Hands Up Who Likes Autumn!

The change of season into autumn is no more visible than it is in our woodlands. As the green foliage fades its replaced by a splendid show of browns, yellows, and oranges. It's probably the most vibrant of all the seasons and it's no surprise its often considered the landscape photographers favourite season.

Many people think that Dartmoor is a barren landscape of rolling hills, but it also has its fair share of woodlands. So, the natural thing for me as a landscape photographer at this time of year would be to head to woodlands of Dartmoor to photograph the autumnal colours. The trouble is, photographing trees and woodland is not something I do very often, and I find it a difficult subject. I very much admire the work of photographers that produce such compelling woodland images.

But there's only one way to get good at photographing woods and trees and that's to practice! With little in the way of expectations I decided to grab my camera and head to East Dartmoor woods to see if I could find my inner woodland photographer.

When I arrived though, I had the bright idea that it might be easier to photograph one tree rather than the entire woodland. While that does sound easier on paper, when it came to the execution, I'm not entirely sure it was any easier.

**East Dartmoor Woods, Dartmoor, Devon** - Nikon Z8, Nikkor Z 24-120mm f/4 S at 42mm, f/11, 1/6 sec ISO 64

Looking at this photo I can most certainly find room for improvement in the composition, and while the light on the tree itself is pleasing, the conditions lack interest. But saying all that, it's probably the best picture I could capture that morning, and I had fun doing so. It's important to remember that not every photograph you capture has to be a "banger". Some pictures can bring you joy just because you got out there and captured it.