Golden Cottonwoods in Utah’s Desert Autumn Photo Print
Twisted Dark Trunks Reach Into Gold Leaves and Blue Sky
One cottonwood carries a bright crown of gold, while the tree beside it reveals more of its dark, twisted trunk. Near the entrance to Little Wild Horse Canyon in Utah, I found these trees along a wash and photographed them against a blue sky streaked with cloud. Their autumn color is striking, but the differences between their forms give the scene its character.
The left tree spreads outward in an uneven, low-reaching shape. Leaves gather in several bright patches, leaving portions of the limbs exposed between them. On the right, a heavier trunk bends as it rises, with sparse foliage allowing its rough surface and branching outline to remain clear. The two trees have enough in common to belong together, yet neither simply repeats the other.
I included the dry ground and smaller growth beneath them so the image keeps its desert setting. Fallen leaves and low shrubs carry quieter brown and gold tones, while the sky opens between the two crowns. Looking upward from this position makes the trunks feel substantial without removing the landscape around them.
What interests me is how autumn reveals both color and structure. Where leaves remain, they bring warmth; where they have thinned, the tree becomes a more intricate drawing against the sky. This photograph holds both conditions at once. I find myself moving between the bright foliage on the left and the sculptural trunk on the right, following the different paths each creates through the same small section of Utah landscape.
© Dan Kosmayer, 2009
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About My Fine Art Photography
Every photograph in my collection comes from my own travels, explorations, and years behind the camera.
I create my work as photographic art rather than mass-produced decoration. From street portraits and abandoned places to landscapes, architecture, and the unusual subjects I discover along the way, each image begins with something that made me stop and look.
My photographs are available in multiple sizes so the same image can work in anything from an intimate wall space to a large statement installation.
