Fantasy Forest

The Fantastical Forest

Forest photos can be tough to photograph. I usually look for strong lines, perhaps a path, some kind of definite shape or structure, alignment.
Then there are images like this one that follow none of those guidelines!

The gnarly, prehensile limbs just looked kind of alive and I loved that. The stream bed had such interesting colors in it to counterpoint with the green of the leaves. The river rocks and their sheen caught my eye too. Plus, it had been raining and I liked the way the light reflected off the wet leaves, became warm in the branches, cool in the water, reflect-y just about everywhere.

In processing, I went for the more illustrated/fantastical vibe… it was obviously taken here on planet Earth – yet had a slightly otherworldly feel to it.

I was lucky enough to capture it in New Zealand, from a bridge that was on the way to Milford Sound… where “fairy tale” is in the air itself!