“Don’t Pass Me By”
Brilliant beauty is everywhere. This single red maple leaf, edges covered with hoarfrost, made me stop in my tracks. It was just hanging there waiting for me to discover. Just a few ice crystals held it captured on the branch. After taking several photos, I turned around to look for other treasures. I glanced back, the red was not there. The leaf had fallen to the ground.
Lesson Learned: Never pass up a gift!
Hoarfrost
The leaves have fallen. A few stragglers remain. Hoarfrost on the remaining vegetation is a mild reminder that winter is on its way. Walking around our yard in the midst of beautiful branches and leaves covered with ice crystals was like walking through a wonderland. It was a gift from above.
Bloedel Reserve, Bainbridge Island, Washington
Happy Thanksgiving to all. Here’s an abundant harvest of pumpkins and squashes from the Bloedel Reserve.
Today is a special day to give thanks for our health, families, friends, and the wonderful world that we live in. Each day, each moment is a gift. Each of our roles is to step back and cherish each moment we are given, to live a full life, to make the world around us a little better, and to make someone’s life a bit happier.
“October Glory”
This is the first tree I planted after moving “back home” to Selah, WA in 2016. I planted it for its fall color. I am not disappointed. Last fall I planted 3 more in the surrounding area. In a few years, I expect this corner to be a peaceful place to enjoy fall color.
Bloedel Reserve
This willow caught my eye from the other side of the pond. It was like a sentinel watching over. Walking around and getting under the willow’s canopy gave me a much more interesting and unique perspective.
Bloedel Reserve
Alders and vine maples line the paths through the Reserve. It is a Fall Wonderland. Light filters through the trees making the vine maples’ orange, red, and yellows pop out from the green background. The light brightens the grey-white bark of the Alders. What a beautiful palette of color nature has given us.
“Monet’s Forest”
Gentle light filtering through
leaves of orange, yellow, and green,
paints an image of warmth and peace.
As I looked into the Forest at the Bloedel Reserve, I felt like I was looking into a Monet painting. Soft filtered light, shadows, and subtle pastels decorated the scene. In post, I added a little of the impressionistic feeling using Topaz Impression.
“Red, White, and Green … the Natural Colors of Western Washington”
When you see RED, SHOOT. This little advice from John Barclay sticks in my mind. Fall has a multitude of color contrasts. A red maple leaf always catches my eye. I saw “Greeting Card” written all over this image when I snapped the shutter.
A fallen red leaf
nestles into a bed of green,
getting ready for a long winter’s sleep
“Sunburst”
Bloedel Reserve, Bainbridge Island, WA
Sun bursting through
a canopy of yellow and orange,
warms my heart.
What a beautiful, warm day it was!
“Nature’s Abstract”
Beautiful abstracts abound in the natural world around us. I am constantly amazed how much of nature’s art I see when I just take my time to peacefully look around me. Moments before I recorded this image, I was admiring a beautiful reflection of trees with their full fall glory in a pond at the Bloedel Reserve. I turned around and immediately saw gentle rays of sunshine peeking through two aspen tree trunks. I gasped at the beauty and quickly took an image before the sun went behind a cloud. That brief moment was a wonderful gift!