Autumn is when I get my eye for color
I love black and white photographs, it really gets my motor running. But… there is a time for color photography, and autumn is one of those times. Each year I start to look at the trees changing colors and enjoy the subtle and dramatic changes that happen day to day. The cool, dryer days with the sun hitting your skin while walking in the rustle of leaves at your feet is such a magical experience.
Monochrome images just can’t capture and convey the emotions of autumn in my view. Fall is the time for color imagery. Of course when shooting with color and fall woodland it presents new challenges for making meaningful photographs.
Color itself is a whole different disciple from monochrome. Black and white photographs are already one step removed from reality, making it easier to create images that evoke emotions, memories and feelings. Color on the other hand, puts you in a box of sorts. It’s really easy with today’s digital processing tools to go way overboard, creating images that don’t look plausible. My work depends on the image to be real (ish), not a entirely a fiction but something someone may have been able to see, feel and experience themselves. At the same time having an new experience with my image.
Then there is the challenge of capturing something from the chaos of the woodland. Oh my goodness is that hard… I have my hero’s in the woodland landscape discipline and have learned a few tips. However, nothing prepares you for how hard it is to get a good clean image that tells a story or strikes an emotional chord in a woodland. There is so much chowder everywhere you look in the forest. I think I have 3 images total that I like since I have been trying to capture the magic of the forest. Countless failures.
The image in this post was literally the last one I took on a recent outing to the forest. I was failing miserably and headed for the car. Off in the middle distance I saw this maple and birch intertwined together in the last display of color for a large portion of this woodland. I chose my 300mm lens so I could reach out and isolate the trees. With the light being really low due to fog and clouds, and wanting to focus the viewers attention to the trees, I chose a faster aperture than I may have for another landscape. This worked well with the longer lens and I was pretty happy with the results.
Woodland Photo Tips
If you want to try some woodland photography here are a few tips I use. Note: your mileage may vary
- Edit your composition. Keep only what is necessary in the frame
- Use longer focal length lenses OR get closer with wide lenses
- Eliminate the sky whenever possible
- Find compositions where there is a hillside or thick forest in the background
- Get low or get high, normal viewing height rarely works
- Shoot when fog is present for separation from your subject if possible
- Avoid sunny conditions. Bad weather makes for better woodland photos
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