PICTURING NATURE

Walking around Haverford’s campus arboretum is a wondrous thing in every season, offering an array of picturesque landscapes and diverse flora and fauna, and inspiring the constant urge to pull out that cell phone camera and get a shot of it all.

Which is why it’s no surprise that the Haverford College Arboretum’s second annual photo contest drew more than 50 submissions picturing everything from majestic trees to gorgeous songbirds to a young buck serenely surveying the Duck Pond.

Arboretum Program Coordinator Jennie Kelly says those 50 submissions were winnowed down to the top 16 images for people to vote on.

“Anyone is allowed to vote for the winners,” she says. “The voting is done through a Google Form, and we publicize it heavily on our social media channels so that we get a wide array of votes. We also reach out to students, faculty, and staff through email.”

Last year’s first place winner was Sakina Gulamhusein ’25, who entered a photo of the bridge that lies between the Denis Asian Garden and the Gertrude C. Teaf Garden next to the Dining Center. “It was such a great shot that we ended up using it for the cover of our annual report,” says Kelly. —Eils Lotozo

LUCAS

Miller, a psychology major and data science and neuroscience double minor, took this shot in early November. “I took the picture standing outside the back exit of the Dining Center, looking down the path through the garden and trees there,” says Miller. “I really like the view down that pathway, so I had been taking pictures there each day I passed through. On that day, I really liked the way that the gradient of autumn colors framed the vibrant Blue Bus in the background. And, as pretty trees and the Blue Bus are such recognizable parts of Haverford and the Bi-Co, I think the picture nicely captures the vibe of Haverford.”

DARSHAN MEHTA ’25

Mehta, a computer science major, took this photo of the Duck Pond in October. Says Mehta, “I often walk by the area and take pictures when there’s something different, like a great angle of light through the clouds, or a nice sunset, or a particularly clear reflection in the water. This scene was one of the best from all the photos I’ve taken in the area. The trees hadn’t fully changed color yet, so there’s a nice mix of greens, yellows, and reds.”

PAULA SINGER

Singer, a social worker who lives nearby and has been walking the campus for years with her dogs, says she took this photo of the Duck Pond “early on an October morning when the campus was shrouded in a blanket of fog that made everything look mystical. What I love about the pond photo is the serene beauty of the setting, the deep jewel-tone colors, and the gauzy background that is reflected in the water.” Singer says she began taking daily photos of nature after the start of the pandemic, as a calming activity, and started sharing them on Facebook and Instagram with a group of friends. “When they told me the photos made them feel better, too, I began sharing them with a wider audience on a Lower Merion community site and the Friends of the Haverford College Nature Trail Facebook page.” Post-pandemic, Singer continues to post her photos on her own social media, and on the public platforms.

MEG BOWEN ’23

Bowen, a biology and music double major who graduated in May, took this photo in November 2020 near the Duck Pond. “I like how in my photo you can see the blurry background of the Duck Pond in the fall, but it’s focused on the detail of the spiderweb. I took a lot of morning walks during 2020 and each time my view of the pond was different.”

ASHRITH KANDULA ’26

Kandula, who is leaning toward a major in neuroscience, captured this image early on a January morning. “This nonbreeding male American goldfinch was sitting on an American sweetgum tree in the meadow near the Duck Pond,” he says. Kandula used a Canon digital camera and a lens extender to get the shot, which required, he says, “just a bit of patience to wait for one of the goldfinches in the flock to move down to eye level. The light-weight goldfinches love to hang from the strong stems of sweetgum capsules and pluck out the seeds with their sharp bills. I love how you can see that behavior here and the slight impression of another spherical seed pod on the right.”