Dense forests blanket the mountains of central Pennsylvania, where I live. Some of these forests have a rabbit warren of dirt roads. If you have a good map, you can drive many miles of these roads to soak in the beauty of the woods. One of my favorite experiences is to meander along the roads and look for potential images during autumn, when the leaves transform from their summer green to fall yellows, oranges, and reds.
However, the challenge in photographing this autumnal beauty is finding compositional order in the seeming arboreal chaos. I have driven many miles through these forests trying to find good compositions as well as good lighting. I found this composition on a seldom-traveled road deep in the local mountains. The S-curve of the dirt road, the arrangement of tree trunks, the deep greens just starting to turn yellow, and the muted lighting all made me stop to enjoy the beauty and capture an image.
