This is a composite made from two photos taken after the peak autumn color for tulip poplars, at least, in the foothills of the western North Carolina mountains. I was drawn by the contrast between the spent leaves in the foreground and the sunlit golden ones in the background. The faces are from a planter on my sister's deck. At the time, I had no idea how I was going to use the face. It was later, when I found the poem, that I knew what I wanted to do. The image doesn't have much punch, but that seemed fitting for the poem.
planter -- ISO 200, f/8, zoom lens at 230mm
leaves -- ISO 200, f/11, zoom lens at 210mm
the face was separated from the rest of that photo with Topaz ReMask and brought in as separate low opacity layers, Luminosity blend mode, and masking to fit it to the leaves
Nik Color Efex -- Pro Contrast
onOne PhotoFrame
Alien Skin SnapArt -- Stylize line art for a few dark detail lines
The snow was from a great action by Dave Seeram that produces three layers of snow: background, midground, and foreground. The background snow layer wasn't used because it reduced the contrast of the image too much. The midground snow layer was masked from the leaves in the foreground. A second foreground snow layer was applied and expanded to get some larger flakes. Many thanks to Denise for referencing the action in her blog.
Dennis, I have copied this to the Framing Your Images With Words Forum.
Beautifully done, the words flow nicely with the image. I most especially love the light and the snow is a nice touch.
This is exquisitely done. Layers delicately laid over each other produce a lovely and perfect background for the poem. I'm sure the poet could not have imaged a better image for her words.
Leaves
