Trees of the South: Through Leaves, A Longing

When I am among the trees, especially the willows and the honey locust, equally the beech, the oaks and the pines, they give off such hints of gladness.I would almost say that they save me, and daily. I am so distant from the hope of myself, in which I have goodness, and discernment, and never hurry through the world but walk slowly, and bow often.Around me the trees stir in their leaves and call out, “Stay awhile.” The light flows from their branches. And they call again, “It’s simple,” they say,“ and you too have come into the world to do this, to go easy, to be filled with light, and to shine.
Mary Oliver
girl standing under huge oak tree in sepia

I’ve always felt drawn to trees—the way their branches catch the breeze or sunlight reveals the veins of life in their leaves.

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Living in the South, I’ve watched their seasons unfold, a rhythm I’ve carried with me.

This collection captures trees from my travels between Florida and North Carolina over recent years. Using an 8x10 film camera and an 1860s brass Petzval lens with black and white film, I’ve given them a dreamlike quality—a timeless longing for nature.

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girl with beec tree branch in sepia

A young woman stands among them,

showing scale and echoing that yearning. The trees and the woman together tell a story of reverence, of searching for light through the leaves.

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girl in sepia under an apple tree

The slow, methodical process of large-format photography and darkroom development mirrors the trees’ patient growth, reflecting our own.

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“Trees of the South” is about seeing their grace and feeling our connection to something enduring.

It isn’t just about the beauty of nature—it’s about what it reflects back to us. It’s about standing still long enough to notice, to feel the breeze, to see the veins of life shimmering overhead.

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girl standing under Chestnut tree, dreamy
“The clearest way into the Universe is through a forest wilderness.”
John Muir
A Petzval lens, originally designed in 1840 by Joseph Petzval, is renowned for its distinctive optical characteristics. It produces sharp, detailed images at the center with a rapid fall-off into a beautifully soft, swirling bokeh in the out-of-focus areas. This limited depth of field and unique rendering of backgrounds create a dreamlike, painterly effect, emphasizing the subject while embracing a natural vignetting and subtle distortions. These qualities are intentional and integral to the artistic allure of photographs captured with a Petzval lens, enhancing their vintage charm and evocative mood.