Breamish River Trees
Not river dogs this time but river trees. One last look at the de-foliated silhouettes of a few trees along the River Breamish before the leaves start to grow back, now that we’re heading for Spring.
trees
Into the Copper Wood
Copper Wood of Thrunton
About three weeks ago, I talked a little about beech leaves still clinging to their branches during winter and how their copper-coloured leaves loom out from the dark backdrop of shady woodland. They make great photos:
On the Beech or ‘What a Lot of Big Words!’
I have three favourite words. The second of these (in the order that I was introduced to them) came from studying A-level Biology at VI Form College when I was a teenager. I’m sure it’ll be on everyone’s Favourite List. It’s abscission. Yes, that one again! I know…it’s so yesterday, isn’t it?
I’m joshing, of course.
Up Above – Down Below
Up and down a valley
I’ve enjoyed visiting and re-visiting the area around the Hedgeley Lakes in recent weeks. How things change, though! The valley floor looks so different now from the yellow Hedgeley of April 2020:
Waiting for Fall
Waiting for fall of…
It’s inevitable that, in the countryside, the landscape changes from year to year. Rivers erode their banks, animals eat shrubs and the wind breaks branches and trees.
There is a row of trees near Ingram that I’ve been fond of photographing for several years now. When I took my first photo of them back in February 2012 there was snow on the ground:
Last of the Autumn Leaves 2020
Autumn leaves don’t last…
It’s been a great year for vibrant coloured autumn leaves along the lanes where we live this year. It’s been a real joy to see the ochres, umbers, purples, yellow, golds, reds and russets. But…nothing lasts forever, and the leaves are almost gone now. But as the deciduous trees shed most of their leaves for the winter, the larches are still holding onto their needles as they turn a wonderful yellow-brown-gold. Again, what’s not to like?
When the Light Breaks Through
When the sun’s light breaks through at Thrunton
Competition for sunlight among trees leads to a remarkably consistent pattern of tree sizes in woodlands. And all sorts of animals and plants that live in the shade of trees are also reliant on the sun breaking through the canopy at some times in order for them to survive.
Breamish Blossom
Beautiful Breamish blossom
One of my favourite films is the 2003 movie ‘The Last Samurai‘. While I find it memorable for all sorts of reasons – the stunning panoramas, the evocation of a strange and often cruel cultural practices – there’s a quote that sticks in my mind. The samurai leader Katsumoto (played by Ken Watanabe), is grounded in the old samurai ways and the Bushido code of honour. In contrast to his relentless warrior instincts, when confronted by Spring cherry blossom in his courtyard, he says:
My Old Oak
Old oak near Branton
Everyone’s got a favourite place, right? A favourite place to be? A favourite place to just look and see what you can see?
As I enjoy photography as a hobby, I have a favourite location that I like to keep returning to and to keep taking the same photograph. Yes, over and over…and over. It’s an old oak tree in a field opposite the Branton Lakes Nature Reserve, just before the Branton footbridge. I love the solidity of it, the way it stands out from the Cheviots in the background, the wide expanse of the field in front, the coming and going of sheep and people. I say the ‘same’ image but, of course, that’s the point – it never is the same image. The world changes, conditions change. More sun yesterday, more cloud today. More calm yesterday, more blustery today.