Archives
“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… Read More
“Take one flower that you like and get lots of them. And don’t try to ‘arrange’ them. It’s surprisingly hard to do a flower arrangement the way a florist does one. Instead, bunch them all together or put them in a series of small vases all down the table. “ – Ina Garten As I finished my studio work with a few local wildflowers, I stuck them in a vase, to eventually… Read More
“Some painters transform the sun into a yellow spot, others transform a yellow spot into the sun. “ – Pablo Picasso The Yellow Coneflowers literally quiver in the slight breeze, their delicate petals, like small yellow rags, seem to barely hang on. Such is the scene in a local field, where Yellow Coneflowers are common. Even the gentle breeze of a hot summer day create movement in these flowers. It’s very nice… Read More
“Little things seem nothing, but they give peace, like those meadow flowers which individually seem odorless but all together perfume the air.” – Georges Bernanos Have you noticed the summer shift to purple and yellow? The pattern repeats. There is a gradual shift from pinks to purples and yellows. Thistles, bergamot, vervain for purples, yellow coneflower, sunflower, wood sorrel, and sunflower for yellow. It’s a definite shift in colours and the pollinators,… Read More
“Be music always. Keep changing the keys, tones, pitch, and volume of each of the songs you create along your life’s journey and play on.” ― Suzy Kassem Today marks just about a year since I started into my studio based floral photographs. What started in my mind, as I drove past ripe wheat fields, as a vision of photographing some of the wheat under controlled lighting, quickly changed gears when those images… Read More
“Maybe I don’t have enough beginnings in my life because I fought against the endings that were about to birth those beginnings.” ― Craig D. Lounsbrough As I surveyed my gardens this morning, I noticed that several of my purple cone flowers were already in full bloom, a nice change from last year when heat and drought caused them to put out very small, underdeveloped flowers, just big enough to produce some scant… Read More
“All life is bound to a simple truth… that time goes on, that in each person’s life begins a tale, a tale that will either end in memory or in legend.” ― M.J. Chrisman Here I am revisiting the dried flowers that I have kept from earlier in the spring. The textures and colours still fascinate me. Is this a weird thing, this enjoyment of the ‘expired’ flowers? I have enough now… Read More
“I simply can’t look into the heavens on a crisp starry night and somehow bring myself to believe that the gaping expanse that engulfs the whole of me is the product of chance happenstance. And neither can I believe that the gaping expanse that rests within me is anything less.” ― Craig D. Lounsbrough The quote above has resonated with me for some time, and applies just as well as we view… Read More
“Grace is neither gentleness nor fragility. Grace is treating yourself, others, and even inanimate objects with respect.” – Kamand Kojouri This is the image I was after when I made the image in my previous post. This is my first year planting rhododendrons and I’m not sure why I did not do it earlier. They are absolutely stunning to look at, and loaded with large beautiful blossoms, which seem to remain for… Read More
“Spring dances with joy in every flower and in every bud letting us know that changes are beautiful and an inevitable law of life.” ― Debasish Mridha And the flowers keep blooming. Every day more colours, more varieties, right from the garden or in the woods. It’s so nice be able to have this variety available and to be able to create good photos of them. As I’ve said previously, we tend… Read More
“Just keep hope within you and your path will be lit.” ― Isabella Poretsis It’s spring in the northern hemisphere and the flowers are blooming, or getting ready to bloom. So, flowers are constantly in my life. I certainly am not going to run out of subjects to photograph. This beautiful pink hyacinth reminds me of its presence through its marvelous aroma. It permeates the air with sweetness so unique to hyacinths…. Read More
“Nature is pleased with simplicity. And nature is no dummy” ― Isaac Newton A very simple subject today, a single carnation blossom. I’ve actually avoided photographing it as I felt I could not bring out the texture of the ruffled blossom. But, in the right light and with a bit of patience, I was able to produce an image that I was pleased with. This is what I would classify as a… Read More
“To shine your brightest light is to be who you truly are.” ― Roy T. Bennett Shine, it’s what they do, is it not? On another gray winter day, I enjoy being able to create these images and hopefully, brighten others’ days as well. Creating these studio images of flowers has become almost second nature to me. They are so enjoyable to make and then look at, long after the flowers have wilted… Read More
“Nobody sees a flower – really – it is so small it takes time – we haven’t time – and to see takes time, like to have a friend takes time.” ― Georgia O’Keeffe Today is a dull, grey day here. One of those days where it can’t figure out whether to rain or snow. So, what better way to brighten it up than with a flower. I spent a bit of… Read More
On a dull chilly day, what do you photograph? A snack, of course.
“I have been finding treasures in places I did not want to search. I have been hearing wisdom from tongues I did not want to listen. I have been finding beauty where I did not want to look. And I have learned so much from journeys I did not want to take. Forgive me, O Gracious One; for I have been closing my ears and eyes for too long. I have learned… Read More
“Fall colors are funny. They’re so bright and intense and beautiful. It’s like nature is trying to fill you up with color, to saturate you, so you can stockpile it before winter turns everything muted and dreary.” ― Siobhan Vivian Today I started photographing fall colours a bit differently. Rather than the broad sweep of forests in full colour, I decided to look a bit closer at the branches that create this… Read More
“Life is pleasant. Death is peaceful. It’s the transition that’s troublesome.” ― Isaac Asimov Something about fall that has always fascinated me is how slow decay, cooler temperatures, and a shorter period of daylight, can change a plant so dramatically. Recently I came across this dogwood in a local forest. Almost all the leaves show signs of decay, being thoroughly spotted and in some case, even perforated by decay. Then there are… Read More
“I feel as if I had opened a book and found roses of yesterday sweet and fragrant, between its leaves.” ― L.M. Montgomery Though a few have seen better days, these roses still offered me an opportunity to continue experimenting with lighting on these studio shots. I thought the white might pose a challenge but they turned out beautifully, still retaining the soft pink/cream colour perfectly. I’m finding it’s a matter of… Read More
“If you take a flower in your hand and really look at it, it’s your world for a moment.” ― Georgia O’Keeffe I’m continuing to enjoy these studio images. Isolating the flower against the black just keeps the attention on the flower. Even when composing the shot, I see shapes and textures I had not noticed before. I’ve also done a few more macro shots, which I will share at some point…. Read More
“Every form of art is another way of seeing the world. Another perspective, another window. And science –that’s the most spectacular window of all. You can see the entire universe from there.” ― Claudia Gray One of the benefits of this style of photography, for me at least, is noticing the intricate details in commonplace plants and flowers. This clover was growing wild along my neighbour’s lawn, which is significantly overgrown enough… Read More
“Those who are resilient can more quickly regain their equilibrium and spring back when they are thrown off kilter by the storms of life.” ― Mary Buchan Yes, another flower. I’m simply enjoying this too much and am looking forward to going afield on my vacation time to capture more wildflowers, as opposed to plants from my gardens. But, they are handy and I like the results. I deliberately chose a less… Read More
“A garden should make you feel you’ve entered privileged space — a place not just set apart but reverberant — and it seems to me that, to achieve this, the gardener must put some kind of twist on the existing landscape, turn its prose into something nearer poetry.” ― Michael Pollan I thought I would try this technique on leafy plants and expand from my blossom photos. We have several varieties of… Read More
“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 This is an image of the same thistle I shared a few days ago. The previous image showed more of the… Read More
“The single greatest lesson the garden teaches is that our relationship to the planet need not be zero-sum, and that as long as the sun still shines and people still can plan and plant, think and do, we can, if we bother to try, find ways to provide for ourselves without diminishing the world. ” ― Michael Pollan This specimen came from my flower beds. In fact, this was the first blossom… Read More
“Once in awhile, you pick the right thing, the exact best thing. Every day, the moment you open your eyes and pull off your blankets, that’s what you hope for. The sunshine on your face,warm enough to make your heart sing.” ― Sarah Ockler One of my first attempts at this technique involved bringing a daylily cutting into my studio and experimenting with lighting and camera settings. I was so pleased with… Read More
“What I’ve always found interesting in gardens is looking at what people choose to plant there. What they put in. What they leave out. One small choice and then another, and soon there is a mood, an atmosphere, a series of limitations, a world.” ― Helen Humphreys I’m not getting tired of these flower images yet and I hope my viewers feel the same. This is yet another image made using my portable… Read More
“For millions of years flowers have been producing thorns. For millions of years sheep have been eating them all the same. And it’s not serious, trying to understand why flowers go to such trouble to produce thorns that are good for nothing?” ― Antoine de Saint-Exupéry Here’s a new one, studio style wildflowers. I was able to get my portable background to work and I’m looking forward to being able to capture… Read More
Ed Lehming Photography 
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