Photographing trees: “What have you got?” they asked…

​You may have noticed I enjoy photographing trees! And, it being Autumn just now, it won’t surprise you to know that trees have very much been my focal point for the last few weeks. Of course I’m far from alone in this, and so it does rather surprise me just what confusion this strange habit seems to cause!

The sight of a tripod and camera set up in front of some trees is a guaranteed conversation starter: “What have you got?” they ask…

A somewhat puzzled “oh” usually results when, rather than share sighting of some exotic bird species, you point out the glorious tapestry of colour and texture ahead of you:

I should add that the River Wharfe is home to countless dippers and kingfishers and I have been fortunate to see plenty of both - something that never fails to give me a thrill and so I do understand people’s curiosity, even disappointment, when they discover that’s not what the lens is focussed on.

When it comes to photographing trees and appreciating the results, I believe we all have a ‘mess threshold’ - one person’s wonderfully woven but chaotic patterns will just seem a jumbled mess to another! ;) Working with workshop clients, it’s always interesting to see who enjoys the challenge of taming the chaos and of course I love trying to help people to do that - though I appreciate it’s not for everyone!

There’s no doubt my ‘mess threshold’ has lowered considerably over the last few years and I like to think that’s down to working on how I see things - learning to look for and find patterns where some might just walk by. There’s still plenty of room for improvement though - perfection is a tantalising and impossible goal!

I’ll freely admit that sometimes, on reviewing the images back at home, I wonder what on earth it was I thought I saw! ;) By no means do I always get it right but, there’s no doubt that, the longer you look, the more the patterns start to emerge. Perhaps the above just looks like a jumble of colour and form to some - perhaps it is! I know it will leave many people cold, but this is one that took a long time to ‘show itself’ and I’m really pleased with the result, even if I always feel I can do better next time…

I’m always looking for that compelling combination of colour and structure - lines, diagonals, curves - all can work to help frame an image and to help tie in the various potentially conflicting elements into something visually cohesive.

The photograph above is one I’m not yet sure about - I love the feel of it; it definitely represents what I was seeing at the time and what I was wanting to convey. It looks how I imagined it would look. The challenge was trying to find the right combination of branches to frame the view through the trees. It’s certainly not one for those whole like rules and I’ll probably have to live with it a while to decide if I feel it truly ‘works’. Feel free to chip in and tell me what you think! I won’t take offence ;)

I haven’t spent much time pointing my camera upwards this Autumn but when a mixed woodland canopy is as colourful as above and is set off by rare (and normally unwelcome) blanket blue skies, then this can be a rather rewarding point of view, albeit one that soon leaves me feeling very dizzy!

For the most part, though, I’ve been enjoying the ‘straight ahead’ view of trees these last few weeks. It’s not been a classic Autumn perhaps, but certainly a very rewarding one. No frost, very little in the way of mist - but some glorious colours and textures, not to mention the thrill of seeing new and amazing scenes, every time I venture out. Even familiar haunts look so different than they did a few years ago - I really feel I see things very differently now. Of course it’s an evolving process and one of the joys and rewards of photography - the fact that we never stop developing and learning.

“What have you got?” they asked. “Just some trees” I replied ;) Additional info: For those that like to know a few more technical details. Most of the photographs here were taken with the Nikon D800e and 70-200 f4/VR lens. The final three images were taken with the Fuji XE-1 - 14mm for the first, 55-200 for the other two. Almost all were taken with a tripod and cable release. Two things to bear in mind when using longer lenses: They can be very susceptible to vibration in gusty conditions, so you may need to adjust ISO and shutter speed accordingly. Also, don’t underestimate just what a small aperture you may need to get front to back sharpness - this is something that constantly catches people out. Of course it may be that you don’t want front to back sharpness - shallow depth of field can be very effective in woodland photography too. Where leaves were wet, I usually used a polarising filter. However, for the second lot of photos from the Strid, I opted to go without. This was largely due to the practicalities of trying to keep dry a large 105mm filter, without lens shade, in fairly constant rain. I do also rather enjoy the glow you can get from specular highlights when photographing wet trees without a polariser - you almost get a sparkle. In terms of camera settings - this will very much depend on the look I am after. Back to front sharpness or just a narrow band of focus? Movement in the leaves or everything pin sharp? Sometimes the elements give you little choice. But I’d recommend experimenting with different shutter speeds when you are trying to capture movement. Then see what works best for you when you review on a bigger screen, or even try printing. Likewise, try taking photos at a range of different apertures - it can be hard to judge on a small LCD screen whether you have the desired amount of blur for items outwith the focal plane, for example. There’s rarely one ‘right’ look and again, printing can really help you decide what has has most appeal. A quote from William Blake Since writing this blog, fellow photographer Garry Brannigan drew my attention to a rather lovely quote by William Blake. Had I known it at the time, it would have made a great addition to this blog: "The tree which moves some to tears of joy is in the eyes of others only a green thing that stands in the way. Some see nature all ridicule and deformity... and some scarce see nature at all. But to the eyes of the man of imagination, nature is imagination itself."