Colorless

So it looks like the fall foliage season this year will be a bust. The trees in the area of the Delaware Water Gap are still green, but turning pale. The lack of rain this fall will make it hard for the colors to appear. In a way I am not disappointed. I am trying to make my compositions stronger, not simply including brilliant color for the sake of it.

Below is a recent image from the Gap, in an area I've frequented before. One particular stream seems to yield numerous possible compositions, some I've dismissed before but as I persist I discover them over time.

Drama

Try as I may not to, I sometimes find myself getting into a photographic rut. I fear this happening again as the fall foliage season approaches (it is very late this year, due to the warm weather). It is very easy to go out and find beautiful color all over the countryside. Simply snapping photos of this color can yield many "pretty pictures", but making "pretty pictures" is just not enough. In fact when I hear the word "pretty" spoken during the shows I attend I cringe. When people see my photos simply as "pretty" then I think I have under-achieved. Anyone can create pretty pictures, but I want my portfolio to ultimately contain something a little deeper.

So in the limited time I typically have available to make images, I am more and more likely to try to think outside the "pretty" box. Maybe create a little drama. Try something a little different. In the image below I purposely grabbed my camera while heading out to work one morning, seeing the skies begin to clear from a few days of much-needed rain. I drove over to a local park and managed to catch a little drama in the skies. The image may need some more work but I am very happy to have created something that will elicit more than just the word "pretty".