Becoming Berries

Signs of Autumn

I love autumn. After the blousiness of summer which feels overblown to me and sometimes suffocating, I welcome the drop in temperature and the changes in sights and smells.

At the first scent of it about a week or so ago, however, I did feel a pang of anxiety. Almost every difficult or traumatic event in my life has happened between November and February. And it has usually involved illness and/or the death of someone close.

But I remind myself that I’m not superstitious and whenever possible I practise staying in the moment to avoid spending too much time reliving past events or imagining futures ones. Neither helps with anxiety. But as I’ve said in other pieces, photography is a great way to stay present — in fact, it’s required if you want a decent photo.

Years ago, when I didn’t realise that I was living with a low level functioning depression I welcomed the shortened days. Now I much prefer light. It gives me a feeling of possibilities and hope. But autumn has its benefits and I’ll embrace it through my photographs.

Harvests are everywhere to be seen…

…as colours turn.

My dad, a lover of hobbies, used to make wine. Elderberry was one of his best. It may explain why an afternoon nap was unavoidable after Sunday lunch.

While I love to take photos of landscapes when I’m in the wider expanses of a place like Scotland, elsewhere I like to get up close and look intently at details and I often don’t see all of them until I’m looking at the photograph.

I’ve started to make small adjustments in Photoshop; at the moment to brightness and contrast. Rather than taking the subjects away from reality I hope I’m presenting them more as they really are. That is, apart from the poppy here.