Posted in Flowers, Gardening, Macro Photography, Nature, Photography, tagged Alexandria VA, Canon 100mm macro lens, Canon 50D, Leucojum aestivum, raindrop, Runnymeade, Snowflake on April 14, 2015| 3 Comments »
Cindy Dyer, my mentor, is a source of constant encouragement and inspiration for me and also has a wonderful garden of photogenic flowers to photograph. I took this shot of a Snowflake flower (Leucojum aestivum) on a recent misty morning. The image is an homage to Cindy, because it is similar in style to one of her images that I really admire.
In many ways this photo is a companion to the image I posted a few days ago of raindrops on a snowdrop flower.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Art, Flowers, Gardening, Macro Photography, Nature, Photography, spring, tagged Canon 50D, Leucojum aestivum, Leucojum vernum, Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden, Richmond VA, snowflakes, Spring Snowflake, Summer Snowflake, Tamron 180mm macro lens on April 29, 2014| 14 Comments »
Memories of this past winter’s unusually heavy snowfall are beginning to fade, but were revived when I saw these beautiful little Snowflakes during a recent visit to Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden in Richmond, VA.
There are two varieties of Snowflakes—the Spring Snowflake (Leucojum vernum) and the Summer Snowflake (Leucojum aestivum)—and I am not absolutely certain which variety I photographed.
I love the simple beauty of this delicate flower and am happy that I was able to isolate a couple of the blooms to showcase that beauty.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved
Posted in Flowers, Gardening, Macro Photography, Nature, Photography, tagged Alexandria VA, Canon Rebel XT, green spring gardens, Leucojum aestivum, Sigma 135-400mm telephoto zoom lens, snowoflake, Summer Snowflake on April 7, 2013| 12 Comments »
It may sound like an oxymoron, but I think that this pretty little flower really is called a Summer Snowflake (Leucojum aestivum).
Yesterday was a beautiful, sunny day and I took the opportunity to visit Green Spring Gardens, a local county-run local historical and horticultural center. It is still a little early in the season for most of the showy blossoms, but I came across several patches of the snowflake flower. Apparently there are two varieties of snowflakes—spring and summer—and, strange as it sounds, these are blooming so late that they are probably Summer Snowflakes.
My mind is still geared on photographing birds, so I was carrying around my camera with the 135-400mm telephoto lens. I had my macro lens in the bag I was carrying and probably should have changed lenses when I took some shots of this flower, but I guess the warmth of the sun made me feel a little lazy.
I took this shot at 400mm, which is equivalent to a 640mm on a 35mm camera, because of my crop-sensor camera. The shot is a little soft, but it is clear enough to show that I may have captured an additional subject. If you look closely at the top of the green stem, you will see what I think is a tiny spider. My fellow blogger and photography mentor, Cindy Dyer, likes to call these “bonus bugs.” You shoot check out her blog for some great shots of snowflake flowers and lots of other flowers too.
As insects and flowers return, I will have to retrain my eyes to focus on close-in details, rather than looking out into the distance, as I have during much of the winter when I was photographing a lot of birds. I look forward to the challenge.
Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved
Mike Powell 