Most of my photographs are broad vista shots - I love the vastness of the land, and I try to show that in my photographs. But there's a world of miniature beauty that those shots invariably fail to capture. On our last trip to Utah, I crouched on the ground over a stream to shoot this aspen leaf against the fantastic patterned ice.
It fits so well against the curves in the ice. Did you find it in that position or move it there? When I shoot small things it's always tempting to move them around - in my case usually to ill effect!
I too especially enjoy noticing the smaller, less grand things when out in the forest. Effectively capturing those little gems is tough! You've done well here.
This is stunning Varina. I have a style that begs the broader view as well, but it is one of my goals in 2009 to "see" the smaller stuff. Very nicely done.
philtax wrote:
It fits so well against the curves in the ice. Did you find it in that position or move it there? When I shoot small things it's always tempting to move them around - in my case usually to ill effect!
Phil
I did place the leaf, Phil. In fact, I spent some time searching for just the leaf I wanted - one that hadn't lost it's color to the season, that had a clean shape and a softly curving stem, and in particular, that held tiny crystals of ice. Luckily, I had a plethora to choose from. This one caught my eye almost immediately, and though I tried several others, I found myself returning to this one at the last and using it in the final image.
To process the image, I converted the image to black and white, added a slight bluish cast to the ice, and returned the natural color to the leaf. I tried to keep the processing as subtle as possible.
