Our first day was very foggy. You’d expect that I’d be in Fog Heaven but strangely I did not go out at all until we decided to ride around in the afternoon. As an excuse it had rained off and on but I did bring the tripod umbrella so that’s pretty weak. We covered a few miles when passing Sargeant Drive which runs along Somes Sound and was hidden in fog. Not much attracted attention until this tree appeared.
Probably the best angle to separate the branches would have been from the water but the shapes still express themselves here. Originally I thought this would be best in monochrome but the black and white conversion didn’t work for me. And I do like the softness of the colors. I haven’t decided whether I would have liked a bit more fog but losing the details of the branches would have made the image less successful, I think.
Stephen Gingold Nature Photography Blog 
Beautiful 🙂
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Thanks, Rudi!
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Most excellent Steve !!!
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Thanks, Liz!
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While I’m a fan of black and white, in this instance colour works best for me with the foreground really grounding and contrasting with that amazing tree.
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Thanks, Annie. At the time it seemed a good subject for black and white with all the fog. But it didn’t translate as well as it does with the color. Often it is the reverse.
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Easy to see why this sinuous-trunk tree grabbed your attention.
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The road is only two lanes with no shoulder so I had to look for a spot to park. Fortunately it was not far. We had been driving for a while and this loomed out and said “finally!”
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Very Nice Steve! It is fun to photograph in the fog!
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Thanks, Reed. I agree.
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A ghost tree… 🙂 I like the soft colours of the foliage and the even softer tones of the tree bark.
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Thanks, Ann. I knew the fog would create a nice soft look but didn’t expect it to work this well. A nice surprise.
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I love photos like this, Steve. The shapes that trees make, alive or dead, can be quite something beautiful. All the more so with the enshroading fog adding atmosphere. Nicely done!
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Thanks, Pete. There is a British photographer I follow on YouTube, Simon Baxter, who spends a lot of time in wooded landscapes and finds quite a fine number of lovely gnarly trees with so much character. Our woods are almost entirely second and third growth, so most are fairly plain. I was quite excited to find this tree so nicely isolated in the fog.
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I like the tree both ways: with and without the foreground foliage. The sinuosity of the trunk and limbs is especially appealing when seen in isolation; there’s a real sense of movement.
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I considered the tree alone but favored it being grounded. There is so much to see in it. I wish I could have approached closer to study some of the intersections and shapes.
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I think it’s perfect – it has wonderful form!
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Thanks, Eliza!
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Very pretty. Fog is appealing but often hard to work with and often results in low contrast black and white after conversion. Your choice to leave it in color I think was better.
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Thanks, Alessandra. Anywhere with fog is my happy place and fortunately I see a lot here and when visiting the Acadia shoreline. It is now the season where we can have warmish days and cool or even cold nights (37° Friday morning here in Amherst) which is a good engine for ground fog.
I often start with a particular format in mind but once on the display the other seems to work better as in this image. It doesn’t pay to be stubborn in some cases.
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Are you traveling? This image is wonderful~I agree about the grounding. That is very effective.
We finally moved (!) and we’re living in kind of a magic place. A small lake lives across the street, and fog has been rising from it every morning lately. Heaven.
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We were, Melissa. Thanks! Our almost annual trip to Acadia. Congratulations. I think that I remember you were considering the northwest area for a while then the southeast. Which did you decide upon? I am envious of that pond you have for a neighbor.
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We got pretty close to buying in the Asheville area, and had begun thinking of Maine, but finally found what we were looking for right here in NE Illinois. We’re north of where we were, and can once again see more land than houses. I hope it stays that way for our lifetime. I understand that people are leaving Illinois so maybe the building boom will subside.
I really hope to get a chance to visit Acadia one day but in the meantime I can enjoy your stunning images of it.
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Sounds good and you can still visit the parts of Illinois that you have always enjoyed while being able to return to a more pleasing environment as your home.
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Yes! I may have to become a Plein air painter because my camera skills fall short of capturing the little lake at dawn. I keep wishing you were here! 🙂
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Maybe someday I’ll wander out your way. 🙂
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Oh I hope you do! We have a guest room now, to offer you and your wife and a good fenced in yard for you dog 🙂
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Travels with Bentley. Sounds like a sitcom. Thanks for the offer, Melissa!
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I love this image just the way you have presented it, Steve. Hard to imagine it being any better from any other vantage point or processed any differently.
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Thanks, Linda. I think I made the right choices and am glad that you agree.
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I love this, it’s just beautiful. And I like the colors, too, very much. One could look at this for a long time….
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I did look at it for a long time. 🙂 Fortunately Mary Beth packs a book to read for these stops. Thanks! I was quite excited when I noticed it and was happy there was little to no traffic this afternoon.
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I laughed about Mary Beth’s book. We’re lucky to have patient spouses. The regularity of swings in both directions that the branches made is really something. I love the way the ripples in the water slowly coalesce and disappear – that’s a keen eye, skillful shooting, and careful editing!
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