"Images are constructed, not taken." This seemingly obvious lesson took quite some time to really sink in and it is good advice, especially in places like this woodland, where complexity reigns.

I careful constructed the relationship between the foreground and mid ground objects, to help anchor and make sense of the complex woodland behind.

This image also displays another important characteristic I look for: quality of line. The eye goes on "a dance around the image", yet it is never pulled out of the frame.

A few words about the location: a lot of water flows into the Vale of York during the winter and it creates some amazing sights; the Ings (flooded water meadows) and areas of wetland heath (like here at Skipwith Common).

As a footnote, I recently returned to the same spot intending to develop the theme and found the 'machines' had moved in to dig drainage ditches. It turns out that subsidence from nearby coal mining had created the standing water. Man's influence on the landscape never ends. Whilst it it sad that such an unusual place has now gone, I am sure in a few years time it will redevelop itself and form a different character.

Technical Details - Linhof Technikarden, 125mm lens, no filtration. Velvia 50. Scanned with an Epson V700.