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This is Page 2 of 4 - the best of November 2009!
posted: November 30th, 2009
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All photos on this page were taken on November 15th - a trip to Okutama, Okutama Lake and then Mitake - the home of the famous Ginkgo Tree. Click on any thumbnail to begin.

Begin November 15th
  On November 15th I went out to Okutama Lake in hopes of finding great fall colors. I went alone as Kazuya was in the hospital at the time. I walked across the dam (Okutama Lake is man-made) and walked along this lake-shore trail. I found lots of yellow trees, but only a few red ones. The sun was on the wrong side, but in this row you can get a pretty good idea of all of the yellows I was seeing as I walked along.
Nov15_OkutamaLakeFallColors26_BESTRC
Nov15_OkutamaLake
FallColors26_BESTRC
Nov15_OkutamaLakeFallColors38_BESTRC
Nov15_OkutamaLake
FallColors38_BESTRC
Nov15_OkutamaLakeFallColors52_RC
Nov15_OkutamaLake
FallColors52_RC

  I included the first shot in this row to show you how quickly the leaves are disappearing - notice all of the leaves in the air. I found a few Red-Maple trees. These next 2 shots in this row show some really fine red colors with the blue water of the lake as a background.
Nov15_OkutamaLakeFallColors55_RC
Nov15_OkutamaLake
FallColors55_RC
Nov15_OkutamaLakeFallColors59_RC
Nov15_OkutamaLake
FallColors59_RC
Nov15_OkutamaLakeFallColors63_RC
Nov15_OkutamaLake
FallColors63_RC

  Here is a yellow-orange tree and one final shot of a Red-Maple with the blue water of the lake in the background.
Nov15_OkutamaLakeFallColors77_RC
Nov15_OkutamaLake
FallColors77_RC
Nov15_OkutamaLakeFallColors86_RC
Nov15_OkutamaLake
FallColors86_RC

  After I finished at Okutama I took a local train back to Mitake - the home of the famous Ginkgo Tree which Kazuya and I go out and take pictures of every year. I was not expecting it to be at its peak yet, but it was! I have included some larger size images this year, the small size which I normally use just does not do these photos justice. So, I have used 900 pixel x 675 pixel images for the best photos. This first row was taken between 1:05 and 1:12 PM. In this row, only the first photo is larger size.
Nov15_Mitake_FallColors_Ginkgo013_RC
Nov15_Mitake_Fall
Colors_Ginkgo013_RC
Nov15_Mitake_FallColors_Ginkgo021_RC
Nov15_Mitake_Fall
Colors_Ginkgo021_RC
Nov15_Mitake_FallColors_Ginkgo029_RC
Nov15_Mitake_Fall
Colors_Ginkgo029_RC

  These next 3 shots were taken between 1:15 and 1:17 PM. I am telling you the time because the light is going to change after a while and I want you to be aware of what's happening. In this row the 1st and 3rd photos are larger size.
Nov15_Mitake_FallColors_Ginkgo036_RC
Nov15_Mitake_Fall
Colors_Ginkgo036_RC
Nov15_Mitake_FallColors_Ginkgo040_RC
Nov15_Mitake_Fall
Colors_Ginkgo040_RC
Nov15_Mitake_FallColors_Ginkgo043_RC
Nov15_Mitake_Fall
Colors_Ginkgo043_RC

  These 3 shots were taken between 1:17 and 1:19 PM. All three photos are larger than normal. Anybody care to place a vote on which one of these several Ginkgo photos is best? I'd really appreciate getting some ideas.
Nov15_Mitake_FallColors_Ginkgo044_RC
Nov15_Mitake_Fall
Colors_Ginkgo044_RC
Nov15_Mitake_FallColors_Ginkgo047_RC
Nov15_Mitake_Fall
Colors_Ginkgo047_RC
Nov15_Mitake_FallColors_Ginkgo051_RC
Nov15_Mitake_Fall
Colors_Ginkgo051_RC

  These photos were taken at 1:20 and 1:30 PM respectively. The first photo is larger than normal. The 2nd photo was taken after I crossed the foot bridge (not shown anywhere on this page) and I was standing right beside the Ginkgo Tree.
Nov15_Mitake_FallColors_Ginkgo054_RC
Nov15_Mitake_Fall
Colors_Ginkgo054_RC
Nov15_Mitake_FallColors_Ginkgo074_RC
Nov15_Mitake_Fall
Colors_Ginkgo074_RC

  In this row I am still on the other side of the Tama River. The first photo shows you the spot where the previous photos were taken from. See all of the people standing under the Red Maple trees shooting photos? They are photographing the Ginkgo Tree and using the Red Maple branches and leaves to frame their shots, exactly the same as I did in Rows 4 - 7. The 2nd and 3rd shots in this row show a very nice Red Maple further down the river. The 3rd shot is larger than normal.
Nov15_Mitake_FallColors02_RC
Nov15_Mitake_Fall
Colors02_RC
Nov15_Mitake_FallColors10_RC
Nov15_Mitake_Fall
Colors10_RC
Nov15_Mitake_FallColors13_RC
Nov15_Mitake_Fall
Colors13_RC

  Here are 3 more Red Maple shots taken as I walked down the river. The 1st shot is larger than normal.
Nov15_Mitake_FallColors27_RC
Nov15_Mitake_
FallColors27_RC
Nov15_Mitake_FallColors17_RC
Nov15_Mitake_
FallColors17_RC
Nov15_Mitake_FallColors33_RC
Nov15_Mitake_
FallColors33_RC

  Here are 3 more Red Maple leaf shots. All 3 images are larger than normal and I have also given you higher quality than normal so that the leaf edges are not as pixilated as they were when I used the normal quality which I usually use here. Usually I use 55% of original quality, but for these 3 shots I have used 70% of original quality.
Nov15_Mitake_FallColors40_RC
Nov15_Mitake_
FallColors40_RC
Nov15_Mitake_FallColors41_RC
Nov15_Mitake_
FallColors41_RC
Nov15_Mitake_FallColors59_RC
Nov15_Mitake_
FallColors59_RC

  Now I've finished walking down the other side of the Tama River, crossed back over to the side which I started on and walked back up to the Ginkgo Tree. It's now 2:33 - 2:35 PM. This is 1 hour and 10 minutes later than the previous Ginkgo photo. Can you notice the difference in the sun angle? The 1st and 3rd photos are larger than normal.
Nov15_Mitake_FallColors_Ginkgo091_RC
Nov15_Mitake_Fall
Colors_Ginkgo091_RC
Nov15_Mitake_FallColors_Ginkgo094_RC
Nov15_Mitake_Fall
Colors_Ginkgo094_RC
Nov15_Mitake_FallColors_Ginkgo099_RC
Nov15_Mitake_Fall
Colors_Ginkgo099_RC

  And here are the final 2 shots of the Famous Ginkgo for this year. The first and the 2nd image are the same photo, but the 2nd one has been color enhanced with PhotoShop. All 3 of these images are larger than normal. The time is now 2:39 and 2:41 PM. What do you think? Pretty nice colors, eh?
Nov15_Mitake_FallColors_Ginkgo109_RC
Nov15_Mitake_Fall
Colors_Ginkgo109_RC
Nov15_Mitake_FallColors_Ginkgo109PSRC
Nov15_Mitake_Fall
Colors_Ginkgo109PSRC
Nov15_Mitake_FallColors_Ginkgo112_RC
Nov15_Mitake_Fall
Colors_Ginkgo112_RC
End November 15th, End Page 2

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