Trees in Light

This project is an exploration of the beauty of trees and light in the unique places they occupy in our world. I look for trees that stand out in the chaos of the forest. Most of the time, a portrait of a tree is located scouting throughout the day and then planned for best lighting. I often return to photograph it at a more opportune time. Many times the best lighting is diffused. Light painting is used in some images to highlight features and enhance contrast. My work is a digital process, but there's no digital manipulation. The workflow is much the same as traditional darkroom printing. I use density, contrast and dodging and burning, often in great detail to make the print look as natural as possible so that it expresses what I see and feel.