Venturing outside today I came across these very pretty but highly poisonous berries that remind us that the back end of the year has come round again! The leaves and stems of the yew plant are also poisonous. however, some birds eat the berries, the poisonous seed passing through them intact!
Quite often, pictures really are about noticing the moment, and recording the beauty. This water drop, hanging from a seed-head, arrested my attention one morning this week. For this picture, I’ve cropped down the original image, leaving enough background to harmonise with the reflection in the droop itself.
This shot is another foray into the idea of ‘negative space’ where a subject sits in a large background area. I loved the colours in this home-grown apple, but didn’t want to just fill the frame with it. The dark slats of this garden table make a contrast, illustrating two concepts connected with autumn: fruitfulness, but also, sometimes, a lot of dullness. This seemed to work for me.
Thursday saw the brief return of summer. In the sensory garden at Wollaton Park, Nottingham, bees of all kinds were taking advantage of this. I’m sorry that I can’t give you the scent of all the flowers and plants: buddleia, rosemary, lavender, box, many more…
Saying “I like roses” is a bit like saying “I live in England.” Just as there are so many places in England, there are so many types of roses! This one is native to the Far East, but grows well in Britain. Known as Rosa Rugosa, it is easy to recognise by its thin, paper-like petals and sweetish scent. It also comes in white and pale pink varieties.
I got this shot on one of our recent sunny days. It looks as if there will be raspberries this year, which is good. Many thanks to all my little winged furry friends, who were going at it like, well… bees’ wings. As they say!
Despite the longer hours of daylight we’re enjoying at present, sometimes it gets late before I get round to photography. This shot of an allium was taken with a separate flash unit, held just to the side. I wanted to get a picture of this one in full flower and before any damage by wind and rain! The power of the flash allowed me to use a small lens opening (large f-number) giving better depth of field. Have I said before, how I love the colour purple…?
Last Monday was wet. How do you say “It’s raining, but that’s OK…” in a photo? As some of you know, I often take pictures of flowers in the rain, a subject of which I am very fond. But I wanted a change, so I looked at this smallish pine tree. It’s all about noticing, isn’t it?
The Lady in Red! I never tire of flowers and raindrops, somehow. And this is a lovely time of year to capture that mixture.
This plant (periwinkle) grows wild in my dad’s garden. I think it’s quite pretty, though.
