VALLEY MADE OF DAWN

This is the view from my office window shortly before 7 in the morning. Yes, I know, it's a cheap shot. The sun was just streaking through gaps in the mountains and lighting tree tops and houses. In half an hour the whole valley was bathed in sun. The mist, which hugs the river, was gone within an hour.

When we bought this house we did not know the view existed. The property had not been occupied for 40 years. The house had fallen down but the brambles, trees, Mediterranean tree heather and vines had grown up all around it. There was even a tiny barn on the property which was entirely hidden and not revealed until we started hacking our way out.

The only processing on this pic is a small amount of "saturation." I didn't paint the sky like that, honest.

I've been sitting on this pic, thinking I might go to town and photograph something more interesting but inasmuch as it is the day before the May Day holiday, the traffic is heavy and town is a bun fight, I decided to sit tight at home. I tried other shots, including this viburnum, now turned white. I uploaded it a week or so ago when the flower clusters were green. Several people asked to see it when white. Here it is. WHITE VIBURNUM And here it is on 17 April: GREEN