12.24/Fall colors

A videographer captures video of fall leaves in Sharon Woods Metro Park, Westerville, Ohio.

Shadows of a split rail fence darken a trail in Blendon Woods Metro Park, Westerville, Ohio.

Walking through the woods on an autumn morning, Sharon Woods Metro Park, Westerville, Ohio.

Fall colors reflecting around Canada Geese in lake, Sharon Woods Metro Park, Westerville, Ohio.

Autumn leaves float on a stream, Old Man's Cave trail, Hocking Hills State Park, Logan, Ohio.

A stream flows through a valley in the woods in Highbanks Metro Park, Lewis Center, Ohio.

Canada Geese fly over a lake on a fall morning, Sharon Woods Metro Park, Westerville, Ohio.

Water flows out of the Devil's Bathtub on the Old Man's Cave Trail in Hocking Hills State Park near Logan, Ohio.

Morning frost on fall leaves, Sharon Woods Metro Park, Westerville, Ohio.

A view of Central Park, as seen on a fall morning from the observation deck at 30 Rockefeller Plaza, New York City.

Boulders in the creek bed, Conkle's Hollow, Hocking Hills State Park, Logan, Ohio.

Leaves on cold fall morning, Sharon Woods Metro Park, Westerville, Ohio.

Fall leaves reflected in the pond in Central Park, New York City.

Fall colors reflecting around Canada Geese in lake, Sharon Woods Metro Park, Westerville, Ohio.

Fallen leaves around icy creek, Blendon Woods Metro Park, Westerville, Ohio.

The floor of Conkle's Hollow State Nature Preserve near Logan, Ohio, is covered by fallen leaves, filled with boulders and surrounded by sheer, rocky cliffs.

Geese fly over Schrock Lake, silhouetted by the rising sun, Sharon Woods Metro Park, Westerville, Ohio.

Water flows through fall leaves on the Old Man's Cave Trail in Hocking Hills State Park near Logan, Ohio.

A Song Sparrow perches in tall winter grass in Sharon Woods Metro Park, Westerville, Ohio.

Maple leaves in the sun in the forest, Sharon Woods Metro Park, Westerville, Ohio.

passed. Or two, we get some heavy rains or other weather conditions that minimize the color change or force the leaves to fall early.

I think I’ve only had one trip in the last decade that was dedicated to photographing fall colors. So most of the photos in this collection were shot during my hikes to capture wildlife photos.

I end up seeing colors I like and move back far enough that I can capture them with the super-telephoto lens I use when photographing wildlife.

So photos in this collection that look like close-ups were likely shot from 30 feet away.

But the colors are still nice.

I do have one regret about my fall photos and it concerns the first one in this collection showing a videographer at work surrounded by colorful autumn leaves. I saw him when I was photographing birds in fall fields and really liked the scene. I turned to get a quick photo of him and the leaves before returning to a goldfinch I’d been waiting to hop into a good position for a photo. When I turned back to the videographer a few seconds later, hoping to get a name to add to my files so I could send him a photo, he was gone. I never saw him again.

I think I’ve only had one trip in the last decade that was dedicated to photographing fall colors. So most of the photos in this collection were shot during my hikes to capture wildlife photos.