California Poppy” – Moonstone Beach, Cambria, California
“Even the most mundane and commonplace things that most take for granted are seen as beautiful by those who don’t have them.” – Ed Lehming
I love California poppies. I think, mostly because they don’t grow where I live. I expect to people who have them everywhere, they may seem as common as dandelions are to me. One of the things I love about travelling is finding new things and I do have an affinity for flowers.
This cluster of poppies was growing on the edge of the bluff that overhangs Moonstone Beach. At the tp of this bluff are many local plants, suited to the ocean shore environment. I found many of these plants to be dry and prickly, probably designed to protect them from the constant wind and salt spray along the Pacific shore. Among these plants are endless tangles of low scrub with a tightly woven canopy, providing excellent shelter for the numerous rabbits and California ground squirrels, to name but two thatI saw.
I selected a wide aperture in an attempt to isolate the poppies from the beach below. As with many of my photos, I did not notice the details of the beautiful wild grasses woven between the poppies until I started editing it. It may not be an eye catcher, thought it was to me at the time, but it’s a single moment in a series of wonderful memories of that day and I’m happy to have it.
Nikon D800
Tamron SP 70-200mm f/2.8 Di VC USD @ 200mm
1/4 sec, f/25, ISO 400
Ed Lehming Photography 
I understand what you mean by that last bit, of a photo perhaps not being a gem, but still lovely and full of memories. I love poppies. In Ohio, we had the red ones and here in Arizona, in the spring we see the California poppies as you show here. Both lovely.
janet