Yellow Leaf--a Prompt for Philosopher/Photographer Allison Kelly

by Allison Kelly*

Last summer I went behind my father’s machine shed (a large, three-bay outbuilding housing mowers and tractors) in search of wildflowers and interesting weeds that tend to grow along the back wall. My power chair works surprisingly well on uneven terrain, but I still need to go slowly to spot any obstacles like tree roots or unexpected dips in the ground. We’d just had a few days of showers so the grass was a brilliant green, unusual for August. The grass looked strange, thicker and curlier than what you see on a regular lawn. I decided to take a picture and identify it later; my older cell phone does not have that app.

Then I noticed a single yellow leaf resting lightly on the ground a few feet ahead of me, appearing to be afloat on a sea of green. My first thought – how pretty – was immediately followed by where did that come from? A quick glance around confirmed that none of the nearby bushes or trees had yellow leaves. Was this the only one? Why had it fallen? Perhaps from the excessive heat? Or disease or insects? I noticed a couple of notches along the edges of the leaf, but no obvious holes as if a bug had been eating it. Was this a sign that we were going to have an early autumn? The prospect of beautiful fall foliage appealed to the amateur photographer in me, but it was sad to think of the days getting shorter.

I pushed away these heavy thoughts and concentrated on the here and now: how to compose this picture. I usually don’t center objects in my photos, so I decided to keep the leaf on the right side of the shot. If you want to find meaning in that, I guess you could say that because it was not autumn yet, the yellow leaf did not belong front and center in the photo. But it had caught my eye – precisely because it was out of season – so I would include it with my other discoveries on this summer day. What do you think? Does the leaf make more of an impression on the side or would you prefer to see it right in the middle of the photo? As always, please e-mail any comments or opinions to noteworthynaturephotos@gmail.com.

* Despite living her entire life with severe juvenile rheumatoid arthritis, Allison has always enjoyed the outdoors. Growing up on a family Christmas tree farm – she could literally go over the river (creek) and through the woods to her grandmother’s house – instilled a love of nature in her at an early age. As an adult she uses a mobility scooter or power chair to get up close to nature and take photos that she turns into note cards available for sale at Engage Arts Studio, 1005 Gravel Pike, Schwenksville, The Collective, 10 S. Hanover Street, Pottstown, or in her online shop at www.noteworthynaturephotos.com

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