There are many "Cyclamen Forests" in Israel. How many? It seems that almost every region has at least one. Ask 3 people where the Cyclamen Forest is and you are going to get at least 3 different answers. And each of them would swear to you that his forest is the original one. Our Cyclamen Forest, however, is near Tal Shachar in the Judean Hills region, about 25 minutes drive from our home town. Actually, it is more like a small grove than a forest but yet, we love it, especially on sunny Saturdays mornings. Zeus, our beloved dog, also enjoys it a lot.

Nikon D750 | Nikor 14-24 f2.8 at 15mm | ISO-100 | 1/2 sec | f/22

Every winter on January it starts blooming in its beautiful pink color. The rocky surface gives plenty of composition options. In addition, with our Cyclamen Forest you don’t even have to wake up too early. It takes the sun some time to rise over the hill. When this happens it ads it's atmospheric lighting to the scene and the trees help by filtering it. A bit later a shifts change takes place. The few photographers leave the forest and tens of families arrive to enjoy it's beauty.

Nikon D750 | Nikor 14-24 f2.8 at 14mm | ISO-100 | 1/2 sec | f/22

Nikon D750 | Nikor 14-24 f2.8 at 24mm | ISO-800 | 1/15 sec | f/22

Sunburst adds another dimension to a photo. It took me some time and practice to get it right. This optical phenomenon is being achieved by using a very small aperture and getting the sun half hidden behind a darker object like a tree branch or a trunk.

The next two photos does the opposite. A wide open aperture blurs the background and helps to separate it from the flowers.

Nikon D750 | Nikor 24-70 f2.8 VR at 70mm | ISO-100 | 1/125 sec | f/2.8

Zeus enjoing the forest

Ah, and one last important point about this subject: No matter how you look at it, one fact is indisputable - our Cyclamen Foresth is for sure the original one. I swear...