Redwoods

Week 20 Composition: From Below

Posted by robeanne

I’m a bit of a ‘look up’ person so have taken quite a few photos from below in the past but this week I haven’t really been out an about in places where a ‘from below’ photo was possible. Mainly because it has been pouring down with rain. MMM… maybe a photo in the rain might work quite well! Or maybe I’d rather stay in warm and cosy by the fire!

But my brief foray into the Redwoods did present me with one of my favourite ‘from below’ shots – majestic, towering redwoods high above me, their leafy heads in the sky. What I can’t work out is – does the blackness of the tree trunk get in the way or does it create a clear line to the top of the tree. Sometimes, they just seem to be so dark that they are distracting.

looking up the trunk of a redwood to it's canopy and the sky beyond

I like trying to get underneath mushrooms – the gills are fascinating but it is not always easy! We found these on a recent trip to Whirinaki.

white mushroom viewed from below showing white gills

a white mushroom wuth frilly gills seen from below nestled amongst autumn leaves and three smaller mushrooms

Ceilings are always fascinating too. This one is from the airport in Christchurch.

zigzag ceiling panels

Week 19 Vision: Edge Cut Sun

Posted by robeanne

Another difficult one especially using a phone. The sunlight at this time of year in New Zealand is also quite harsh unless you can catch it in the small window as it disappears in the evening. There has also not been a great deal of sun this week!

It came out this morning between the wind and rain showers so I had a play. Nothing really spectacular, and mostly over exposed splashes.  I could see the wind blowing the trees and the sun flashing between the leaves as the wind blew them so I grabbed my phone and headed out.

looking up at a blue sky and sun shining through bright green maple leaves

My boys bought me a beautiful garden ornament for Mothers’ Day and I thought that it might be interesting to see if I could catch the edge of the sun against it or through the holes. It proved trickier than I thought – partly because I couldn’t stand it in the right place to catch the sun and partly because the wind just blew it around too much, and partly because it is bright metal and the sun glinting off it just burnt everything else out! I enjoyed playing with some editing though…

sun shining through a garden ornament that looks a bit like a spear head. Set against blue sky and clouds. Edited so that it is deep blue, white and red.

 

In the afternoon I was out in the Redwoods in Rotorua briefly for a run before watching youngest son play hockey. The sun glinting through the tall trees gave me another opportunity to try to capture the edge of the sun. Still not very successful. The sunburst isn’t fantastic but I love the colours and the shadows in these two shots.

Tall Redwood trees with long shadows across leaf and bark strewn paths with sun shining through.

Redwood trees in forest, autumn sun shining through