My motivation to be out and about with my camera this last few weeks was to capture the colour of the leaves before they fell to the ground. While there is a wonderful range of colours in the total landscape including orchards and gardens my focus was on the natural landscape.
Ponderosa pine is the predominant species of trees in the Okanagan area. Douglas fir, Engleman spruce and other conifers are also present depending on elevation, soil and moisture conditions . Deciduous trees including alder, birch, aspens, cotton wood and maples provide the colour. They tend to be located where there is greater access to moisture. So, I sought out hillside depressions and local area creeks.
The closest and most popular waterway is Mission Creek, a major tributary to Okanagan Lake. It’s a beautiful area with a very popular walking trail. I find the upper reaches of Mission Creek to be more desirable as it is not as busy and has more interesting compositional opportunities.

I also made trips to the ranchland above Lake Country, B.C., Kalimoir Park and the Regional Parks around Mill Creek, Bertram Creek and Glen Canyon. All of these locations provided me with great opportunities and I think some pretty good results.
On all the trips to these locations I was blessed with bright, sometimes filtered sun. The lower angle of the sun served to brighten the orange and yellow leaves.

The images I’ve included with this article were made in the Glen Canyon Regional Park along Powers Creek. I loved how the colour of the leaves enhances the surrounding textures.
I hadn’t been to this part of Powers Creek before. The canyon itself is very narrow. Somewhere in the upper reaches of the canyon there is likely a water fall. I’ll have to check that out on a future trip to this area.

Sometimes, I think I’ve been spoiled by all the photography I’ve been able to do on Vancouver Island this past 4 or 5 years. At home, I’ve caught myself thinking, “There’s nothing to photograph around here!” That of course is a myth. There are many photographic opportunities in the Kelowna area and in the Okanagan Valley. It’s just a matter of getting ‘you know what’ in gear and getting out there with my camera.