More photos from a hike along an Indian forest trail in the fall of 2023.
Forest Trail 40, Indiana, October 27, 2023Fading Blush, Indiana, October 27, 2023The Change, Indiana, October 27, 2023Forest Trail 44, Indiana, October 27, 2023Forest Trail 45, Indiana, October 27, 2023Tall Fall, Indiana, October 27, 2023
This wraps up my hike and photography along this forest trail. Upon arriving back at my vehicle, I drove on along the forest roadway, looking for more fall scenes to photograph.
Dense Fall 4, Indiana, October 27, 2023Forest Spotlight, Indiana, October 27, 2023Basking, Indiana, October 27, 2023Fall Shadow, Indiana, October 27, 2023Leaves of Two, View Through, Indiana, October 27, 2023Forest Trail 25, Indiana, October 27, 2023Out on a Limb, Indiana, October 27, 2023Take a Walk on the Sunny Side, Indiana, October 27, 2023Last Stop, Indiana, October 27, 2023Sunlight Dappled Forest, Indiana, October 27, 2023
Today I drove down backroads heading generally in the direction of a state forest and a wilderness area. Along the way I stopped at a stream and shot a few images of the stream and wooded area around it.
Fall Creek and Reflections, Indiana, October 27, 2023Transformation, Forest Trail 1, Indiana, October 27, 2023
Shortly after getting onto a roadway in a state forest, I parked in a pull out to have a look around. I did not plan to stay long, but wanted to see what this area had to offer in the nearby woods.
Reds and Yellows, Forest Trail 2, Indiana, October 27, 2023
Even though it was late October, it was a warm day and mosquitos were buzzing around as I walked down an old forest roadway. Usually, mosquitos are not a problem here at this time of the year, so I had not brought insect repellant and frequent swatting and waving off mosquitoes was a distraction.
Holding On, Forest Trail 3, Indiana, October 27, 2023
As I wandered along the faint roadway, it eventually turned into an official hiking trail. I walked quite a way along this trail. As I got deeper into the woods the mosquitoes became less of a problem, making stopping to shoot photos more pleasant.
Forest Trail 4, Indiana, October 27, 2023Forest Trail 5, Indiana, October 27, 2023Purple Fringe, Indiana, October 27, 2023Dense Fall, Forest Trail 6, Indiana, October 27, 2023Forest Trail 7, Indiana, October 27, 2023Fall Fashion, Forest Trail 8, Indiana, October 27, 2023
Autumn 1, Brown County State Park, October 26, 2023
After my sunrise shoot in Brown County State Park, I drove around the park, stoping at various locations, walking along the roadway, shooting the autumn color.
BCSP Fall 1, Brown County State Park, October 26, 2023BCSP Winding Road 1, Brown County State Park, October 26, 2023
I included the roadway in a number of images, mostly as a leading line, but also because the road through the forest just looked so appealing. I hope I have not put too much of the asphalt into these images.
BCSP Winding Road 2, Brown County State Park, October 26, 2023BCSP Winding Road 3, Brown County State Park, October 26, 2023Autumn 2, Brown County State Park, October 26, 2023BCSP Fall Woodland 1, Brown County State Park, October 26, 2023Autumn 3, Brown County State Park, October 26, 2023Fall Freckles, Brown County State Park, October 26, 2023BCSP Winding Road 4, Brown County State Park, October 26, 2023Autumn 4, Brown County State Park, October 26, 2023
Well, I’m back to my vehicle, so time to move on to another location,
Sunrise A, Brown County State Park, October 26, 2023
I went into Brown County State Park again for sunrise photography, this time stoping at one of the overlooks. It was another morning with scattered clouds and good cloud color.
Shooting into the bright sky and getting a good exposure of the foreground fall color is a challenge and no matter how careful one is with the exposure and filter application, post processing of the images is a must.
These sunrise images have varying exposures, filter usage and post processing, yielding variations in the colors and details.
BCSP Sunrise Sequence 1, Brown County State Park, October 26, 2023Sunrise B, Brown County State Park, October 26, 2023Sunrise C, Brown County State Park, October 26, 2023Sunrise D, Brown County State Park, October 26, 2023Sunrise E, Brown County State Park, October 26, 2023BCSP Sunrise Sequence 2, Brown County State Park, October 26, 2023
Ogle Lake Fall 1, Brown County State Park, Indiana, October 25, 2023
After my sunrise shoot, I hiked a short distance along the north side of Ogle Lake in Brown County State Park, Indiana getting a few fall images.
Ogle Lake Fall 2, Brown County State Park, Indiana, October 25, 2023Ogle Lake Fall 3, Brown County State Park, Indiana, October 25, 2023Ogle Lake Fall 4, Brown County State Park, Indiana, October 25, 2023Ogle Lake Fall 5, Brown County State Park, Indiana, October 25, 2023Ogle Lake Fall 6, Brown County State Park, Indiana, October 25, 2023Roots, Ogle Lake Trail, Brown County State Park, Indiana, October 25, 2023Placid Fall, Ogle Lake, Brown County State Park, Indiana, October 25, 2023
That’s it for this morning’s shoot. Until next time,
Sunrise 1, Ogle Lake, Brown County State Park, Indiana, October 25, 2023
Even though I’m usually sleeping well in the early morning hours, I force myself out of a warm, comfortable bed, because my favorite time for photography is in the early morning hours, especially in popular places, because the normal tourist don’t usually get out early and one doesn’t have to worry about people getting in the way of ones photography.
When I pulled into the parking lot at Ogle Lake, I was the only one there. As I prepared my camera and tripod, a lady drove into the lot and stopped to ask me about the best place for sunrise here in the park. She and her husband were staying in the park lodge, but they had apparently not had time to scout places for sunrise photos. I told her I did not know what place was best, but it might be good here and it was too late for her to get to another good place before sunrise. I suggested that she might photograph from the dam or from the north side of the lake for the best sunrise views.
She commented upon my camera, thinking it had an unusual lens. I was using my large 14-24mm wide angle lens with a Progrey filter holder mounted on it. Due to the bulbous 14-24mm lens, it is not possible to use screws in filters, requiring a bulky filter holder attachment. It is the filter holder that makes it look unusual.
I headed for the dam, where I thought I might have some fall foliage for foreground and good reflection on the lake, leaving the lady behind in the parking lot.
Sunrise 2, Ogle Lake, Brown County State Park, Indiana, October 25, 2023
It was a cloudy morning, the sky color was spectacular. Sometimes we get lucky.
Sunrise 3, Ogle Lake, Brown County State Park, Indiana, October 25, 2023
The morning color came on quickly and disappeared as quickly as it came, but the clouds in the sky still made it possible to get interesting photos after the color faded.
Ogle Lake Leaf Accumulation, Brown County State Park, Indiana, October 25, 2023Ogle Lake Sky Reflection, Brown County State Park, Indiana, October 25, 2023Ogle Lake Forest Reflection, Brown County State Park, Indiana, October 25, 2023
After finishing my shoot from the dam area, I decided to take a short walk along the lake shore. There is a hiking trail that goes all around the lake, which I’ve done in previous visits here. I knew the south side might not have the best views this morning and it was probably muddy in portions, so I headed for the north side.
As I approached the trail head, I encountered the lady from the parking lot again. We chatted for a few minutes. She was thrilled with her sunrise experience. She was shooting with a Canon R6, which she had not had for long. She is a retired portrait photographer, previously from California, living in Kentucky with her husband. I’m assuming her husband is not into photography or else he would have accompanied her this morning. She asked about my filters and I explained why I used these for my landscape work. I was surprised, when she revealed that she had not previously known anything about this subject. I never thought that a professional photographer of any speciality would not know about the use of these specialty filters. However, I have observed professional portrait photographers shooting in the outdoors without any filters. I’ve also noted the over exposed backgrounds in many such portrait photographs. I suppose some filters might be difficult to use for people subjects, but it can still be possible to compose outdoor photos and avoid overexposed backgrounds, unless one is doing that purposely.
A good way to enjoy fall color in Indiana is via a simple drive along the tree lined roadways, especially the backroads, where there are few houses or commercial facilities to spoil the views. The roads make good leading lines, but I do worry about having too much road in the images, since the most interesting subject is not the roadway.
Indiana Backroad Forest 1, October 24, 2023
It is not always possible to find a safe place to pull over off of the roadways, but where possible, one can get fall forest images right beside the road.
Indiana Backroad Forest 2, October 24, 2023Indiana Backroad Forest 3, October 24, 2023