Tuesday, September 16, 2014

Autumn leaves, ahead of the crowd

I think autumn is here, in Raleigh, although we're still six days shy of the fall equinox.  Sometimes the not-entirely-healthy leaves show their colors and drop to the ground ahead of most.  This one captured a bit of fluff from a bird's plumage, and stayed put just long enough for me to grab a photo before a breeze shifted everything.

(On most monitors, this view will be several times life-size.)


Permalink: http://jilcp.blogspot.com/2014/09/autumn-leaves-ahead-of-crowd.html

10 comments:

  1. Fascinating shot - the bird feather looks like a skeleton...very Halloweenie!

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    1. Yes, it made me think of a fish skeleton! To the naked eye, it just looked...fluffy.

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  2. Today's cartoon from the New Yorker is a perfect rejoinder to your picture! http://www.newyorker.com/humor. The cartoon features two orange leaves walking down the sidewalk with a fresh, green leaf behind them. One orange leaf says to the other, "She's had work!"

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    1. That's a great one! I'm afraid the leaf I found was not very cosmetically nice, but the color drew me from quite a distance, and the fluffy feather was an unexpected bonus. I liked the effect of the "wrinkles" and "age spots".

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  3. What a great shot! How often would all these elements combine? I'm reminded of a quote from my favorite author, Sue Grafton: "A job of this kind requires ingenuity, patience, and systematic routine, but success sometimes hinges on pure luck and a touch of magic" p, 16, "M is for Malice."

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    1. Grafton is one of my favorite authors too! Louis Pasteur said something like "chance favors only the prepared mind". I know that good luck has played an important role in almost every photo of any worth that I've ever created. On the other hand, I've tried to tutor myself to be aware of things, and to be ready to work with them to get something interesting. The result has been that I seem to have gotten a bit luckier as time passes. A touch of magic is my ultimate dream! I wish that I always had Kinsey Millhone's patience and organization, but some progress is made.

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  4. I think turning a feather into a fish skeleton is magic.

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  5. Have you ever photographed fall leaves as they fall to the ground. In mid air, so to speak? I think that would be fun!

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    1. I've only shot them falling after a portrait subject threw a bunch in the air. Catching one (or more) in mid-air when randomly dropping off branches is a challenge, and one I intend to pursue this fall. Watch for it!

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