Pignut hickory (Carya glabra) native tree in spring leaf flush, Longwood Garden, the Meadow Garden.
I stood beneath the Pignut Hickory tree (Carya glabra) atop a hill at Longwood Garden’s Meadow Garden, transfixed by a mesmerizing pattern of leaves unfolding. Tiny parachutes opening in front of my eyes. Soon this fleeting moment would be lost, replaced by a shade tree in the timeline of spring.
I wanted to live in the glow, study it, work up an image that could pull out the detail within the pattern. The wild zigzag of branches seemed to have a pattern – if only I could frame up a composition that contained the frenzy.
I often ask my photography student to ‘fill the frame’, to treat the four edges of the camera viewfinder as a canvas. What fun I had myself holding the camera to my eye as I slowly moved under the tree, changing lenses, changing the canvas.
Quite suddenly it locked in, elements in balance.
Leaves unfolding on Pignut hickory tree (Carya glabra).
I wonder where this will go now. I am back at the computer using Topaz Lab PhotoShop plugin filters to rework the photograph into a sketch. A moment remembered, its interpretation still evolving….
Before and After Slider
very cool Saxon!