At present I am addicted to taking photographs of the fallen leaves around our garden. As long as the sun is shining then twice a day I am out there at ground level with my camera resting on a little sandbag. It's surprisingly exciting. There are compositions, colour combinations, shapes that I have never dreamed of. And although I take many poor shots that end up quickly deleted, I never have a session without at least a few images that make me feel good about creating something new.
It always strikes me how impossible it is to see the possibilities with any kind of clarity whilst walking around. I can see where the potential lies - that's wherever there is a carpet of leaves lit by the low sun but to see all the glorious detail and how the layers might fit together you have to get down. All the way down. Fortunately, the flip screen on my camera means I usually don't have to quite lie on the ground, I can get away with squating. And I am getting quite adept at this squat position that so many people struggle with but is actually very useful!
My camera is always set to the longest telephoto. Sometimes that means the leaf I am photographing is too close but I will move back a bit rather than shorten the focal length - I want to get as much beautiful blur as I can and telephoto is the way to go.
Photos:
Down in the detail there is drama. At least in my imagination. I love these photos without needing to interpret or liken them to something else but at the same time sometimes I can't help myself. This one, for example, feels like a leaf that still has life in it bucking against the tethers of spider silk.
This one has a similar story to the one above with the addition of such a lovely range of tone and colour and a bare minimum of sharp focus.
The foreground and background were catching the sun in this picture with the "subject" in shade. When hunting for images it is more often the other way around.
Lips. Makes me smile.
An unrolling cigar with a lovely blurry purple leaf behind.
An example of a composition I would never have thought of until I got down low enough. The shaded leaves with sunny blurred green garden behind was not what I was expecting!
As the water is sucked out, the edges slowly curl inwards more and more as if the leaf is retreating inside.
A swimmer's arm...possibly with a shark following it...
A nicely crimped apex. Chocolate and mint.
At the right time of day there is a stunning richness of colours down there. But in some ways, photography is cheating in providing the blurriness that is not the way we actually see things.
My favourite from this set of images. I just find it satisfying. Such light tone in the blur in contrast to that dark, rich detail.
Looks like this ragged-edged old leaf must have had a hard life but probably has some good stories to tell...
