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Lens-Artists Challenge #368—Looking Back to Lens-Artists Challenge # 106: Autumn

Fall colors in Fargo, North Dakota

I watch the birds fly south across the autumn sky
And one by one they disappear
I wish that I were flying with them
Now you’re not here
– “Forever Autumn” written by Jeff Wayne, Gary Osborne, and Paul Vigrass and performed by the Moody Blues

Less than two weeks ago, summer slipped away, and autumn is upon us in the northern hemisphere. It was in those waning days of summer that I realized it was my turn to host a ‘Looking Back’ post on the Lens-Artists Schedule calendar. With autumn fully entrenched here in North Dakota, I searched the archives for a “Fall Colors” theme. In July 2020, the team hosted a series titled “Seasons.” Patti hosted the Lens-Artists Photo Challenge #106: Autumn here. Thanks to Patti and the team for the idea to focus on nature’s most colorful season in this edition of “Looking Back.”

I start with one of my favorite photos of autumn colors. I was leaving home to run an early morning errand when the sun rose high enough from behind me to illuminate the trees that had been totally shaded by the clouds’ canopy moments ago. I pulled over and parked, grabbed my cell phone, and snapped the photo while leaning out my car’s driver-side window.

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Maplewood State Park

In 2014, we visited Minnesota’s Maplewood State Park, about an hour’s drive from Fargo. The colors weren’t quite at peak for the season, but they were close. As we walked on one of the trails, I glimpsed the hillside ablaze with gold. I composed the photo to feature the leading lines of red leaves and the trail in the foreground, drawing the viewer’s eyes toward the colorful hill in the background.

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Black Hills color

In October 2020, we traveled through the Black Hills of South Dakota. The fall colors were at their peak, and this tree stood out as a beautiful example of nature’s fall paintbrush.

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Wind River country

That same October, we visited Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks in Wyoming. On our way home, we discovered the scenic beauty of U.S. Route 26/287. We were traveling along what we would later learn was the Wind River Canyon Scenic Byway, and were blown away by the drive. We marveled at our good fortune to be there during peak fall colors.

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Sheep Creek Byway

In 2023, we visited Flaming Gorge for the third time, and on that charmed visit, we discovered the Sheep Creek Scenic Backway, a loop drive that winds through canyons, and in October, through colorful aspens and Rocky Mountain maple trees.

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Sunset in the Smokies

In September, we spent time with family in the Smoky Mountains. It was too early for fall colors on this trip, but our visit in October 2018 was closer to peak colors. I always enjoy creating panoramic images with Adobe Lightroom Classic; in this case, the pano was required to put both the sunset and the autumn colors in the same image.

Now, it’s your turn to show us autumn colors. Share with us your favorite images of autumn, or if the timing is right, share some new pictures. To ensure that no one is left out, if you don’t live in an area with autumn scenes, here are a couple of examples of fall colors below. Feel free to share as “Colors of Autumn.”

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Colors of Autumn

This photo was taken in June 2017 at the Denver Botanical Garden in Colorado. These torch lilies bloom from late spring into summer. This display was part of the Denver Botanic Gardens’ curated celebration of drought-tolerant, pollinator-friendly, and climate-resilient species.

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Colors of Autumn

While walking through an outdoor venue in Mexico, I noticed a leaf on a countertop. Then I looked again. What appeared to be a dead leaf was a beautifully camouflaged butterfly. If the butterfly were in a tree, I’d have never seen it for what it was. That delicate wing design is just one of many species of butterflies that appear to resemble dead leaves. According to the Internet, this specimen is known as a ruddy daggerwing. For those who are interested in photo metadata or other details, this gallery is curated on my Flickr site here.

Last week, our guest host, Joanna Mason, challenged us with the title “Everyone Should See This,” which brought many unique images in the responses. Next week, the Lens-Artists Challenge is hosted by Ann-Christine. Be sure to follow her blog here so you don’t miss the challenge she will publish on Saturday, October 11, at 12:00 p.m. Eastern Time. To find out more about the Lens-Artists Challenge, click here.

John Steiner

129 comments

  5. I love the butterfly also.

    I do like the way you’ve captured the sunlight on the tree tops. Makes for a great composition in light and shade.

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  9. There’s something so glorious about autumn. We have only the mildest of colour changes here, but roast chestnuts on the street corner braziers should be about to make an appearance xx

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  11. Beautiful Autumn colors John, and your stories of how you found them are great. I love the color palette of Fall, but hate the leaves after they fall. I guess after the beauty comes the work!

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  12. Thank you for the beautiful fall colors, John. Love the first photo and the drama in the clouds and the butterfly, so amazing that camoflauge…like a real autumn leaf!. Nature is just spectacular. Great share.

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  13. John, thank you for sharing these beautiful fall colors with us. I really like seeing the colors from these different locations. I love them all but the one of those yellow trees lining the street in Fargo is my favorite.

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  16. I saw someone say perfect challenge for the season, except it is spring here. I’m not sure what I’m going to do. Your photos are beautiful John, we never get shots like that here, sadly, there are some places that have lots of colour, but they are rare.

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    • Arizona isn’t much for all colors either, Leanne. Maybe you can find some shots in your gallery of those fall colors as applied in flowers, or even in artwork in the city.

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  27. Wonderful images of my favorite season, John! Your opening shot is incredible and I would have done exactly the same thing, pull over and snap away. We saw a bit of Autumn colors driving near Yellowstone last month on that same highway! I’ll join you Wednesday! Enjoy your busy week reading posts 😉

    Reply

  35. Some wonderful examples of autumn trees here! I love the Black Hills one and ‘Sunset in the Smokies’ in particular. And that butterfly is wonderful!

    I probably won’t join in this week as it’s just a little too early in the season for me to be able to take fresh autumn shots and I’m sure I’ve worked my older ones to death 😀

    Reply

    • Thanks, Ritva! We were just in the Smoky Mountains in early August. Though the leaves weren’t at all ready, the scenes reminded me of our earlier journey when the colors were just starting to turn.

      Reply

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