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We have just returned from our latest trip to the east coast of Australia. We went back to the Blue Mountains to chase some Autumn colours and also visited the area around the coastal town of Kiama, south of Sydney. It was a busy week of photographing, driving and hiking that kept me away from a computer almost all the time.

I have posted a little teaser on Facebook of the moment when I was taking this photo at one of the wonderful gardens in Mount Wilson - a very popular location for photographers at this time of the year. We have also discovered another lovely location with beautiful Autumn foliage and atmosphere. More photos will be coming over the next few weeks.

We went into this garden as early as possible, just as it opened, to get in before more people arrived later in the day. It was actually very quiet all day long and it helped that we were there midweek rather than on weekend. I had some unfinished business at this location from the previous visit in 2016 and this particular spot was where we went first. It had a very particular magic about it with a great mix of deciduous trees and native flora as well. They make for quite a contrast - the vivid bright colours of the fall and the lush greens of the rain forest.

In terms of the actual photo, it was very straight forward. I used a polarising filter to remove glare and give a bit of extra saturation to the colours. I also used a grad filter to cover the top right corner of the frame, where the most light and brightness were coming through. I also wanted to accentuate the path, which was the key to the composition for me, especially as it leads towards the dark area under the trees and hopefully stirs the viewers' interest as to what hides further on.