Nature/Strength

The iconic New England maple in spring, just before it leafs out.

Camera: iPhone 4s Processing: Hipstamatic for one exposure, then PSE to blend them

The weahter here in New England has been nothing short of depressing for months now. A long raw winter eventually dissolved into a late, cold wet spring that went on until August, when we had about 10 days of sweltering heat and humidity. After that, we were back to chilly rain. The one good thing is that, somehow, all this has added up to spectacular fall colors. Every time I think we've passed peak, I walk outside on the rare sunny day and see something like this outside my back door. This WAS the blue of the sky this morning, and the yellows and oranges were just that bright. Posterize adds just a bit of punch, but the colors were so brilliant and so primary that not too much is changed.

Given the cursory summer we had here in New England, I am not ready to surrender to autumn. Our maple trees, however, are apparently of a different mindset. Using Flourescent Chalk with Posterize enhances the exuberant contrast between the early turners and the leaves that still retain their summer green.

We in southern New England are just plain sick of the rain. June is supposed to be sunny and pleasant. Instead, we're just getting more March--one wet chilly day after another. This rain-spotted maple leaf was clining to the front railing this morning. Cutout did a nice job of reducing it to its basic elements without losing the deatil of the veins.