This photo is so mesmerizing to me. Well, actually it’s the picture below that really captures my attention but that doesn’t work very well as the post photo because it’s in the portrait orientation. Fortunately I really like them both. The overall scene just appears so relaxing and calm to me. You have the fog lifting from the warm water into the cool morning air dispersing the soft morning light as the sun nears the horizon. That fog separates this lone tree from the forest behind it allowing you to see the interesting shape of this silhouetted evergreen growing from a tiny island surrounded by boulders and water. I really begin to wonder how this tree is able to grow in that spot. You have the cool colors created by the early morning low light and fog separating it from the warm colors above the tree line behind producing yellows and oranges. Having all of the trees in silhouette creates a scene that my mind keeps wanting to watch expecting the sun to show illuminating these trees and water.
The main difference in these two pictures above is, of course, the orientation in which they were shot. Switching to portrait allows for the trees reflection to become visible showing off the calm water adding to the relaxing scene. However, this photo doesn’t highlight the small island with boulders around it like the top picture does. Notice I did not center the tree, the main focus of this image. Is it obvious that the tree is the main subject? As I studied the tree I noticed a lower branch, or second tree, coming off the right side angling up adding a little more overall mass to this side. Because of that, it needed to be situated to the left in pictures. If I had centered this photo it would feel off balance to the viewer as you can see below. It’s not bad but it not as relaxed as the picture above. You can also see that making the tree fill the entire shot does not allow the viewer to step into the scene as well.
Looking at the top photos, it’s easy to think I just rolled out of bed and five minutes later captured these amazing photographs. Let me take you through what was involved in getting this shot. I arrived at this cabin on East Bearskin Lake. An entry point into the Boundary Waters Canoe Area. Taking a short path from the cabin to the waters edge and you’re looking out into the deep wilderness of evergreens, birch, maple, granite, and water. It’s so quiet most of the time. If it weren’t for the multitude of mosquitos, biting flies, and gnats it would feel like you’re in a dream. While first peering out at the landscape in front of me I saw this one tree emerging from a small island. I wanted to concentrate on that one piece and find a way to capture it’s interest separate from all the other incredible and scenic pieces putting together this spectacular place. There was just something about it that spoke to me. Prior to this I was struggling to find any motivation to even pick up a camera. There was just no excitement in photography which had been going on for a couple of months by this time.
I walked back to the cabin to begin unloading the camping gear and arranging it inside. Once complete, a meal was prepared with the intent the rest of the day to just enjoy quiet time with my friend I made the journey with. As we sat down to eat, rain began to fall chasing us inside for awhile. Not exactly the start I was hoping for but weather is to be expected during the spring in Northern Minnesota. From time to time my mind would return to the lake in front of us trying to envision what type of photograph would really bring out this tree growing almost from just out of the water? I struggled once again to come up with an idea and decided it was time for a fire and to let this picture go. My mental photography block was still in place. Maybe there just wasn’t a shot suitable using this little island and I should concentrate on something else. The stars began to shine overhead and it was a long day of travel so off to bed I went expecting to awake before dawn and try again.
Light began to show through the window just above my head. I was still tired and unmotivated to get up. After a few minutes of fighting with myself I got out of my nice, warm sleeping bag, begrudgingly got dressed and headed outside. The camera was in the vehicle and that’s where I wanted it to stay. But what if there’s a moose down by the lake? I grabbed the camera, a tripod, and a couple of lenses and headed to the lake just outside of this cabin. NO MOOSE! I should go back to bed. I decided to stay and work with composition on this lonely tree. You can see the results in the two photos above. Nothing really outstanding. I just couldn’t isolate this tree the way I really wanted to. The next morning I did this again, not really expecting anything more than just trying to enjoy the day beginning over this beautiful place. The second day I did spend some time moving down the shoreline a ways and noticed the difference in how that island appeared. It still was blending into the background too much but at least I could see water all the way around it now. Before the background trees blended in too well with a portion of it. I tried a small lens and moved all the way up to my 200-500mm lens looking for different compositions. Still no really good shot like I wanted. And my motivation to keep holding this computer with glass would not return. I should also mention that the camera was not working properly and the shutter button worked intermittently which may have been much of my problem.
On my third and final morning I once again forced myself out of bed and went down the the lake. What I found was a gorgeous scene! My inspiration returned immediately. I wrote about this some time back. You can read it here. If you click on previous post at the very bottom from that one you can read my description of this morning. The fog on the lake was perfect to create separation between the tree and the background. I moved on down the shore to where I had noticed water visible around the tree and set up the camera. You can see the view in the picture above. This tree was quite a distance away requiring my longest lens, which is visible in the lower left hand corner of the above shot, to accomplish the task I wanted. There were moments I needed to wait as the fog drifted around the tree to show off it’s interesting shape but for the most part I snapped away. Every few minutes the light kept changing as the sun continued to rise creating a slightly different look to the photograph. I couldn’t believe the colors in these pictures as I was taking them. They were just so amazing and made these pictures even more spectacular.
The sun began to peak through the tree tops behind this little island and the fog began to be disappearing causing me to believe my time capturing this scene, I had been trying for days to figure out, was over. And then it returned as the sun was rising above the trees casting a beautiful warm glow once again. I now switched the tree to the right side as it was no longer the main feature of the photograph. The sun and it’s rays going through the fog changed the scene. The brightness of the sun shining through this thick fog casting rays which protruded to the left of the tree now dominated the scene requiring me to adjust my composition slightly. The rays are subtle in this picture but are there which your eye picks up. It would feel out of proportion if the tree was still to the left of center now. It took three days and a lot of luck that the fog emerged for this picture to work. If I had not been focused on getting a photograph of this tree and the small island it was growing on, I would not have been prepared to capture this moment which only lasted a short time. These pictures have become inspirational to me whenever I go out to capture a scene now as they remind me a it becomes spectacular under the right circumstances as long as I’m prepared to photograph them.
