I have sojourned so many times. You’d think there would be nothing left to discover, nothing of significance. Yet, nature astounds me in her diversity and constant surprises.
In a very familiar expanse of trees, this wonderful, singular, beech sapling presented itself to me, golden leaves shivering in the cold December breeze. I stood transfixed at this simple marvel. It’s just what I needed. Something to remind me of the boundless energy and beauty that surrounds me, even when I get caught up in the busyness of work and life.
As I sat processing the image, trying to adequately extract the ‘feel’ of the moment, a great smile came to my face and I just spent time with the image, recalling the wonder of the moment. I am blessed with so many of these moments and I am ever grateful for the privilege nature provides me. Simple, singular moments, when I’m privileged to enter, fully, into the life of the forest. It sustains me, moment by moment. Even on the dullest, coldest days, brightness reveals itself, even in a simple shiver of leaves.
Nikon D800
Tamron SP 70-200mm f/2.8 Di VC USD@78mm
1/4 sec, f/25.0, ISO 400
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“Because you don’t notice the light without a bit of shadow. Everything has both dark and light. You have to play with it till you get it exactly right.”
― Libba Bray
As I’ve said many times this past year, it’s amazing what we see and don’t see, or rather notice. In the case of these poplar trees, which I have passed through immeasurable times, the camera picks up on light changes that our eyes simply ‘flatten’ out.
I never noticed the nearly black tree that appears in the image, as it is ‘eclipsed’ i the shadow of another tree. My eyes would have perceived this as merely a tree that’s shaded, yet the difference in brightness in the photo is significant. It’s darker than I can recall.
How many time have we made a photo in a forest and then ben surprised at just how intense the shadows are? They didn’t seem that significant as we peered through the viewfinder. Such is the nature of light and how dynamic our brain’s ability to balance that light. Which can prove a challenge to the photographer, as we try to make an image look as much as possible to what we saw. It can prove quite difficult.
By the way, the title of the image hearkens me back to childhood, Sesame Street days, and the game of “One of these Things is Not like the Other”. In this case, One of these Trees.
Nikon D800
Tamron SP 70-200mm f/2.8 Di VC USD@78mm
1/4 sec, f/32.0, ISO 400
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“The beauty of any first time is that it leads to a thousand others…”
― Pico Iyer
This was the end of November, the first significant snowfall, enough to dust the ground in white and remain well into the day. It was also the last day of any noticeable foliage. The last leaf had fallen to the ground, adding to the blanket of rusty browns. It’s yet another transition time in the forest, an extended transition at those. For those who regularly visit this blog, you will have noticed a very extended autumn, filled with bright colours, which lasted from September, well into November.
Here I stood bidding that glorious time goodbye and hesitantly welcoming the first snows. As I stood there, what really resonated with me was that, despite the dormancy beginning, there was still a good deal of colour and vibrancy, something that is enhanced by my abstracting technique.
It’s not the first time I’ve noticed this, but I’m becoming ever more aware of this and it comes up in conversations with friends who do not spend much time outside. Their impression is that this time of year tends to be dull. Then I show them some of my images and they are surprised at what they don’t seem to see. Photography has given me new eyes, I perceive more, now that I am doing it deliberately and I’m really enjoying the experiences it has brought me.
So, as the quote I chose aptly says, these firsts lead to many more.
Nikon D800
Tamron SP 70-200mm f/2.8 Di VC USD@78mm
1/4 sec, f/32.0, ISO 400
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“It is an absolute human certainty that no one can know his own beauty or perceive a sense of his own worth until it has been reflected back to him in the mirror of another loving, caring human being.”
― John Joseph Powell
Today has been interesting. The week was filled with significant milestones: I posted my 1,00th post and hit my 4 years WordPress anniversary. Then, I took a bit a bit of a break, having to refuel, creatively, and find some new subject matter to focus on.
The weather has been uncooperative and my schedule chaotic, so I’m finding myself reviewing some of my more recent photos, looking for inspiration and looking forward to making a few new images. Now that I am becoming much more selective in my images, I find I have less to ‘fall back’ on.
During this period of a week I’ve been a bit inactive on my blog, only to check in to find I had 2 views in the entire day. That’s a far cry for the hundreds I’ve had in the past few weeks, I guess I need to get active again?
No matter, here’s an image I made a few weeks ago of a singular beech tree surrounded by larger maples. Though it is so much smaller, the beech is still showing off its golden leaves, which it will retain well after the first snow falls of December. I plan on going back to shoot the same image with snow, as I imagine it will be quite lovely.
Nikon D800
Tamron SP 70-200mm f/2.8 Di VC USD@78mm
1/100 sec, f/5.0, ISO 400
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“The Sun will rise and set regardless. What we choose to do with the light while it’s here is up to us. Journey wisely.”
― Alexandra Elle
This is my final image in the “Spirit of the Spruce” series. One of the primary and surprising elements to this series has been the bold patches of light which show in each image; some more, some less. That, to me was the ‘spirit’ of the spruce bog as a hiked and documented my time here. it has brought an ‘energy’ to this often gloomy part of the forest.
This final image shows the tight tangle of spruce, cedar, and fir in the dim background light. Despite this, hazy sunlight manages to shine through from beyond and also in the focal point of the image, where it manifests as a bright pool of light, illuminating trunk and deadfall alike.
As the quote says, the sun rises and sets every day, not that every day is bright sunshine, but there is light, nonetheless. I choose to live in it and enjoy it, even if it’s doled out in small amounts some days. On others, like that not too distant November morning, I savour every ounce of it.
It’s been a wonderful journey, this hike through the spruce. Now, as the air turns chillier and the light cooler as well, I have sights on a few new projects which have not quite materialized yet.
Nikon D800
Tamron SP 70-200mm f/2.8 Di VC USD@78mm
1/4 sec, f/9.0, ISO 400
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“We went down into the silent garden. Dawn is the time when nothing breathes, the hour of silence. Everything is transfixed, only the light moves.”
― Leonora Carrington
Indeed, only the light moves, and it appears in waves, as mid morning sunlight streams between the branches, warming the chilled November air.
This was the scene that spread before me last weekend, as I took advantage of a sunny Sunday morning hike. Though the air was still very chilly, the sunlight was stunning, golden, and warmed my senses. The sky was bright blue between the branches and the cedars still green with life.
Though most of the hardwoods have now dropped their leaves on winter’s approach a few flecks of gold hang in the air, shimmering in the slight breeze. I drink in scenes like this. Many would just proceed down the path, but I find myself standing and savouring, knowing even this will soon be cast into the cold and snow of the approaching winter, which brings a beauty of its own. But that can wait.
Nikon D800
Tamron SP 70-200mm f/2.8 Di VC USD@78mm
1/4 sec, f/9.0, ISO 400
For more images like this, please visit my Facebook page:
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“In the hills giant oaks
Fall upon their knees
You can touch parts
You have no right to”
― Kay Ryan
There is simply no other way to describe this intergrown cluster of four massive oak trees that grow along a trail I hike frequently. The cluster breaks evenly into four trunks that grow independently, all the same size. Trees must be eighty to a hundred years old, based on their size.
It is a thing to behold such a massive living thing. It stands in sharp contrast to its many smaller neighbours on this forest hillside, roots delving deep and holding it fast in winds, rain, and snowfalls. I can only imaging how far the roots actually spread, but I suspect they cover most of the slope.
Nikon D800
Tamron SP 70-200mm f/2.8 Di VC USD@78mm
1/4 sec, f/32.0, ISO 400
For more images like this, please visit my Facebook page:
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“No man has the right to dictate what other men should perceive, create or produce, but all should be encouraged to reveal themselves, their perceptions and emotions, and to build confidence in the creative spirit.”
― Ansel Adams
As those who follow my posts regularly, you will know that I enjoy testing new things. There is great satisfaction in this creative process, of communicating in a slightly different way than traditional photography.
Though, the core elements remain: light, line, composition, shape, space, form, and value. As a photographer, I’m always seeking light. The other elements are either there or they are not, I don’t go looking for them. I compose by what pleases me and have enough knowledge of composition to understand ‘why’ certain scenes appeal to me. That, I believe is the hardest thing to communicate to those who do not see this way.
Light, as I said, is the element I am seeking and sometimes it can turn an otherwise uninspiring scene into something magical, like this one, involving a dominant cedar tree within a local spruce bog. The mid-morning sunlight illuminates the tangled knot of branches on the forest floor with a bright glow that you simply can’t ignore. That’s the kind of light that inspired this short “Spirit of the Spruce Series”. That light enables me to showcase a small part of my world for others to enjoy, and hopefully, bring light and inspiration to others.
Nikon D800
Tamron SP 70-200mm f/2.8 Di VC USD@78mm
1/4 sec, f/6.3, ISO 400
For more images like this, please visit my Facebook page:
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or my website (images are available for purchase)
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“Art is to console those who are broken by life.”
― Vincent van Gogh
I generally don’t post these ‘enhanced’ images, but enjoyed creating this one so much, I had to share it, hopefully it fulfills it’s intent to console somebody who needs a bit of brightness in their day.
The source image was made last week while hiking my brother in law’s woodlot near Bancroft, Ontario. It was a cool November morning as I crossed over a ridge to be greeted by this scene of wonder.
Through the deep green foliage of the resident hemlocks, the opposite ridge was alight with sunshine reflecting from fallen oak leaves, bathing the scene in the most beautiful warm glow.
While the original photo was nice, I was inspired to make it more ‘painterly’ by running it through my Topaz Impressions filter. As I become more adept at painting, I’m hoping to make a real painting of this in the near future. For now, it’s a inspiration to a possible future.
I also just realized this will be my 1,000th post. From something that started out as a place to collect my thoughts, it’s grown into an inspiration, and a way for me to carefully consider my art.
Thanks to those who have chosen to join me on the journey. Here’s to the next 1,000!
“The aim of art is to represent not the outward appearance of things, but their inward significance.”
― Aristotle
After thousands of years, the quote is still so appropriate. The outward appearance of this spruce bog is well, quite bog-like, a bit muted, and a bit depressing. But, outward appearances can be deceiving, can’t they?
Even the title of this image is more than it seems. The undergrowth and the fallen are essential elements to the ecology of the forest, without death, decay, and regrowth, eventually only death follows.
This scene is a tangle of low growing spruce and cedar, interspersed with the dried trunks of fallen spruce. For anyone who has ever had to navigate this terrain, you will know the pitfalls of stepping over and between sharp tangled branches, only to find yourself knee-deep in the thick black muck of the spruce bog are tripping over the endless tangle of roots and slash.
Yet, this difficult terrain offers a safe haven to rabbits, grouse, and deer, who navigate it with ease, making barely a sound. The spruce bog is nature’s filter, where water seeps through thick mosses, depositing impurities along the way. Many local creeks begin their travels as cool springs in a spruce bog, just like this. There’s more than meets the eye and much more significance than its outward appearance. You just have to look and become aware.
Nikon D800
Tamron SP 70-200mm f/2.8 Di VC USD@78mm
1/4 sec, f/8.0, ISO 400
For more images like this, please visit my Facebook page:
https://www.facebook.com/EdLehming
or my website (images are available for purchase)
http://www.edlehming.com
“There is a vitality, a life force, an energy, a quickening that is translated through you into action, and because there is only one of you in all time, this expression is unique. And if you block it, it will never exist through any other medium and will be lost.”
― Martha Graham
Welcome to the spruce bog. Though it may not sound exotic, the light and imagery that I experienced on this usually familiar hike was stunning, causing me to start this new series titled “Spirit of the Spruce”. The entire series was photographed in a small stretch of trail no longer than a few hundred meters. One dominated by spruce and balsam fir.
As I set out last Saturday, I had no idea what the day might bring, only that the light was wondrous, and with wondrous light, anything is possible.
I’ve hiked this stretch of the Secord Forest hundreds of times, usually favouring it in mid June, when the orchids are blooming and the mosquitoes are swarming. Otherwise, it’s just an area that I pass through to get to another destination.
I could not believe my eyes as I gazed upon the familiar sight of tightly packed spuce, mosses, and tangled underbrush, beautiful warm sunlight streaming from above. The sunlight was the only thing warm that day, as the air was crisp and cold, but very clear.
The way the sun lit the scene up was spectacular, bringing light to a forest floor usually locked in darkness, the realm of mushrooms and mosquitoes. Not that day, sunlight reflected throughout this tangle of trees, revealing details often missed in the shadows.
So join me once more as I explore yet another often ignored environment, the spruce bog on Southern Ontario.
Nikon D800
Tamron SP 70-200mm f/2.8 Di VC USD@78mm
1/4 sec, f/9.0, ISO 400
For more images like this, please visit my Facebook page:
https://www.facebook.com/EdLehming
or my website (images are available for purchase)
http://www.edlehming.com
Ed Lehming Photography 
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