I had been photographing long views of colorful aspen groves on mountainsides as the sun came up. Photography in quickly-changing early morning light can be intense, and ideal conditions only last a short time. As the sun rose the light soon become too intense for the photographs I was interested in, so I went for a stroll along the base of a nearby rocky hill where it was still shady.
The hill produced the conditions that made this photograph possible. The most obvious was that the shaded light remained soft, revealing subtle elements in this little scene. Because direct sunlight had not yet arrived, the fallen leaves were still covered in frost. Morover, it is likely that the leaves collected here in the first place because the hill provided some protection from wind.
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G Dan Mitchell is a California photographer and visual opportunist. His book, “California’s Fall Color: A Photographer’s Guide to Autumn in the Sierra” (Heyday Books) is available directly from him. Blog | Bluesky | Mastodon | Substack Notes | Flickr | Email
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At least here in more-or-less coastal California it has been cool. And now rain has arrived early!
Very nice! Love the one yellow leaf in there. Beautiful detail.
Thanks, Brenda. I think that a single colorful leaf like that works better here than a frame full of them!
Rather cool summer and now the leaves show their winter coat! Beautiful!