Many years ago I chose to paint a still life of a maple leaf, as a watercolor practice. I didn't get to it right away and the leaf had curled up as it dried and the result had lots of movement – perfectly lovely.  

When I started exploring the world with a camera lens it led me to more leaf portraiture. Now I am completely gripped by the beauty and expression of these fragile, dead objects headed for the compost pile. 

They exhibit the turbulence of life. They twist and turn, curl up and gesture, expressing emotions like belligerence, sadness, pride and tenderness, and there is no limit to the nuances of their expression. Some are beckoning, some are hiding, some are running, some sit stoically. Just like us.

 I shoot them on a white or a black background, then process the images in Lightroom and/or Photoshop. Lately I have also started to paint them digitally.

Watercolor painting of a yellow autumn leaf with a brown stem, casting a gray shadow on a white background.
Black and white photo of a fallen, dry, curled leaf on a plain white background.
A dog with a body made of fallen leaves and an upward-pointing leaf as a tail, standing on a white surface.
Black and white photo of a fallen dry leaf with a curled stem on a white background.
Black and white photograph of fallen leaves arranged to resemble a bird standing on a white surface.
Black and white photo of a single fallen maple leaf with curled edges on a white background.
A black-and-white photograph of a single dried leaf with a curled edge on a plain white background.
Black and white photo of a fallen maple leaf on white background.
Black and white photograph of a single dried leaf on a white background.