January 16, 2012

afternoon visit to Roy's Redwoods


click photo for full-size image
photo by Donald Kinney

Saturday afternoon I realized it had been way too long since I had visited one of my favorite places here in Marin County, Roy's Redwoods. The Roy family settled here way back in the 1860's.

I found this deer skull sitting on top of a signpost. Initially I was a bit creeped out, since it was pretty much in this condition that I finally found my beloved cat, Kitty, a few months ago. But with this deer skull I could see the beauty of the construction and engineering that goes into a life-form--it was about as close to spirituality as I usually come.

But this skull didn't look quite so presentable until I made some adjustments and gave it a new background with the aid of Photoshop. Click here to see what I started with.



click photo for full-size image
photo by Donald Kinney

Roy's Redwoods is part of Marin County's public open space, preserved for posterity and shielded from development. It's a bit "low key"--many local residents don't know it even exists. Without much of a sign to announce what is beyond, a person can drive right by the entrance and never know this Redwood studded gem was there.



click photo for full-size image
photo by Donald Kinney

Sad fact is that starting in the late 1800's Marin County's Redwoods were largely cut down; clear-cut to satisfy San Francisco's insatiable need for lumber. "Old growth" trees are now far and few between and most Redwoods we see today have sprouted from the roots of trees felled over 100 years ago. Life goes on, as I'm sure the progeny of that deer has also.


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2 comments:

John @ Beans and I on the Loose said...

I think the original form of the deer head was well done and quite presentable as it is it's natural state. The finished photo looks like an image out of a textbook, not to say it isn't nice also.

AphotoAday said...

Hi SINBAD'S DAD -- Yeah, you make a valid point.

 
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