By November, there are usually no more fall foliage colors left on the trees in my part of New Hampshire, save for a few tenacious oaks, beech, and some species of maple. A heavy rainstorm that dumped 6 inches of rain led the Merrimack River to flood the unique forest of silver maples, the only tree that can grow on this constantly shifting silt and sand soil at the edge of the river in this spot. Silver maples turn color much later and I realized this might be a unique photo opportunity. I visited the floodplain a few days later when the waters had mostly receded leaving a delicate surface of mud and silt on the forest floor. The still colorful leaves were falling off that morning covering all the mud. As I looked closer, I realized the story of life in this habitat was evident all over the mud. The reflected light off the opposite side of the riverbank from the lingering low November sunrise was making those details pop. See this isn’t just another staged leaf shot, it’s the story of a forest in one frame! Nature is full of beautiful details if you take the time to see.
