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| Watchful, Roads End Farm |
November is coming to an end
and like every year it is time to complain about the terrible conditions for
photographers. It doesn’t help that the dismal
stick and mud season comes immediately after the glory of our incredible autumn
color, but this is New England, and there is always something to photograph as
we await the magical coating of snow. I
have talked about the attractions of late autumn in previous articles, including
the rusty display of the leaves as they surrender to the ground, leaving the
stark patterns of the bare branches.
November is a great time for hiking with the cool crisp air, open views
and most importantly, the absence of bugs.
I have covered this topic before, but, although I’m still working on the
pictures, I thought it was a good time to look at some of the special opportunities
that came along with this November.
Late Season Gold
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| Chesterfield Gorge Color |
November is not just about
flat colors and dull vistas. It is a time
of remarkable change, and although it often ends with dustings of snow, it begins
with the persistent gold from the brave Oaks and Beech trees. I enjoy the less gaudy colors and the lack of
strong early November storms allowed the leaves to hang in longer than usual.
A Time to Think
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| Roads End Mist |
November is the cloudiest
month of the year. Its soft light and
especially the mist make for a quiet contemplative time without gaudy
distractions. We had a number of
beautifully soft foggy days to enjoy this year, which contrasted nicely with
the stark lines of the bare branches.
Always the Farms
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| Grazing to the Vermont Hills |
There is always activity on
the local farms that I consider my own. The
cows were grazing on the hillside with the snow-covered Vermont mountains in
the background and the horses of the Roads End Farm in Chesterfield New
Hampshire were industriously cropping the last blades of grass from their
pastures before the long winter confinement.
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| Head Shot |
Restless Water
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| Chesterfield Gorge |
One of November’s traditional
attraction is flowing water. This year
the autumn rains have been scant, but in the last few days we have enjoyed a
few showers to fill the brooks. Close
to home Beaver Brook and Chesterfield Gorge are great places to catch the
cotton candy look of our flowing water.
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| Otter Brook, Sullivan NH |
Super Moon
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| November Super Super Moon over Monadnock |
As everyone knows, November
was graced with super Super Moon. I
don’t have anything more to add to last week’s “Bah Humbug” article about super
moons, except to apologize and acknowledge that the event was a special break
from our typically uneventful season.
Family Time
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| First Dance : Steven & Rachel |
November is a time to gather
with family and friends, and this year the usual Thanksgiving feast at home was
supplemented by a wonderful family wedding in Tarrytown New York. My nephew’s wedding was a perfect excuse to
get together with almost everyone from Susan’s family and both Jeremy and
Abigail were there, looking good and with their significant others.
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| Color Along the Hudson |
The additional bonus was that even in late
November there was still color in the trees along the Hudson River.
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| Croton Gorge Dam |
I also managed to get out early one morning to visit Rick
Sammon’s favorite local waterfall at the Croton Gorge Dam in Croton on the
Hudson New York. The flow was meager,
but it is still an impressive structure holding a large reservoir.
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| Abigail & Grayson, Gina & Jeremy |
Thanksgiving was a more
intimate affair with only 14 family a friends gathered around our abundantly
stocked dining room table. As always
these occasions are great times to capture candid portraits while everyone is
dressed up and expecting to be photographed. The company was warm, the food was
amazing and I now have only a few weeks to recover before the Christmas
festivities.
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| Wonderful Gathering and Lessons Learned |
I also learned a few important lessons about photographing the Thanksgiving table. First, get everyone in the picture. Secondly, shoot early before the table is in chaos and before much alcohol has been consumed.
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| Otter Brook Cascade |
It hasn't been such a bad stick season. As November rapidly comes to
an end, and until the snow flies, we can continue to enjoy the special quiet autumn
joys of the season.
Jeff Newcomer
partridgebrookreflections.com
603-363-8338
These photographs are attract me . So much thanks for shared .
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