|  Fall Foilage, Yosemite NP
Planning for Autumn Colors
Autumn is one of my favorite times of year, not only is the heat of summer giving way to the cool temperatures of fall, but it’s also a time for color, and to a photographer that’s the greatest of all things. During this time of year everywhere you look an amazing pallet of colors are appearing before your lens, greens and browns are changing to red, orange and yellows. In addition, the days are shortening just enough to make the hours a bit more manageable. Virtually every part of the world enjoys the changing colors of autumn in some form so great images are always nearby. This is a wonderful time of year! While autumn does offer a multitude of opportunities for photographers, don’t forget that it’s also a very short season, the bright colors that light up trees and other vegetation only last a week or maybe two in a certain location and then it’s gone for another long year. I like to start my fall color preparation early; August is usually a good time to start thinking about locations you may want to visit and to do research on how the now long forgotten rainfall last winter and spring will be affecting the colors upcoming in a few short weeks. In general, a good wet winter and spring brings great colors, while dry conditions, particularly those that have persisted for a number of years, will dull the fall colors somewhat. To get the most out of the season, remember that color starts to show first in higher elevations, some locations start showing their fall color display as early as late September. As the elevation of different locations get lower the change in color flows to later in the calendar. So if you want to do some shooting in say Mount Rainer National Park in Washington, plan to go early as color often starts to show in mid September and is in full force later in the month. If you have trouble thinking of some great places to go, check out some photography workshops, instructors always schedule their fall workshops around what is generally the best time for color in a certain location. Don’t forget that you’re not the only person that is planning to head out to see the color show, during this time of year photographers from around the world travel to New England, the Eastern Sierra Nevada’s and countless other locations to capture the fall colors. In fact, it’s not only photographers that come to see the beautiful colors of fall, apparently some people just enjoy looking at the colors without bringing their camera, who knew. My point is that often the places known for the best display of colors are also the most popular, so be sure to plan ahead and book lodging and other necessities early. Fall and autumn is one of the best times to be a photographer, and if you do your research and plan accordingly; you’ll be able to stretch out your fall shooting season and enjoy the beautiful colors and weather until it’s time to give thanks for the wonderful images you’ve created over the previous two months. About the image above, Fall Foilage: Yosemite is one of my favorite places to be, its a beautiful place but its not generally known for its fall colors. While driving around hwy. 49 I pulled over and took a little walk and found a great fallen tree covered by glowing red, yellow, orange and green foliage. Setting up my tripod it took me a while to find a composition I like but eventually framed this image which was my favorite cropping. |
