I’ve always been rather fond of covered bridges, but Dummerston Covered Bridge in particular deserved a photo edit with moody vibes. This charcoal effect I used with Corel Painter creates the kind of image that says, “I grew up in a postcard, but now I haunt it with unresolved seasonal trauma and a taste for artisanal maple syrup.”

Now, the charcoal look gives the bridge all the drama of a Gothic novel written by someone who secretly dreams of being a Vermont tourism brochure writer. The texture makes it look like someone sketched it feverishly in a candlelit attic while muttering about ghosts and regretting the invention of modernity.

This covered bridge, proudly defying the passage of time (and trucks taller than 8 feet), looks like it should be narrating its own internal monologue. Something like: “They only remember me when the foliage hits peak. The rest of the year, I just stand here, cold, collecting bird poop and despair.”

Honestly, it sort of gives Wuthering Heights: Covered Bridge Edition vibes, too. You may half-expect Heathcliff to come brooding out of the shadows, muttering about climate change and a friend of his missing brunch reservations.

This likely should make for a future book cover. If it doesn’t make it onto one of mine, then I should license it to someone else.

Photo by Amelia (Artemis) Phoenix Desertsong. Edited with Corel Painter 2023 using the Charcoal preset, Medium Charcoal AI style, in Black and White