I’m not entirely sure what these flowers are, but they look like Rhododendron to me, especially the leaves?
They’re unusual though, instead of the “dome” of flowers you normally get, these have the flowers around the edge of the head, then just little buds in the middle.
It maybe that this is the early stages of flowering, I’m not sure, but they look super cool!
I noticed them last week, a short walk down the road from our house, and I have been meaning to visit them for a photograph ever since.
I sat out in the garden again this evening and had dinner with Izzy, washed down with a couple of cold ones; which is just such a nice way to end any day.
Dinner done, and the light looking good around 8pm, I zoomed off with my camera to grab some shots.
They’re right on the road, in someone’s garden. There is no path that side of the road, so I had to perch right on the edge of the little bit of curb, and capture the images.
The light caught the little blue, magenta and purple flower heads beautifully, and that nice feeling when reality meets imagination ran through my veins when I got back and looked at the images I’d captured on my laptop.
Mission accomplished, thank you strange little Rhododendron flowers.
Learnings – I didn’t use my tripod again today, I didn’t feel I needed it with the “hit and run” style shots I knew I’d have to grab, and the sun light was plenty bright enough to hold a fast shutter speed for me.
I can tell the difference in the sharpness, using and not using my tripod, however for these images and the moment captured, it doesn’t detract from the photographs.
I guess it’s a learning knowing when and where to apply your kit, depending on the situation. I’m making better choices all the time and that’s a really nice feeling.
As a side note, don’t say or spell Rhododendron too many times, in quick succession, it’s one of those words that starts to sound unreal the more you use it……….
Onegav 