“The clearest way into the Universe is through a forest wilderness.” John Muir quipped this insight about the forest. As a lifelong naturalist and writer, John Muir knew the way that living and being among the trees can impact your life better than most. While outside getting back to nature, have you ever payed attention to forest shadows? 

Let’s talk for a moment about trees and forest shadows

You may not notice this from the forest floor, but trees are aware of each other’s presence. In fact, they specifically avoid growing into each other so that their branches and leaves do not touch. This phenomenon is known as crown shyness. From the forest floor, shafts of light beam down from the sun overhead, and the distinct patterns of leaves as well as the tendency of trees to leave space between themselves creates the dappled effect of light we see.

Louie Schwartzberg is a storyteller and filmmaker who has been shooting time-lapse photography of nature, 24 hours a day, seven days a week, non-stop. His work compresses time and puts you in sync with different forms of life within our interconnected world.

His work makes the invisible visible.

Louie’s camera shows us the long view of light moving through a forest. Using time-lapse photography he captures the way the shadows and light interplay within this wooded environment. In the end we gain a new appreciation for the patterns of tree leaves and their so-called crown shyness. We gain a new appreciation for the trees themeselves.

“Beauty and seduction, I believe, is nature’s tool for survival, because we will protect what we fall in love with,” says Louie. Through his work, perhaps more and more of us can fall in love with trees.

Let us know what you think of forest shadows!