When you love macro photography, especially when photographing flowers we get ones that we love or become our favourite. For me, mine would have to be dahlias.
Favourite flowers – Dahlias
My first real introduction to dahlias was through Kathleen Clemons and her love of them. I’m fairly certain I had heard of them before that, but didn’t really know that much about them. Once I realised how beautiful they were I started looking for them.
They aren’t always that easy to find here. There are places that have them, but not necessary many. One place that I visited on the weekend had thousands, Country Dahlias. The woman who runs it is incredible. She obviously loves them very much as well.
While she has so many that you are in macro photography heaven, I don’t think I could run a place like that. Not that my suburban block would let me grow too many. However, I do have about 12 growing in my garden now. Not that they are easy to grow. The first year not many flowered. I mean who knew you had to fertilise them? They are very hungry plants.
Photographing Dahlias
Each plant is very different. You do get groups of them where they are similar shapes and such, but then there will be a lot of colours. Visiting Country Dahlias certainly is an eye opener as to how many different varieties there are. I don’t think I would like to hazard a guess as to the number.
They are wonderful to photograph. You can photograph the whole flower or just look at the details.
My Garden
Eventually, I want to fill my garden with flowers that all flower at different times of the year so I can photograph it constantly. Apparently, Kathleen Clemons gets up in the morning and goes out to take photos in hers and I want to do the same. The work started a while back to make this happen, but I need to get back into it. I have quite a few plants that need to go into the ground, and will try and get them done before my trip.
Autumn is a great time for planting in Australia, so I’ve heard.
Here is one of the dahlias from my trip on the weekend. I haven’t processed any others, but will over the next few days.
Yes there are so many different shapes and colors to admire. They are readily available at most nurseries here in the states but you have to buy them in the spring as they go fast. So we are growing in a large scale. You have a beautiful photograph up of one of your dahlias. Will look forward to seeing more of your photographs.
They are harder to buy here, sadly. I can’t believe how many different ones there are. I love them so much. Thank you so much.
Wow. If I wasn’t unemployed I’d buy that image. 🙂 You might be interested to know that in the WP Reader the image was cropped (for me). It was the same width but the height was much narrower and cropped so the bottom and top sixth (or so) were off, and guess what? That was a different and just as cool shot. It really changed things. Love both versions.
Thank you, the reader often does crazy things like that, not idea why. I might have to experiment with some cropping.
Beautiful, dahlias always remind me of my father, he loved growing them, especially deep red cactus varieties
They are a special flower, thank you for sharing that. I don’t know that variety, but now I’m curious.
Love the angleeanne, really works.ooking forward to seeing more.
Thank you Chris, I’m trying to experiment more with the angles.