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Quiet time in Black Forest
What happens to green leaves when I turn them into black and white? Again and again I photographed ferns. During a hike in the Black Forest I photographed groups of different leaves with different shades of green and brightness.
The result was clear to me beforehand. I had found such an idea in the images of Ansel Adams.
Forest floor © Julian Köpke Less subtle is the following motif with a wooden bench for tired hikers. In this image the fern, the bench and the stone marker are the brightest objects.
Bench and fern at forest path Obertal © Julian Köpke Different hues of green lead to different levels of brightness in the black and white cosmos. Our destination for the day was Lake Buhlbach, which unfortunately could no longer be circumnavigated on foot in the newly opened national park.
Reflections in a pond (Buhlbachsee) © Julian Köpke -
Reflection
The word „reflection“ has a double meaning. It describes the mental process of thinking and the physical process of mirroring. In the German language the same sounding word is written in two different ways. Reflection meaning thinking in German language is written with an x (Reflexion).
The image in a mirror or a reflection of a water surface makes us thinking. That’s a pleasant quality. So I got attracted by some leaves on a water surface of a fountain in the well preserved older part of Weinheim.
These leaves showed a beauty of color and a sense of rest. They seem to float motionless and at the same time flow slowly with the water. This is an image of time.
Autumn leaves © Julian Köpke 
Autumn leaves © Julian Köpke 
Autumn leaves © Julian Köpke -
Heucheria leaves
Backgrounds create a new image impression. Sometimes you need a background to add to the picture some more pizzazz. In these pictures I use the background to simulate a photographic base as I saw it in Karl Blossfeldt’s pictures.
The starting point is always a color image. With a background named „Aged Board“ the color image already shows an attractiveness of its own.
Heucheria leaf © Julian Köpke The Black & White conversion enhances the contrast a bit which is why I’m adding a little glow.
Heucheria leaf © Julian Köpke From another Heucheria leaf, which shone in a wonderful red, I show here only the black and white conversion with background. This makes the reproduction of its structure much better.
Heucheria leaf © Julian Köpke
