The view of Mount Norwottuck from Mount Pollux is becoming an obsession. It’s easy to get to (5 minutes from my house), requires little hiking and has an interesting profile as well as many foreground views to choose from although they are all similar I suppose.
This morning started promisingly enough as the sky was surprisingly clear at 4 a.m. By the time the sun rose, however, the mists settled in and the sunrise became filtered through some milky clouds on the eastern horizon (this view is to the South). I had hoped for the crest of Norwottuck to be lit over the mists but that didn’t come about. After walking around for a while, I saw this Goldenrod patch and decided it was worth shooting. I hope you like it.
The patch of Goldenrods really make this picture…. Beautiful comp!
LikeLike
Thanks Rob. I was really happy to come upon the goldenrod. It really adds some life to the image.
LikeLike
Great post steve! I am really glad you have one on those personal places which you enjoy once and again…developping familiarity and intimacy with natural places is way more important than running around discovering-ticking out a whole list of exotic locales!! Take care;)
LikeLike
Thanks Rafael. I absolutely agree. I have a few places I like to revisit often..the look and light are rarely the same as before. But I wouldn’t mind exotic once in a while. Un abrazo!
LikeLike
What’s that old saying – “If you want to see something new in nature, walk the same road as yesterday”
🙂
Nice one Steve
LikeLike
Hey, thanks for the great quote, Alister! I like that one. Thanks too for the comment on the image.
LikeLike
Gorgeous image, Steve! One of the things that I like best about your photography is that its all so close to your home. There’s something to be said about discovering your own “little wild places” and finding the beauty in your own backyard. You’ve really filled that niche well…
Cheers,
Greg
LikeLike
Thanks Greg. It’s taken me a while to “settle in”. Kind of kidding as I’ve lived here pretty much all my life. But sometimes the familiar gets overlooked for, as Rafael said, the exotic. Add to that my focusing on the small stuff and these landscapes are just now getting more of my attention. . More to come. 🙂
As easy and close by as my landscapes may be I definitely want to visit the Southwest and shoot with you some day. Saving my nickels, dimes and quarters…
LikeLike
Its comforting to be reminded how much there is close to home, especially if we make a 4am start. It’s a lovely foreground and a nice contrast to the many fine single plant images you post. It sounds an idyllic place to have spent life.
LikeLike
Thanks Andrew. I do tend to favor the single plant images…lucky my knees still work right, although it is getting more difficult to stand up after a prolonged shoot. This area is a nice place to live and is known as Happy Valley for a reason.
LikeLike
The Goldenrod foreground brings more interest to this view of the mountain as it offsets the blue-green color and accentuates the mountain shape. Your excellent foreground has the same effect on the trees, which might not otherwise be all that interesting, but work well in juxtaposition.
LikeLike
Thank you David. Funny, I was just reading your post about your father’s inspirations before you posted here. I will be commenting, but like to think about things before putting them in writing.
I did find this spot to work well. There were several others, but I liked how the goldenrod and the tree on the right had a resemblance.
LikeLike
I, too, like dense goldenrod colonies, though development and relentless mowing are making such displays rarer in Austin. With the addition of this year’s drought, I went for a minimalist approach:
I’d add a mountain if we had any here.
LikeLike
Your picture is still luscious a year later.
LikeLike
Ohh. I never replied to your original comment. Bad Steve.
I lived on Nantucket for a while and had to leave…no mountains.
Thanks on the further comment…and it is hanging on a wall at a home here in Amherst. 🙂
LikeLike
That was fast work: I didn’t think you’d hang my comment on one of your walls so quickly.
LikeLike
Your comments are most often works of art. Of course, I meant that some lucky person sold a print. 🙂
LikeLike