Fall colors and fading time

We say the same thing every year, and with every season: "Where has the time gone? How is it already fall? How is it that we've already consumed most of October?"

And yet it takes us by surprise every time.

With the unusual year we've had in central Indiana—an early spring, a scorching hot summer, severe drought conditions—many people worried that our fall would be a lackluster one.

If it is, it's subtle enough that I haven't noticed. Our leaves officially peaked last weekend, and the majority have now fallen, but I'm still enjoying some of the remaining colors.

Burning bushes, like this one right by my front door have always been a favorite of mine.

And I'm partial to red and orange-leafed trees. I photographed this one in a Danville park last weekend while I was researching a blog post for the HCCVB blog. I love the mix of yellow and deep orange.

Where has the time gone?

Late bloomers

It's the time of year when people from miles away flock to the Midwest to see the leaves turn color in their Autumn glory.

For those of us who live in such an area that cycles through four distinct seasons, it's easy to take the change of seasons—and the arrival of fall colors—for granted. Indiana will be seeing its colors peak over the next couple of weeks.

Brown County, in particular, draws thousands of visitors each year who want to witness the change of seasons and perhaps get a start on their Christmas shopping in Nashville. There's even an online Leafcam where you can check the progress of the fall colors as often as your heart desires, from the comfort of your chair at home. Weather.com also has an ever-changing map of the status of fall colors.

People are a little crazy about their fall colors!

Looking for more?

The Indiana Office of Tourism Development has a site devoted to fall activities around the state, including festivals, wineries, markets (Beasley's Orchard is highlighted, as well as one of my favorite places on the northwest side of Indy, Traders Point Creamery), and they even have a blog category devoted to fall color.

As we approach peak, I'm going to be toting my camera around. In the meantime, I caught these late-blooming flowers—a petunia above, and a rose below—that are sending us out of summer in style. 

Reason #173 to do yoga

I'm a big fan of yoga; I try to do it at least once a week. Tonight, I figured out reason #173 to continue making it a part of my routine.

Sometimes I see things that just call out to me to be photographed, and I can't walk away. Tonight, after watering my herb seedlings on the deck, I looked down and saw this maple leaf covered in misty droplets that was practically screaming my name.

I couldn't have staged it any better myself if I'd had a hose and a spray bottle full of water.

The bright green underside of this leaf practically glowed against the dark, soaked deck.

But how does yoga figure into this post? Well, getting these photos -- without getting soaked from sitting or lying on the deck -- required some serious maneuvering: 1) squatting as low as I could go, without my butt hitting the ground, 2) leaning over, between my knees, to get the macro shot, without my elbows hitting the ground, and 3) holding variations of that position long enough to shoot 80+ shots of one little leaf. Hooray for flexibility.

Sure, I could have gone back inside to get a towel and plop down, but where's the fun in that?

118/365 Radiant yellow leaves

Sunlight in the fading hours of the day is always beautiful, but I find it especially noticeable at this time of year, when it hits the changing leaves. When the tree is backlit, like the leaves are in this photo, it makes it look like the tree is nearly glowing.

Yellow leaves generally aren't among my favorites -- red and orange tend to overshadow them. But what do you think? Should they get more credit? What's your favorite leaf shade or tree in the fall?

Camera: Canon 40D, 1/500s, f/4 at ISO 100 at about 5:30 p.m. in direct sunlight, backlit.

109/365 Parking lot: changing leaves

I love the beauty of a tree that has fully changed into its fall colors, but I always get a kick out of finding one that is halfway between the two seasons. This one, at the back of our parking lot at work (a part of theme week!), was half green and half orange. I could have nearly drawn a defined line between the two shades, it was so clear.

No doubt about it, fall has arrived!

Camera: Canon 40D, 1/500s, f/4 at ISO 100 at about 12:15 p.m.

107/365 Parking lot: fallen leaf

It's 'Scenes from the Parking Lot' theme week, and today's subject absolutely stopped me in my tracks.

Okay, perhaps that's a little dramatic, but I'm completely serious. I was at work, headed out the door on my way to run an errand at lunch, and this perfect orange leaf completely captivated me! My coworkers probably thought I was being a little odd, but I squatted down in the parking lot for a good five minutes photographing this leaf from every possible angle.

The orange leaf, by itself, lying on the black asphalt was just beautiful. I love the contrasts in both color and texture between the two.

If you had any doubt that fall had arrived, this erases it!

Camera: Canon PowerShot SD1000 at about 12:15 p.m.

222/365 Fallen leaves

Most of the beautiful fall leaves have fallen now, so I turned my gaze to the ground instead of overhead -- just to catch the last bit of their glory.

I have to say, although the idea of living somewhere where the yearly average temperature hovers around 75°F sounds lovely, I think I would miss the change of seasons. I've heard from people who've lived elsewhere, in more static environments, remark that the change of seasons helps you feel the passage of time.

I'd never make it in Alaska.

Camera: Canon 40D with 430EX Speedlite fill, 1/125s, f/4.5 at ISO 640 at about 6:00 p.m.

215/365 Fall leaves

I couldn't resist another leaf photo. We only have peak color for a short period of time, so I want to get as many photos as I can while it's here!

I'm glad I got this photo when I did, because this week we've had more rain and wind, meaning many of our lovely leaves have been knocked to the ground. The evidence is all over my deck, which was clear on Monday night, but covered again by Wednesday morning.

Living surrounded by big maple trees is wonderful except at two times of the year: when they drop their "whirlybird" (or "helicopters," as Chase and I always called them) seeds in the spring, and when they lose their leaves in the fall.

Cleanup is a bit of a pain.

Camera: Canon 40D, 1/125s, f/5.6 at ISO 100 at about 5:00 p.m.

214/365 Golden leaves

As a rule, my favorite fall trees are most often those with bright red leaves, followed closely by vivid orange.

But this year, I've found myself struck by the yellow-leafed trees. Some environmental factor(s) must have aligned in a way this year that make these trees almost appear luminous in the sunshine.

On Saturday afternoon I finally got a chance to pull off to the side of the road when the sun was shining to photograph some of these golden leaves. This stretch of roadway, where the trees meet overhead to create a tunnel, is always a particularly beautiful area.

Why can't all fall days look like this?

Camera: Canon 40D, 1/125s, f/4 at ISO 100 at about 4:30 p.m.

184/365 Before and after

On the first full day of fall [insert shock here], I came across this scene, and it looked to me like a before-and-after shot.

On the left? Summer.
On the right? Fall.

Yep, summer is gone. And as if Mother Nature wanted to put that in bold type, underlined, in italics, and in all caps, we've hardly seen the sun all week. It's like the dreariness I associate with November arrived overnight.

Maybe positive thinking is the way to go. I'll try thinking of hot apple cider. Red, orange and yellow leaves. Pumpkin pie. Sweet potatoes. No mosquitoes. Reading a book by a fire.

There, that helped!

Camera: Canon PowerShot SD1000 at about 5:45 p.m. under overcast skies

230/365 Final darkroom class

Thursday night marked my final night of darkroom class, meaning I have completed all of the courses toward my Photography Certificate! I'll now compile a portfolio that represents what I've learned in each class, the portfolio will be reviewed by a teacher, and I'll be done.

My knowledge of photography, including everything from how to use the camera to what makes a good and better photo, has improved immensely since I've started taking these classes. As I was going back through old negatives, trying to find some I wanted to use in the darkroom, I had trouble choosing any because I can see now how I could greatly improve on everything.

Some people can pick up a book and learn something new simply by reading. I can do that to an extent, but I know that I learn much faster when I can learn from a person and ask questions. (For that reason, I rarely read book assignments in college, and I rarely skipped class.)

I really enjoyed my darkroom class because it was all hands-on. I loved seeing the exposure magically appear on the page while submerged in developer, and I loved coming home with hard-copy evidence of what I'd learned that night. I didn't love it enough to invest in building my own darkroom, though, so I sold the rest of my paper to a classmate.

The photo above is at the same park where I've been stopping before class each week. The leaves are now beginning to fall, but the sunlight through these trees was incredibly eye-catching.

Camera: Canon PowerShot SD1000 at about 5:45 p.m.

213/365 Fallen leaves with magnetic edges

Driving home last night, my eyes kept straying to the sky. Not only was the sun starting to set, but the clouds reminded me of a down comforter, spread evenly across the sky at one altitude, just letting light through the seams.

Then, when I got home and walked to the pond, what caught my eye was the reflection of those clouds in the water, broken only by the fallen leaves stuck together at their magnetic edges.

So, for that reason, I like the multiple layers of this photo.

Camera: Canon 40D 1/125s, f/5.6 at ISO 200 at about 6:00 p.m.