Late season chicory sports a fringe of frost.
Nikon D600, Sigma 105mm macro lens, ISO 1250, f/13, 1/60″ exposure.
Daylilies are in bloom now and the bank of naturalized blossoms along East Street are putting on a good show!
Nikon D600, Sigma 105mm macro lens, ISO 200, f/3.3, 1/4000″ exposure
Fragrant rugosa roses are blooming in many locations around our property. This hearty and aggressively spreading perennial shrub can sometimes be a bit invasive, but I’ll take the sweet smell and bright blooms!
Nikon D600, Sigma 105mm macro lens, ISO 800, f/16, 1/1600″ exposure.
I’m always amazed at what is revealed when you get in close to a subject. From a distance (and without my reading glasses on…) these rye grass stems (please correct me if I’m wrong on the ID) don’t look like much. But on closer inspection, the tiny flowerettes reveal themselves. A shallow depth of field blurs the irises that were blooming behind.
I’ve been using my full frame Nikon again recently along with a wonderful Sigma 105mm macro lens. I’d kind of forgotten what wonderful photos this setup can take, especially with the magic bokeh!
Nikon D600, Sigma 105mm macro, ISO 800, f/11, 1/100″ exposure.
I came across this spectacular shrub while hiking in Plaza Blanca, New Mexico. I was drawn to the feather styles of the plant.
From Wikipedia:
“The flower of the shrub is roselike when new, with rounded white petals and a center filled with many thready stamens and pistils. The ovary of the flower remains after the white petals fall away, leaving many plumelike lavender styles, each 3 to 5 centimeters long. The plant may be covered with these dark pinkish clusters of curling, feathery styles after flowering. Each style is attached to a developing fruit, which is a small achene. The fruit is dispersed when the wind catches the styles and blows them away.”
Here’s a shot of the shrub in situ. Amazing that anything can grow out of solid rock!
While hiking near the east branch of the Jemez River in New Mexico, we came across this flowering choke cherry bush that was alive with butterflies. There must have been several hundred—mostly small western whites and a few painted ladies—swirling about and lapping up the sweet smelling nectar of the flowers.
Panasonic GX8, Lumix 14-140mm lens, ISO 1600, f/10, 1/1600″ exposure
Bleeding hearts are in bloom now in our ornamental garden. Though I usually photograph wildflowers, these showy cultivars couldn’t help but draw my lens!
Nikon D600, Sigma 105mm macro lens, ISO 1250, f/4, 1/1000″ exposure
We have quite a number of wild apple trees in our front field and down in the back yard along Fargo Brook. My guess is that, over the years, deer have propagated the trees by muching apples from one and depsoitig the seeds elsewhere. We’ve pruned a few of these trees, and they provide us with apples for cider and apple sauce. This looks to be another good year if we can avoid a late frost.
Nikon D600, Sigma 105mm macro lens, ISO 400, f/4, 1/2500″ exposure.
I couldn’t resist the juxtaposition of these lovely bloodroot blossoms and the rusted tin can that we came across the other day while walking along the Lamoille Valley Rail Trail in St. Johnsbury.
Panasonic GX8, Lumix 14-140mm lens @ 81mm, ISO 800, f/9, 1/250″ exposure.
John Hadden Photography 