I have long been a sucker for backlight. I’m attracted to the glow of light coming straight at me, and I’m intrigued by the dark shadowed sides of objects and by the beams of light that lead toward the camera. Put a forest full of trees in front of me in that light and I cannot resist.
There are some challenges to photographs like this one. One, of course, is dealing with the astonishingly large dynamic range of such scenes, ranging from direct sun to very deep shadows. Exposure is tricky — in this case I was able to use a single exposure, set to avoid totally blowing out the bright tones while planning to recover the dark tones in post. Another challenge is finding subjects and compositions that work. In this case I thought of advice from a friend and retired Yosemite ranger (Hi Mike!) who once said something related to thinking about what the landscape might hold beyond what is in your immediate vision. That was on my mind as I walked up this little hill to find these trees and discover a composition among them.
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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.
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