Back to the "Tree" set after a slight departure yesterday. Here's a very recent photo of Trembling Aspens from a few days ago.
There must be just enough shelter from the wind and just enough moisture in the ground for aspens to thrive in this location: thousands of tiny trees, most of them no more than 12 feet high and six inches in diameter, crowd together at the base of 70 Mile Butte. I hiked with the tripod that evening, which allowed me to shoot at a small f-stop to keep everything in the frame in sharp focus and show the density. I liked the light, too.
Photographed in Grasslands National Park, Saskatchewan (Canada). Don't use this image on websites, blogs, or other media without explicit permission ©2024 James R. Page - all rights reserved.
Tags: Trembling Aspen Populus tremuloides Quaking Aspen trees thicket evening light density wild prairie Aspen Coulee Grasslands National Park Saskatchewan Canada copyrighted James R. Page 2024
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Last shot in the current "Trees" collection. When our village was settled in the 1920s, it was essentially a flat, treeless place next to a small, winding river, just north of some rolling hills and rugged buttes. Old photos show this clearly. But it doesn't look like that now; not at all. What is the difference?
Trees. They planted trees. Cottonwoods in particular grow fast. In fact, they grow too fast, and then rot out and fall on the roofs - this happened to me in 2014, and consequently I had two large, menacing cottonwood trees removed from next to my house, replacing them with Siberian elm and caragana. I've also planted green ash on my property, and it's doing well. Yes, I've been a busy little beaver, or rather a reverse-beaver, as I've only planted these trees, and as yet have not chewed any down. But I digress.
This is a view from my front porch, looking across the street, skimming over the roof tops: young cottonwoods in spring, fat buds ready to burst forth into lovely, shade-giving leaf. Evening light. The pioneers' legacy lives on.
Photographed in Val Marie, Saskatchewan (Canada). Don't use this image on websites, blogs, or other media without explicit permission ©2024 James R. Page - all rights reserved.
Tags: Plains Cottonwood Populus deltoides Eastern Cottonwood tree treetops buds spring life force prairie village Val Marie SK Saskatchewan Canada copyrighted James R. Page 2024
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My brief walkabout on a cold, hoarfrost day continues. I tried to keep my mind blank. This is my home; I know its streets very well. It can be problematic - when we think we know everything about a place (or a topic of conversation), we tend to stop looking (or listening). As the Zen master said, "We must have beginner's mind, a mind that knows everything is in flowing change." (Suzuki Roshi)
After walking down the back alley, I cut through an empty lot nearby. I was now at the edge of town: this place is so small that it doesn't take long to reach the perimeter in any direction. In the summer, this lot is occupied by a guy in a mobile home; in winter, however, the trees dominate. So I zoomed out to ultra-wide and placed the distant horizon very low in the frame. Liked what I saw, pressed the shutter release. These are Plains or Eastern Cottonwoods, the most commonly planted tree in the village. Beautiful with bright green foliage in spring, turning yellow in fall; the trunks are stark and expressive after winter strips them of their finery.
More to come...
Photographed in Val Marie, Saskatchewan (Canada). Don't use this image on websites, blogs, or other media without explicit permission ©2024 James R. Page - all rights reserved.
Tags: winter wide angle trees Plains Cottonwood Populus deltoides frost hoarfrost branches trunks cold empty lot prairie village Val Marie Saskatchewan Canada copyrighted James R. Page 2024
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A grove of Plains Cottonwoods towers above the prairie, under a cloudless blue sky. I was driving the backroads to a lake to look for migrating birds and had to stop here for a few minutes. Trees like this are a rare and beautiful sight in the grasslands.
Tomorrow: into the mountains and a couple of interesting encounters...
Photographed near Bracken, Saskatchewan (Canada). Don't use this image on websites, blogs, or other media without explicit permission ©2023 James R. Page - all rights reserved.
Tags: Plains Cottonwood Populus deltoides Eastern Cottonwood trees fall autumn blue sky the last warm days wild prairie Bracken Saskatchewan Canada copyrighted James R. Page 2023
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It was a morning of finger-numbing cold, but the light promised to be very good so I motivated myself to get up and out the door early. Didn't know where I was going; just drove. At the Orkney Cemetery, I slipped inside the gate and tramped across the graves, trying to keep between rows and not step on anyone's head, but the snow pack made it hard to know for sure.
There was a small hill at the back end, which I climbed for this view, and it provided just enough clearance to see the setting moon above the line of trees.
You can see a road running along the other side of the trees. Last week I was back there, trying to photograph a porcupine halfway up a tree, when I spotted a prairie hare nearby. I had walked that road; lots more snow had fallen in the interim. I stepped off the road to navigate between two of the trees, and instantly was thigh deep in snow. Luckily only one leg, so I managed to crawl out. Got the hare shots. The porcupine... maybe not. One out of two isn't bad.
No wildlife on this particular morning, though; any animal with common sense was lying low, leaving only me, obviously lacking sense, but drawn to the light because I can't help myself.
Photographed near Orkney, Saskatchewan (Canada). Don't use this image on websites, blogs, or other media without explicit permission ©2023 James R. Page - all rights reserved.
Tags: landscape full moon winter trees dawn light cold snow February dawn beautiful prairie Orkney Cemetery Orkney Saskatchewan Canada copyrighted James R. Page
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