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 I'm a huge fan of the prairie or drift style planting that Piet Oudolf pioneered and the vistas to be seen walking round gardens he has designed are mesmerising. None more so than the Floral Labyrinth garden at Trentham Gardens (see my article) where I spent a long time wandering round and taking up rather too much time so that the other gardens were a little rushed by comparison. The best way to enjoy this garden is to slowly walk round the perimeter and then walk in through the many pathways that run through this garden. However, what you will almost certainly find is that patience is exhausted before you get all the way round and want to dive straight in. My walk round the outside was done in several sections. But then follow the paths to experience the different drifts of plants, the colours, textures and forms. Its a very sensual garden and one to take in slowly and enjoy.
I saw this view from one of the paths and could instantly visualise the picture. It felt like a place to sit and look at the garden surrounding the bench, as if the trees had been doing just that for some long time. The bench is perfectly positioned to enjoy the garden and from it there are several different views to be experienced. I wanted this picture to invite you into the garden, to sit under the tree on the bench and enjoy the views - the drifts on the right and those on the left. There are paths leading off in front of the bench and you get a tempting glimpse of the planting beyond, just visible being another Oudolf garden at Trentham, The Rivers of Grass.
As far as the picture's composition is concerned I wanted to draw the eye along the path to the bench. It can then move across the grass and along the path to the left or to the right leaving the impression there's more beyond the immediate view to see. On my large monitor screen I want to jump in and explore!
I deliberately did not use a tiny aperture in this view, which would have brought everything from near to far into focus. Instead I wanted to leave the background a little blurred to provide something of an impression of the delights in the distance. I also had to move to get the trees to come together and provide a frame to look through, but this was partly as a result of a cloudy and not so interesting sky that I didn't want to take over. I also had to wait a few mi
nutes to ensure there wasn't a person to be seen in the view. The picture is about inviting you in, not showing someone already there!
Technically there is nothing difficult about the picture. Ideally I would have used a wide angle prime lens or at least the 16-35mm f2.8L zoom which is better (in theory) at this focal length but I didn't have that lens with me. I could have used a polariser which might have helped a little with the sky, but then the colours in the plants would have become even more saturated and did not need any lift. I could also have used a lower ISO rating. But at the time I stood there waiting for people to move out of the frame, none of that mattered at all. I was enjoying the moment and it all came together for me when I clicked the shutter button. The only adjustments I made to the image once on the computer were to correct the white balance and to bring the highlights back very slightly in the sky.
Canon 1Ds Mark III, 24-105mm f4L lens at 28mm, ISO320, f8, 1/500sec. Handheld.
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