Photographing Fall Colors

Fall colors are spectacular right now. This past weekend we were able to spend some time shooting close to home.

This image taken from top of Brandywine Falls in Cuyahoga National Park. We arrived just before sunrise, and Varina used a wide angle lens to capture the color in the sky before it faded. She bracketed the shot in order to capture the entire dynamic range, and then used our manual iHDR technique to combine three images.


Overcast skies are common this time of year, and they provide soft, even lighting - which is ideal for back-lighting fall leaves. Soft directional lighting lets the leaves glow without leaving them overexposed. Jay took this photograph off-trail at Liberty Park.


While enjoying the fall colors, don't forget to notice the small details. Jay took this shot of water droplets on a leaf early in the morning. He used a translucent silk scarf to diffuse the light and prevent harsh shadows and highlights.


We try to make the most of reflections at any time of year, but in the fall, they can be particularly beautiful. In this photograph from last year, Jay used the calm waters of Maroon Lake in Colorado to capture the reflection of the fall colors on the mountains. Jay choose NOT to use his circular polarizer filter because it would have minimized the reflections of the mountains and clouds.


And finally, make the most of Autumn's stormy weather. Passing storms can mean great light. When the clouds open up, make sure you are ready to capture incredible fall color juxtaposed beside dramatic skies!


Tips for Photographing Falls Colors

• Fall colors are easiest to photograph under a thin, even cloud cover. This provides soft overcast light that helps balance out the highlight and shadows.
• Don't forget to notice the details - pay attention to water droplets on leaves, and the texture of bark on the trees.
• Use a circular polarizer to reduce scattered light and enhance Fall colors. This is especially effective when you are photographing wet leaves.
  
• When necessary, use a GND filter to balance the light. This will bring out the details in every part of the image.
• Look for reflections to enhance the colors of the fall images. Don't use a circular polarizer when you are trying to capture reflections.
  

Featured Download: Cuyahoga Valley

Today's featured background image is from right here in Ohio. I took this photograph in Cuyahoga Valley National Park a year or two ago. I hadn't planned on shooting that day, but the sky was so incredible that I packed up my gear and went out with my youngest son. He loved the walk, and I got a few photographs of our beautiful park. This will be my computer wallpaper for the next couple of weeks. :) I hope you enjoy it, too.

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Featured Downloads

Here's another downloadable shot for your collection. :) Our front lawn is now spotted with pretty yellow leaves from the River Birch outside our bedroom window. I love this time of year, not least because I know I'd better enjoy the beautiful weather while it lasts - winter is coming. I took this shot two years ago - right in our back yard. I loved the pattered frost on the red and gold leaves. I hope you enjoy the shot!

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More free wallpaper is available at our Download Site.

These images are provided for personal use as computer wallpaper or backgrounds ONLY. Copyright belongs to the photographer, and photographs cannot be used, redistributed, or recreated in print or on the web or on any other medium without written permission from the photographer.

Thistle

Here's a shot I took at Infirmary Mound Park in Granville, Ohio. The sun was near the horizon behind me, and the golden light outlined these beautiful seed pods against the shadowed field. The beautiful cloud in the foreground was lit up as well, and I liked the way it balanced the composition - soft lit clouds in the upper left, and spiky thistles on their slender stems in the lower left.

This is an example of contrast of form and texture - rather than color or tone. When you think of contrast, you are often thinking of black vs. white, or bright vs. dark. In this case, I couldn't help but notice the contrast between soft and prickly - which is highlighted by the more ordinary contrast between light and shadow.

We came out of this field covered in poky little burrs, but it was worth it. The park is absolutely beautiful - I look forward to shooting there again sometime.

Back in Ohio

We photographed the grist mill at Babcock State Park in West Virginia this morning. We've been here once before, but we wanted to return when the colors were at their peak. We did get some nice color over the river. It rained all morning, so we took turns holding an umbrella over our cameras so we could both get the shots we wanted. I don't generally shoot buildings, but this one has a bit of character that makes it a bit more interesting to me... you'll find a few lighthouse shots on my website too. :)

The skies cleared very quickly around mid-day, and by sunset they were nearly cloudless. Rather than shooting, we drove to Athens Ohio and checked into our hotel early. We've been working on our websites for the past couple of hours. Tomorrow, we hope to shoot the sunrise before meeting my sister for lunch near Columbus.

Rain

We drove down to Hocking county this afternoon - it's been raining since we left. We didn't expect to catch any good weather today, but we did have a chance to explore some locations we hadn't visited yet. The colors are beautiful in places, and completely gone in others. After spending some time hiking in Ohio, we drove on to West Virginia. We'll be shooting here tomorrow and then heading back to Ohio for a Sunday shoot.

West Virginia and Ohio

With any luck, we'll be shooting more fall color this weekend - in Southern Ohio and West Virginia. We expect to see colors at their peak in some of the most beautiful locations in these states. We've scouted these areas in the past, so we know where we'd like to be - but we'll be watching the skies carefully for clues to the best shooting locations. I'd love to see some color in the sky like our sunrise this morning - it was absolutely spectacular... bright reds fading to pink and taking over the sky as the morning progressed.

We're looking at overcast skies in the region for the next day or two - perfect for shooting waterfalls all day long... and there are so many falls to choose from. We hope to get a nice sunset on Saturday evening as the skies begin to clear up a bit. I'll try to keep you posted from hotel rooms along the way.

Here's a shot from our last trip to West Virginia - Left Fork Holly River - Holly River State Park, WV.
I spent a good part of the week processing, key-wording, uploading, and categorizing stock photos - and working on my website. I am working to create individual web pages for my articles, so that it is no longer necessary to download them to your computer. Jay and I generally work together on our articles, so these pages would be available from both our websites.

New Hampshire

I hope I can spend more time in New Hampshire very soon. This shot is from the White Mountain region at Crawford Notch State Park. We were only in New Hampshire for a few hours, but we found some beautiful locations at this park. After sunrise, we passed this beautiful grove of trees and decided to pull over and take a few shots in the river. I cleaned out some of the dead leaves caught between the rocks, and put my camera down low on my tripod. I was able to get very close to this rock since I was using my wide 10-22mm lens. The inherent distortion makes the rock and the leaf seem large, since they are close to the lens. It exaggerates the distance between the foreground objects and the trees on the other side of the river. I love the depth I can create in an image with this technique, and you'll notice it in many of my photos.

I used a circular polarizer filter to cut through the reflections on the water and let me see the rocks underneath. The filter also enhances the color a bit, but I try not to let that get out of control. I can tone it down a bit in PhotoShop if necessary, but in this case, I was comfortable with the finished product. I used a long exposure to blur the water in the foreground. I wanted to capture the light coming through the leaves in the background, and also through the red leaf in the foreground.

Blaze of Color

This is Camden Hills State Park. We weren't expecting any clouds that evening, so we were very happy to see these. I took this shot as the sun touched the horizon. I wanted to capture the light shining through the leaves, the soft color in the sky, and the flare from the sun. This is one of those shots you have to do a little planning for.

I used a 3 stop GND filter to reduce the dynamic range as much as possible - but it was necessary to use bracketed exposures as well. I knew I would need to combine at least two shots in Photoshop. I also shot with a very small aperture in order to produce the flare you see here. I always use a tripod - to keep the camera steady for a longer exposure, and also because I want to be sure that bracketed shots line up as perfectly as possible. The air was very still that evening, too - so I didn't have to worry about moving branches or leaves.

I have a few more photos in the works. As I said, we didn't get too many shots from this trip, but we did find some beautiful places to visit next time!

More Maine.

We drove down to Acadia this morning and decided to spent a little extra time exploring the park. Next time we're in Maine, we'll know exactly where to shoot if we get some nice cloud patterns. It's a beautiful park - especially at this time of year - and we're looking forward to our next trip. We'd like to be able to shoot in the Northeast in Autumn for the next few years. Three our four visits should be a start at capturing some really nice locations under beautiful skies.

We did get lucky this evening. A few clouds gathered over Camden Hills State Park near Penobscot Bay. I got a few shots of the Autumn leaves and then photographed the sunset over the distant mountains. We were lucky to be in the right place at the right time. Maybe next year we'll get some more impressive weather. For now, we're pleased to have been able to explore some of this beautiful state. We have our plans laid out for our next trip - though plans are always subject to adjustment due to changing weather patterns. :)

We'll be out early tomorrow morning to do a bit more exploring before we need to return to the airport. I am looking forward to processing some photos when I'm back at home.

Rise and Shine...

We slept in this morning since weather conditions are less than ideal today. We were up around 7am. We are booking a room near the park we're hoping to visit tomorrow, and then we'll be on our way. We'll explore Acadia today. We hope to find a good location to shoot this evening, and then we'll head towards the White Mountain region of New Hampshire. We'd like to find some nice colors in Crawford Notch. On Monday, we'll be flying back home.

Lots of driving....

Boy am I tired! We were up at 3am this morning. We made the long drive to Grafton Notch and arrived before sunrise. We photographed a couple of beautiful waterfalls, but unfortunately, the skies were not too exciting. The foliage in the park was fantastic, but there wasn't much color near the falls. After sunrise, we drove North and East to take a look at some of the countryside before making our way to Bangor to check into our hotel. We did another quick weather check, and then drove North to Baxter State Park. The park is truly beautiful, and we did take a couple of shots. Unfortunately, the weather hasn't been too cooperative this weekend so far. We have our eye on a front that is moving South towards the coast, so we'll be heading to Acadia National Park tomorrow. I have my fingers crossed. We're back in Bangor, now - we spent 5 or 6 hours driving today.

I can't complain about the weather, really. I like to know exactly where to go when the right weather hits, and a first trip is never ideal. We always do as much exploring as possible during our first stay at any location. Then, when the skies are right, we know exactly where to go. We have found some really nice locations in this beautiful state, and we'll do more scouting tomorrow. If we get a few nice shots along the way, we'll consider ourselves lucky.

Pemaquid Point

We're loving Maine. The coast is absolutely beautiful - smooth, grooved rocks stretching for miles, and beautiful lighthouses everywhere you go. The skies were completely uninteresting today, but we stopped to explore Pemaquid Point. I did take a couple of shots despite the dull skies, but we'll have to return to this location under better conditions. Tomorrow, we are likely to head North - or possibly West. Weather reports are showing the edge of a front at the Northern tip of Maine, and another patch of storm clouds a couple of hours West of us. That's what we need for great skies. We hope to find ourselves some beautiful autumn color as well.

Tonight, we're staying at a Super 8 in Agusta. We're taking a look at weather maps and doing some research before we head to bed. We may be getting up pretty early tomorrow - depending upon where we decide to begin the day.

Autumn...

Tomorrow, we leave for Maine. We plan to fly into Boston, and we'll shoot sunset and sunrise on the coast before making the drive to Acadia. Of course, those are tentative plans. Our plans change on a dime if weather conditions call for it. We are looking forward to this trip - it's been a long summer, and we are ready to take out our cameras once again. I am ready for a few days of very little sleep, cold fingers, and long hikes. :) I'm hoping for some great light, too.

I'll try to update my blog as often as possible while we're away, but as you know, it's hard to find reliable internet connection. I'll do my best.

Jay and I are currently working on a couple of new technical articles. I also have another personal article in the works. It will take some time to get details hammered out, but we may have some time to work in the airport and during our flights.

Thank You!

I want to thank all of you who took the time to email me to let me know what you thought of my new website. I appreciate all your comments. Amazingly enough, not one person told me they'd found a bug... so either the site is perfect, or you are all just being nice. :) Thanks so much for taking the time to look over the site and send me emails. It makes a world of difference.

This shot is one of the many new images you'll find on my website. Actually, I took the photo a couple of years ago while we were living in France, but I never processed it. I can't imagine why not - in fact, it may be one of my favorite shots from the trip. This is Grand Saut - one of many Cascades du Herrison. I waded into the river to get the shot - my jeans were wet, and my legs were freezing - but I think it was worth it. I was able to get a clean shot after waiting for the wind to settle.

Jay and I are planning another trip for next weekend. We'll be photographing the coast of Maine. We're hoping for some spectacular colors out there. I'm more than ready to get back to the wilderness. That's where I'm most at home. This will be our first trip to Maine, and I'm really looking forward to adding something new to my portfolio!