I spent several weeks photographing at Bernheim Forest in the fall of 1990. I had observed this group of trees for about three weeks, as they slowly changed colors, and watched them under various lighting conditions throughout different times of the day.

One evening, the conditions were finally right for a photograph. Setting the camera up, with the post-sunset glow still lingering in the air, I took one exposure. Since the light was low, I needed an exposure of about one-and-a-half minutes—fortunately, the air was still, with hardly a breath of wind.

The shapes, forms and colors of the image all work together for me, and give me a sense of the wholeness of nature, with almost an element of surprise and playfulness.