Guilty Pleasures: A Photographic Love Affair With Trees
I’m not sure why I class this as a guilty pleasure, perhaps it’s because despite the fact that I am often completely enraptured with the trees that I come across, I am woefully ignorant of their species, their folk-lore and their medicinal uses! I really can’t tell my Beech from my Sycamore, my Ash from…
I’m not sure why I class this as a guilty pleasure, perhaps it’s because despite the fact that I am often completely enraptured with the trees that I come across, I am woefully ignorant of their species, their folk-lore and their medicinal uses! I really can’t tell my Beech from my Sycamore, my Ash from my birch tree. fortunately the trees don’t seem to mind too much and still pose for my pictures.
The other reason that it is a guilty pleasure is because, as anyone who has ever hiked with me will know, I am always being enticed off the beaten track to snap some amazing tree, then having to scramble to catch up with everyone.
Despite my arboreal ignorance, I believe that trees have a presence, a distinct personality and a deep connection with the universe and that as humans we should respect and protect the trees in our environment. Although we may not understand their words, if you listen hard you can their song on every whispered breeze.
Here are some of the pictures I have taken over the past few years – mainly in England and Scotland, but also overseas.
Crow Bank, Wallsend, Oct 2013Near Ripon, Nov 2013Near Ripon, Nov 2013Near Ripon, Nov 2013Studley Royal Park, Nov 2013 (am I just imagining it or does this tree have a slightly phallic bulge?)Autumn colours, Studley Royal Park, Nov 2013Twilight in Studley Royal park, Nov 2013Northumberland, Dec 2011Blanchland Dec, 2011Robin with attitude, Winter, Wallington in Northumberland 2012
Keilder, winter 2010
Blanchland, Winter 2010Holly around an old church Nr Blanchland, Winter 2010Cedar of Lebanon at Highgate Cemetery, Feb 2010Silver Birches, Patterdale, Lake District, Feb 2008Border Abbey’s Way April 2009Border Abbeys Walk, Eildon Hills in the distance, April 2009River Tweed, Border Abbey’s Way, April 2009The Robin Hood ‘Prince of Thieves’ tree, Hadrian’s Wall, 2007Windblasted tree on Hadrian’s Wall, 2007The Hares hip bones, Rising Sun Nature Park, Early Summer 2013Early Summer, 2013Scottish Borders, July 2013Bushbury, West Midlands, High Summer 2005The Vendee Region France, June 2008Vendee, France, June 2008Cuba, September 2010Havana, Cuba, September 2010Volubilis, Morocco, May 2009Nile Desert and Trees, Egypt 2009Nile Trees, Egypt 2009Dream Tree, Belsay Hall Exhibition, NorthumberlandThe Greenman, Cragside, Northumberland
If you want to help to protect native woodlands you can find out more about projects in the UK on the Woodland Trust’s website.
Beautiful trees, and your pictures thereof! Sometimes i look at a tree and how it has grown and think of people’s lives and how they have lived and maybe they should be judged the same. No one looks at a tree (except maybe bonsai growers) and says “that branch shouldn’t have grown this way” or at another saying “that branch is twisted the wrong way”. The twists and bends of an old tree are a testament to its tenacity to keep growing through various storms and environments.
Absolutely, but history demonstrates that people have been constantly judging people. Perhaps mainstream organised religions are a bit to blamed – they tend to have a touch of the bonsai grower about them ;0) It would be amazing to see the world from a trees persective, I don’t think trees ‘stress the little things’ like we do!
There is a beauty of symmetry in “royal garden” pruned trees, but a more terrible real beauty in nature unscripted. I know humans need some pruning to keep countries from killing each other at will, but gods save us from the axe man of God as jail warden.
Lovely photographs, all of them. I have a thing for tree stumps and fungi, photographically speaking, so I liked your two contributions to the genre. And the tree with the phallic bulge — nope, not your imagination. Or else I’m as dirty-minded as you are, heehee.
Thank you – I am glad you liked the pics. I just love trees, and have literally hundreds of pix of them from various hikes. I may do a stumps and fungi collection one day. I am glad to know I am not alone in thinking that that tree was definately MALE!
Reblogged this on Blau Stern Schwarz Schlonge and commented:
Here is a lovely reblog of Lenora’s great pics of grand old trees, and my comments – Beautiful trees, and your pictures thereof! Sometimes i look at a tree and how it has grown and think of people’s lives and how they have lived and maybe they should be judged the same. No one looks at a tree (except maybe bonsai growers) and says “that branch shouldn’t have grown this way” or at another saying “that branch is twisted the wrong way”. The twists and bends of an old tree are a testament to its tenacity to keep growing through various storms and environments.
There is a beauty of symmetry in “royal garden” pruned trees, but a more terrible real beauty in nature unscripted. I know humans need some pruning to keep countries from killing each other at will, but gods save us from the axe man of God as jail warden.
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