Noch ein Winterwald by Anne Schwalbe

Like yesterday's featured contender, Matthew Dallos, Germany-based photographer Anne Schwalbe also photographs the lines and patterns in nature. Schwalbe, however, departs from landscapes into the abstract, often focusing on the subtle minutiae of undulations caused by raindrops, the varying densities of fog, or the asymmetry if a pine tree. She abandons the specificity of a place, avoiding characterizing them by their distinguishing markers. Instead, Schwalbe invites her viewers to interpret the spaces she photographs, saying, "I want to have a complex void in my photographs."

Her work evokes comparison to Japanese photographer, Rinko Kawauchi, who is well-known for her natural-light photographs of details in nature and everyday life: flower petals, an eaten watermelon, a crack of lightning. The similarities extend from subject matter to their both using the 6x6 square format; Kawauchi shoots with a Rolleiflex twin-lens reflex camera and Schwalbe a Yashica - Mat 124 G. Both photographers emphasize the beautiful color palettes expressed in nature, and show a welcome talent for honing in on the subtleties so many of us miss in the everyday.

See additional work on Anne's website.