An Image That Got Away

When I was in Yosemite last spring, I saw this little tree, probably a California Red Fir, (Abies magnifica) growing up along side the fairly large rock.  As I love trees and forests as subjects, I spent some time working to get the composition I wanted, one that showed the relationship between the rock and the tree and the adaptations made by the little tree to co-exist with the rock.  Looking back at the time I was composing the image, it now amazes me that I failed to see all of the clutter of the dead branches and twigs around the bottom of the tree.  Without the clutter, the image would have been clean and simple, telling a story of the relationship and the tough circumstances that sometimes shape nature.  As it is, all that clutter ruins the image for me.  Lesson learned; don't spend a lot time working on making an image that will always be flawed because of background elements that can not be overcome photographically.  (In our national parks, it isn't legal to trim branches from a tree to improve your composition.)