I’d gone on an expedition to photograph a lone tree, unencumbered by a noisy background – just a simple, solitary portrait. So I headed over to the local park only to realize that although there in great numbers, the trees tend to mass together or be surrounded by bush and furze.

The afternoon was at least sunny which created some nice contrasts so I switched attention into making the most of tree textures and shapes which was fine in the shadier spots

In bright sun, the textures tend to disappear and shadowed shapes become dominant especially when I’d notched the exposure up a touch and forgot to level back!

Even so this is yet another way at looking at trees!

This naked snag is already smooth but I like how it outlines itself in shadow on the building behind and the way it seems to be trying to escape over the wall

Heading for this favourite old willow was a bit of task as the ground was slippery underfoot after endless rainy weather, Nevertheless the lovely fissured bark makes it worthwhile. That and its near companion tree which paddles far into the waters and creates some very nice reflections.

Post camera: I rely on my Ricoh’s LCD screen to give feedback on the photos I’ve just shot but in bright light it’s almost impossible to read so that only post camera did I realize I’d forgotten to readjust exposure in sunnier spots.

Following up on Adobe’s “What is texture in photos” I found it beneficial to tone done the clarity, creating smoother images even though the subject is not naturally so. As a result the lighter, less textured trees, given a slight increase of shadow for depth, created a mellow mood over the mirrored water on this windless, last day of January.

“I like to play with clarity to really make things stand out. But sometimes I like softer images, so I’ll even take the clarity down and just increase the contrast ~ Cole Keister

Introspectives – thinking out loud with an aim to improve and learn more about photography. Hence the images are not always for show