[View the hugeous version.] If forced to pick, I suppose I would choose Japanese maples as my favorite tree. They come in so many varieties. Their elegance is unmatched. And they change so brilliantly with the seasons. A black-and-white representation, then, is a counter-intuitive choice. The original photo is a symphony of new greens, and…
Tag Archive: trees
Knees
I was surprised to see these classic cypress knees at the Biltmore Estate, in a spot that doesn’t seem to qualify as “wetlands” at all. Even outside a swamp they retain that otherworldly, alien weirdness we seem to inevitably ascribe to organisms that reproduce in unfamiliar ways. Two Years Ago: Otherness Sticky, spiky, raw, strange….
Surface Pattern
I’ve never noticed a tree with this textile-inspiring bark pattern before. Here’s a closer look: A Year Ago: Dr. Seuss Plant I actually laughed when I saw this plant. The big polka dots and the outrageous red backside of these leaves are just ridiculously over-the-top… [read more]
Before Spring
As I sit here this morning, it’s a balmy 36°F and overcast. We’re truly into April and sure, there are some flowering trees and daffodils, but it really doesn’t feel like Spring at all. When the sun shines, it’ll warm your skin (until the wind blows) but not yet your bones. I hope we have…
Burning Bush
I’m essentially living out of a couple of suitcases—and when I loaded my car for Asheville, I cleverly failed to include the box that contained my beloved Leica macro and the telephoto lens. So I’ve been bumbling along with the normal lens. It’s fine, for the most part, but there have definitely been some occasions…
Menorah
Happy Hanukah, friends! …And now I have a craving for potato pancakes. DRAT. A Year Ago: Wall Ring Some of my six faithful readers have been kind enough to say they’ve been enjoying the Key West images… [read more]
Layered Landscape
The land is folded, and the curves pile up until there’s a real hill. The whole area is like this: a drapery of landscape that—while never looking harsh or even especially steep—nevertheless adds up to no-fooling verticality. A Year Ago: Key West Bicycles Bicycles are everywhere in Key West… [read more]
Winter Archetype
The scene, all winter— But the haze of small red buds Is waiting for spring. A Year Ago: Non-Conformist This image goes a long way to summing up the charm of Key West… [read more]
Stump
I’ve been casing the various neighborhoods of Albuquerque. For an urban area, it has surprisingly many pockets of almost village-like, rural flavor—places where the neighbors have a horse or a goat in their yards. It’s also rife with cookie-cutter developments and gated communities, as well as utterly bland, ugly, strip-mall-ridden urban landscape. Housing here is…
On the Edge
Usually, when I crop a photograph, it’s strictly for compositional reasons: the camera’s frame has included something I wish to exclude. But sometimes I feel that a particular format carries an emotional value with it as well. I think, for example, that the square format carries with it both a sense of stability and nostalgia…