I had an old silver teapot on my credenza, just gathering dust. I bought it years ago in Charleston thinking it might be worth something. I still don’t know about that, but it was pretty. Before using it in my image, I first had to polish it. I always wanted to use it in a still life, but didn’t know what to do with it. Finally, I decided to add some Peruvian Lilies to the opening. I love the look of pears so I added them as well. I added a lovely ornate candle holder with an orange and yellow thick candle to offset the orange in the flowers. The background is a texture I added in. i think the darkish background brings out the beauty and drama of this arrangement.
Clematis Blue Light
I went outside my house after it rained and noticed the beautiful droplets of water on this Clematis Blue Light flower. I grabbed my macro lens and shot this image. The violet petals surrounding the center of this flower, highlighted by droplets of water gently resting on its surface accentuate the natural beauty and complexity of this blossom.This beauty blooms each year at this time.
Pine Cones
Where I live, there are many pine trees. I always see the standard pine cones all over the grass and wooded areas, but I never knew what they look like before they mature. I was out walking when I noticed these interesting growths on the pine trees and I wasn’t sure what they were. They were skinny and some very long, so I did a search and found out that these interesting yellow and green cylindrical growths were indeed baby pine cones. I came back with my camera and macro lens and took many shots. The wind was whipping the tree around but I managed to get a few good images.
Since the hurricane in September in Augusta, GA, there are so many downed pine trees. These have mature pine cones–the kind I am familiar with. The second picture is a macro shot of one of these beauties.
Boston Terrier Puppy
My friend just got an adorable Boston Terrier puppy. She is so bouncy and full of energy the way puppies are. I decided to take some pictures of this adorable subject, which was not easy because she is continuously on the move. For just one moment, she stopped after I made a kissing sound and looked at me. Bam- that’s when I shot the photo. I added a beautiful blue texture as a background to bring out her colors. Her “parents” were thrilled that I managed to capture this special photo. One second later, she was running and jumping again.
Crepe Myrtle Buds
I came out last Sunday to go walking and I just couldn’t resist going back into the house and getting my camera which already had a macro lens. It had rained the night before, so the buds were so new and sparkling, ready to become blooms. It was a beautiful morning and the sun was just beginning to shine through the foliage. The bright natural light enhances the the vibrant color and detail of the buds.
Raindrop on Flower
As I was leaving to go walking on Sunday morning, I noticed raindrops on my Crepe Myrtle tree. I knew it rained Saturday night so I thought there may be some pretty droplets on the delicate flowers. I just so happened to have a camera with a macro lens upstairs luckily. So I went back in and grabbed it, came out and started shooting. It was so hot and steamy that morning that my lens was getting fogged up. But I kept wiping it off with my cloth and managed to actually see what I was photographing. The background is softly blurred in shades of pink and green which highlight the beautiful droplet on the flower.
Deep Red Rose
I have always loved roses. There are so many varieties and colors of roses, but to me, the most beautiful is the red rose. I envisioned a deep red rose with water droplets on the petals. I decided that a close up of the rose would reveal the mystical beauty of this gorgeous flower. I then spritzed the flower with water droplets, which clung to the delicate petals. I chose to photograph this spectacular beauty in a dark setting, thus bringing out the red color. It is really such a rather simple photo of a flower, but the deep red against a dark background made for a rather dramatic effect and enhanced the elegance of this exquisite flower.
Yellow Sunflowers
I always loved sunflowers; all different sizes. The blooms, bright yellow, are so beautiful but the backside of the flower is exquisite. It is just as expressive and lovely as the front. I decided to concentrate on doing a close up. I had not used my macro lens lately, but I found the closer I zeroed into the lush, complex, green petals of the backside, the more excited I got. I always think an image, especially a sunflower, is so much more dramatic when moving as close as possible and photographing just a portion of the flower. I think this vivid picture was exactly what I had envisioned.
Hospice Photo Shoot
I was asked to take some photos of a lovely lady of 91 and her daughter recently at the Marshall Pines memory care facility. She is technically in hospice, but she is stable right now. I went there with the hospice coordinator who was familiar with the family. Rather than being a sad visit, it was really fun because there was such a sweet interaction between mom and daughter and I could just feel the bond and love they have for one another. I decided to take the photos without any flash equipment because I felt it would be distracting and intrusive. The original images were in color, but I turned them into black and white to create the mood I was looking for.
Self Portraits
I have been taking very close up self-portraits using a macro lens. These are the latest ones I took. I think they reflect my mood at the time I did the photo. In one I am contemplative, and I think the other one with the broken glass perfectly depicts my general feelings about life lately.I named it Just Everything. They are not the most flattering photos, but this was me in July 2022.
