My 85 year old mother has been an avid and masterful gardener since I can remember. She’s still at it—planting, tending, weeding, watering—every day during the summer months at her home in northeast Ohio.
Nikon D600, Nikon 50mm lens, ISO 100, f/1.8, 1/500″ exposure.
I stopped by a local farm stand to buy some sweet corn. This row of sunflowers was growing between a harrowed field and the road. I spoke with Henry, the farmer, and he said that these were “volunteers” that had popped up on their own after he’d harrowed in the field this spring.
Nikon D600, Nikon 50mm lens, ISO 100, f/1.8, 1/3200″ exposure
This photo really demonstrates a shallow depth of field with the focus being limited to a narrow band across the leaf and including the rain drop. And I didn’t even have the lens wide open!
Nikon D600, Sigma 105mm lens, ISO 800, f/8, 1/800″ exposure.
A close crop of a marigold blossom in one of our upper vegetable gardens.
Nikon D600, Sigma 105mm lens, ISO 800, f/3.8, 1/800″ exposure.
The morning dew was heavy today, and this daisy fleabane blossom seems to have every millimeter of its surface covered with it—almost as if it had gotten the Fabergé treatment!
Nikon D600, Sigma 105mm lens, ISO 800, f/20, 1/250″ exposure.
As the rain came down off of our front porch roof, it dripped on to the hostas growing below. Water was pooling on the leaves and cascading from their very functional tips. I struggled with the proper shutter speed to capture this as the leaves themselves were moving quite a bit as the rain hit them. This 1/500″ exposure just about captures it…
Nikon D600, Nikon 24-120mm lens @ 68mm, ISO 2500, f/6.3, 1/500″ exposure.
I saw this morning glory blossom floating on the surface of our pond, but it wasn’t until I’d zoomed in close that I noticed the fine puckering of the water around its edges due to the surface tension. I was about to change lenses when I heard a rush of wind and the roar of rain coming in over the hill above our front field. I made it to cover just as the sky let loose. By the time the storm had passed, the blossom had been submerged.
Nikon D600, Sigma 140-400mm lens @ 400mm, ISO 400, f/5.6, 1/250″ exposure
Nikon D600, Nikon 50mm lens, ISO 250, f/1.8, 1/400″ exposure.
The Valley Stage in Huntington, Vermont had a perfect day for its musical wonders. This field of black-eyed Susans was right next to the stage.
Nikon D600, Nikon 50mm lens, ISO 125, f/2.2, 1/2500″ exposure
John Hadden Photography 