Truffula Seeds

This was taken at the Botanical Gardens in Cheyenne, Wyoming. It reminds me of the truffula trees in the Lorax by Dr. Seuss. It also kind of reminds me of the speck that Horton finds in Horton Finds A Who. Maybe I have Dr. Seuss on the brain because school starts tomorrow.

In Lightroom I darkened the greens and cropped it to be a square instead of rectangle. For more photos from Pepper Tree Prints click here.

Grape Soda

This is a Grape Soda Lupine that I found last spring in the deserts of Imperial county. I went camping and alongside the road were clumps of these lupine. I stopped alongside the road, which is a common occurrence, and took a few pictures. It was an extremely windy day and so most of the pictures that I took that day looked like a was a sloppy drunkard because the flowers were haphazardly out of frame. The wind was blowing so very hard that most of the flowers looked to be at a 45 degree angle. This was the best one and I even had to straighten it out a little. In Lightroom, I deepened the black fill, saturated the purple/magenta a little more and straightened it about 10 degrees or so.

For more pictures visit my Etsy site, Pepper Tree Prints.

In Flander's Field

In Flanders fields the poppies blow

Between the crosses, row on row,

That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved, and now we lie,
In Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.

by John McCrae.

This poem was written about World War I by a Lt. Colonel in the army after he watched his friend die. A very tragic about war and death. Apparently poppies grew with abundance in this field because the soil was so disturbed by the killings and the burying of the dead. An awful thought indeed.

I was in Anderson Nursery and Garden the other day and saw a packet of poppy seeds and the color was "Flander's Field". I just thought it was interesting that a poem documenting a young man's death has influences the vernacular of horticulture. Also, the red poppy is the icon of Remembrance Day (according to Wikipedia), I'm not sure if this is attributed to the poem or not but none the less an interesting tidbit. I ended up buying the Flander's Field poppies but mostly out of nostalgia, when I was very young my dad would recite this poem in his deep unwavering voice. It was haunting then thinking about all the people who gave up their lives for a cause...it's even more haunting now with the understanding that most military men and women are younger than me and so many young lives are lost for causes that are hazy at best and unnecessary at worst. Wow, this took an unexpected political bend...anyway, I haven't planted the seeds yet but they are the exact color of this poppy...maybe it is also a Flander's Field poppy.

In Ligthroom, I cropped out some of the fence background, darkened the background, and saturated the red and green hues a little to help them 'pop'. For a link to this picture on my Etsy page go here.


As a side note, every time I typed 'poppy' in this post I first typed 'poopy' and then had to go back and fix it. I thought it was funny every single time.

Dew on Leaves

This picture was taken at Bodega Bay. If you have never heard of Bodega Bay, it's claim to fame is being where Alfred Hitchcock filmed "The Birds"...well at least that is what the sign said. It also is very good place to go whale spotting...again we didn't experience the whales but we did see a lot of whale watchers. My favorite part of the day was the drive to Bodega Bay. You have to drive over the Golden Gate Bridge and then through the most adorable farm country. The bay is surrounded by little art galleries, coffee shops, and cute little weathered houses. A nice day trip from San Fran. Anyway, along the coast it is so windy and cold but also revitalizing. We walked up to the point and along the way there were so many precious little plants covered in salt water dew. This is one of those pictures.

There was no modifications made in Lightroom. For more information on this picture go to my Etsy page. Pepper Tree Prints

A Costa Rican Tree Frog

This cute little frog lived in the Ranario in Santa Elana, Costa Rica. Catherine and I visited the Ranario after a very long taxi, water taxi, taxi ride from La Fortuna. We had seen the most amazing landscape from Lake Arenal over the patchwork fields and by tiny little farm houses. The rural areas of Costa Rica are indeed my favorite. I love everything about it; the living fences, the lone trees watching over fields of brown and white cows, the winding roads, the hills of coffee trees with bright red coffee beans clinging to the branches, the huge hydrangea bushes that seem like something out of Alice and Wonderland, and the slow moving tractor trailers with loads of sugar cane, mangoes, or something else just as wonderful.

Once in Santa Elana we found a place to stay and then ventured out for food and excitement. We walked to the Ranario on the other side of the valley. We took a tour with a wonderful guide. I found him to be both knowledgeable and hilarious. He bordered on highly inappropriate with most of his jokes but the language barrier was just strong enough to make it endearing and not creepy. Once the tour was over we went back armed with flashlight. Since the frogs are sensitive to the light flashes are not allowed. Luckily, Catherine is a good sport and has quite a steady hand with a flashlight so she gamely held the flashlight for several hours as I happily clicked away. She also took some stunning pictures that night when my hands got to shaky to be useful.

I used Lightroom 3 to lighten the shadow under his eye and add a watermark.
The etsy listing is here.

Eureka!

This little guy was found at the Rotary Youth Camp. He was wandering across the sidewalk so someone picked him up and was returning him to the wild. Before he made it back to his tree I was able to snap a few pictures. I love his wild hair! I realize it's a defense strategy so that when birds try to eat him they will be intimidated by his size or just get a beak-ful of fluff. However, I think he is utterly adorable! He makes me laugh every time I see him.

This photo was taken on a Canon DSLR with a macro lens. The background was darkened using Adobe Lightroom 3.

If you are interested in this or any other print. Here is the link to my etsy store. Pepper Tree Prints

Koi in the River

For my dad's birthday I gave him a canvas with any photo he wanted printed on it. Of all the wonderful insects, spiders, flowers, and other things he could have chosen he chose this one. This was taken in Memphis at the Botanical Gardens. However, it reminded him of one family vacation we took. We went through Omaha in the dead of winter and were the only tourists who visited the Henry Doorly Zoo. The zoo is amazing in any weather but was particularly fascinating because it was in the middle of a snow storm, my mom is pretty hardcore about staying on the AAA vacation guide plan. The zebras and giraffes were shockingly colorful next to the bright white of newly fallen snow. We walked over the Missouri river on a suspension bridge. There was a fish food dispenser and so we promptly began feeding the koi that lived in the river. As soon as the fish food hit the water the few docile fish we could see were swarmed by hundreds of koi all eager to get the tasty little fish pellets. The fish were so aggressive they were finning over each other in such a way that it made a huge swell of wriggling and writhing fish. It was like the sparkle and shine of gold, yellow, red, orange, silver, white, and black wasn't made of individuals but rather one large body splashing and swimming. It was amazing to watch and whenever I see koi in a pond I think of that cold day in Nebraska that our family shared with a few chilly zoo animals and a river full of fish.

This was taken with a Canon DSLR with a macro lens. The black fill and contrast was increased slightly in Adobe Lightroom 3.

If you are interested in this print, check out my etsy store. Pepper Tree Prints

No Worse For The Wear

I love old things. Don't get me wrong, I love new things too. But I really really love old things. It's the same sort of pleasure I find in dilapidated barns, loosely strung barb-wire fences with the posts all akimbo, rusty weather vanes, old tractors, and well used gardening tools. I found this little lock holding a display case closed at Bodega Bay. For those of you who do not know where Bodega Bay is, it's in the Bay Area of Northern California. If you are planning a trip to San Fransisco, do yourself a favor and spend a day driving north over the bridge into Marin county. There you will find a treasure trove of little cities and pastoral vistas. I realize this is a far cry from the excitement of the typical San Fran pleasures but it is worth it. The drive between Petaluma and Bodega Bay is particularly wonderful with big trees, wide open pastures in shades of greeen, fluffy sheep and sleepy cows.

This lock is worn by wind, rain, and salt water but it still is doing exactly what it was intended for. It's kind of beautiful in it's dishabille with the flakey burnt-shades of rust, the blue that has faded into the lightest of sky blue, and the silver hinge that has withstood the elements a little better. What draws me back to this picture over and over is the texture in the rust. How amazing that oxygenating metal could produce such a beautiful but corrosive combination. I'm not sure if this lock has been opened in years, but I would like to imagine that if someone had a reason to open it, that it would spring open like a newly sprung lock. That may be a little optimistic, but perhaps.

This photo was taken on President's Day weekend in 2010 with my handy-dandy Canon DSLR and macro lens. Flash was used because it got quite overcast and cloudy. In Ligthroom, I deepened the contrasts and saturated the blue levels.

As always, if you like this print and would be interested in more information click here.

Pinecone in the Needles

This photo reminds me of the high, cool, dry pine forest in the Rocky Mountain ranges. Even right now as I am writing this I can imagine the feel of brisk air rushing over my wind-chapped face. How it feels to suck in a lungful of thin, pure air so fresh that it makes my eyes water and my chest ache. The distict smell of pine needles in a shady grove of lodgepole, ponderosa, and spruce. The sweet, earthy smell of damp underbrush and shadows. The wonder of walking from the shade into a golden meadow with waist high grass and scrub. The teardrop leaves of the aspen quaking and rustling in the breeze. The pink and gray granite boulders scattered over the hills like marbles thrown from a giant. The pungent smell of sage and grease-wood. It makes me miss home.

As much as this reminds me of Wyoming, it was actually taken in San Diego's wonderful Balboa Park. It was taken in mid-December with my trusty macro, probably while one of my friends was waiting as I took a "walk-about" through the bushes because I was distracted by something shiny...or in this case something small. I added a watermark but made no other modifications in Adobe Lightroom. Some pictures are gems that need polished but this one came out perfectly without help.

Click here for the Pinecone Print on Etsy.

Unless...

 

And all that the Lorax left here in this mess
was a small pile of rocks, with one word...
"UNLESS."
Whatever that meant, well, I just couldn't guess.

That was long, long ago.
But each day since that day
I've sat here and worried and worried away.
Through the years, while my buildings have fallen apart,
I've worried about it with all of my heart.
"But now," says the Once-ler, "Now that you're here,
the word of the Lorax seems perfectly clear.
 

UNLESS someone like you cares a whole awful lot,
nothing is going to get better. It's not.

"SO... Catch!" calls the Once-ler. He lets something fall.
"It's a Truffula Seed. It's the last one of all!
You're in charge of the last of the Truffula Seeds.
And Truffula Trees are what everyone needs.
Plant a new Truffula.Treat it with care.
Give it clean water. And feed it fresh air.
Grow a forest. Protect it from axes that hack.
Then the Lorax and all of his friends may come back."

I took this picture in the Botanical Gardens in Balboa Park. I'm not exactly sure what plant these seed pods are from but when I saw them I thought, "Oh my heck, I found the Truffula seeds!" I love these little pink seeds. I love how furry they are. I love how the pods are a little yellow. I love how the background is black. I love, love, LOVE everything about it.

The thing that I love the most about it is that it reminds me that like the Lorax says, "UNLESS someone like you cares a whole awful lot, nothing is going to get better. It's not." In the past few weeks I have been noticing the small things that people do to show they care 'a whole awful lot' and it really does change things. When people are dedicated to doing their best in whatever it is they are doing then others get caught up in that enthusiasm. I was walking along the sidewalk and noticed the mason had stamped their emblem into it, which once was a common sight but is becoming less and less so. I them mused to myself that to mark a tiny sidewalk with your company's emblem then your company must have taken pride in the work that went into that sidewalk, even though it was only one house long in a janky part of town. To see others taking care and pride in the smallest parts of their jobs makes me want to take more care in my job, my relationships, my hobbies. As some of you know, I am quite impulsive and sometimes I want to hurry through life instead of slowing down and doing things correctly. I need to take time to treasure the little things, be more careful in my speech to my students, and slow down instead of rushing through discussions and decisions. 

Here are the technical aspects: Canon Digital SLR with macro lens. Touch-up was done with Adobe Lightroom 3, I darked the contrast, lightened part of the stem that was in dark shadow, and made the pinks a little more saturated. I think if I were to do it again I would darken the front seed pod's colors a little more...my skills with free-handing the contrast levels are basic...working towards mastery. 

Sunshine On A Rainy Day

This picture is of a delightfully yellow ranuncula. It was taken in early March 2011, in my garden. One of my passions is gardening. I love growing things, even more than just growing things, I love taking pictures of things I am growing. On any day at about 6:30, you can find me in the yard watering plants in sweats, flip-flops, and a old t-shirt. I love, love, love the "golden hour" of the day. The time of day when twilight is just around the corner, the shadows are long, and the light for photography is perfect. All of the day's worries melt away. It's the time that I unwind and enjoy the quiet of the flies buzzing, water drops on broad pumpkin leaves, and the earthy smell of compost and peat.

Our big project in March was adding four more raised beds to our growing garden plot. One of these beds we dedicated to the flowers that we love; poppies, ranunculas, daisies, cosmos, and sweet william. This flower is in that flower bed. This photo was taken during that special golden hour, after the watering. As the background suggests the dark was falling quickly. It was taken with my macro lens, no flash. I used Adobe Lightroom to add the watermark, but did not change any of the other values.

The thing that I love the most about this photo is how the dew drops are formed on the foremost leaf. I also like that the background is so very dark; it makes the yellow so sharp and clean. I like ranunculas, but I don't like how quickly they open to full blossom and then you can see the weird pointed middle stem inside (in my opinion, poppies have much cuter full blossoms). This picture was taken the day before this particular flower went into full bloom; perfect timing, perfect lightening, perfect little dew drops.


http://www.etsy.com/listing/73285504/a-drop-of-sunshine-8x10-fine-art-print?ref=pr_shop