We walked around El Capitan meadow in an early morning of November when it was filled by thin smoke from controlled burn. Unlike fog, the smoke had slight blue hue, which would make any warm colored objects stand out from the background. When passing by this young oak tree next to the bank of Merced River, we knew we have found our subject. Because the smoke was thin, the forest on the other side of the river was barely visible and lack of distracting clarity. It provided the perfect context we wanted. There was not any wind in that morning. Thus, we could capture super sharp image of leaves of this oak tree with a relative long exposure. It was a lucky moment when all conditions of a perfect exposure came together.
