Thank you for visiting my blog. Much of this blog is dedicated to my passion for photographing the ever-changing palette at The Chicago Botanic Garden. I am fortunate to live within a few miles of this magnificent garden and I spend several days a week walking, observing and photographing the beauty this 385-acre slice of heaven offers. For me the beauty is in the details - the colors, the patterns, the tiny things that might otherwise be missed. Photography in general, but particularly nature and macro photography, teaches you to slow down and look at the world up-close, to observe the mysteries and wonders Mother Nature provides us.
"The contemplation of beauty causes the soul to grow wings." ~ Plato
What's in Bloom?
So, what's in bloom at Chicago Botanic Garden? The answer is EVERYTHING! We went from a chilly, rainy start to our summer to hot, hot, hot, so if you can stand the heat, there's lots to photograph at the Garden. Some of my favorites this time of year are the dahlias, the waterlilies and the roses.
Some of the most beautiful dahlias are in the Circle Garden. I was photographing there this week with my friend, Chris Smith, and we were lucky to catch many of the dahlias after their early morning watering. This Firepot Waterlily Dahlia, being fully open, caught my attention. I love the intensity of the colors and the curls of the petals make it look like it is dancing. (Just a note - I learned from a dahlia expert last year while visiting the Dahlia Flower Show at CBG that once a dahlia opens fully like this, it is no longer competition-worthy. It was suggested I not photograph flowers in this state. Well, I happen to think they are beautiful when fully open, so no stopping me!)
A fitting name for this vibrant dahlia - Flamethrower Dahlia. I love the way the petals are edged in red.
The Karma Sangria Dahlias in the beds in front of the Visitor's Center are fun to shoot and in shade so you can shoot them any time of day. I thought they were more interesting subjects shot wide open at f2.8, focusing only on the front petal.
Waterlilies are in full bloom in the Heritage Garden. They have been challenging to shoot this summer because most days we've had full sun with little cloud cover by the time they open mid-morning. I'm a bit of a purest when it comes to shooting waterlilies. I usually wait for overcast days and don't even try on brighter days. My friend Chris convinced me to use a polarizing filter as the sun became too strong and was starting to cast harsh light and shadows on the petals. I have used a polarizer on water lilies before with mixed results. The polarizer helps to darken the water and eliminate reflections, as well. Chris was right, it does work as you can see in the first photo, but I do prefer the softer light of the remaining photos, all taken on a bright overcast day.
And, then there are the roses of the Garden. So beautiful and fun to photograph in all sorts of ways. I shoot roses in the early morning or in early evening's soft light. I always experiment with a variety of apertures, sometimes preferring to see the whole rose in focus, other times wanting a softer, more abstract and simplified portrait that emphasizes colors and sensuous curves. The first rose was shot at f8 so that only the very center of the rose is in focus, the outer petals drifting out of focus to convey the softness in the flower. The second portrait was wide open at f2.8, nothing sharply in focus. I always encourage beginning macro flower photographers to experiment with aperture. For me, each flower has a different story to tell and aperture helps me tell that story. Usually I know right away how I want to shoot a flower and what story I am looking to tell, but sometimes I need to experiment, get the images home on my computer to be able to choose. There is no right or wrong way to express your vision of a flower, whether you choose to shoot soft at f2.8 or sharply focused at f22 or even f32. Camera club judges may tell you everything has to be sharply focused to be a winning photograph but maybe that's not the story you want to tell. Let your style, your vision and your eye guide you.
Love and Peace Rose
The Butterflies are Taking Off!
To all my readers, I apologize for being MIA and not posting during a time when so much is blooming and happening at the Chicago Botanic Garden. Between the incredibly successful and fun Out of Chicago Conference in June (another blog post that should have happened), having family home and a wonderful trip to Santa Fe with my daughters, I've had no time to process photos and post. This week I'm playing catch up!
I've continued my weekly visits to Butterflies and Blooms to help the Garden document butterflies but with the crazy weather we've had this summer - unusually cold and very rainy - the butterflies have been slow to progress at the Garden's exhibit. I'm happy to report that this week the numbers and varieties of butterflies are really beginning to grow. I was able to capture a lot of great shots this week and Patrick, the exhibit's manager, is releasing large numbers every day. I never tire of learning new things about butterflies and photographing in the exhibit. One thing I am learning in my third year of photographing butterflies for the Garden is just how tricky it is to identify some species of butterflies. Just when I think you have it down, I get all confused again. There is so much variation within species and between the males and females of each species, not to mention that each species has a variety of acceptable names. I invite you to visit my large collection of butterfly photographs in the butterfly gallery of this website. It is always my hope that it helps others to identify butterflies they have seen or photographed. Many of my photographs are documentary in style so that the Garden can use them for butterfly identification guides and promotion of the exhibit, but I do try to seek out shots that are more artistic and have had fun experimenting with different angles and ways to photograph the butterflies.
A stunning Orchard Swallowtail
A form of heliconius (most likely a Postman) on lantana. Patrick and I are still trying to identify this one - an example of how species can vary.
The always beautiful and delicate Paper Kite on skyflower
Hello there, little Common Sergeant, resting in the cup of a leaf! I love this up-close perspective of butterflies!
One of my personal favorites just appeared in the exhibit, the White Peacock.
Blue Clipper peaking out from behind a leaf, upside down
And don't forget to check out what is emerging in the Pupa Emergence Room. Always some good photo ops there.
A Lacewing emerging and ready to be released.
An Orange Emigrant ready to fly.
Stay tuned for posts on dahlias and water lilies at the Garden. They are gorgeous right now!
Butterflies and Blooms Exhibit is Open
Blue Clipper Butterfly on Firebush
The butterflies are back! The Butterflies and Blooms exhibit at the Chicago Botanic Garden opened this past weekend to great crowds and beautiful weather for the holiday weekend. As many people know, this is one of my favorite things at the Chicago Botanic Garden in the summer. I am fortunate to be able to help the Garden document the butterfly species and they use many of many images for advertising and exhibit materials. Yesterday was my first day back in the exhibit. It was a bit chilly early in the morning, so the butterflies were hiding, but I managed to get some good shots. The number of butterflies are more limited right now but they are quickly emerging in the Pupa Emergence Room and new species are being released each day. Be sure and meet Patrick Sbordone, butterfly extraordinaire. He oversees the exhibit and cares for the butterflies. He releases newly emerged butterflies every morning about 10:15, right after opening - a fun event to watch. The exhibit is open daily, weather permitting, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. until September 7th. Because of construction of the new Learning Campus, the exhibit has been moved this year to a new location - the Annex Road near McDonald Woods. The location is truly spectacular, with views of McDonald Woods to the north and the Japanese Island and Lake to the south. The new 2,800 square foot black mesh enclosure allows for better views of the surroundings. The layout if almost identical to past years and the variety of plants and flowers, all ideal for butterflies, will grow lush and full as the season progresses. It's best to visit multiple times as the species vary from week to week, with new arrivals coming weekly. Bring your camera, but no tripods allowed unless you rent a private butterfly shoot before opening. Check out the CBG website for more information.
For tips on shooting butterflies in the exhibit, read my blog post from last year about photographing butterflies.
Spring Tulips
Where have all the tulips gone? Spring seemed to pass much too quickly and, although the tulips at the Chicago Botanic Garden were as magnificent as ever, they seemed to come and go so quickly. I usually like to blog about what is currently in bloom at the Garden, but travels and a very full plate of projects I am working on has kept me from posting as regularly as I would like. I have been shooting almost every day but getting images processed and on my website for posting is another story. I hope to get back on schedule because I know many people follow my blog specifically to know what's in bloom at the Garden. Although most all of the tulips have now been removed to make way for the summer gardens, here is a sampling of some of my favorites.
The Circle Garden is always a favorite area and this view of one of the side or "secret" gardens within the Circle Garden was simply magnificent this year.
The blend of tulips in this garden were called 'Much Niceness,' a perfect name for these beauties.
This second and third shots were taken with the Lensbaby Velvet 56mm.
In the opposite "secret" garden bed within the Circle Garden was a bed of 'Pillow Talk' tulips, both a creamy yellow version and a soft pink version. I love the names they come up for flowers! These certainly had the softness of elegant pillows and I knew I had to capture them with the Lensbaby Velvet.
Planted among the 'Pillow Talk' tulips were colorful grape hyacinth. I love the way these semi-double tulips open into wide bowls. The second photograph of the pink variety is with the Lensbaby Velvet.
Within the four quadrants of the Circle Garden, surrounding the fountain were lush beds of 'Scheeper's' Mix tulips. These were some of my favorite tulips of the season. The soft color and ruffles of this tulip were so sensuous and beautiful.
Another vibrant and bold bed of tulips was in the Rose Garden Terrace. I had fun experimenting with the Lensbaby Velvet, trying to capture their bold lines but with the softness and glow this lens gives to an image.
And a close up with my 100mm macro.
Beautiful beds of 'Angelique' tulips filled the courtyard between the Enabling Garden and the Sensory Garden. This area, year after year, has spectacular tulips often missed by visitors. They are ideal for photographing because the beds are in shade, so I often find myself in this garden later in the morning after the sun is too high and intense for other areas. All of these were photographed with the Lensbaby Velvet. Can you tell I'm absolutely smitten with this lens?!
This is a mere sampling of the many tulips that graced the gardens of the Chicago Botanic Garden. The garden staff have been busy all week pulling out the spring gardens and beginning to plant the summer gardens. We have much to look forward to - beautiful blooms and warmer temperatures ahead.
Crabapples in Bloom
A much awaited event at the Chicago Botanic Garden is the blooming of the crabapple trees. This week they all popped - the canopy of trees lining the path along Lakeside Gardens and 100's of other crabapples, redbuds and fruit trees throughout the Garden. One of my favorite flowering trees in the spring is the Selkirk Crabapple. There are a number of them lining the path leading into the Graham Bulb Garden and their beautiful pink flowers are a delight to the eyes.
A few weeks ago I purchased a new lens released by Lensbaby, the Lensbaby Velvet 56. You can read about the lens on the Lensbaby website and see sample photos taken with the lens. I am a photographer who enjoys doing two styles of flower photography - precisely focused, detailed photographs as well as soft-focus, dreamier images. I have fallen in love with the Velvet 56. It is a 56mm f1.6 manual focus portrait and macro lens. Because the lens will focus as close as 5 inches, it is perfect for macro flower photography. The wide open apertures create dreamy images with a beautiful velvety and ethereal feel. Shooting at lower apertures means you can easily hand hold this lens and even shoot on windier days and still maintain sharpness in the critical areas, but hand holding with manual focus can be a bit tricky. Another thing I love about the Lensbaby Velvet images is that they require next to no post processing; often times I use them as they are straight out of the camera. I will share more images produced with the Lensbaby Velvet in a future post (it's been on my camera a lot this spring), but for now, here are a few I captured of the Selkirk Crabapple blossoms.
Magnolias in Bloom
The magnolias in our area are all in bloom. Their fragrant and beautiful flowers are fleeting and don't last long before the petals shower down like snow. They are a difficult flower to photograph - contrasty light, spring winds and finding perfect blossoms in a good orientation are often challenging. Yesterday my friend Maria took me to a small park in her neighborhood with two beautiful Star Magnolias in bloom. They were filled with creamy white, wide open blooms. The soft light of the late afternoon made for perfect photographing of the flowers. For the first image, I was able to orient myself so that the blurred grass beyond the tree served as a background. I love that this blossom was wide open and adjacent to a bud. The buds of the magnolias are as beautiful as the open flowers.
Magnolias are perfect flowers to capture in a softer focus way, focusing on the middle and letting the petals drift out of focus and the flowers behind providing a soft white backdrop.
The image below was captured in the last rays of the early evening sun.
The magnolia is one of the few flowers that I feel translates well to black and white.
The Emergence of Spring at the Chicago Botanic Garden
It's been a busy and exciting few months for me with my solo exhibition at the Chicago Botanic Garden Orchid Show, followed by the Garden Photographic Society's annual 'Nature In View' Show. My orchid panels and the GPS show just came down this week to make way for set-up of the Antiques and Garden Design Show at the Garden. Now I turn my attention from two months of shooting orchids to finally capturing the emergence of spring. After a long and very cold winter, it's wonderful to be outside soaking up the sunshine and scouting out the blooms. Those first signs of spring - the snowdrops, the early irises and the crocuses - are eagerly awaited each year and signal the emergence of life and color to our winter landscape. Each year I watch and wait for the crocuses to bloom on Evening Island at the Garden. It seemed to happen overnight this year and they didn't last long before being trampled by the Easter weekend crowds. Nevertheless, I was able to spend some time sitting among the flowers on the grassy hillside and capturing their beauty up close.
'Nature in View' Exhibiton Open at the Chicago Botanic Garden
For more than thirty five years, the Garden Photographic Society has been meeting at the Chicago Botanic Garden, providing members a special place to pursue their passion for photographing nature. We invite you to visit the Garden in the coming weeks to watch spring finally unfold and to stop in Joutras Gallery, located in Regenstein Center, to see the Garden Photographic Society's annual 'Nature in View' exhibit. The exhibition features 80 photographs of the natural world, many of which were taken at the Garden. The exhibit opened Saturday, March 21 and runs through Monday, April 6. The exhibit is free to the public but the Chicago Botanic Garden does charge non-members for parking. Members can park for free.
In addition, even though the Orchid Show is over, my orchid photographs are still hanging in Krehbiel Gallery in Regenstein and will remain there for a couple more weeks. Don't miss the gorgeous display of spring flowers in the reflecting pool in Krehbiel. Even though we have snow again in Chicago, those flowers will give you hope warmer temps will be back again soon!
One More Week for the Chicago Botanic Garden Orchid Show!
If you haven't had a chance to visit the Orchid Show at the Chicago Botanic Garden or see my special exhibit of orchid photographs, you have one more week to visit this tropical paradise. The show closes on March 15th. It's been a whirlwind few weeks of excitement as the show has generated a lot of interest in my work and I'm busy filling print and panel orders. Many people are inquiring about having panels like those in the exhibition produced and I'm delighted to do so. I have a wonderful relationship with the printer and feel they have done a superb job with the printing. Visit the tab at the top of the page "Order Prints" for all the offerings in size and price.
Meanwhile I have been continuing to shoot orchids almost every day during the exhibit. Through the past year of working on this project orchids have become a passion of mine and I continue to love every minute of trying to capture their unique features and personality. Besides shooting in the exhibit itself I have collaborated with a local florist to shoot orchids in their greenhouse. Victor Hlavacek Florist in Winnetka is a business very close to my home. It has been thriving in our community for 90 years and it's easy to see why. Their floral arrangements are works of art and the staff is the friendliest group you can imagine. Hlavacek created a display at the Orchid Show which is truly one of my favorite parts of the show. Be sure to look in the greenhouse gallery area near the Semitropical Greenhouse to see the beautiful display they created. I was able to photograph many of the orchids in this display before they were taken to the Garden for installation. Here's a sampling of what I've been working on. You can see more in my Orchid Gallery on this website and I'll be adding many more as I have time to process them.
Article for Out of Chicago - The Orchid Show at Chicago Botanic Garden
Please enjoy my latest article on Out of Chicago - "The Orchid Show at The Chicago Botanic Garden." Remember, Wednesdays the Garden is allowing tripods in the exhibit - a real bonus for us photographers! Come see the orchids...and my exhibit in Regenstein.
Geting Ready for the 2015 Orchid Show at Chicago Botanic Garden
Two weeks from today the Orchid Show opens at Chicago Botanic Garden! For those of you who love to shoot in the greenhouses during the winter months, the only greenhouse open at present is the Arid Greenhouse. Both the Tropical and Semitropical Greenhouses are closed to the public while they are being transformed into magical orchid paradises. The large panels of my 20 images being featured in the show were delivered this week and I couldn't be more thrilled with the results. We hope to hang them in the coming week so people can start enjoying them and get excited for the show opening on February 14th. It's amazing to watch the staff at work, carefully and thoughtfully placing each orchid in its display. It is truly the work of many talented and creative people who spend countless hours to put this show together. I don't think I will ever get over the thrill of seeing my image hanging all over the Garden in the banners and all the advertising for the show. Please come! It will whisk you away to paradise and help you forget our cold and snowy Chicago winter!
The 2015 Orchid Show - Chicago Botanic Garden
A year-long project of great passion has finally come to fruition for me and now that the contract is signed, the images are in production, the banners and posters up, I can finally share my news! The 2015 Orchid Show at the Chicago Botanic Garden will feature 20 of my images of orchids in large panels hanging in Krehbiel Gallery, the main gallery of Regenstein Center. The above image is the one chosen for all the advertising, posters and large banners lining the entry to the Garden and flanking the Visitor's Center. It is quite a thrill to see that image all around the Garden! I invite you all to visit The Orchid Show, which runs from February 14 – March 15. Regenstein Hall, the galleries and greenhouses will all be transformed into a magical and elaborate display of more than 10,000 orchids. I guarantee it will take your breath away and make you forget the cold winter weather outside when you step into this tropical paradise. This year's show promises to be bigger and better than the first. Having photographed last year's show, worked with the Garden over the past months to produce my images and watched the behind-the-scenes action, I now appreciate the tremendous amount of work and passion that goes into each detail of the show. It has been such a privilege and an honor to be a part of it and I am grateful to the Garden for coming to me and entrusting me with this big project. For more information about The Orchid Show, ticket sales, and all the events surrounding the show, visit the Chicago Botanic Garden's website. Prints of the images in The Orchid Show will be available through my website and I will have that information available in the coming weeks. I will offer a variety of sizes, all personally printed on fine art archival paper and signed. Matting and framing will be available upon request. Come see this wonderful show in a place that has captured my heart and soul and I know will capture yours. Don't forget your camera!