As we near the end of the autumn season I wanted to take some time to reflect and go over some of the photos I was able to capture here in the Richmond area. Fall out in this area is stunning, since there is such a wide variety of trees and other flora, the colors you get to see and experience out here are truly wonderful. I went into this fall season with high hopes and tons of inspiration of the kinds of shots I wanted to get and I was not disappointed.
The first set of images were taken early in the season when the first few leaves were changing and beginning to fall. I went to a favorite local park of mine that has so much to offer. I went down to my usual spot which is this beautiful hidden away creek that flows through the forest. At this point the water level was low so I was able to scramble around on some rocks and walk out more into the water. Since the trees were not in full color yet, I wanted to focus more on the leaves have already fallen. I was searching out for some leaves that were just alone, nothing really in groups, also ones that were laying on a rock or in an interesting formation under the water.
This is the first image of the fall and I love how simple it is. I saw the leaf and knew that I had to get a shot with it because I love how it is laying the rock and with it being wet adds some nice sparkle to it. I also went with a long exposure because if I hadn't, then the image would have felt too busy and chaotic. One thing I would have done differently is to use a shallower depth of field and shoot closer to f/3.5 only because I feel that the rock in the top right corner being sharp is a little distracting. If it was blurry, then it could have blended in more with the softness of the water and not take away from the subject. Other than that, I love this photo, especially since the color of the leaf is so striking and contrasts so well with the darker background.
This next image has become one of my favorites also because of how simple it is, like it is just a picture of a leaf. However, what drew me to it is that there is so much happening in the leaf and I wanted to put it all front and center. First off we have every color of fall represented in this one leaf. There are hints of green on the left side and as you move left to right it transitions to yellow, then orange, and finally red at the tips on the right side. Then you are also able to see the veins spreading out from the stem since they are green and are able to contrast the darker colors in the center and right side.
There is also wonderful texture happening with the small dark spots in the center and also the larger ones found on the bottom right. Those larger spots are also so interesting to me since they all have a deep red halo around them, further adding to the contrast.
I will say that this image suffers from the same issue as the first one in that the background is sharp and in focus. With this one especially I feel that it is more distracting and takes away a little from the subject. The rock in the top left is also getting light which adds a little more to the distraction. However, I do love how the background just fades into a sea of black as you move from top to bottom, further isolating the leaf from everything else.
A few weeks go by and I am now getting up for a sunrise shoot at a park along the James River called Pony Pasture, this is the same location where I went last fall and took the image featured in Getting Back Into It Pt.1. Going into this shoot I didn't really have any expectations to get any shots with fall colors since the trees were still not showing much, but I still wanted to get out.
As I was approaching and crossing the bridge over the river, I looked out and saw that there was a fog hanging a little higher in the sky above the water so I was interested to see what was going to happen. I parked and headed out along the path and this time I went a little further than I would normally have. I then did a little bit of scrambling on some rocks to get just a little bit further out into the water. I made it out onto a nice little rock where I decided to get my camera out and set up. I started with trying to find a composition out west and up river, since the sun would light everything up that way.
I wasn't finding anything that struck my eye, so then as the sun began to light up the sky out east, I noticed a potential shot with all the rocks scattered around in the river. So I lined up my composition with a set of rocks in the foreground and a group of rocks further out in the river in the mid and background. With the early morning light, I was able to get a longer shutter speed, which I loved since it was close to 30 seconds and really smoothed out the water, further making the rocks stand out.
As the sun finally began to rise, it was casting beautiful light on the water and it was something that I wanted to capture. I snapped a few shots, but they weren't turning out how I wanted them too, mainly because I was shooting straight into the sun my shutter speed was pretty low. So I put on my 10 stop ND, lowered my shutter speed to around 30 seconds and took the shot. The result was perfect. The water was silky smooth, the light on the water was excellent, and the sun getting diffused by the fog was a nice cherry on top. I really enjoy the high contrast look the image has with the rocks and trees being pretty much all in shadow, then the water and sky being bright highlights.
This next one is from a few weeks later at Pony Pasture as well. There was a light mist on the river which I always love since it adds such an interesting element and atmosphere to the landscape. As I was waiting for the sun to rise, I was looking all around for compositions and I did my usual method of looking at what was closest to me to act as any foreground interest. But since nothing was immediately catching my eye, I turned my focus to all the trees across the river. I spotted this scene, mainly because of the tree that stands out from the sea of leaves. I love how it stands out against all of the colors of the leaves behind it.
I really enjoy the hints of fall colors coming out, and how they are all almost in a strip across the middle of the frame. It also helps that the upper half of the frame is practically all still green, and the lower half is washed out because of the mist.
I do find myself going back and fourth on how I feel about the mist in this image however. Sometimes I really enjoy it and I feel that it adds a nice atmosphere to the scene, and cools it down a bit. But on the other hand, I feel that it can sometimes be a little distracting from what I was aiming to showcase which was the blooming fall colors. When I was editing the shot, I did play around with cropping it to where the river was not visible, but then I would lose a bit more of the yellows on the right side, and then there was also no context as to why the bottom of the frame looked a little hazy.
Again at Pony Pasture (theres a common theme here), this shot has become another one of my favorites. This time I was out with my fiancée and we were taking a walk through inland part of the park. We rounded the corner and through the trees I saw this small bridge just begging to get its photo taken. So after a minute of getting setup and locking my composition in, I landed with this image. There are so many things I love about this one, first off, how there is a transition from the golden leaves to green leaves as you go across the frame left to right. The branches of the trees also form an arch over the bridge, making it look like they are part of a larger structure. This also acts as a subframe bringing more attention to the bridge.
The one thing that I would like to be different is to potentially have someone walking across the bridge, or standing on it, just to add a little more to the image. I feel like adding that could give the viewer a little more context as to what they are looking at. It's not hard to find the bridge here, but I do feel like it does blend in to the background so adding a figure standing on it could really help bring it out.
Nearing the end of peak fall colors, this next image was again taken at Pony Pasture, and this is the type of atmosphere I love when there is mist on the river. I took a few other shots this morning, but this is by far my favorite from the day. This was a few minutes after sunrise and since the mist was so thick, the sun was just lighting it up so well in this one spot of the river.
For this one I had to under expose quite a bit because the sun was so intense thought the mist. I also originally planned on using my 10 stop ND filter to smooth out the mist, but I decided against it because I really liked the forms and shapes the mist was taking on. The shot is simple too, its just a tree, a bush, and golden light, which I think makes it have a bit of a spooky vibe to it, especially since everything is silhouetted. The tree emerging from the mist and also having a sharp lean to it also adds to that ominous feel. It gives off a creepy, looming over you energy. And I mean, this shot is your typical Halloween colors too.
