Tiny pieces of the Giant Forest

[Heroique]

When hiking the forest, I direct a lot of my attention, naturally enough, to the big rocks, tall trees, rushing rivers, placid lakes, and open skies, but as many landscapers will recognize, thinking “Big” can sometimes make the “Small” harder to see.

Too often, I’ll walk right by smaller forest details, missing what might deserve more attention – not as “near interest” to complement the wider view, but as isolated subjects that merit one’s exclusive attention. That is, the kind of detail that helps you forget the big view for a little while.

Here’s a quick example – four Bead Lilies gracing a Cedar. Not exactly the type of shot I explore the forest to find. To be sure, it found me . (I had stopped for a rest, put my pack and tripod down, and there it was, one tree over.) It didn’t take long to compose, but I did have to sacrifice some precious daylight that disappears quickly in big forests like this. No matter – I don’t think I’ll miss the “Giant Sweep of Landscape” I didn’t have time to take.

What small treasures did you find in the Giant Forest?

Tachi 4x5
Schneider XL 110mm/5.6
Velvia-50 (old version)
Epson 4990/Epson Scan

[srbphoto]

A little bit of water...

[jp]

Right on.. That's the East Coast Eliot Porter way. We don't have so many grand landscapes, but have abundant thick woods. Lacking grand landscapes within walking distance of my home, I'm up for this stuff any day I have a camera. Keep it up.

[Nathan Potter]

I like the intimate details at the forest floor; often unrecognized treasures there.


459-14-12-3A[t1 by hypolimnas, on Flickr

A fern carpet backed by an ancient New England stonewall. The stonewall dates from construction about 1720 and now found in dense woods on land that was cleared centuries ago. TK45S with a Leitz 120mm Summar macro and Fuji Astia Quickload. Praus development then V750 scanned with PS optimization. Slight breeze that would not let up marred the sharpness in places. Those cursed winds.

Nate Potter, Austin TX.

[Nathan Potter]

Here's another from the deep and dense fir forest floor on Schoodic penninsula near Winter Harbor ME. A struggling bit a reindeer moss being encroached upon by sphagnum moss.


4510-3-12-4C by hypolimnas, on Flickr

TK45 with a Nikon 210 and Fuji Velvia 50. 2 sec. at probably f/32. Development by Praus, scanned with an Epson V750 and PS doctored.

Nate Potter, Austin TX.

[Heroique]

A little bit of water...

A struggling bit a reindeer moss being encroached upon by sphagnum moss...

Nice bits of texture in the forest!

[Vaughn]

One in the forest, one in the desert -- just to contrast!
Forest -- detail of a slope showing the Redwood oxalis (or sorrel). 8x10 scanned carbon print
Desert -- detail of a side of a canyon. 4x5 camera mounted with the center colunm reversed (upside down). The "tower" is about a foot tall. Scanned silver gelatin contact print

[largeformatguy]

Years ago, I followed Fred Picker's advice and used Polaroid Type 52 film. Here are a couple of examples made in the Columbia River Gorge.



Latoural Creek below the falls.

[Nathan Potter]

OK, I can't resist another. This not in the forest but at the edge of both forest and ocean. This taken at the shoreline, Grindstone Neck, Winter Harbor ME. Oct. 24, 2012.


459-24-12-6 by hypolimnas, on Flickr

Polished bedrock surface of coarse granite which has been fractured and intruded with black basalt. I was intrigued by how the fractures end in a point facing each other. The scale of the widest part of the fracture is about 2 inches. TK45S with a 210 Nikon and Fuji Velvia 50. Cloudy day. Praus development, V750 scanned, cropped and adjusted in PS.

Nate Potter, Austin TX.

[Joel Truckenbrod]

Forest Floor, Morning Dew, Superior National Forest, MN (Shen-Hao FCL57-A, Fujinon 250, Delta 100 in Xtol 1:1)