Nikon D200 + Nikkor 17-55mm f/2.8 @ 38 mm — ¹/100 sec, f/4.5, ISO 800 — map & image data — nearby photos
Overcast Day on the Grounds of the Imperial Palace
Kyoto, Japan  ·  Dec, 2007

Nikon D200 + Nikkor 85mm f/1.4 — ¹/1000 sec, f/1.4, ISO 100 — map & image data — nearby photos
( finally, a touch of sun )

Kyoto's fall foliage season starts very late compared to the rest of the world. Last year's first fall-colors post wasn't until November 3rd, while 2006's was even later (and less colorful). In browsing my blog's full list of posts, or my fall-colors category, you'll find that late November / early December are when Kyoto's fall colors reach their peak.

Two things tell me fall is coming (besides the calendar). One is that it has started to cool a bit. This morning, the temperature dipped below 70°F. The other is my server logs, which have suddenly become full of people looking for “fall foliage” and “fall leaf desktop”. It's not as easy to tell what people are searching for since Google seems to no longer send the search term along to my site, but I can still see the fall-foliage photos that they're ending up at.

I had one good fall-foliage sunny day last year, but otherwise, last year seemed to be mostly cloudy, including the December 3rd visit to the grounds of the old Kyoto Imperial Palace that provides the pictures for today's post...

Nikon D200 + Nikkor 17-55mm f/2.8 @ 28 mm — ¹/60 sec, f/6.3, ISO 500 — map & image data — nearby photos
Coulda' Been a Contender
if only there were some sun

Nikon D200 + Nikkor 17-55mm f/2.8 @ 55 mm — ¹/1500 sec, f/2.8, ISO 500 — map & image data — nearby photos
Touch of Color

Nikon D200 + Nikkor 17-55mm f/2.8 @ 55 mm — ¹/160 sec, f/4.5, ISO 400 — map & image data — nearby photos
Would Look Better Backlit

Nikon D200 + Nikkor 17-55mm f/2.8 @ 55 mm — ¹/160 sec, f/4.5, ISO 400 — map & image data — nearby photos
Hey, Now There's some Sun!

Nikon D200 + Nikkor 17-55mm f/2.8 @ 38 mm — ¹/400 sec, f/4.5, ISO 500 — map & image data — nearby photos
Quick, Nab the Photons Before They Disappear

Nikon D200 + Nikkor 85mm f/1.4 — ¹/250 sec, f/4, ISO 320 — map & image data — nearby photos
Fading...

Nikon D200 + Nikkor 85mm f/1.4 — ¹/350 sec, f/2.8, ISO 800 — map & image data — nearby photos
Muddy Colors

Nikon D200 + Nikkor 85mm f/1.4 — ¹/1000 sec, f/1.4, ISO 800 — map & image data — nearby photos
Typical (but underlit) Momiji

Nikon D200 + Nikkor 85mm f/1.4 — ¹/1000 sec, f/5, ISO 800 — map & image data — nearby photos
Sun, and a Cornucopia of Colors

Nikon D200 + Nikkor 85mm f/1.4 — ¹/1600 sec, f/2.8, ISO 320 — map & image data — nearby photos
Nicely Backlit

Nikon D200 + Nikkor 85mm f/1.4 — ¹/320 sec, f/2.8, ISO 320 — map & image data — nearby photos
To Be Continued...

The grounds of Kyoto's old Imperial Palace, now a huge park, are full of beauty and kid fun throughout the year (but especially in the fall and in the spring). Clicking on the “nearby photos” link under any of the photos above will bring up photos taken nearby, from other posts that have appeared on my blog over the years.