Common Chickweed (stellaria media) and Common Field Speedwell (veronica persica)

Common Field Speedwell,  veronica persica.

Back to high magnification again, but prioritising good composition.  I have now progressed to a Canon 1D, so, with its larger format I will need high magnification just to fill the frame if I am photographing small flowers.

Common Chickweed, stellaria media

I am looking for small crisp, well-lit flowers that stand out from their background, constructively supported and balanced by surrounding foliage and plant elements.   I am finding that getting the lighting effects that I am looking for means taking photographs only at the beginning and end of the day, which means that, even when well into summer, I am still shooting at high ISO; but that's what a Canon 1D is for.

Dove's-foot Crane's-bill (geranium molle)

Dove's-foot crane's-bill, geranium molle

Doves-foot crane's-bill, geranium molle

Another crane's-bill, this one much smaller and much less well known; dove's-foot crane's-bill, geranium molle.  I found it growing on a path through farmland, so no inspiring shafts of light: and as the flower is so small I couldn't get the camera low enough to look upwards into the light.  It is also not as photogenic as herb robert; so, all in all, much more of a challenge.  If I can get a good image it will mean that I have added more than I usually do, as the starting material is less promising.  That means a better photograph.

The two images shown here are, to me, 'work in progress'.  I'm sure there there are good images to be found with this plant, but I haven't worked it out yet.

Herb Robert (geranium robertianum)

Herb robert, geranium robertianum, looking up into the light.

Herb robert, geranium robertianum

Herb robert, geranium robertianum, is a gift to natural photographers.  The flowers are small, brightly-coloured, neat and clean-cut.  They appear throughout most of the the year, from March to November.  They each last only a day, but are then replaced, so they always appear fresh.  The buds are equally attractive.  The fruiting heads are fascinating, with the famous sharp spike of the 'crane's bill', capable of propelling the ripened seeds several metres.  The plant itself is also neat, and the fern-like leaves are variegated, displaying all the colours between red and green.  The plants can be found in woodland, as here or in open ground.

To produce these images I waited until the evening, when the sun, low in the sky, was sending shafts of light through gaps in the canopy.  I then got down as low as I could and took shots up into the light.

Other recent images of herb robert can be found on my website at http://www.imagesofthecommons.com

Common Field Speedwell (veronica persica)

Common Field Speedwell, veronica persica

The common field speedwell is easy to find and easy to photograph, provided yo are prepared to get right down in the grass.  When taken in back-light the colours are very intense.  The problems of depth of field, of avoiding a static, passive impression, and of obtaining a satisfying composition, remain.  Here I have tried, in one case, to use the surrounding vegetation, and in the second case, the nature of the light to try and create depth and movement.

Common Field Speedwell, veronica persica.

Lady' Smock, or Cuckoo Flower; cardamine pratensis

Lady's Smock, cardamine pratensis

Lady's Smock, cardamine pratensis

I have wanted to photograph Lady's Smock for some time, but it appears in my field only very rarely. It is actually a member of the 'bittercress' family (cardamine), examples of which have appeared in this blog several times already.

I caught it, finally, on a dewy morning, with the flowers either in bud or just emerging.

The problem here was complexity.  I took many images showing a profusion of buds and opened flowers, but decided that these were too confusing.  I present two simple images here, hoping to capture the essence of the flower , a sense of awakening, and the fresh dewy morning.  Having chosen the subject matter and the composition, the photography itself was less challenging than it has been lately, as the light was much better, but there are still problems with striking the balance between 'depth of field' and the isolation of the image from the detail in its surroundings.  

Common Field Speedwell (veronica persica)

Common Field Speedwell (veronica persica)

Common Field Speedwell (veronica persica)

The common speedwell (veronica persica) has been a long-term project.  How do you capture its essence?  Unregarded, very beautiful, reticent, always hiding in the grass.  And then the usual problems:  how do you make a satisfying image out of a single flower?  Or how do you contrive a grouping with a solitary flower like the speedwell?  Here are two attempts.

Something Old, Something New

Red Deadnettle, lamium pupureum

I have been trying for some time to get an image of Red Deadnettle (lamium purpureum) that I was really pleased with.  The flower is unusual and exotic, but that seems to render image-making all the harder; or is it that our settled views of conventional flowers prevents us seeing an abnormal one objectively.  Anyway, I have now produced an image that I am quite satisfied with.

Common Fiedld Speedwell, Veronica persica

Also for a long time I have thought that Common Field Speedwell, Veronica persica, should make a good subject, without ever getting round to photographing it.  Well, I have put that right now.  I'm sure that I have produced the best possible image, but at least I now know that this plant has great potential.