Tag Archives: fall foliage

Autumn Sunset

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This gorgeous location is situated right in the back yard of a lovely Lancaster county property and overlooks a creek and Amish farm country.I had the privilege of being allowed to photograph here last winter and recently noticed the fall foliage from a distance away while driving in the area.I decided to stop and see what things looked like and was rewarded with this glorious scene featuring fall foliage,several farms and a lovely sky at dusk.This property features numerous old trees that are full of character and I hope to capture their grandeur this winter.

Husband and Wife

Posted by reesephoto on

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Nestled at the base of a giant maple tree are the graves of this husband and wife. Her stone reads-“her example is our inheritance” and his reads, “the master called and found him”. I wonder if the tree was planted since they were buried or just happened to grow from a seed that landed there?

Lower Kaaterskill Falls

Posted by reesephoto on

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This is lower Kaaterskill falls in the Catskills of New York. We came down the road,saw there was two spots for cars and quickly parked. I thought how lucky we were to get the second spot until I heard the State Troopers Siren chirp directly behind us. I look and he points at a sign directly above our car that says absolutely no parking. We never saw it and he was nice enough to just warn us,so we drove up the road to a parking area and I had to walk a hundred yards or so to get the shot. There is a more dramatic falls up the hill from this but after I started the first thirty feet climb over boulders,I basically decided I did not have it in me with my gear along.

Steeple Vista

Posted by reesephoto on

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I photographed this view of North Adams, Massachusetts from a small hill near town. the numerous steeples sticking high into the air caught my attention,so I sought out a vantage point to capture them. The hillsides have a little bit of color in them,but it was mostly disappointing this year. Located in the Berkshires,this town was first settled in 1745 during King Georges War.

A Zest For Small Town Life

Posted by reesephoto on

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This is the time of year I really enjoy shooting store windows in the town of Lititz ,Pa. Lititz has a small town feel that just takes you back to a bygone era,and the stores get all decked out for the coming holiday season,which makes for a delightful evening walk through town. My favorite time to take photos is right around dusk,just as the shops are closing for the day.The quiet of nightfall in this sleepy little town is only enhanced by music emanating from the town square and with a little imagination you feel as if you were just transported to a Charles Dickens novel.This pair of images are of a store called Zest,and the owners always do a stellar job of decorating the windows. Light shining out from the store illuminates the freshly fallen leaves as the cool blue of dusk begins to envelope the street. Many stores are beginning to transition to the Christmas season,so hopefully I will find some unique subjects to share.

Fall into Lititz

Posted by reesephoto on

 

lititz-peddler-halloween lititz-springs-autumn lititz-street-autumn lititz-springs-autumn3 lititz-downtown-pumpkins lititz-street-autumn2 lititz-springs-autumn2Lititz,Pa was voted as Americas coolest small town in a travel magazine contest this year and I thought I would share a few fall photos I took while visiting recently. If you get a chance,plan a trip to visit this quaint little town. These images are from the downtown shopping district and the community park.

 

Keepers of the Light

Posted by reesephoto on

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This old farm-house sits right along the road in rural Pennsylvania and I am actually at the very edge of the road to get the shot in the bottom photo. Ginko tree leaves turns the most vivid yellow in fall and I was fortunate enough to pass on the day most of the leaves had fallen off which naturally caught my eye. Everything seemed to come together,from the bushes dusted with fallen leaves,to the japanese maple in red,to the lanterns illuminated and the rustic home as a backdrop for it all. The middle and bottom image are what I saw at midday when I stopped to get permission and the top image is what I envisioned in my mind.

I don’t know how other photographers feel about things,but I can tell you there are scenes that I see that just captivate my imagination and stir the soul and this scene had me on pins and needles as I had to wait several hours to shoot it that night. I worried the owners would mow the yard,or perhaps high winds would blow everything away,and on and on my mind raced in anticipation of spreading my creative wings that night. I was so focused on figuring out a composition in the afternoon,I never even saw the lantern hanging right by my head,so when I arrived later and saw it light up,I immediately knew the angle I was going to shoot.

The ivy covered trees,foliage in full regalia,lanterns aglow,a beautiful home, it was a scene straight out of a dream.I light painted everything you see in the top image,from the leaves on the ground to the trees and ivy to make them pop with life. That one shot took me about an hour to do as I moved around with my portable flash.

This beautifully restored property is the home and office of Doctors Joel and LuAnne Yeager,a husband and wife team who compassionately care for each and every patient in much the same way as they have given to restoring their 1825 farm-house and barn. Their office located behind the house is in a 100-year-old renovated barn,which is a setting unlike any other.The following is from their website,

In the spirit of the Good Samaritan from Luke 10 who brought his wounded and vulnerable friend to “an inn” for healing and refreshment, we seek to provide an alternative to modern society’s hectic lifestyle in a place of quiet tranquility known as The Doctor’s Inn.

The Relaxation Zone

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This is my back yard fire pit and I would never have thought to shoot it till the leaves covered everything and looked nice. I should have waited till dark so I could have lit my tiki torches on the fence too,but I was a bit busy. I built everything  you see in the photo from the fence to the arbor in the corner with the gazing ball and the fire pit too. I lit the fire to have a flame,but later would have been more impressive. A few weeks ago I was sitting in the dark out here by the light of the fire and tiki torches and the flame was at least twice as high when something moving catches my eye. I turn my head and a skunk literally walked right between the chair and fire pit. I was about 6 feet from him and for whatever reason I decide to clap my hands to get him moving along. He spun directly toward me with his main weapon and the tail went up,but he cut me a break and did not fire. In hindsight,that was a stupid move.

Tyringhams Gingerbread House

Posted by reesephoto on

santarella-home santarella-home2 santarella-home4 santarella-home3Tucked along a rural back road in Massachusetts is this rather unique set of buildings created by a man with a very artistic way of expressing himself. It is called Santarella and is privately owned,but sheer luck had us pull in to just look and at that moment,the caretaker came out and was telling some other tourists they could wander around the property and we could as well. It was so unique but time of day was wrong and it was hard to shoot inspiring angles. Despite only having ten minutes,I managed to get a few angles to share here. The roof had layer upon layer of shingles,which I found rather impressive.Google Santarella to learn more.

Autumn at the B&B

Posted by reesephoto on

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Fall foliage across the eastern U.S. has been a major let down this year, but lately a few colorful trees have been popping up here and there. This lovely scene was one I initially wanted to shoot for just the fall trees on the property I am standing on,but as I looked for angles, I was drawn to this beautiful Victorian Bed and Breakfast across the street. There is actually a fairly heavily traveled road in front of the wall but the leaves in the elevated yard hide it perfectly. I waited till dusk till the home had lots of activity and illumination inside and then captured this image. The trees are in various stages of coloration and frame the shot perfectly. This bed and breakfast is located in the tiny hamlet of Bird in Hand in Lancaster county,PA and is called the Greystone Manor Inn. The property is beautifully landscaped and the wall on the left includes spectacular flowering baskets throughout the spring and summer.

The Jenne Farm

Posted by reesephoto on

vermont-jenne-farmThis country scene is perhaps one of Vermont’s most photographed scenes and several times I have tried in vain to find it. I am not one that likes to duplicate something done over and over but this place was something I felt I wanted to shoot. When we found the dirt road, we came up the hill and saw several cars parked there to shoot it. As we were there,another five or six cars pulled in and those folks were from germany and japan,so everyone wants to shoot it. One older gentleman told us he has visited this spot for years and this year was the worst foliage he can remember.We were rather pleased with what was there because the color was way past peak in most of the region and fairly nice at this location. The Budweiser Clydesdales supposedly were brought here for a commercial in the past.

Weston Mill

Posted by reesephoto on

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This is an old mill I photographed in Weston Vermont on my fall foliage trip. Thankfully it was not overrun by tourists and we had the place all to ourselves. I shot it in sun about an hour before and thankfully my friend was patient enough to drop me off for another shot after sunset. The Vermont country store is a stones throw away,so my buddy went there to shoot while I was here. I took my hip waders along and without them,I never would have been able to access this vantage point. Crossing streams that are around a foot deep is always nerve-wracking when you are carrying your gear along.