Fall: Cool Breezes and Warm Colors.
The change of season brings a change of mood.
Fall is more than the changing colors of the trees. It holds a sentiment that connects us to earlier times: The harvest is in. Time for rest after work. The promise of quiet winter evenings by the fireplace.
These magnificent trees show the season's colors, but they also remind us that lawns with large trees is increasingly a luxury not enjoyed by all.
Looking closely we see that drama of leaves beginning to change.
Even the lilly pads take on the same seasonal colors of the trees.
The small (but wonderful) greenhouse at the Garden Center looks tired and worn down in this picture, but its renovation has since been completed inside and out. It is now updated, freshly painted, and spiffy throughout. (The excellent CEO of the Garden Center, Laura Chalus, led the renovation project ...thank you, Laura!)
Up close, leaves taken on delicate gradations of color.
Fall is a great time of year to stretch your hammock and take a nap
...as this person has done in Woodward Park.
...as this person has done in Woodward Park.
Another view of rich fall colors in a neighborhood of mature trees.
This scene at Philbrook shows that fall is also a time for faded colors as plants go dormant for the winter. (The man in the dark sweatshirt appears to be absorbed photographing his own image in the pond while I photograph him.)
These fall leaves have the brightness of springtime.
Berries are always a sign of fall, a sign of the harvest season.
This squirrel takes time off from acorn collecting to look over the photographer visiting his park.
Standing in the pond in front of the greenhouse at the Garden Center we had a heron as an unexpected, but welcome, visitor.
This is the same view as the opening photo in this collection, but now showing the trees after the leaves have gone. Even in winter, without leaves, the trees add nobility and a sense of comfort to the neighborhood where they are planted.
Spring is welcome after the cold days of winter. The bright pastels of springtime contrast with the grays and browns of the winter landscape and offer promise of the warm days of summer to come. It is a time of re-birth.
Fall is a season with a different palette. Instead of pastels, the colors are dark and subdued.
Spring emerges in small points of color as the first blooms appear, but fall arrives on a grand scale, the size of trees and forests. It is only when we look closely that we really appreciate the drama of the season’s colors.
Rodger Randle
The photos on this page are © Rodger Randle .
OU Center for Studies in Democracy and Culture
The University of Oklahoma Tulsa
4502 East 41st Street, Tulsa, Oklahoma 74135
E-mail: randle@ou.edu