‘As long as autumn lasts, I shall not have hands, canvas and colours enough to paint the beautiful things I see.’ - Vincent Van Gogh
One of the beautiful things about nature and the passage of time is the change of seasons and the change from summer to autumn is one of the most dramatic of all. The days get markedly shorter and the leaves on the trees start to change colour giving the most amazing displays of yellow, gold and red. A huge variety of fungi show themselves through the leaf litter, rotting logs or the trunks of trees.
As autumn arrives the temperature drops from the humid heat of the summer to cool crisp days perfect for having fun jumping in piles of autumn leaves, picking fruit from the trees or getting out and about in the woods or forest with a hot thermos in your backpack and simply taking in the beauty of the world around you.
We asked our ‘Borrow a Camera’ students to take pictures of what autumn looks like through their eyes. On the following pages you will see their views of autumn in all its varied beauty.
Indie Ford (age 11)
In this stunning image, the leaves look like they are on fire under the water. The leaves are perfectly placed and focussed within the frame and the light on the ripples on the water creates movement, depth and drama.
Hillary Ho (age 10)
The golden leaves on this creeper really stand out against the black brick wall that they are growing on. They have a jewel like quality and the way that they spread out from the right gives the leaves an ethereal quality. The slight vignette and the ombre effect of the leaves transitioning from a dark gold to yellow adds depth and interest to the image.
Emily Tait (age 11)
This image is oh so playful and is evocative of happy childhood memories of playing in piles of fallen autumn leaves just for the fun of it. The subject is covered from head to toe with vibrant autumn leaves which emphasizes the sense of fun.
Isabel Posada-Hinestroza (age 10)
The leaf is well focussed and the way that it is positioned dead in the centre of the image draws your attention to the colours and the complex detail in the veins. The reds of the leaf and the greens of the grass, while contrasting, are tonally similar which creates a pleasing image.
Finn Blackshah (age 12)
This incredibly fresh image makes the viewer want to reach and pick one of those tomatoes right out of the bowl! The vibrant colour of the tomatoes is appetising and the little glints of light bring them to life. The bright green stalk of the tomato also adds significant impact to the overall look of the image.
Indie Ford (age 11)
The softness of the light and the warm muted tones of this image creates a beautifully peaceful dreamy quality like something out of a fairy tale.
Hillary Ho (age 10)
These huge golden fungi dominate the frame bursting out from a rotting log, encapsulating the idea of the circle of life. Everything is used and nothing is wasted.
Emily Tait (age 11)
The rays fanning down from the clouds to the sea are the stars of this dramatic seascape. The beautiful coppery tones of the sky are reflected in the water and the finger like shape of the cloud is echoed in the land below which creates a very compelling image.
Jesse Radford (age 12)
The way in which this image is composed with the leaf’s stem cutting the image in half gives the image an abstract quality. At first glance the contrasting colours grab your attention and looking more closely you realise that it’s a close up of a leaf. How can a single leaf display two opposing colours? That’s the beauty and magic of nature.
George Grove (age 11)
This image of flames over some coal projects a warm, welcoming feeling reminiscent of toasting marshmallows outside on a chilly autumn evening. The frame is filled with the fire and the flames look like they are dancing over the coals. The background is completely black which draws your eye to the intensity of the flames.
Samuel Zhou (age 9)
This image of leaf litter. A pretty ordinary subject but the way in which focus is on the leaves in the centre of the image draws the viewer in and invites you to take a closer look. The more you look, the more you see such as a little mushroom in the foreground and the blades of green grass poking through the leaf litter. It kind of tells a story of death and regeneration and of what can be seen if you take the time to look.
Sometimes people can get the ‘winter blues’ when the days start drawing in and the temperatures get colder. However, I think that our young photographers have shown us the beauty that can be seen by going out and immersing ourselves in autumn nature. Through them we get a sense of the cyclical nature of endings and beginnings, change and renewal and we are all an important part of that natural process.
‘Autumn shows us how beautiful it is to let things go’ – Anon
Editor: Penny Milner
IMAgEN8
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