Musings
Autumn Moods '16
As with many people in the landscape community I am very mood driven and the pictures will show in no uncertain terms what I was feeling when I made them. Over the next few pages you will find this years attempt of capturing my souls voice as well as my own thoughts on particular shots. I will try and put them in chronoligical order to hopefully show the progression of the colour and feel. My kit for this yearly adventure changes periodically and this year it is compact and comprises of : Why do we love Autumn? Is it the colours, the crispness in the air, the Sigma SD Quattro ability to wrap up warm and cosy? I'd say Sigma 17-50 EX Lens yes to all three. Gitzo Systematic Series 2 Carbon Fibre Let's get something clear here , it is Autumn and not Fall as our transatlantic Tripod cousins call it. Autumn evokes an image of yellows, oranges,reds, browns, stew at the end of a day, pumpkins, thick knitwear and luscious socks, it evokes a passion that does as much for the soul as it does for the eyes. Fall evokes an image of an elderly relative breaking a hip!
Gitzo Series 2 Off-Centre Ballhead I am finding these days that having less kit seems to focus my mind in that I'm not searching for what to use. I hope you enjoy the photographs and if you do feel free to contact me with any questions, thoughts or abuse.
Romantics have waxed lyrical about Autumn for years and every year I try my hardest to give up my soul to it and Davie attempt to have my camera show what I feel, I never know if I have managed it but I will continue trying never the less. I would describe my style as Environmental and Organic, I shoot very naturally and I hope that shows in the images. The images to me are 'me' in image form in that they represent everything I am, every book I have read, all the music I have listened to and everytime I have loved and lost... all these things and so much are the inspiration for how these images look.
Taken in Glen Etive, an area I class as my spritual home, this shot is more likely missed by everyone else because it's not obvious, it's a bit left field really ..... This was almost pre-autumn but the bracken and rowan berries were showing colour and that made it worthwhile.
All about the detail, and for me details are important ... it's a story of the life of the leaf before it fell to become one with the land again
In early October I decided to go away for a 3 day trip and very early day one I saw this, I don't know what it had but the shape and light colour in the extremities are what appealed to me.... it was a nice surprise when I got home.
The next few shots are part of a series taken in my local woods. One of the best things about Autumn for me is not having to travel far, anywhere that has trees and woods will do and these woods are 10 minutes from my house. I love the colour tone of these shots, you know it's Autumn but they have a warming feel about them and they were all organic, nothing was staged.
When you enter the forest floor it's like a different world, a world that so many ignore when all they have to do it look down. The combination of Greens and Browns are delicious.
Yes I was lying face down for these but I hope you agree it was worth it? I love the combination of new life mixed with the outgoing foliage.
It was the light on offer that made this shot, landscape photography is all about light and they don't all have to be wide open vista.
This shot wasn't designed to be comfortable , there is a darkness within all of us and I am allowed to show mine in picture form. A form of therapy?
A monkey puzzle tree with a dead branch drew my eye, the deepness in the colour was irresistable. I love the idea of impermanence and the Japanese idea of Wabi-Sabi in accepting the passing of time and maybe this is why Autumn is so special to me.
The movement of water is a beautiful thing and whilst a lot of photographers will use filters to "candyfloss" the water I prefer to allow the speed of the water to create it's own movement.... the highlight in the image for me is the bottom 'fall' with the lines of water clearly shown.
Standing by a waterfall and I done my usual.... Ignored the obvious for this colourful leaf, it is almost a metaphor for the spread of Autumn.
As an avid environmentalist I find the fact that nature has refused to stop in the face of man's attempt to shackle it. .... it's a beautiful thing.
I was aiming for a dream like feeling here and I like my images (if possible) to not show any time restrictive content meaning this scene could have been from anytime....it's timeless.
I originally thought of this as a throwaway shot , that was until I started playing with it and it took me elsewhere. It took me to a mystical feel, of a glow eminating from behind the tree, pulling you towards it in a trance like state.
By this point I am fully immersed in Autumn, I feel I'm becoming part of it and it is responding by giving me many opportunities for photographs. I have always felt to photograph anything successfully you need to have a connection, a deep profound love that isn't easily explained, you feel it, you wear it and immerse yourself in it for a year
The feeling I was looking for in this shot was that of contentment, it's a Sunday stroll wrapped up all warm , kicking leaves up in the air.
The next 3 images all scream AUTUMN!! They are all about colour and reflection, the best Autumn has to offer, the location for this series is Loch Faskally in Perthshire.
My inner classical painter once again came to the fore here, it just makes me happy to look at these colours with the warm tone and the glow of the sky. There really is no season like it.
I would class this as a throwaway shot, and what I mean by that is it iwas a very simple click and I'm done... it just sometimes happens like that.
A bridge from colour to colour... the colours here are striking and added to the green of the bridge made the shot for me . the strange thing is while I was taking it there was people bungee jumping alongside me.
The beautiful pink of this toadstool stood out amongst the autumn colours. I loved the 'bite' that had been taken out showing the flute underneath.
I felt as if I was looking at an Autumn cascade when I originally saw, like raindrops transformed into the glorious colours of the season.
A different look, a darker more sinister look I feel... I sometimes get that feeling when walking around woodlands on my own and I think it is a reflection of my mood.
What I would give to live in that house, what an absolutely stunning tree.
I knew when I travelled to this location the shot I was looking for, this was that shot and I am more than happy to get it. I would like to think it is a well balanced look at Autumn lovliness.
There was nothing planned about this shot at all, I was driving around Braemar in Aberdeenshire looking left and right and going as slowly as possible when I looked into a forest and saw this one golden tree amongst the pines..... there is a life lesson here, never be afraid to be yourself and stand out from the crowd.
I spent a lot of time on this shot, it had something but I didn't know what. After playing for a while I realised that it was too sharp... too harsh, so I softened it and gave it a warm glow... then my mind started wandering to Constable paintings and the way the leaves looked.... that lead me to wanting a shot that has a warming feel.... pumpkins, old leather, wood, cinnamon, wool scarf, gloves, crisp mornings, leaves crunching underfoot ......that is where this image should take you.
The Golden Glow of Autumn, as the season comes to a close the colours take on a beautiful glow of finality.
It pains me that the majority of people miss what is under their feet, look at what you are missing.
There is a mystical feel about these two pictures. I have tried to adequately show the magical nature of the forest and the autumn colours just make the whole thing better.
The first hill snow of the season and what a beautiful time for it to happen, I stood and waited for this scene to open up and when it did it rewarded me with the shaft of light coming from the left.
Two of my very favourite things, moving water and Autumn colours.... People say you can't have everything, I beg to differ.
As you will no doubt be aware I love detail and that is what this shot is all about... I feel people need to look around them more, stop, smell the roses and phototgraph them if you can.
I have come to the end of my Autumn affair for 2016,and I think i'm ending it on a high, this shot to me is the pinnacle of my months immersion in Autumn. I feel looking at this that it has everything I feel about the season and I am more than happy to be going out on this shot as I actually look at it and smile, a rare feat indeed. Looking down the path it has intrigue, what is down the path? It is The Wizard of Oz.... you open the door and everything is in colour. This is therapy right here, this is the culmination of Friluftsliv(Norwegian Fresh Air Living) and the Japanese Shinrin-yoku (Forest Bathing) and will do more for your mental health than years of therapy. The season for me has been very prolific from a photography point of view and I think I am 'getting it' in that I embraced it fully. I hope you enjoyed looking at the shots and reading my thoughts on them. As always all shots in this eBook are available as limited edition prints for a limited time. For any enquiries I can be contacted through my website : www.redstagphotography.co.uk Davie Hudson November 2016