Filling the Frame

Fall has such gorgeous colors. And last weekend the weather was stunning, so I couldn’t help but go outside with my camera.

Then, serendipitously I popped into the V7N blog, and saw that Cricket has posted a photographic challenge. This is week one, and we’re each to shoot at least 5 photos that fill the frame. The first and last photos of my last post fit this bill, but I really like some of the nature shots I took over the weekend, and now had a reason to share them with you.

This is a leaf from my sycamore tree. I found it stunningly beautiful. The insects had left an interesting lacy structure which was nice in and of itself. The leaf, against the green grass, was a rich, coppery color. It looked like the metal itself, like those gilded leaves you can buy in some stores, only huge, since sycamore leaves are big. I was pleased that the metallic-ness of it showed up in the photo.

The wet fall has produced an amazing array of mushrooms. I have never learned enough about wild mushrooms, so I don’t pick and eat any of them. So even though this group, marching toward the tree, looked just like grocery store mushrooms to me, they stayed where they were on the ground for birds and insects to enjoy.

In addition to liking the ‘shrooms themselves in this shot, I also like all the really skinny, light tree trunks in the background. Usually in a shot that’s filling the frame they’d be gone, but when I cropped them out, the photo wasn’t as pleasing to me.

This flicker landed on the branch right near the road during my walk. I stopped to see if I could get a shot. Since my little dog kept moving, I was afraid the bird would fly away. It hopped around a bit, and then was kind enough to show turn his head and give me a nice profile and still show his little shock of red. I liked the contrast of the yellow leaves to the bird’s feathers. From even a short distance away flickers look quite plain; up close, especially from the front, there’s lots of lovely color variation.

I decided to leave this last picture unexplained for a few days to see if any of my readers can identify it. Check back by the end of the weekend for a full explanation.

Your turn: what do you think that last photo is?

You’ve waited long enough – here’s the info on that last picture. This is a Japanese dogwood in my yard. Their fruits are so interesting – to me they are somehow reminiscent of brains. (Not that I’ve ever seen a real brain, mind you.) I read in a book that they taste rather like mangos, which I love, so I did taste one. It was sweet and fruity, but so tiny that I wasn’t inclined to continue.