Landscape Painting, Languedoc - Le Vieux Puits

I had to wait a long time to get this image: a bit like trying to photograph Stonehenge at sunrise on the solstice. I knew that I wanted to get the vines when they turn red. The problem with this being that in early autumn the sky can very often be overcast and the tramontane winds that howl down from the northwest can strip the tired vines of their leaves.  Having said that, most years we are treated to at least two or three weeks when the surrounding vineyards turn red, yellow, orange and purple. On a sunny day this is a breathtaking sight.

The old well is near the hamlet of Rocanières between Roquebrun and Ceps in the Orb valley, looking up the valley towards Ceps.  I wanted to capture the mellowness of the afternoon and the vibrant colours of early autumn. The well almost certainly predates the vines, from an age when the inhabitants of the valley were self sufficient for most things and this field next to the river would probably have been used to grow fruit and vegetables.