This is the second part of my post on abstract images of fall trees via ICM (intentional camera movement).
Fall Trees Abstract, Indiana, November 2, 2023Fall Trees Abstract, Indiana, November 2, 2023
These two images (above and below) are the same but with different editing applied. These are not realistic natural images, so I’m not bothered by artistic renditions via edits.
Fall Trees Abstract, Indiana, November 2, 2023Fall Trees Abstract, Indiana, November 2, 2023
The same scene can yield very different results, depending upon the camera movement.
Autumn Abstract 2, Indiana, November 2, 2023Autumn Woods Abstract 5, Indiana, November 2, 2023Autumn Woods Abstract 6, Indiana, November 2, 2023
I must admit that I had fun creating these abstracts. Maybe I should do this more often and I like the vertical motion abstracts of trees much more than those created via horizontal camera movement.
One day at the cabin, I went out into the area around the cabin to shoot some scenes that had caught my eye due to the lighting on another day. However, today the light was not the same and the shots of those previously interesting looking scenes were not interesting.
My stroll around the area eventually led me into a wooded area behind the cabin and I still was not getting any interesting images. So I decided to try getting abstract images via intentional camera movement (ICM), a technique that I seldom use.
Autumn Woods Abstract 1, Indiana, November 2, 2023Autumn Woods Abstract 2, Indiana, November 2, 2023Autumn Woods Abstract 3, Indiana, November 2, 2023
Usually, the most interesting images can be obtained via vertical camera movement with trees as the subjects. But I did manage to get a few interesting images by panning the camera horizontally.
Tree-Light Weave, Monochrome, Indiana, November 2, 2023Tree-Light Weave, Original Color Version, Indiana, November 2, 2023
I think the monochrome version works best for this horizontal panning motion.
Autumn Woods Abstract 4, Indiana, November 2, 2023Autumn Abstract, Indiana, November 2, 2023
Prior to any road trip, I always check the weather forecast for my destination, so that I know how to prepare for the expected weather. I’ve also learned to heed the season and expect the unexpected change in the weather.
This fall, the first few days of our visit to Indiana, the weather was much as forecast, then an unexpected cold front came across most of the U.S., dropping temperatures well below my allowance for cold outings. I had brought my typical normal cold weather gear and even a few chemical hand warmers, since my fingers tend to get cold even in mild winter weather. And once my fingers get numb with cold, I can’t easily operate my camera controls.
I knew I would still want to get out in the cold weather, so I purchased additional cold weather clothing and more hand and foot warmers in a local store.
Halloween morning was the first below freezing weather we had during this trip. I knew the cold front coming in over the warmer landscape and warmer bodies of water would result in early morning water vapor condensing into mist or fog. So I went out again to Ogle Lake in Brown County State Park early in the morning of October 31.
It was, indeed, a heavy frost morning and mist was rising from the lake surface.
Frosty Morning 1, Ogle Lake, Brown County State Park, Indiana, October 31, 2023Frosty Morning 2, Ogle Lake, Brown County State Park, Indiana, October 31, 2023Frosty Morning 3, Ogle Lake, Brown County State Park, Indiana, October 31, 2023Frosty Morning, Ogle Lake, Brown County State Park, Indiana, October 31, 2023Frosty Morning, Ogle Lake, Brown County State Park, Indiana, October 31, 2023Frosty Morning 4, Ogle Lake, Brown County State Park, Indiana, October 31, 2023Frosty Morning, Ogle Lake, Brown County State Park, Indiana, October 31, 2023Frosty Morning 5, Ogle Lake, Brown County State Park, Indiana, October 31, 2023
By the time I had obtained these few images, my fingers, even with the hand warmers in my fleece mittens with the exposable thumb and finger tips, were so numb that I had to give up shooting. I retreated to my vehicle, started the engine and sat there until my fingers were warm enough to drive away.
I really would have liked to spend more time photographing frosty scenes around the park this morning, but I knew I could only shoot for a few minutes at a time due to the cold weather effect upon my fingers. I settled for getting one shot at an overlook in the park, before heading back to the cabin.
Scenic Overlook, Ogle Lake, Brown County State Park, Indiana, October 31, 2023
Even on days when I did not venture out for photography, my wife and I often drove through scenic Brown County State Park on our way to or from some other destination.
Scenic Overlook 1, Brown County State Park
Occasionally, we might stop at
Scenic Overlook 2, Brown County State Park
an overlook and sometimes I took time to get a photo.
This is a continuation of a foggy morning shoot in Brown County State Park near Nashville, Indiana.
Foggy Fall Forest Morning, Brown County State Park, Indiana, October 29, 2023Foggy Morning 2, Brown County State Park, Indiana, October 29, 2023Foggy Morning Gold, Brown County State Park, Indiana, October 29, 2023Foggy Morning Gold 2, Brown County State Park, Indiana, October 29, 2023
There were occasional breezes through the trees and I did not try to adjust my shutter speed to freeze the wind induced motion, so some of the images may show that motion, such as that in the image above.
Red and Green against the Fog, Brown County State Park, Indiana, October 29, 2023Autumn Color Display, Brown County State Park, Indiana, October 29, 2023Foggy Morning 17, Brown County State Park, Indiana, October 29, 2023Tall Foggy Fall, Brown County State Park, Indiana, October 29, 2023Foggy Morning 19, Brown County State Park, Indiana, October 29, 2023Cabin, Brown County State Park, Indiana, October 29, 2023
I initially photographed along a roadway through Brown County State Park on a foggy morning, then took a long hike through the forest. Photos in this post and a number in the previous post (part 22) were taken along that forest hiking trail.
Foggy Morning 31, Brown County State Park, Indiana, October 29, 2023Foggy Morning 32, Brown County State Park, Indiana, October 29, 2023Foggy Morning 33, Brown County State Park, Indiana, October 29, 2023Tall Foggy Fall 7, Brown County State Park, Indiana, October 29, 2023Dense Fall 7, Brown County State Park, Indiana, October 29, 2023
The fog was getting thinner now and it became more difficult to capture the fog in my images. I elected to stop photographing as it was getting late in the morning and I was getting hungry for breakfast and caffeine. I’m sure the hiking trail was not of great length, but it seemed like it took me a considerable time to get back to a a roadway. Then I had to hike a considerable distance along a roadway to return to my vehicle.
A continuation of a foggy morning photo shoot in Brown County State Park, Indiana.
Tall Foggy Fall 2, Brown County State Park, Indiana, October 29, 2023Tall Foggy Fall 3, Brown County State Park, Indiana, October 29, 2023Tall Foggy Fall 4, Brown County State Park, Indiana, October 29, 2023Woodland Creatures of the Fog, Brown County State Park, Indiana, October 29, 2023Foggy Morning 25, Brown County State Park, Indiana, October 29, 2023Tall Foggy Fall 5, Brown County State Park, Indiana, October 29, 2023Tall Foggy Fall 6, Brown County State Park, Indiana, October 29, 2023Foggy Morning 28, Brown County State Park, Indiana, October 29, 2023Foggy Morning 29, Brown County State Park, Indiana, October 29, 2023Foggy Morning 30, Brown County State Park, Indiana, October 29, 2023
Foggy Morning 1, Brown County State Park, Indiana, October 29, 2023
Another early morning photo shoot in Brown County State Park, Indiana. I got lucky this morning. It was a moderately foggy morning with heavy fog in some areas. Foggy mornings here are not unusual and I had hoped to get at least one foggy morning.
Foggy Morning 2, Brown County State Park, Indiana, October 29, 2023Foggy Morning 3, Brown County State Park, Indiana, October 29, 2023Foggy Morning 4, Brown County State Park, Indiana, October 29, 2023Foggy Morning 5, Brown County State Park, Indiana, October 29, 2023Foggy Morning 6, Brown County State Park, Indiana, October 29, 2023Foggy Morning 7, Brown County State Park, Indiana, October 29, 2023Fog Fade, Foggy Morning 8, Brown County State Park, Indiana, October 29, 2023Foggy Edge, Foggy Morning 9, Brown County State Park, Indiana, October 29, 2023Foggy Morning 10, Brown County State Park, Indiana, October 29, 2023Foggy Morning 19, Brown County State Park, Indiana, October 29, 2023
The last two images here are essentially the same composition, but the last one obviously has a foggier look. That is due to shooting it farther away from the tree line and having more fog between the camera and the trees.
One has to be careful when shooting in the fog and when editing the foggy images. It is not always easy to get the exposure right and editing can take out the effect of the fog, if over done. I can’t claim to be an expert at either of these skills, but fog surely can add magic to some scenes.
Brown County State Park 11, Indiana, October 28, 2023
Early morning photos in Brown County State Park, continued.
Brown County State Park 12, Indiana, October 28, 2023Brown County State Park 13, Indiana, October 28, 2023Those that Were and Those that Are, Indiana, October 28, 2023
Remains of trees laying where they fell in the forest among the trees that are still standing and maybe ones that took the place of their fallen comrades.
Brown County State Park 15, Indiana, October 28, 2023Brown County State Park 16, Indiana, October 28, 2023Brown County State Park 17, Indiana, October 28, 2023Brown County State Park Winding Road 12, Indiana, October 28, 2023Life’s a Journey, Indiana, October 28, 2023
There is probably a story behind the distortion in that bent tree trunk. Maybe a life’s event deformed it, in the same way that life’s choices, obstacles or stresses might change a person’s life path.
Brown County State Park 20, Indiana, October 28, 2023Brown County State Park 21, Indiana, October 28, 2023Brown County State Park 22, Indiana, October 28, 2023Tall Fall 13, Indiana, October 28, 2023Brown County State Park 24, Indiana, October 28, 2023Sheltering Posture, Brown County State Park, Indiana, October 28, 2023
Early Morning Calm, Ogle Lake, Brown County State Park, Indiana, October 28, 2023
I went into Brown County State Park again early on the morning of October 28, 2023, first stopping at Ogle Lake. It was a bland sky morning, heavily overcast and no sunrise sky color. I made the image above, which is similar to ones made a couple of days earlier, except for the sky, then the blandness of the sky prompted me to leave the lake and wander through the park looking for better fall images.
BCSP Winding Road 6, Brown County State Park, Indiana, October 28, 2023BCSP Winding Road 7, Brown County State Park, Indiana, October 28, 2023BCSP Winding Road 8, Brown County State Park, Indiana, October 28, 2023Tall Fall 12, Brown County State Park, Indiana, October 28, 2023Gateway, Brown County State Park, Indiana, October 28, 2023Brown County State Park 6, Indiana, October 28, 2023BCSP Winding Road 9, Brown County State Park, Indiana, October 28, 2023BCSP Winding Road 10, Brown County State Park, Indiana, October 28, 2023BCSP Winding Road 11, Brown County State Park, Indiana, October 28, 2023Brown County State Park10, Indiana, October 28, 2023
Do you think I got enough leaf strewn roadway as leading lines in these images?
