This past Tuesday I found myself at my region’s summer camp, Baptist Camp Lebanon. I grabbed a ride with some of my fellow teammates for a staff retreat and arrived an hour early, which I didn’t mind one bit. I attached my 40 mm lens to my camera and took a walk.

New Jersey’s fall was a bit drab this year. It remained warm for far too long and seemed to confuse the trees. Leaves were green well into October, and then browned and fell to the ground without much ceremony. Walking through camp on a grey November morning, with most of the foliage already on the ground, was a bit more maudlin than I was hoping. But I found some lovely colors when I entered the camp’s outdoor chapel, the Green Cathedral. Leaves in various shade of browns, yellows, and oranges carpeted the ground in the chapel’s hollow. Together they created a beautiful blanket which accented the moss covered rock walls out of which the chapel is carved. It was stunning.

I find locating an angle to photograph the Green Cathedral to be difficult. It’s a wide space, the lighting can be difficult, and the surrounding vegetation limits where I can stand to frame my shots. On Tuesday, however, most of this vegetation had already faded with the approach of Winter. The fallen leaves also made more room for the sunlight to fall into the space, giving everything a golden hue.

I climbed up an embankment to capture the image below. And am quite happy with the result!