Purple Flowers and Bees

I spotted these purple flowers growing in the ditch on one of my afternoon “photography drives”. The internet tells me that they are Symphyotrichum, commonly known as New England Aster. I’m not a flower expert, so if you have better information let me know. Anyway, as setup my tripod close to the flowers, I noticed a lot of bee activity. I’m usually not that concerned about bees - unless one bothers them they stay busy at work. (Wasps, on the other hand…)

When I opened this photograph on my computer I was ambivalent about it. I loved the purple flowers and the bee activity, but the background really cluttered up the picture and competed with the main subject. I wanted the subtle purple of the flowers to “pop”, so I tried a Photoshop technique I hadn’t used before. I masked the flowers and converted the background to black and white, as you can see. Yes, the results are unnatural, but the technique allows the viewer to experience the subject in a new way. The purple flowers and yellow bees really pop against the grey background.

Nikon D750 w. Micro Nikkor 105 f/2.8; ISO 100 - 1/750 @ f/5.6

Monochrome Flowers

We love the rich and varied colours that flowers offer the visual world. I do too - take a look at my Backyard Flowers Gallery to see some of my colour photographs of flowers. Today, we’re so used to seeing colour photographs that we view black and white, or monochrome, pictures as “missing something” or as colour photography’s poor, boring cousin. I’d like to challenge that perception with my Monochrome Flowers collection.

Colour has such a powerful visual impact that we often stop seeing after we’ve processed the colours in a photograph. Monochrome photography invites the viewer to put aside the dominance of colour and look deeper in to the scene. Good monochrome images emphasize the forms, shapes, and textures in the visual world. I hope that this series of monochrome flower photographs enables you to appreciate the rich forms and textures that they have to offer.

Meadows Freight Train

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Meadows Freight Train

Obviously, a beautiful summer day. What perfect timing that a CP Rail freight train came along as I was photographing. It doesn’t get any more prairie than wildflowers, elevators, and a freight train. Enjoy the colours of this prairie scene.