IMPRESSIONS OF A JAPANESE MAPLE
As a photographer with a deep love of all things nature, I’ve spent a lot of time photographing leaves and wildflowers and animals. Lately I’ve become obsessed with capturing the essence of nature rather than obsessing over details, much like the impressionists did with painting landscapes starting 150 years ago. Impressionist paintings took ordinary subject matter and emphasized unusual visual angles and an emphasis on capturing beautiful light. In this photograph of leaves, the eye concentrates on the maple leaves in the foreground, while the tree trunk and meadow and leaves behind become washes of beautiful color. This is actually how the human eye sees: if you look at something close up, everything beyond it goes out of focus. I also believe that in not seeing every detail, there remains a mystery to a photograph that invites a lifetime of viewing.
Location: A Japanese garden in Seattle, Washington State, USA