“And forget not that the earth delights to feel your bare feet and the winds long to play with your hair”
― Kahlil Gibran
The earth does delight in our bare feet and the trail rises ahead to greet me. I’ve spent the past couple of weekends back on the local trails, enjoying the fresh air and sound of the wind shaking the branches high above me, the air is filled with birdsong and the scent of tree sap.
One of the things I try to communicate through my abstract photography is that the forest is a living breathing thing, it’s seldom still and especially so on windy days. Last weekend, as I was making a series of images on the trail, a gust of wind caught me, just as I snapped the shutter. I make these images freehand, as I like the natural feel and control I have of the creative process. The effect of this ‘gust’ was a very slight shift in the first portion of the my upward sweep, which at first bothered me, but the more I considered the final image, the more I liked it. The movement is a bit more distorted but adds a different axis of movement, caused by the wind which seems to make the whole scene spring to action, as if rustling in that same breeze. It’s like witnessing a deep exhalation of the forest, for a brief moment, and then it all settles back to the norm.
Nikon D800
Tamron SP AF 90mm f/2.8 Di Macro 1:1 (272ENII)@90mmm
1/4 sec, f/25.0, ISO 400
For more images like this, please visit my website (images are available for purchase)
http://www.edlehming.com
“I promise you nothing is as chaotic as it seems. Nothing is worth diminishing your health. Nothing is worth poisoning yourself into stress, anxiety, and fear.”
― Steve Maraboli
Some strange things happen when plants are stressed. One of those is a switch to dormancy and loss of the chlorophyl that gives the leaves their green colour. The result, is fall colours and shedding of leaves.
In one particular patch of forest, some of the poplars have started to drop leaves due to the recent heat and drought-like conditions, littering the ground with brightly coloured leaves, which really stand out against the dry, sandy soil. They are quite stunning, and even more so because they are so spread out and out of season.
For humans, stress manifests in different ways, and in most cases, they are far from beautiful. So, I need to spend some time, in my stress filled life to appreciate the beauty I find along my journey, where I find it, and seek out more, to balance my own life.
Nikon D800
Tamron SP AF 90mm f/2.8 Di Macro 1:1 (272ENII)@90mmm
1/80 sec, f/4.5, ISO 400
For more images like this, please visit my website (images are available for purchase)
http://www.edlehming.com
“Don’t look for peace. Don’t look for any other state than the one you are in now; otherwise, you will set up inner conflict and unconscious resistance. Forgive yourself for not being at peace. The moment you completely accept your non-peace, your non-peace becomes transmuted into peace. Anything you accept fully will get you there, will take you into peace. This is the miracle of surrender”
― Eckhart Tolle
I find my life, at present, troubling, I struggle for direction and find myself torn between a multitude of emotions: anger, sadness, grief, disappointment, and betrayal to name a few. I am uneasy about the future, the world around me. It’s a maelstrom of sensations I have not felt before. It seems like negative thoughts and emotions may at any time overwhelm me. And then, beacons of brightness remind me of the path forward. My family is there, trying to comfort me and I hear their words and feel their concern. This is a temporary moment, a juncture of the unfamiliar, yet ahead is brightness and hope. I know this in my heart and need to get my head to follow.
I have been blessed with not just abilities and skills but good and caring people, and as I sit writing these words, trying to make sense of things that make no sense, I’m able to draw on my art, my images, the words and actions of the good people in my life and put things in perspective.
The world I live in is alive and filled with good and joyful things, I just need to remember them, constantly. Images, like this one, as I let the image fill me, remind me of so many of those experiences, they help ground me.
There is a reason for me being in this place and time, just like there was a reason for me being at the place and time when I made the photo, and I find they are weaving together to help me make sense. The word “surrender” echoes through me, not in an “I give up” sense, but rather, I “accept” this moment for what it is, a mere step on the journey. I may have stubbed my toe, but that will heal and I will move forward, stronger for the experience. Despite what feels like darkness, there is always light, I just need to keep focussed on it and appreciate it for what it is, then the darkness seems less dark.
Nikon D800
Tamron SP AF 90mm f/2.8 Di Macro 1:1 (272ENII)@90mmm
1/4 sec, f/22.0, ISO 400
For more images like this, please visit my website (images are available for purchase)
http://www.edlehming.com
“Three things are needed
For humanity to co-exist:
Truth, peace and basic needs.
Everything else –
Is irrelevant.”
― Suzy Kassem
A reminder, along the way, of what is important. This cluster of tree brought to mind the quote above by Suzy Kassem. So relevant in these complex times.
I have a friend who builds hand crafted furniture, all his work, tables and chairs, have three legs. He jokes, two is just not enough, and four is too many. The number three, is balanced and just enough. The number three is in my mind. So, when I saw this grouping of trees, it triggered thoughts of balance, life, and the events happening in my world, outside the sanctuary of the forest.
Our world seems to be lacking any semblance of truth, peace is just a dream to many, and in a world of excess, basic needs seem to be forgotten, as we pursue the latest fad. Yet, it seems so simple, doesn’t it? We need all three, in balance, and it feels like one is always lacking, or diminished. concept.
At this point in time, as I place myself back in the forest vista, I hold onto this image and try to picture it with one tree missing, and it just isn’t the same. Three are needed.
Nikon D800
Tamron SP AF 90mm f/2.8 Di Macro 1:1 (272ENII)@90mmm
1/4 sec, f/11.0, ISO 400
For more images like this, please visit my website (images are available for purchase)
http://www.edlehming.com
“Taking time in stillness is an essential part of my every day. It saves my sanity, it grounds and centers me. I can carry that peace with me wherever I go.”
― Akiroq Brost
Welcome once more to a moment in the forest, this time a warm, dry, and largely mosquito free sojourn into the green.
As I hike these trails, often 10-15 km at a time, I pass many wonderful scenes and many, many trees, yet every so often a scene presents itself which makes my pause on my journey and a photo come together.
In this image, a large sugar maple dominates the scene just on the edge of a hemlock grove.
Titles for my images often come to me as soon as I start composing the image and I often find myself wondering what particular elements of the image prompted that though process. So, I consider this image. Dominant. Yes, this maple is the largest tree in the scene, it has more texture, and is in the foreground, but I see these scenes many times along my hikes. So, what is it about this particular tree that brings that word to mind above the rest of the moments I experience?
I think, in this case, it’s simply the placement of the tree, just to the left of a game trail. It almost welcomes me to enter an partake. The next thing I see is an exposed rock, reflecting the warm sunlight, followed by the glow of an exposed stump, and the journey continues. In the end, it’s the combination of light and line that seems to start with this one tree. It’s the anchor and the beginning and dominant, yet not imposing or threatening. Interestingly, a made another image of it from a slightly different angle and the scene lost all it allure.
Nikon D800
Tamron SP AF 90mm f/2.8 Di Macro 1:1 (272ENII)@90mmm
1/4 sec, f/14.0, ISO 400
For more images like this, please visit my website (images are available for purchase)
http://www.edlehming.com
“It is in the shade that you look up at a tree and appreciate its efforts.”
― Matshona Dhliwayo
The versatility and adaptability of nature is endless. Here, a small fern has found a place in the shade that allows it to grow, protected for the heat, and largely isolated from competing plants.
I often see theses mini gardens, some filled with ferns, others with small trees or mushrooms. It seems that all it takes is for a little soil to form and a seed to fall in the right place to create these private places of growth.
This one caught my attention along the trail as the sun was reflecting brightly from the fern’s leaves and the moss encrusted bark of the fallen tree in an otherwise shaded and green forest floor. As you can see, the moss is quite dry since we have had very little rain over the past few weeks and the forest is showing the stress of this weather. But, this little fern seems to be doing quite well init shelter.
Nikon D800
Tamron SP AF 90mm f/2.8 Di Macro 1:1 (272ENII)@90mmm
1/50 sec, f/3.5, ISO 400
For more images like this, please visit my website (images are available for purchase)
http://www.edlehming.com
“In times of stress, the best thing we can do for each other is to listen with our ears and our hearts and to be assured that our questions are just as important as our answers.”
― Fred Rogers
Many times, I find these ‘secondary’ photos. Meaning, photos I had not set out to make. In this case, I had gone out to photograph local wheat fields, see yesterday’s post “Abundance“. As I had completed the photos I had set out to make, I was greeted by this lovely scene along a fence row, late day sunlight penetrating the shadows.
The first thing I noticed was the beautiful soft light and then, as I considered the scene further, the bright reds of the woodbine vines held my attention.
It’s late June, and we have been in an extended period of hot and humid weather, not quite a drought by definition, but close to it. One of the effects of this weather is that plants become stressed from lack of water and that stress often manifests in a colour change, similar to autumn. Only a few leaves have changed here but I have seen other plants go completely yellow, such as is the case in another recent post, “Grounded Sunlight”
The whole scene here gives an impression of lush summer growth and belays the reality of a hot and dry evening at the edge of a wheat field.
iPhone 7 back camera
“Squabbling over too little is just human nature. But it says a great deal about a person, what they do with abundance.”
― Tessa Dare
Today, some time spent out of the forest in in the farm fields around my home. It’s hard to believe, but it’s already late July and the wheat fields are seas of golden waves, swaying in the hot summer breezes.
As I stand among the soon to be harvested crops, I’m overwhelmed by the sheer abundance of food these fields will produce. As far as I can see, the bounty of grain fills my senses. There is the gentle movement, the rich golden colour, and the warm scent of wheat in the air. It surrounds me and makes me smile to see this much life and this much potential surrounding me. It also bring back memories of helping family members who have farms in collecting and storing what felt like an endless supply of straw bales after the harvest, always on the hottest days.
iPhone 7 back camera @ 4.0mm
1/320 sec; f/1.8; ISO 20
“Shafts of delicious sunlight struck down onto the forest floor and overhead you could see a blue sky between the tree tops.”
― C.S. Lewis
Light does some amazing things. As a photographer, light is everything and my eyes are quite tuned to the unique characteristics of light. Anything out of the ordinary resonates with me and automatically draws me to it.
This was the case on a hot and rainy hike this past weekend. Despite the rain, sunlight regularly broke through and the effects were often magical.
In this scene, the sun caught a patch of undergrowth whose leaves had turned yellow from our recent drought. It’s like the sun saying, “Wake up!” or simply pulling me towards this patch of ground to spend more time considering it. Which I did, as I was curious about the early colour change among the canopy of deep summer greens. What was not apparent to me at the time was just how much of this golden light reflected back up to bathe the bases of the trees. This effect hows up nicely in the photo.
Nikon D800
Tamron SP AF 90mm f/2.8 Di Macro 1:1 (272ENII)@90mmm
1/4 sec, f/11.0, ISO 400
For more images like this, please visit my website (images are available for purchase)
http://www.edlehming.com
“It doesn’t matter whether you are looking for a reason to be happy or sad, you will always find it.”
― Kamand Kojouri
In this hectic world, I am usually looking for things that bring me peace. I find this peace in simplicity and often in the most obscure things.
Last weekend I went out with the intention of going on an extended hike and make some photos of my experience. It’s been too long since I have been on the trails. Between extremely hot weather and a chaotic work schedule, finding the time and conditions to get out has just been a challenge lately. So when I found a few hours, I decided to take that time and get out there, simply to recharge. It was still hot and humid, but bearable. As I entered the familiar forest trail I was greeted by a cloud of mosquitoes unlike anything I have ever experienced. Despite a healthy application of bug spray, I was still overwhelmed by them and resigned myself to head back to the car.
Disappointed in the conditions, I decided to head to a different trailhead and try my luck. Despite this disappointment, my eyes are always drawn to something unique, some play of light, or interesting from, and as I walked back to the car I noticed this tamarack branch, covered in cones with a large pond in the background. I looked through my viewfinder, the composition formed nicely and offered me this image.
Such a simple moments brings peace to me and looking at the photo now, a few days later, it transports me back to that moment and the calm that ensued.
Nikon D800
Tamron SP AF 90mm f/2.8 Di Macro 1:1 (272ENII)@90mmm
1/250 sec, f/8.0, ISO 200
For more images like this, please visit my website (images are available for purchase)
http://www.edlehming.com
“Sometimes you just had to crawl through the dark before
you could see the light.”
― E.L. Montes
Butterflies can be a challenge to photograph. They are quite shy and their irregular flight makes them tough to track. But, it’s that irregular movement that makes me notice them.
This wood nymph first appeared in my peripheral vision and floated around me for some time before finally landing, far away from me and in the darker recesses of forest along the trail.
Over time, I got closer, and it flew away, always staying out of range for me. After some time of pursuing it, the butterfly finally landed close enough for me to approach it, slowly, with my macro lens. I was more concerned with capturing an image than fiddling with aperture settings, so depth of field is a tad shallow for my liking. Nonetheless, I was able to get a decent image of it, as it sat near its dark retreat, staring at me. As soon as I snapped the shot, it was off again.
Nikon D800
Tamron SP AF 90mm f/2.8 Di Macro 1:1 (272ENII)@90mmm
1/200 sec, f/7.1, ISO 100
For more images like this, please visit my website (images are available for purchase)
http://www.edlehming.com
“My love affair with nature is so deep that I am not satisfied with being a mere onlooker, or nature tourist. I crave a more real and meaningful relationship. The spicy teas and tasty delicacies I prepare from wild ingredients are the bread and wine in which I have communion and fellowship with nature, and with the Author of that nature.”
― Euell Gibbons
Every hike seems to bring a new discovery. As I walk familiar paths, some splash of colour or unusual shape pulls me deeper into my relationship with nature. This past week, I discovered this wild basil plant. Frankly, I did not know it grew in my area and this is the first time I’ve seen one. Strange, it seemed so familiar but I did not make the connection till later.
Since I did not know what it was till I researched the photo, I did not take the time to test the smell or taste. That will have to wait for a subsequent visit. For now, I’m happy to have the photo as a reminder to return.
Nikon D800
Tamron SP AF 90mm f/2.8 Di Macro 1:1 (272ENII)@90mmm
1/400 sec, f/10.0, ISO 320
For more images like this, please visit my website (images are available for purchase)
http://www.edlehming.com
“Beware of those who are bitter, for they will never allow you to enjoy your fruit.”
― Suzy Kassem
The gooseberries are not just bitter, but well protected. I imagine birds would do alright with these but I’m trying to picture a squirrel or some other rodent trying to deal with these spiky berries.
This native fruit bearing shrub is a new one to me, even though I have hiked past this location hundreds of times. Why I did not notice something so unique puzzles me, as I’m always on the lookout for something unique along the way. Perhaps I’ve walked past before the fruit was formed or after the birds had stripped the berries already.
The image is quite green in tone, the result of a lush green canopy overhead filtering the sunlight. Rather than trying to colour correct the image, I decided to leave it as is, a reminder of this warm day among the greenery.
Nikon D800
Tamron SP AF 90mm f/2.8 Di Macro 1:1 (272ENII)@90mmm
1/100 sec, f/5.0, ISO 320
“When you reach for the stars, you are reaching for the farthest thing out there. When you reach deep into yourself, it is the same thing, but in the opposite direction. If you reach in both directions, you will have spanned the universe.”
― Vera Nazarian
It’s late June, yet many of the plants are still growing. This fern along the trail is a good example of this. In the warm breezes of early summer the fronds are still unfurling, still reaching for sunlight.
I chose the quote to go with this image to align with the concept of reaching outwards as well as the growth I experience, internally, every time I partake in these moments on my hikes. I reach within myself, trying to understand what I am experiencing. There are always surprises and I enjoy these. All this life and movement is energizing to me, the solitary hiker.
In the image above, if you look very carefully, there is an insect lurking behind the terminal frond. I don’t usually notice these when I make the image, they reveal themselves when I process the image. It would seem almost every plant and flower has an insect lurking somewhere. This one seems to be deliberately hiding from my lens.
Nikon D800
Tamron SP AF 90mm f/2.8 Di Macro 1:1 (272ENII)@90mmm
1/400 sec, f/100, ISO 320
For more images like this, please visit my website (images are available for purchase)
http://www.edlehming.com
“The beauty of that June day was almost staggering. After the wet spring, everything that could turn green had outdone itself in greenness and everything that could even dream of blooming or blossoming was in bloom and blossom. The sunlight was a benediction. The breezes were so caressingly soft and intimate on the skin as to be embarrassing.”
― Dan Simmons
Here we are, freshly into summer. I have found myself longing to get on the trails, to explore the changes the past month has brought. I sought to find the many groves of wildflowers, so familiar to me these past few years. Most of all, a craved the crunch of the ground beneath my boots and the sweet smells and familiar sounds of the forest.
Work has consumed my time, has left me drained and uninspired. I’ve been out walking, in town, just to clear my mind and then back to the routine. My free time has been spendt simply trying to catch my breath and come down from the non-stop urgency of my job.
As I sat reviewing some of the photos from last year, it became clear to me that I was sacrificing something precious. I was abandoning the very thing that gives me energy and creativity. I was giving up being ‘in’ nature. How I got to this point is simple, it was a slow and steady increase in keeping up with the increasing demands of a job that requires years of acquired knowledge and a great deal of creativity, combined with increasingly tight deadlines. But, I have come to realize, that the pace is only sustainable for so long. I began feeling tired, irritable, and uninspired in other aspects of my life. A few times, I took the time to set up a studio shot or two, grabbed some quick images with my iPhone, but that was it.
As I sat looking at the calendar this past weekend, I realized that it was Orchid time. The brief period in late June when the Showy Lady Slipper Orchids bloom in a local conservation area. I simply had to get out to check on them. So today, I made a point of starting my day early and taking time at lunch to step away from the desk and into the forest. As soon as I stepped off the trailhead and into the forest, the outside world slid away around me and I felt the ‘oneness’ of the trail. Even the clouds of mosquitoes were welcome, though only briefly. I was blessed by a cooler day and a slight breeze, just enough to cool me and disperse the biting insects. Within 20 minutes I stood before these lovely flowers once more. The conditions were perfect and I was able to get the shots I wanted. It’s so good to be back!
Nikon D800
Tamron SP AF 90mm f/2.8 Di Macro 1:1 (272ENII)@90mmm
1/200 sec, f/11.0, ISO 320
For more images like this, please visit my website (images are available for purchase)
http://www.edlehming.com
“It was June, and the world smelled of roses. The sunshine was like powdered gold over the grassy hillside.”
― Maud Hart Lovelace
I noticed, as I wrote this post, that I have not posted an image since May 31st. That’s what happens when you step away from something for too long; the time gets filled with other things.
The discipline of posting every day has been a very fulfilling experience for me. It forced me to be inspired when I was not and has taken me into the world of writing, which is not something I believe I am very good at. Posting and writing daily has caused me to consider my photos on a much deeper level. Writing about them has allowed me to go back to photos and the words that wrote and reflect back on that time and place. It has become a journal of my journey into me deliberate photography and has expanded my ability to explain much of the ‘why’ behind the photograph as well as the ‘how’.
So, today, as the rain finally falls outside, bringing much-needed moisture, summer is upon as, and so too, are roses.
As those who follow my blog will realize, I have a love for gardening and most plants do very well in my gardens. The one plant I have not been really interested in is the rose. I love the look and fragrance of them, but have not felt a desire to grow the. My father was an avid and successful rose gardener, but for some reason, I never picked up on his particular passion. Perhaps that will be my challenge for next season.
The rose pictured above is actually named Garden Sunshine by the Richmond Hill Horticultural Society and is described by the hybridizer as ” “brilliant yellow, like sunshine in a plant,”. That is an apt description for this beautiful rose. What the description leaves out is the magnificent fragrance. I’m actually looking forward to having them in may garden.
The blossoms I photographed were given to my wife by a family friend who has several of these roses in his garden.
Nikon D800
Tamron SP AF 90mm f/2.8 Di Macro 1:1 (272ENII)@90mmm
3.0 sec, f/29.0, ISO 100
For more images like this, please visit my website (images are available for purchase)
http://www.edlehming.com
“I miss your fragrance, sometimes I miss it this much that I can clearly smell you in the air.”
― Qaisar Iqbal Janjua
Just in time for the last day of May. This has been a very delayed year for many of our spring flowers, here in Ontario. These just started blooming last week and I was happy to see a few remained for me to photograph.
The fragrance of lily of the valley is among my favourite scents and the memory of that smell brings back so many special times for me: gardening as a child, with my grandmother and father, my wedding day (we had lilacs and lily of the valley from our home and my wife’s family home as our flower arrangements and in the bouquet), as well as the birth of our first child, in May, 26 years ago. Lily of the valley and its wonderful sweetness was part of all those moments. I do miss it, when it’s not blooming, but the memory remains.
Nikon D800
Tamron SP AF 90mm f/2.8 Di Macro 1:1 (272ENII)@90mmm
3.0sec, f/29.0, ISO 100
For more images like this, please visit my website (images are available for purchase)
http://www.edlehming.com
“Time moves forward don’t live backwards”
― E’yen A. Gardner
Spring, that time of year when the Earth groans and stretches after a winter slumber. Freshness is everywhere and the forest is transformed as branches begin to fill with fresh green leaves. Buds open and expand their contents to the sun, reaching for nourishment.
This ‘greening’ only seems to last a few days and the forest is a soft canvas of greens and yellows and every shade between. It’s a few days of completed freshness, before the insects begin feasting and the sun slowly dries and bleaches the colours. Many of the leaves, like these, will darken more as chlorophyll fills the cells. But for now, for this brief time, I will revel in the soft ‘greening’ of spring.
It’s a reminder to me, as the quote states, that life and time move forward, without exception, as the cycle continues toward summer, never the same, always new and slightly different.
Nikon D800
Tamron SP AF 90mm f/2.8 Di Macro 1:1 (272ENII)@90mmm
1/1000 sec, f/7.1, ISO 400
For more images like this, please visit my website (images are available for purchase)
http://www.edlehming.com
“Even the tiniest of flowers can have the toughest roots.”
― Shannon Mullen
Wildflowers constantly amaze me, in their endless forms and the environments they thrive it.
The columbine above, is a native to Ontario and this particular plant was growing from a thin crack in the bedrock. I suppose there was just enough organic mater accumulated in that crack to create the rich soil the columbine prefers and a seed from nearby pants happened to land in just the right place. It’s surprising that such a seemingly delicate plant can thrive in the northern wilderness, in a region where there was still frost in the forest when I made this image.
My biggest challenge in creating this image, as with most macro images, is trying to get a shot between the breezes that kept moving the flower back and forth. Even slight movement makes the shot blurry.
Nikon D800
Tamron SP AF 90mm f/2.8 Di Macro 1:1 (272ENII)@90mmm
1/40sec, f/7.1, ISO 400
For more images like this, please visit my website (images are available for purchase)
http://www.edlehming.com
“If only these treasures were not so fragile as they are precious and beautiful.”
― Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
I find myself surveying my gardens, as the cycle of spring takes a firm hold. Tulips and daffodils are now dried remnants, these once beautiful ‘first’ colours. They welcomed the first few mild days with their bright faces and filled our sense of smell with their sweet fragrance.
Now, the next wave of flowers fills these spaces. Among them, Star of Bethlehem, with its delicate white blossoms. This is one of many plants retrieved from my mother-in-law’s gardens when she moved out of her house a few years ago. We really had no idea what we were bringing home, only that her plants were a very essential part of her and we welcomed them to our gardens.
Since then, every spring, a new mystery blossom would surface and wait to be identified. This plant was among them and is a very lovely addition to our flower beds.
Nikon D800
Tamron SP AF 90mm f/2.8 Di Macro 1:1 (272ENII)@90mmm
1.6 sec, f/40.0, ISO 400
For more images like this, please visit my website (images are available for purchase)
http://www.edlehming.com
“Dogs are our link to paradise. They don’t know evil or jealousy or discontent. To sit with a dog on a hillside on a glorious afternoon is to be back in Eden, where doing nothing was not boring–it was peace.”
― Milan Kundera
This is a more personal image for me. It’s an image of our dog, Cody, as he stands at the edge of Marble Lake, where we camp. We picked him up as a rescue some ten years ago and he has been a part of our lives ever since.
I simply love this pose and happened to have my camera with me at that moment to capture this pose. I did use a plug-in to get the painterly effect, which just seems to work on this particular image. It reminds me of the paintings of English hunting dogs.
Though Cody has been limited to hunting the squirrels in our back yard, I still like to picture him this way. He looks quite majestic and is in his element. Though he is starting to show signs of his age, he’s still amazingly active and a pleasure to have around, always wanting attention, and of course, his meals 🙂
“Keep a little fire burning; however small, however hidden.”
― Cormac McCarthy
It’s not often that I revisit a subject, especially a flower. However, I felt this one needed to be viewed a bit closer in a slightly different composition. So, here it is. The slightly different angle even changed the title for me. I see more of the ‘fire’ in this lovely tulip than I had before.
I find it interesting what even a slight shift in vantage point an do to things. In fact, I think I prefer this composition more than my previous version from a few days ago. There seems to be more energy and depth in this version and the light seems to play off the foliage a bit more.
Nikon D800
Tamron SP AF 90mm f/2.8 Di Macro 1:1 (272ENII)@90mmm
3 sec, f/29.0, ISO 100
For more images like this, please visit my website (images are available for purchase)
http://www.edlehming.com
“There is no greatness where there is not simplicity, goodness, and truth.”
― Leo Tolstoy
As the world becomes more complex, on a seemingly daily basis, I find myself drawn to simplicity.
Even the title of the image, while quite simple, suffices. This is a single blossom from a larger bouquet and a found myself liking the isolated flower more than the whole arrangement
I enjoy spending time with the subjects of my photos, often moving around them and finding the angle and light most pleasing to me. I may be breaking some composition rule, but if it resonates with me then, hopefully, somebody else sees it for its beauty as well.
Nikon D800
Tamron SP AF 90mm f/2.8 Di Macro 1:1 (272ENII)@90mmm
3 sec, f/29.0, ISO 100
For more images like this, please visit my website (images are available for purchase)
http://www.edlehming.com
“With brightness and purity like the snow which so recently trapped it, the trillium remembers winter while signalling spring”
– Ed Lehming
Though I posted a photo of a newly blossomed trillium a few weeks ago, the trilliums in Eastern Ontario, Bancroft, to be more specific, are a bit delayed. Warm air did not arrive here until recently, and with the warm air, new life and growth.
Though there is still frost in the ground in the deeper recesses of the forest, the plant life is starting to take hold here as well. As I made this image, I was considering the wonderful whiteness of the trillium blossoms and the recent snow. The connection inspired the short quote I made for the image.
I can’t think of another flower that is so brilliantly white. They seem so delicate, yet a blossom trapped by a fallen leaf, will tear the leaf apart to open. So, they may seem delicate but as with much in nature, there is a hidden strength in persistence.
It’s beauty is made more special by its brevity, as soon as it warms up enough, their flowers will fade into the memory of the forest and leave room for other plants, though the leaves remain bright and strong all summer long.
iPhone 7 @ 3.99mm
1/90 sec, f/1.8, ISO 20
“Gentle spring waves wash high upon the shore, drenching the land with moisture and restoring life, winter is at an end.”
– Ed Lehming
A few short weeks ago, Marble Lake was still ice covered and winter ruled, refusing to relinquish its hold on the land. A deep freeze and late snowfall meant frost remained locked into the ground, blocking the flow of melt water, channeling it on new courses.
The ice is gone, yet the water is bone-chillingly cold. Swimming will have to wait a few more weeks.
As I travelled north to our camper this long weekend, I noticed that some lakes were seemingly lower than others, appearing as if water had been quite high at sometime and found a release, leaving its mark on the shore.
It’s been a very different spring and was particularly noticeable as I went for a hike in the forest behind our camper. Unlike the forests near home, where wildflowers have burst forth almost overnight, growth I delayed here in the Bancroft region. Trilliums have just started to bloom, sorrel is ready to bloom today, if it warms up enough. It’s a mixed bag of plants and their ability to adapt to this chilly spring.
Even the black flies, the scourge of the Boreal forest are slow to emerge, but they have, just not feeding yet. I’m sure that will change soon enough.
Today, I am hoping to get a hike in to Egan Chute, one of my favourite local cascades, to get some updated photos.
iPhone 7
1/4000 sec, f/1.8, ISO 20
“The truth is that everyday and everyone is different. We just like to think that they aren’t.”
― Anthony T. Hincks
As promised, yesterday’s flower, with a light background. Keep in mind, this is the exact same shot, with the same settings and lighting. The only difference is that I removed the black velvet background that I use for my studio shots, revealing the white card-stock panel that holds it up in my portable setup.
I still prefer the black backdrop, as I feel it makes the image more dramatic, but the light background has its appeal too.
It’s very interesting, on several levels, how this works. What I’m looking at is so dramatically altered by the surroundings. Something to consider?
Nikon D800
Tamron SP AF 90mm f/2.8 Di Macro 1:1 (272ENII)@90mmm
3 sec, f/29.0, ISO 100
For more images like this, please visit my website (images are available for purchase)
http://www.edlehming.com
“Her blush was the color of a coral reef, but smooth.”
― Aimee Bender
I simply love the many muted colours of spring. Understated blues, yellows, purples, and oranges, all make their appearance in the garden. Yet pink, as pale as a blush’s beginning appeals to me most. There is a natural softness to this colour, especially on these blossoms which move from a bright and warm yellow, through white and then terminate in pink, like some magical paintbrush.
I’m mixing things up a bit with my floral images, testing different backgrounds. My preference is still the black background, which makes even the most demure blossoms pop out of the background. And yet, I have been encourage by my family to try lighter colours as well.
I will post this same image tomorrow with a light background and the exact same camera settings and lighting. I look forward to your feedback.
Nikon D800
Tamron SP AF 90mm f/2.8 Di Macro 1:1 (272ENII)@90mmm
3 sec, f/29.0, ISO 100
For more images like this, please visit my website (images are available for purchase)
http://www.edlehming.com
Hi Resolution image on 500px: https://500px.com/photo/258419147/pink-blush-by-ed-lehming
“She smells fresh, like the shadow under trees.”
― Julio Cortázar
The freshness of spring, among my favourite things. And with that freshness, the scents of spring, fresh-cut grass, tilled earth, and the flowers opening to the warm sun above. As well, the ferns have a unique aroma, which is quite noticeable when there are many plants.
Yet, even in the shadows, fresh life emerges. From the cool recesses of the forest floor, ferns break ground an uncoil their stems in the form of fiddle-heads. They are quite wonderful to see and mark the next stage of spring, the emergence of summer plants, those which will remain the rest of the season.
These tightly wound shoots seem to spring up from nothing, stretching skyward, and within days are clearly identifiable as the ferns which will soon blanket their surroundings. And so, this phase is brief and worth grabbing an image to share today. Tomorrow, it will be quite different, as it opens up to the sun.
Nikon D800
Tamron SP AF 90mm f/2.8 Di Macro 1:1 (272ENII)@90mmm
2 sec, f/25.0, ISO 100
For more images like this, please visit my website (images are available for purchase)
http://www.edlehming.com
“To the people who love you, you are beautiful already. This is not because they’re blind to your shortcomings but because they so clearly see your soul. Your shortcomings then dim by comparison. The people who care about you are willing to let you be imperfect and beautiful, too. “
― Victoria Moran
If I don’t point it out, do you see it?
I tend to be a bit harsh on myself when picking subjects to photograph. I want to get it right, without blemish, distraction, or clutter. So, I spend time with what I photograph and view it from many angles, in different light, with different camera settings, so that I can capture what I envision. In the process, I often see things that are not apparent on first sight.
So, when I photographed this bouquet of Peruvian Lilies, I was hesitant, as one blossom had rotted and that rot spread into the surrounding leaves. Then I caught myself once more and questioned where this attitude comes from. At first sight, the bouquet is beautiful and the decayed part just makes it more natural. Our world view of what is beautiful and what is not has us so powerfully conditioned that we often overlook things, even if they have only a minor “defect”, by our own definition.
For those who see the blossom and not the wilt, consider this a blessing, something I wish, at times, I had more of. We are far too hard on ourselves and those around us.
Nikon D800
Tamron SP AF 90mm f/2.8 Di Macro 1:1 (272ENII)@90mmm
3 sec, f/29.0, ISO 100
For more images like this, please visit my website (images are available for purchase)
http://www.edlehming.com
“The world is indeed full of peril, and in it there are many dark places; but still there is much that is fair, and though in all lands love is now mingled with grief, it grows perhaps the greater.”
― J.R.R. Tolkien
I’ve always loved this Tolkien quote, and I’ve now found an image to pair it with. Given all the dark news we hear about in our world, the brightness and beauty of flowers is a welcome reprieve.
As I noted in yesterday’s post, I’ve strayed away from this technique over the past few months, but find myself being drawn back to it, for the sheer pleasure of the results. Making these photographs is second nature to me and so satisfying. Even after months not using my studio setup, I had success after only a few shots, using just a simple velvet background.
I did find, that even thought the images are beautiful, they do not sell as larger prints, unless they are printed, VERY big, on canvas, as statement pieces. Those are quite stunning. Imagine this image over a fireplace as a 40″ x 50″ piece! So, for most of my photo sales of these “isolated” flowers, I stick to 8x 10 or arts cards.
Nikon D800
Tamron SP AF 90mm f/2.8 Di Macro 1:1 (272ENII)@90mmm
2 sec, f/25.0, ISO 100
For more images like this, please visit my website (images are available for purchase)
http://www.edlehming.com
Hi resolution image on 500px: https://500px.com/photo/257918717/iris-2018-by-ed-lehming
Ed Lehming Photography 
Recent Comments