Friday, February 4, 2011

Red Red Rose ~ Floral Friday

"Red Red Rose" Royal Botanical Gardens

It's Friday! Floral is our theme again, and today I've posted one of my absolute favorite images from the past summer. Maybe because Valentine's Day is a week away (guys...tryin' to help you out here) and more likely because here in Hammertown we're still swamped with snow, but the deep dramatic color and velvet shape of the petals just seemed to be my next logical image choice for you all to enjoy.

Not entirely sure where my exposure data went to on this file but I had to dig way back into original RAW files before I could see how I shot this one. For all you photogers out there that crave info here we go: 1/200sec @ F/5, ISO 125, 50mm fl, 50mm Nikkor Prime lens, overcast morning light, tripod, remote shutter release, reflector, pattern metering. I find red a difficult flower color to capture sometimes, it's extremely saturated on it's own. Detail in the petals can disappear if you're not careful with deep reds, but on overcast days I can underexpose slightly to get an accurate color, then change the levels slightly in Corel later to ensure the image isn't actually too dark overall.

One of the best places to practice photographing deep or bold color in flower beds is over at the Royal Botanical Gardens. Indoors or out, it's a nature photographer's paradise. It's the largest garden of it's kind in all of Canada, situated between Hamilton and Burlington, Ontario. And the most eclectic of it's kind, from the world's largest natural lilac dell, or tens of thousands of tulips in the rock gardens, to it's wide naturalized areas with marshland and wildlife, not to mention the trails you can walk. And the greenhouses are always displaying the unusual. It's also a National Historic Site. What's not to love? And it's full of intense color. I've spent many a day wandering the grounds in all seasons.

In particular, this image was taken out in the Hendrie Park gardens, where they have thousands of roses through the summer months along with live jazz music and various events. So.... how many months till the warm weather returns? Think I'll go over to the flower shop at the top of the street and get a handful of roses for my studio/dining room and immerse myself in a bit of summer in February. With the camera. Of course.

Thanks for letting me ramble on a Friday! As always take a moment to leave me a comment here or on my Facebook Page, and have a fabulous weekend. (oh, and "go Green Bay!")

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