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A week or so ago I wrote about nightmares my son had following a children’s movie. It got me thinking about my own childhood and the little-boy fears of my youth. Certainly I had similar experiences; my folks didn’t let me watch scary movies or TV shows but occasionally even their thoughtful attention lapsed and I’d glimpse something frightening. Mainly what I remember, however, was the love/hate or joy/terror relationship I had with the forest behind my house.
During the day this forest was the greatest gift a boy could have. My buddy and I would play in the woods forever only returning home when the growling in our stomachs became unbearable. We tracked little animals, lounged in the fallen leaves, played all manner of cops and robbers, and recreated all of WWII’s great battles. It was idyllic…idyllic that is until nighttime when the forest transformed into a creaking, moaning beast. My bedroom window was 40 feet from the entrance to the woods and many a night the windy groans of the forest invaded my dreams in the form of a leafy monster. Morning always came, however, and each day I’d quickly make peace with the forest so that the exciting task of childhood exploration could continue.
The forest is gone now, replaced by a sprawling suburb. That, I suppose, is scary for adults to consider. While I hated those nights in my youth, today I have a new appreciation for them. They’ve allowed me into the mind of a scared little boy–a boy who upon hearing empathetic words from Daddy can return to sleep and, in the morning, fearlessly face his own adventures again.
30 Comments
Following on from yesterday…and no ‘hotties’ in the forest to relieve those nightmares!
Nice the way the palet tree/bush stands out against the dark undergrowth
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Thanks George! Sadly no–none present to alleviate the terror.
There is something about wooded places that makes a child’s imagination go wild. One barren tree among all that green? And it’s *still* a great image. Makes me want to followthrough on my idea to play with a roll of infrared film.
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Thanks Michael! It’s a double edged sword to be a kid I think. That wonderful imagination leads to so many great things but also opens the door to the scary.
Great expression of your shot – the one seen is much more expressive than the original one. Great work!
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Thanks so much K!
Excellent bw!
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Thank you Theys!
what a nice thing to say about father-son relationship. it is a pity about the forest making way for the suburb though
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Thank you Ayush–really appreciate that! It is sad to see when I go home.
Forests at night, i’ve experimented them in Europe and Africa, and a little bit in Brazil and it’s everytime freightening, even when you are not alone. That’s the moment we”re feeling we are no longer the masters of the world…
Urban jungles can be scary too, for a quite opposite reason: that’s the place where the man is a wolf to the man…
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So true PixeLuz–the forest and the wild can humble us quickly. Many thanks!
It’s amazing how different the edited shot appears. It evokes quite a different feeling than the original. Terrific work Christopher!.
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Thank you Kala! Really appreciate that!
this is the classic example how a simple composition can be tranformed in a splecial photo rich in contrast and licht – my compliments Chris it’s really interesting and beautiful
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Thank you so much Fabrizio–I had fun transforming this image. From the moment I saw the tree I was thinking a high-contrast B&W but I wasn’t sure then if it would transform well. It turned out to have a very intriguing look so I was pleased. Again thanks for the kind words.
The mono transformed a seemingly harmless tree to a spooky cold one. How day and night makes us view things so differently.
love your thoughts… and thank you for sharing them with us Chris.
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Thank you Anny, for the kind words.
Great to be able to go from Raw to Processed image here, goes with your lines, from reality to dream or nightmare, from past green forest to solarized inner souvenir, great play it offers in the 2 directions. I grew up by a forest still up, i love it and often need to go back to it. Trees are so full of us, their sap, our blood. Have a delicious end of week, C*
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You and I are thinking alike here k@. Usually the RAW just gives a frame of reference photographically but in this post it actually transforms the forest from scary to entirely benign. Thank you so much!
Wow, quite imaginative use of post-processing Christopher! Perfect rendition for your wonderful story. I grew up in the inner city of Cincinnnati, but what I remember is a little clump of young trees near a playground that seemed like a forest to me. I’ve loved forests and woodlands ever since. Have a great weekend!
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Kids have such a great capacity to transform the simplest place into a wonderland of discovery. Your little patch and countless like it around the world provide a haven for children’s imaginations. It makes me think we need to focus on fun, safe places for our children to play. Many thanks Doug!
What a gorgeous image..so wonderfully processed in b&w. And – I think some of our worst adult nightmares include our playgrounds being paved over and transformed into something else.
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I couldn’t agree more Marcie–I was so fortunate to have my forest. Doug mentioned his little patch of nature and how important it was to him–you hate to lose the green zones. Thanks!
This is a great testament to your imagination to be able to see the potential in a rather blah photo and turn it into the black and white that you did! Great job!
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Many thanks Nathan! Really appreciate that
While I appreciate the surreal context of the spooky after-affects, I kind of like the natural image of the shrub, which, btw, looks like a magnolia.
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Thanks Alexandra! It’s hard to tell without reference points but this fella was about 25 or 30 feet tall. There’s a lot processing here for some tastes–I’ll try adding some contrast to the original muted RAW to see what I get. Have a great weekend!
Christopher = post genius. The end.
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You, are too kind. Thanks Corinna!
Cool Christopher, you made a eye-catcher from a regular picture, well done!
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Thanks Klaus! Appreciate that!
great processing resulted in a really dramatic image
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Thank you very much yz
Great processing and the before and after really illustrate your point very well. I can empathize with your boyhood feelings about the woods, since I must have been raised with nearly the same experience. And, it was very nice to know that my Dad who could handle “anything” was just across the hallway. Yes, the sprawling suburbs are concerning, too. Give me a night alone in the haunted woods rather than one alone in the suburbs, thank you. I’d take that “risk” at any time. Great stuff, Chris!
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So true–perhaps the greatest part of being a dad. Thanks Phil
Many nostalegie in your post …
Dramatic and impressive transformation of your picture …
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Merci beaucoup Olivier – Je vous remercie des paroles aimables
wow! impressive photo! Awesome post processing work here… looks like infrareted!
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Many thanks Pasci! Appreciate that!
love the black and white version ! ghostly !!!!
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Thanks Crash!
This image is especially cool, but you have lots of great stuff on your site. Well done.
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Thanks so much Robert, for the comment and for checking out my site!
Really like the processing on this one alot! Nice work!
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Thanks Andy!
your processing is awesome
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Thank you very much Krunal–appreciate that
Très étonné par cet arbre blanc… et le raw le montre comme tel… alors quel beau sujet pour un noir, et blanc… et en format carré ?! je ne sais pas… à voir.
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Merci beaucoup CushmoK – J’apprécie beaucoup vos commentaires et à visiter. Je dois admettre que vous avez raison. Je pense que d’une culture carrés serait mieux ici. J’ai tenu obstinément à la même culture pour chaque poste (sauf une culture carrés sur une photo de ma fille) sur mon blog. J’ai pensé qu’il est temps de changer et votre excellente observation, il est clair que je doit. Merci encore! J’espère que cela est compréhensible – Je compte beaucoup sur Google Translate.
Nice memories you’ve shared, even though they were attached with nightmares. I have nightmares every night and often dread going to sleep. Love how you’ve transformed this in the processing. Very artistic.
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Oh no–I’m really sorry to hear that Sherri! Every night? I can’t imagine dreading sleep. Thank you so much for the kind words Sherri.
the black and white really projects the haunted effect!
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Thank you Joshi!
The transformation of your image is quite impressive and of course, the finished product is the perfect compliment to your thoughtful reflection. Great post!
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Thanks very much Mike!
what an unusual processing to make a digital painting …..
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Thanks Ayesha!
Bonjour!
Superbe cette transformation de l’image!!Bravo!
Amitiés de France!:CLAIRE
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Merci Beaucoup Claire!