Tilted columbine

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Tilted columbine

May 7, 2013 by Mike Powell

One of my favorite spring flowers is the columbine (genus Aquilegia) and I especially like its distinctive shape. Yesterday I took this photo at Green Spring Gardens, a county-run historical garden, one of my favorite spots for photographing flowers.

The flower was growing at an unusual angle and I tried hard to capture the details of the flower, as well as the beautiful colors in the background. I’m pretty happy with the result.

Posted in Art, Flowers, Gardening, Nature, Photography | Tagged Alexandria VA, Canon 100mm macro lens, Canon Rebel XT, columbine, genus Aquilegia, green spring gardens | 10 Comments

10 Responses

on May 7, 2013 at 9:02 pm | Reply The Backdoor Artist

Incredible depth of field control! nice shot.
- on May 7, 2013 at 9:34 pm | Reply Mike Powell
  
  Thanks. I had to try a few different settings to get the flower mostly in focus (which was a little tough because it has some depth) and the background blurred. Depth of field is almost always my biggest challenge when shooting with my macro lens.
on May 7, 2013 at 10:09 pm | Reply Another Perspective Photography

Are these also called honeysuckles? I remember picking flowers like these as a kid, and biting the bulbs on the tips for a sweet taste of nectar. Great image, very sharp and clear. I am taking lots of wildflower images this spring too!
- on May 8, 2013 at 4:33 am | Reply Mike Powell
  
  Thanks. I think that honeysuckles are a different flower, but I am no expert on flowers. I look forward to seeing more of your wildflower images.
on May 7, 2013 at 10:28 pm | Reply Charlie@Seattle Trekker

I planted columbine in my garden to attract hummingbirds, now it is one of my favorites because of its exquisite beauty. I really enjoyed your photo…you really do it justice.
- on May 8, 2013 at 4:29 am | Reply Mike Powell
  
  Thanks, Charlie. At the local garden that I visited, there were lots of columbines in bloom in a wide variety of colors.
on May 8, 2013 at 6:31 am | Reply New Hampshire Gardener

I’d be very happy with that shot-it’s perfect.
- on May 8, 2013 at 6:33 am | Reply Mike Powell
  
  Thanks. I am thrilled with the shot, though I would hesitate to claim that any of my images are “perfect.”
on May 9, 2013 at 8:35 am | Reply Sue

Great photo, Mike. Color, depth of field, and composition are really nice, at least in my view!
- on May 9, 2013 at 8:11 pm | Reply Mike Powell
  
  Thanks, Sue. This is a rare case when I had a good idea of what I was going for as a final result and was able to achieve it. Most of the time I end up compromising on something, such as framing, background, lighting, etc.