It’s very wet and windy here and has been for a few days. So no chance of close-up photography in the garden. (Although, if I feel up to getting rather wet, I may go out in search of drip-covered spider’s webs later.)
For now, I have opted to stay warm and dry indoors. But what to photograph? Luckily, I don’t even need to go outside to pick some flowers. That’s because I tend to gather up odd bits of dried plant material and other natural bits and pieces that catch my interest, like these dried bougainvillea bracts.
I am fascinated by the structure of plants. There is such a variety of shapes and of ways that the parts of the plant are constructed. Looking at them from close-up allows you to see all the little details – sometimes much more than you would have expected from a passing glance.
Photographing these bougainvillea heads under studio lights gives the lace-like veins of the bracts a clarity and crispness. The strong light enhances the translucent bracts and also helps them to stand out against their plain white background.
These are very simple photographs to take but the results please me. It shows how worthwhile it is to gather up things like these – nature’s tiny creations – and to take a close look at them. Next, I really ought to go and photograph the flowers that are still on the bougainvillea plant. Luckily, that’s in the nice dry conservatory!
Ann Mackay: Inspired by Nature 
Your leaf reminds me of a certain type of jewelry that was popular here – perhaps in the 1960s. Skeletonized leaves were dipped in gold; it’s remarkable how much this one looks like your delicate photo.
You say your photographic process is simple, but I’m not sure I believe you! The results are lovely, no question about that.
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I’d forgotten about those! That leaf does look very similar to my photos. Unfortunately the bougainvillea bracts aren’t actually skeletonised so would look so good dipped in gold…be quite something if they were, though!
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Absolutely stunning Ann, love this so much!
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Thank you Liz! I’m not sure why I haven’t photographed them before – but was really glad to have them sitting there for this week. 🙂 (And it’s still pouring with rain outside – seems that we’re getting most of our year’s rainfall at one go!)
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We’ve had a fair bit of rain today too!
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Hope you get some sunny spring weather soon!
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Fingers crossed 🙂
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Fantastic pictures of these bougainvillea bracts, Ann!!
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Thank you Indira! I have the bracts still on my bougainvillea to photograph for next week…so there will be a quite different version of them. 🙂
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That’s lovely. I once had a go at using my macro lens with the skeleton flowers from a hydrangea. Well petals really. They can be quite remarkable.
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I love finding the skeleton flowers from the hydrangea here – they’re so amazingly delicate. (That makes it even more special if you find one that’s still intact.) I know I saved some and put them somewhere…hope I can find them. (I’m going to be glad of anything like that to photograph – won’t be long before the flowers in the garden have pretty much disappeared.)
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At least you have warmer options for your photography. October has definitely made its presence felt.
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It certainly has!
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Absolutely stunning images Ann! They look almost surreal but so delicate. And the color is so unusual. Just love them!
Oh yes, Humble has Painter 2020 for sale – just picked it up. Pretty nice.
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Thanks for the lovely comment, Syd! Humble is a great source of software – enjoy your time with Painter! 🙂
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These are very interesting and as always look great with your white background, Ann. I’ve seen similar done with a light table like those on which we used to review our transparencies.
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Those light tables were great – especially the big ones. (I’d love to have one of those, though I’d struggle to find space for it at the moment.)
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Wow! This is very reminiscent of an abstract painting.
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I’d like to paint, so maybe it will give me inspiration, hehe!
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Go for it, Ann. 🙂
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