Unusual grape hyacinths

March 19, 2021 by Mike Powell

I was totally fascinated by the shapes and colors of this tiny flower that has started to bloom in the garden of my friend and neighbor Cindy Dyer. Cindy told me it was a type of Grape Hyacinth, which confused me a little, because all of the grape hyacinths that I had previously seen were shaped more like grapes than little bells.

I searched on-line and eventually discovered that this flower is Muscari azureum, a species also referred to as Pseudomuscari azureum or Hyacinthella azurea. According to gardenia.net, “Muscari azureum is a lovely, compact china-blue grape hyacinth, with bell-shaped flowers that are not constricted at the mouth. Therefore it looks more plump and fuller than others.”

It was a challenge for me to photograph these flowers because they are so small and grow so close to the ground. Additionally the rather naked early spring garden soil in which the flowers were growing does not make a very photogenic backdrop. I used a macro lens to get close to the flowers for the first two shots in order to isolate them somewhat from the background and focus the viewer’s attention on the intricate details of the flowers.

For the final image, I backed up a little to give you a view of the overall scene and the challenges I described above. As you can probably tell, the two flowers at the far left of the frame were the ones that were featured in the first two photos.

Posted in Flowers, Gardening, Macro Photography, Nature, Photography, spring | Tagged Alexandria VA, Canon 50D, Canon 60mm, Cindy Dyer, Grape hyacinth, Muscari azureum, Runnymeade | 23 Comments

23 Responses

on March 19, 2021 at 7:37 am | Reply Dan Antion

They are very pretty. Great close-up photos, Mike.
- on March 19, 2021 at 9:15 am | Reply Mike Powell
  
  Thanks, Dan. I remember being told I should strive to fill the frame with my subject, which is quite a challenge with such a small subject. Fortunately there was no risk that it would fly or crawl away–much of the time when I am shooting so close-up my subject is an insect or spider. 🙂
on March 19, 2021 at 8:18 am | Reply K.L. Hale

You did a great job with the close-up. It’s a very beautiful and detailed flower.
- on March 19, 2021 at 9:13 am | Reply Mike Powell
  
  Thanks. For some flowers I might resort to a tripod for stability, but in this case I was so low and close that a tripod would have been hard to use.
on March 19, 2021 at 8:35 am | Reply Ann Parziale

Wonderful photos as well as introducing me to a new flower. It’s very helpful that you show the flower in the garden setting as well as close up. I love the variation of the petals. I want some !!
on March 19, 2021 at 8:37 am | Reply Reed Andariese

Nice closeups Mike! Enjoyed seeing them!
- on March 19, 2021 at 9:12 am | Reply Mike Powell
  
  Thanks, Reed. I love my macro lenses (I have a 60mm, 100mm, and 180mm). The short one was perfect here.
on March 19, 2021 at 9:05 am | Reply Jo

Great photos and really cute flowers!
- on March 19, 2021 at 9:11 am | Reply Mike Powell
  
  Thanks, Jo. These flowers were definitely unusual–my friend, the one in whose garden I was shooting, though the lower parts of the flowers looked like little skirts. 🙂
on March 19, 2021 at 9:21 am | Reply Jet Eliot

I so enjoyed this close encounter with the grape hyacinths, Mike. I was glad you shared the photographing challenges, as I could appreciate them once you described them. I like that you left the dirt on the top of the one, rather than brush it off; it must be from when it emerged out of the ground. Lovely, sweet flowers, thank you for giving us this intimate time with them.
- on March 19, 2021 at 9:59 am | Reply Mike Powell
  
  Thanks, Jet. On some occasions I will simply share my photos, but often I like to share as well the experience of getting the shots. Not everyone understands the mental processing and creative choices that a photographer makes before pressing the shutter. Many people would have simply kept walking if they had seen the flowers as I presented then in the final image (or might not have noticed them at all). One of the joys of photography for me is training my mind to see the photographic possibilities in almost any scene. In one sense I simply capture what I see, but the trick is learning how to see. It is sort of a Zen-like approach to photography, I suppose. One of my favorite responses to my friends who ask me how it I see all of these amazing things is to respond with the words, “How is it that you do not see them?” 🙂
on March 19, 2021 at 12:44 pm | Reply picpholio

Wonderful species and great shot, specialy the first one.
- on March 19, 2021 at 7:46 pm | Reply Mike Powell
  
  Thanks.
on March 19, 2021 at 5:11 pm | Reply New Hampshire Garden Solutions

I’ve never seen that one. It’s beautiful.
And you got some great shots of them.
- on March 19, 2021 at 7:39 pm | Reply Mike Powell
  
  Thanks. It is certainly not the traditional grape hyacinth. 🙂
on March 19, 2021 at 6:02 pm | Reply sv-anui.com

Great to see the details of this lovely flower.
- on March 19, 2021 at 7:40 pm | Reply Mike Powell
  
  Thanks, Chris. Shots like this are a reminder to me of how much I love to shoot with a macro lens.
on March 19, 2021 at 6:03 pm | Reply Eliza Waters

Marvelous macro shots, Mike – the details of light and darker blue are wonderful!
- on March 19, 2021 at 7:40 pm | Reply Mike Powell
  
  Thanks, Eliza.
on March 21, 2021 at 8:42 pm | Reply nliakos

Just beautiful!
- on March 22, 2021 at 6:05 am | Reply Mike Powell
  
  Thanks, Nina.
on March 28, 2021 at 7:31 am | Reply More grape hyacinths | Mike Powell

[…] that was different in shape as well as color. If you have not seen that posting, check it out at Unusual grape hyacinths. We have had a lot of rain and warmer weather recently and I can’t to wait to see what pops […]
on March 28, 2021 at 8:20 am | Reply Reed Andariese

Very nice Mike! Shooting with macro lenses are fun!