Brrr! The deep plunge in temps is inspiring me to share this, as many of us will have woken up to a crisp autumn morning indeed!
This photograph is one of my early favorites from when I had recently transitioned from 35mm to medium format film. I essentially stalked this Sugar Maple over the duration of about 2 weeks, patiently waiting for the moment of perfection…
I had known about this beauty from frequent visits to a place that used to be just a hop, skip and a jump from where I lived - Whipple Dam State Park. On one early October afternoon, I went to investigate the color of the young Autumn in this forest and found that this maple had just begun to catch what I call “the fire.” It was green still, all but the tip of the central most branch in the image which was burning orange and I thought to myself - “I am going to keep an eye on you.”
Every 3 or 4 days over the next couple of weeks I went to check on the progression of things. Fortunately, we were having a lovely Fall that year. Color was evolving at a nice pace without disturbances and the maples in particular were glowing amidst the oaks, beeches, and pines. After several investigations, one late afternoon I stood admiring the scene, and knowing we were to have our first real frost that night said - “tomorrow morning is it!”
And so, on the morning of October 17th, 2012 I brewed my coffee pre-dawn, bundled up, drove over the mountain to the park and awaited the rising sun. It was such a peaceful morning and I recall truly reveling in my surroundings as I sipped my coffee, contemplating my life at that time and the beauty of this Autumn forest - the mist rising off the lake as dawn grew brighter, the thawing frosted leaves on the ground, and this fiery Sugar Maple standing proud in the midst of it all. And after I snapped the shutter a few times, I sat some more just breathing it all in - the look, feel, and smell of Autumn all around on this crisp, bountiful morning!
Albeit you most likely will not find the same vibrant color in mid-November as you would in mid-October (depending on your geographic location anyway), I urge you to get out and take a deep breath of some brisk morning mountain air sometime soon. The low light this time of year is beautiful, and you never know what you may find that speaks to you or the wonders it may do for your soul!
“On a Crisp Autumn Morning” - Brandon Kline