hot summer night :: nature photograhy

i glanced out my kitchen window a couple days ago and was surprised to see these beauties had bloomed (seemingly overnight). i never planted them. are they a weed? i don't know, but i love them.

spring in my yard :: nature photography :: macro photography

up close & personal :: macro photography :: nature photography

what do you do when you get a new macro lens and the flowers haven't bloomed yet?

go to the botanical gardens, of course.

lovely leftover blooms :: macro photography :: nature photography

these blooms were once colorful hydrangeas i believe. but no one cut them for display on a table or in a wedding bouquet. now they are dried up and barely hanging on to their stem. i still think they are lovely though. lovely, leftover blooms.

chicken details :: macro photography :: farm photography

i finally splurged and bought myself a macro lens. if you remember, i have been simply flipping my 50mm to get the macro effect. i am loving the detail that a real macro lens picks up vs. my previous hack.

the lens arrived on my porch on friday and i immediately went outside to play & practice. being the annoying friends that my chickens are, they greeted me at the back door, ready for their close-up.

aren't they pretty? i mean... they aren't cuddly or cute, but they are pretty. i'm proud of them for surviving the cold winter and you can even notice how it has deteriorated some of them a bit. just after a year, you can see their age. i think it makes them more interesting though... and to be honest, it's easier to tell them apart from each other when they each have a special characteristic.

anyway, be prepared for some more macro photos over the next few weeks. you know i'm going to be obsessing with every little detail (every little detail... get it? eh?). xoxo

close-ups :: macro photography

these are my son's eyeballs. can you tell who's are who's?

as a mother, i have passed on my eyes. they already have my heart of course. {wink, wink}

cone flowers :: nature photography :: macro photography

don't you think that cone flowers are a bumble bee's favorite?  they just open right up and expose themselves to the whole world.  so brave & tall!  nothing like those other blooms that hide their goodness inside of petals.

xoxo

spring on the farm :: nature photography

spring is springing up on maple hill farm and i am loving all of the beautiful surprises!

water flower :: macro photography

last week, my 2-year-old burst into the house full of excitement because he had found flowers in the yard.  the blooms were barely larger than his fingernails, so delicate and bright white.  the stems were weak and floppy but i, as any good parent does, made a big fuss over these and promptly filled a glass full of water so we could display his collection.  i then placed the glass in the sunroom on top of the piano and we headed back outside.

saturday morning i woke up and headed into the sunroom with my coffee.  i had forgotten all about the flowers so i was stunned at how lovely they looked with the light shining on them in their water.  the blooms had opened and they floated just perfectly along the fill line.  if i looked very closely, i could see the bubbles of water collecting along their soft petals.  they were breathtaking.

so... i grabbed my camera.

dreamy macro :: macro photography

dreaming of warmer temps today... especially for little worlds.

macro in the fall :: macro photography :: nature photography

as you most likely know, i'm intrigued by little worlds.  it makes sense then, that i whole-heartily enjoy macro photography.  what's funny is... i didn't use to.  in fact, i wasn't a fan of nature photography at all... i felt it was overdone and un-artistic.

and now, as an adult photographer i love love love it.  what changed?  i suppose it's a deeper appreciation for life and it's beauty.  i slow down and really study things more.  i think my children did that to me.  they are each the most natural gift anyone could have and how can you not love that?