Big picture vs. detail

I love chasing light while walking around my neighborhood with my camera and my iPhone. Yes I look like the crazy camera woman cruising around the neighborhood with multiple cameras, but sometimes just using the camera in my iPhone just doesn't match my vision.

 I was drawn this this purple Gladiola flower, and started off by taking an overall image of the flower. I used my iPhone for the image below (no filter, this is straight out of the camera):

And this is the image I posted on my Instagram (using the X-Pro II filter):

But as I love the details of flowers and petals, I had to get in closer to make a macro image. This is the result (edited in Lightroom 4):

Which do you like- the big, overall flower pictures straight out of the iPhone and on Instagram or the detailed macro? Why? Let me know In the comments below.

Macro Photography Images

It has been a long time since I have posted--I have had some personal health obstacles within the past 10 months, and am finally getting back to blogging! I have some exciting news to share with my wonderful readers, I have recently gained interest in having my images hanging in a few different locations. Currently, I have six images hanging at a spa in Santa Clarita, CA-- what is more calming than some beautiful macro nature images?

Here are the six images that were chosen to hang:

Night Blooming Cerus

Backlit Leaf

Orchid Waterfall

Backlit Orchid

Cana Lily with Water Drops

Aloe Leaves

Of course you can contact me about ordering any of these images for the walls of your home of to give to someone you love!

Thank you as always for stopping by!

Princess Cereus

Ah, the Night-Blooming Cereus, a magical flower. She blooms for just one night in July or August, starting to open her petals to the world just after the sun sets. Getting larger and spreading her petals further, she gives off a beautiful fragrance to lure pollinators for the duration of her short life. She reaches her apex of beauty, and then daylight breaks. Princess Cereus closes her petals to the world as the sun rises, and then dies.

Not even the most handsome, strong prince can save her. But luckily my eye caught her.

Of the macro flower photos that I have taken, this is one of my favorite flower photo shoots, and here is one of my favorite images from the evening:

Since the Cereus only opens for one night (key word here), I got to try my hand with the strobes. It was now or never, as Elvis sings.

Using two Canon Speedlite 580 EX II's, one slave was bounced off of a white diffuser, while the master strobe was held above the flower through a diffuser by an innocent bystander (whatever family member I could dupe). of course I used the Canon 5D mark 2 in case there were any low light issues.

My dad also partook in the photographing of the flower, so we switched off as flash holder. In other words, I got a taste of my own medicine.

This was a fun and challenging macro shoot, since I usually do my macro photography during the golden hour, or inside where I can control the flower of choice.

I hope you enjoy this beautiful flower, and I hope she blooms again next year!

Thanks for stopping by.

Project 365 Day 46

Another absolutely gorgeous day in Southern California... Actually, it was a bit warm. As a Valentine's Day treat my beloved and I went to our local botanical gardens, Descanso Gardens. Since it's not quite spring yet, it was slim pickins' in the flower department, but I did find a few beauties. I could not decide, so I am posting 3 of my favorite photos. But here is the photo that I chose as my photo of the day for my Project 365, in honor of Mardi Gras in New Orleans tomorrow:

Here are 2 more photos that I loved:

And all 3 of my photos were taken with my Canon SD780. I brought Mark with me, but the 90mm macro was on vacation in Maui (it just returned today, yay!), and the macro mode on my point and shoot rocks. So that's what I used today. It had to strike by passers as odd that I had a huge camera on my shoulder but was using a little point and shoot.

Spring is just around the corner, and it will be macro flowers galore. I can't wait!

Thanks for stopping by!