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After the Colors
November 2006
Trees without leaves are like sculptures. It’s amazing to see how the branches are shaped, pointing up, pointing sideways, pointing downwards, sometimes straight and sometimes curving, always with ingenious forms. We take them so much for granted we don’t realize how beautiful the forms are. But photographers can open our eyes with their images. Our cover photograph, “Winter Thaw” by Al Alexsa, is a fine example, with the tree in the center of the page, rising out of the earth with a mist in the background.
Next we see trees that almost seem to be sculptures of dancing figures. The photograph called “Apple Trees” by Diane Grant Melnik shows their remarkable curving forms against what seems to be a blank background. How graceful those curving branches are! It’s almost like a sculptural image of a ballet. Opposite we see “Waiting for Spring” by Richard Bruner, but we take the liberty of including it in this month’s portfolio even though it is far from spring. The clouds in the sky seem like reflections of the branches below. The dark ground is a dramatic base for the light sky.
Our second double page spread begins with “Birch Stand” by David Jeffery. Birch trees are always wonderful subjects for the camera eye, and here we see those delicate white vertical forms creating a lovely composition. On the right we see a very different image of trees in “Old Orchard,” also by David Jeffery. Here the snow highlights the remarkable forms created by the winding branches against the sky.
Next we move into foggy weather. On the left we see Michael Coluccio’s “Silhouette,” with an evergreen in the center and bare trunks and branches on each side. It is a dreamlike image, with lovely sensitivity. And on the right we see “Lonely But Looking Good” by Mike Angilletto. His tree is standing in the middle of a field, with hints of other trees seen through the fog. The tree stands alone, but as the photographer points out, it still looks impressive against the mist in the background.
Finally we see another photograph by Michael Coluccio, this one called “Lone Tree.” It does stand alone, quite majestically. Its branches seem to be lifting up into the white sky above, creating their own sculptural form to celebrate the fall season.
—David Finn
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