These images are from a couple months ago from a visit to a pond in the woods behind my home. The water was particularly calm this day, a light cool temperature. I became not only enamored with the wider scene in front of me, but the smaller details as well. So I spent a little time exploring what this pond had to offer. It just felt “comfortable.”
It isn’t hard to imagine where some of the impressionist painters got their inspirations from. Although I doubt any of them sat in these woods, the peace and tranquility of such a scene is rather global in nature. I thought this group of images told the story of this view more than a single frame.
The scene is much different now. Much fuller with leaves as summer approaches. It isn’t so peaceful either. One would have to combat raging hordes of mosquitoes and poison ivy that are rampant here this time of year. 🙂 But I can at least recall one morning of peace through the photographs.
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- Tree branch reflections
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- Reflected branches
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- Reflected trunks
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- Pond rippled reflection
Mark, I truly love your work. This is another example of the way you capture the whole gambit of nature from under foot to sky. Nice reflections and color.
thanks a lot David!
I love these reflections. It reminds me a bit of Porter’s style with the subject and the tones of color.
I like how you made a series of these images. One or maybe two might have a hard time standing alone, but when you group them as a series as you did it’s almost as if they tell a story.
@ Pat – Thanks a lot. I was a bit torn on how much I wanted the ripples to stand out. So many different ways to process these!
@Amber, thanks!
They are like watercolor paintings. Really very special.
These are beautiful, Mark! The colors are really great and you’ve isolated some really nice compositions. It was interesting to me the difference between the thumbnails and the larger version. In the thumbs the water looks much smoother, while in the large view it takes on a whole different feel with much larger strokes of the impressionistic paintbrush, and it really makes the whole scene so much more abstract. Terrific work!
A terrific series of images. Great colors and reflections. They all have a very calming nature to them.
Thanks Roberta. If I can bring a little tranquility into someone’s life, I consider that the best an image could ever do.
Ken, Howard, Earl – thank you.
Earl – I agree on the time periods.
Mark, very creative series of images. They capture well those wonderful reflections. I’ve personally found late winter, very early spring to be the best time to shoot at small ponds. It seems the water is especially clean and clear and as you stated the insect and plant nuisances haven’t come out yet.
Beautiful images….they look like impressionistic paintings themselves!
This is a great set of photos, Mark. It’s a wonderful feeling to download a series of really nice shots, all related, after a day of shooting. Each photo stands on it’s own merits, too. Very nice.
These are beautiful. You have such a good eye for making the selection that renders a superb composition out of what many might pass right on by and miss completely. Wonderful color mixtures too.
Thank you David. I often wonder if people see beauty in these or just confusion! 🙂 It is always a bit of a gamble when working with abstracts. I really liked the blend of warm tone from the light on the trees, and the cool tones of the sky reflection.