The Black Dog’s PhotoBlog

As my grandmother use to say, fall is the season when nature prepares to say goodnight before she goes to sleep for the winter. At least, I think she said it that way.

While as the nights become longer and the days become shorter it does trigger those leaves to change their colors and though they’re not sleeping yet we know that soon those leaves will fall and the trees will go into their winter slumber.

So before they sleep, I say, lets enjoy those colors while we still can.

The visual impact of fall is phenomenal! Sure it gets a little colder with the impending season change but it’s this time of year that to me is a photographer’s dream. You have the beauty of the changing colors but you also have frost in the morning, which creates beauty in unimaginable ways. You also get to see more fog and mist rising up from rivers and lakes as the temperatures differ from the ground to the atmosphere above. You treasure the light and warmth more as the days get shorter. But you don’t have to wait as long between sunrise and sunset. I love that the sunrises later as I hate getting up early in the morning. Visually it’s a combination of summer and winter but with added perks and a big punch of beauty. As I’ve said before, fall is my favorite season.

The remains of some echinacea flowers in my front yard taken April 17th.

After a few days of yard work, picking up fallen branches, cleaning up flower beds and trimming back shrubs, I have to admit I’m excited about spring and the upcoming season. Even though my little corner of the world is just starting to turn green and the flowers are just beginning to bloom, I am excited about some new landscaping ideas and the new direction my studio will be taking. I’m anticipating the individuals who will come into my life looking for that special portrait.

A new step for the studio this year is that I’ve decided to discontinue the indoor studio and focus my time and talents on the outdoor studio. Besides photography, I’ve always had a love of nature and the outdoors. I thought why not combine the two and focus on what I feel I do best. As I recently read an article titled ‘Greenspace’ in my latest issue of Professional Photographer magazine I was so inspired to take this step. The article was about Chris Lommel Photography and talked about his surviving his battle with cancer and his outdoor studio in Big Lake, MN. Life really is too short sometimes. I think it’s best to enjoy it while I can.

Dryed Black Eyed Susans in my front yard.

A little bird’s nest I found in my back yard while on a walk.