Harvest

As September draws to a close, the Okanagan Valley is at the height of the harvest season. The hay is cut and in bales, and the trees in the orchards are heavy with fruit. The Fall Wine Festival started on Friday, and runs through to next weekend. I read in the paper that it is the only wine festival in North America that takes place at during the harvest of the grapes. I bought some coronation grapes at a fruit stand along the highway today and they are absolutely delicious - like candy on a vine.



These images were taken last week along Glenmore Road. I have driven by these fields several times, wishing I had a few minutes to stop when the sun was low in the sky. I got my chance and had a lot of fun playing with the light on the field. I love shooting backlit scenes like this. They are challenging, because the sun has to be kept out of the lens to avoid lens flare. But it is worth it, because the light and the textures can be quite dramatic. I am very satisfied with all three of these images, particularly the one below - the field is iridescent, a golden green that glows. I like the way the line and texture flows. creating the glow of the end of a late summer's day. Seen in an abstraction like this, it is easy to understand where the phrase "the fabric of the land" originated.