Category Archives: Flowers

Photographer’s Choice – Betty Rembert

Why Is This Native Wildflower Neglected?

Dwarf Larkspur - Betty Rembert

Dwarf Larkspur – Betty Rembert


Images of the trout lily, trillium or ladyslipper and others are common spring subjects for local photographers but the dwarf larkspur seems strangely neglected. It is difficult to capture without background clutter and the color is a challenge to reproduce on film or digitally, or on a monitor or print (the deep blue is often “out-of-gamut”). But a challenge is often the impetus that gets the juices flowing and more attempts. Is it not widespread in the County?
Betty did an excellent job here, with a pleasing background and sharp focus, with most of the stem and blossom in the plane of focus. She used a gray card to help set the color balance on a cloudy day.
Below is a cropped version of the above showing more of the delicate detail.
Cropped Dwarf Larkspur - Betty Rembert

Cropped Dwarf Larkspur – Betty Rembert


Canon EOS 5d w/100mm macro lens
1/50 sec @ f8.0
ISO – 400
Tripod used

Photographer’s Choice – Karin Kalmus

Common House Plant That Rarely Blooms

Karin Kalmus - Blooming Jade Plant

Karin Kalmus – Blooming Jade Plant

Karin has submitted this photo as a “Photographer’s Choice”, noting particularly, “The carpels and stamens are absolutely clear. A botanist friend at ECU was amazed to see this photo of a blooming Jade and noted how sharp the detail was. These Jade plants rarely bloom but one of mine has bloomed from December to February every year since we brought it back from California (>20 years old). It never bloomed in California.” Karin used a tripod to obtain the clarity from her Nikon Coolpix S8100, using soft, natural light to bring out the detail without any harsh shadows or blown highlights. The framing, with the blooms off center, adds to the appeal. The rich, deep green background makes the blossoms truly pop.
This image can be used also to point out the importance of post processing and the improvements possible. The image below is as it came from the camera, somewhat flat, slightly underexposed, but more importantly, with a strong blue/green color cast. It only required a couple of adjustments to bring out the full potential of the image.
Karin Kalmus - Unadjusted jpeg

Karin Kalmus – Unadjusted jpeg