Fall 2024 At Filoli
October 2024
We spent July, August and September at our cabin on a remote lake in British Columbia, so it was a great treat to come back to Filoli and see how the gardens have changed. I recently acquired a semi-technical and little know (and furthermore unappreciated) camera made by Hasselblad in 1995. This space is about photos and not gear, but I suppose I mention it as an excuse until I get the hang of this thing and am back to producing consistently pretty good shots! Being away for so long and then coming back to the gardens was as enjoyable as it is every year. There is a wonderful peacefulness to this time of year that I really enjoy shooting. It is easy to see the leaves dropping and bare branches exposing themselves as the onset of grey skies and cold days. For me it is exciting to see the colors change and the bones of the garden peeking through. A little bit of water, when we get it, to wet everything down is also a plus this time of year! Click on an image below to view a slideshow.
About this project: 45 Minutes At Filoli
This project originated because my wife and I were looking for a pandemic-friendly afternoon outdoors and we visited Filoli in Woodside, CA. Spring had just begun to coax the blossoms and blooms along and I thought it might be fun to revisit the gardens every week and create a pictorial record of the changes. I decided on two guidelines. First, get in and out in 45 minutes to an hour. Second, go ultra-light by picking a lens from my old lens collection and sticking with that throughout my visit. Mostly, sometimes, I was able to stick with these guidelines. While my visits often stretched longer, trying to keep things simple and work fast gave the project an energy I enjoyed.