Autumn colour

Autumn on the prairie is short, and it arrives all at once. The aspens turn from green to gold in a matter of days, the poplars along the field edges follow, and for a week or two the whole landscape glows before the first hard wind takes the leaves.

I look for the places where the colour has something to sit against: a dark spruce woodlot, a river running over granite, a stormy sky behind a stand of aspen. Up close, the same season offers floating leaves, raindrops on a maple leaf, and the white trunks of birch in a blur of yellow.

The window is brief, so I go out as often as I can while it lasts. These photographs come from several autumns, from the aspen bluffs close to home to the rapids and rivers farther out.

Row of aspen trunks under an orange canopy against blue sky

Photos

  • Golden aspens in an autumn woodlot with a grassy edge
  • Yellow and orange aspens with a round bale in the grass at the forest edge
  • A single golden tree glowing among bare trunks
  • Orange foliage lit up against dark woods
  • Close view of golden aspen leaves against grey trunks
  • Bright yellow leaves on a branch in dark evergreen woods
  • Two birch trunks against a blur of golden leaves
  • Row of aspen trunks under an orange canopy against blue sky
  • Aspen grove turning from green to gold
  • White aspen trunks among green and yellow leaves with red undergrowth
  • Orange aspens along a fence line under a pale sky
  • Motion-blurred aspen trunks and golden grass
  • Abstract blur of orange and red autumn trees against the sky
  • Golden aspen bluff beneath a hydro tower and dark storm clouds
  • Autumn trees in an orange bluff beyond a golden field under a teal sky
  • Autumn trees in morning mist beyond a field
  • Aspens glowing gold in evening light above a deep blue understory
  • Orange autumn trees above a green tractor and farm equipment
  • Autumn trees mixing green, yellow, and orange foliage
  • Row of yellow poplars beside a ploughed field
  • Rocky rapids surrounded by autumn spruce and aspen
  • White water running through granite under a blue and cloudy sky
  • Rapids and boreal trees in fall colour
  • Calm river above a rocky weir framed by spruce and aspen
  • Golden aspens reflected in a still pond beside granite boulders
  • Quiet creek winding between trees in autumn colour
  • Creek bend with trees in yellow and green
  • Autumn treeline reflected in a calm lake with rocks in the foreground
  • Orange willows leaning over a river with a reflection
  • Fishing boat crossing a river in front of autumn trees
  • Ducks on calm water in front of reeds and a gold treeline
  • Dirt path through birch and aspen in autumn
  • Large oak with yellow autumn leaves in a park
  • Sunlight through mist in a fall forest
  • Oak trunks in the foreground of a river rapid with fall foliage
  • Yellow oak leaves against branches and sky
  • Fallen leaves floating on dark water
  • Red leaf in soft focus against yellow
  • Water droplets on a yellow autumn leaf

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