Nature
We don't have trees like this in South Dakota - at least in my part of the state. I think it is an oak tree and oak trees have a very distinct form of brachiation. The branches are twisted and, in my mind, gothic. I would have bare, twisted oak trees in front of my haunted house, if I owned one.This tree is about to leaf out and lives (happily or hauntedly?) on San Juan Island in Washington state.
I am resolving to try to re-invent myself as a photographer. Someday. But until then, here's another flower photo.
It was a sunny day in southern California when I snapped this photo. But it wasn't warm. In fact it ended up being about 20 degrees warmer in our home town of Watertown, SD, on the same day. But the green houses aren't flourishing yet in our part of the world.If you are in Corona del Mar, and like plants and flowers, look up Roger's Gardens. It's a bit of a tourist attraction and well worth the visit.
I'm on a "fuzzy" kick and, for two days, a "fuzzy ball" kick. From a distance these cacti are cute. But seen close up we learn that looks are deceiving.
Three tall palms trees enjoying the southern California breeze. My only thought is that sometimes you have to go a long ways from the palm tree's trunk to sit in the palm tree's shade.
Sooner or later I will run out of plants I photographed last week. Or I will clairvoyantly sense your boredom. But until then, here's another plant.I will tell you that the photographic challenge with this plant was trying to establish a focal point. I was shooting at 2.8 so I would get fairly narrow depth of field. The thinking was that rather than have the you look at the whole plant, I wanted you to see the serrations, the texture and the soft purples and greens.
Yesterday's photo was a macro close-up of a plant I could have held in the cupped palms of my hands. Today's plant is a likely relative of yesterday's, though this is no macro. These leaves could be measured in feet, not inches, and would need a small room to occupy.Everything about the cactus and succulent section of the Sherman Gardens in Corona del Mar, California, was captivating when I was there with Deb recently. But I was especially struck by the beautiful, strong southwestern light. These leaves are almost glowing - in part because of the reflected light bouncing off of the leaves and also because the leaves are slightly translucent. But it was soft blues and greens of this plant that attracted me to this scene. The sun was warm but the hues were cool.Incidentally, I am experimenting with a new app on my iPad and iPhone called iPhoto. To Mac users, it is nothing new. But it is new for our portable devices. One of the things it allows is the publication of something called "journals." Here's a link to my California journal.
This is another macro photograph taken on my recent trip to California. The place is the Sherman Gardens in Corona del Mar. Sorry, but I don't know the name of the plant.