The fall of 2025 began as a somnolent reminder of the previous year, primarily due to the lack of rainfall in the Southern Appalachians. Once the first frost hit and moisture crept into the region, the vibrancy and subtlety of the autumn colors dominated.

Two of my favorite photos from autumn 2025 are featured here. The first – Blue Ridge Brilliance – is an image that captures the classic, radiant beauty of a Blue Ridge Mountains autumn at its absolute peak. Taken during the penultimate rays of golden-hour sunlight, the foreground is ablaze with mountain laurel and rhododendron whose leaves have turned brilliant shades of crimson, scarlet, and fiery orange.

The middle ground rolls away in waves of warm amber and gold deciduous forest, while the background ridges fade into soft layers of blue and purple haze under a dramatically lit sky. The low-angle sunlight creates a luminous glow that seems to set the entire landscape on fire, emphasizing texture in every leaf and giving the scene an almost painterly, hyper-real quality. To me, it’s autumn in the Smokies at its most triumphant and celebratory.

The second image is named “Evening Arrives in the Smokies” and, in contrast to “Brilliance,” this image is quiet, moody, and ethereal, and is an international juried art award winner.

The scene was photographed just before the civil start of a sunset, which became lackluster due to the cloudy skies that eventually moved in. A low sea of fog fills the valleys, softly backlit by the waning light of the day filtering through broken clouds.

Sunbeams streak dramatically across the frame, illuminating patches of autumn color (russet, burnt orange, and lingering green) on the ridges that rise like islands above the mist. The color palette is cooler overall, with dominant blues and purples in the sky and shadows, and the light has a gentle, diffused quality that feels contemplative rather than exuberant. The composition has a mysterious, almost otherworldly atmosphere, as though the mountains are slowly awakening from a dream.

Side by side, these two photographs beautifully illustrate the emotional range that autumn in the Smokies and Blue Ridge can offer within the span of a single day. The first image is bold, saturated, and exuberant (pure autumn joy poured straight from the sun). The second is introspective, soft, and serene (the quiet, reflective side of the season).

One shouts “Look at me!” in a riot of warm color and light; the other whispers “Come closer and listen” through cool mist and delicate rays. Together they show why Badger chases fall color in these mountains year after year: the same landscape can feel triumphant one moment and deeply peaceful the next, often depending only on the time of day and the mood of the light.

Photograph © 2025 Thomas Mabry @honeybadgerimages – All Rights Reserved

Many of the HoneyBadgerImages are on display at instagram.com/honeybadgerimages.

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