Flowers Archives • Into the Light Adventures %

Sepia Toned

By Sandra | December 13, 2023 | Comments 32 comments

Sepia Toned – Sepia is a reddish-brown color, named after the rich brown pigment derived from the ink sac of the common cuttlefish Sepia.

I like to use the sepia finish on some of my flower or insect photos, so I had to look up what the word actually means and surprised myself finding the answer.

Fun Facts

What is a cuttlefish you might ask 🙂 – Cuttlefish ink was formerly an important dye, called sepia. That is where the name of this color comes from. I did not know that myself.

I like how the white on the tip of the wings of this butterfly did not change much when changing this photo to sepia tones.

Sepia Toned

Sandra J

Sandra J’s Photography & Fine Arts

Last of My Flower photos from my gardens. They are still blooming but we are in the process of heading south again. I want to say thank you to Beth for telling me about Zinnias. She said to let them stand all winter, they give great coverage for the birds, plus they can reseed themselves in the spring.

I did notice the birds would go under the flower plants in the heat of the summer. It was dark and cool in there. Like it was their own little forest.

Have a wonderful weekend.

Last of My Flowers

Sandra J

Sandra J’s Photography & Fine Arts

Do Bees See Colors

By Sandra | October 3, 2023 | Comments 44 comments

Do Bees See Colors – Bees do not see color the same way humans do, so they are attracted to certain flower colors. Plants on the blue and yellow end of the color spectrum attract bees because those are the colors they can easily perceive.

I am not sure how they have found this information, but I do know the bumble bees are busy at work this fall landing on pretty much all of the colors in my flower garden.
I have noticed they really like the pink cosmos flowers and the marigolds.

Male bees do not actively collect pollen, only the queen does. They transfer the pollen they collect to the sacs or baskets on their hind legs to make it easier to transport back to the hive.

A queen has found a suitable habitat for her colony once she is seen with pollen on her hind legs

Unlike honeybees, the bumblebee colony dies in late fall. The queen (who rules the colony) is the only member of a bumblebee colony to survive the winter! She hibernates during the winter months underground and starts a new colony in the spring.

Do Bees See Colors

Sandra J

Sandra J’s Photography & Fine Arts

Autumn is Rich With Gold

By Sandra | October 2, 2023 | Comments 26 comments

Autumn is Rich With Gold colors. Welcome to October, my favorite season is here. Autumn colors, cool crisp air and golden hues surround us.

Flower photography is a fun way to see all these colors up close. This little orange flower grows about 1 foot off of the ground. Sometimes it is just easier to pick the flower to photograph it and make an interesting composition with it, then crawling down on the ground to get a close up shot.

Autumn is Rich With Gold

Sandra J

Sandra J’s Photography & Fine Arts

The Cheerful Flower

By Sandra | September 22, 2023 | Comments 25 comments

The Cheerful Flower – Sunflowers grow large, tall, and cheerful flower heads that brighten and animate your yard—and though you most commonly see these aptly-named beauties in sunny yellow, the annuals can be red or orange, too. There are so many good reasons to grow them, beyond the fact that they make you happy: They’re easy to cultivate, attract beneficial pollinators like butterflies and native bees, and draw beautiful songbirds (many species love these blooms!)

Including deer, they love eating them when they are young plants. But I was able to keep them away from a couple of my sunflowers so I could see them bloom and provide seeds for the birds this year.

Short video below of my tallest sunflower, over 10 ft. this one. Like the sun looking right at you. Click here, Sunflower

Have a great weekend. 🙂

Have a great weekend.

The Cheerful Flower

Sandra J

Sandra J’s Photography & Fine Arts

Flower Garden

By Sandra | September 7, 2023 | Comments 26 comments

Flower Garden – Well I planted lots of flowers two months ago and they are in full bloom. So many wonderful colors and I am happy to say the hummingbirds are still here. They appear to be having a blast going to all the flowers and chasing each other.

I have two flower gardens that way the hummingbirds have plenty of room to check out all the flowers.

Flower Garden Finally Blooming

Sandra J

Sandra J’s Photography & Fine Arts

Marigolds

By Sandra | September 6, 2023 | Comments 21 comments

Marigolds – marigolds symbolize purity, auspiciousness, and the divine. Their strong fragrance is believed to ward off negativity and evil spirits. Plus they are said to ward off mosquitos.

The vibrant colors of marigolds also represent the sun’s energy, signifying warmth, passion, and creativity.

I planted a lot of marigolds this year to test out the theory of keeping mosquitos away. But by the time they bloomed the mosquitos were already gone. So I can not testify that this theory is correct until next year. 🙂

This one is not a marigold, I just added it because of the color scheme and background.

Marigolds

Sandra J

Sandra J’s Photography & Fine Arts

A Drop of Water

By Sandra | August 28, 2023 | Comments 19 comments

A Drop of Water shinning on the morning leaves, reminds me of a friendly tear drop or a tiny little globe of light reflecting on what could be.

As if you could step into this perfect little drop and enter into a new world of endless beauty.

A Drop of Water

Sandra J

Sandra J’s Photography & Fine Arts

Close Up Macro Lens

By Sandra | June 21, 2023 | Comments 27 comments

Close Up Macro Lens added to my Nikon Lens. I was given some 67 mm macro magnifying lens, up to plus 4 magnification to try out. I really like them, I picked this daisy and put it in a cup so I could place the flower on a table to photograph it with this added lens.

What a difference it makes, I did not use a tri pod but I think it still came out pretty clear. I sprayed some water onto the daisy so I could focus on that.

But an added bonus to this lens is the beautiful depth of field. I had my camera slightly below the flower pointing up with the clouds in the background. It made for a nice soft white color behind the flower.

The last photo is without the extra lens on and you can see how the background isn’t quit as soft. I will be trying this lens out more in the future.

Close Up Macro Lens

Sandra J

Sandra J’s Photography & Fine Arts

Make Flower Photos Bloom

By Sandra | March 16, 2023

Make Flower Photos Bloom with the right camera settings. The wild flowers are in full bloom after the last couple of rains we have had. I do love photographing flowers. Creating a beautiful depth of field makes the photos more interesting, meaning a nice blurred background with the right camera settings.

Flower photography is all about sharp details, bright colors, and finding the right depth of field. Here’s how to get it right:

ISO — Use a low ISO between 100 and 200 to maintain a sharp picture. If your ISO gets too high, it could make the picture grainy.
Shutter speed — Use a fast shutter speed of around 1/125 or higher to reduce blur from camera shake, if you’re either shooting with a handheld camera or outside on a windy day. If you’re using a tripod with a still subject, shutter speed isn’t an important consideration.
Aperture — The right aperture setting depends on your subject and preferences. For small subjects, a wide aperture between f/1.8 and f/7 will give you a shallow depth of field with lots of background blur. Narrow apertures of around f/11 or higher are best for large subjects like bouquets and big flowers, when you want the entire subject in focus.

Since aperture is the most important camera setting for flower photography, I always shoot in aperture priority. This way, I can quickly adjust the aperture to find the perfect depth of field without worrying about ISO or shutter speed.