Garden Share Bristol

little bluestem, Schizachyrium scoparum

w a v e s

'Moonshine' yarrow dusted with snow on a frigid winter day.

Still plenty of beautiful, sunlit seeds to be seen on a chilly winter walk.

I always look forward to the New Year with anticipation.  It's time to renew and refresh, set goals and create action plans.

Here at The Art Garden I've changed things a bit with a new design template.  The look is still fairly clean and easy to read, but I've added a backdrop photo.  I'll change this out as the seasons progress (or on a whim, you never know).  Please let me know if you like it, or if it's a distraction from the "main event".  I've also added "share" buttons at the end of each post which I hope you'll enjoy using.



One of my gardening goals for 2013 is to add more plants to my home's interior spaces. The amaryllis (Hippeastrum spp.) pictured here was a mere bulb in a pot when it was gifted to me at Thanksgiving (thanks, Mary!). I kept it on my desk and watched it grow very quickly — like time-lapse film in real time!
 

What a joy to watch the big buds unfurl and have these monster blooms keep me company as I worked.  Now I'm looking forward to finding more plants that will tolerate low light, cool temps, and a small space.  Any ideas?


What are your garden goals for 2013?  Now's the time to dream, study, and plan ... and I'm here to help!

Again, best wishes to you for a fantastic 2013, and thanks for visiting The Art Garden.

Big Horn Medicine Wheel, Wyoming USA

Those of us  who are avid gardeners and living in the Northern Hemisphere can't wait for the winter solstice, the shortest day of the year. Then the days will begin to lengthen and we can look forward to the gardening season once again. Whoo-hoo!  This year the solstice occurs on December 21st, and to celebrate I'm posting a photo-a-day countdown with some of my favorite photographs of 2012.  Enjoy!

Geranium sanguinem

Those of us  who are avid gardeners and living in the Northern Hemisphere can't wait for the winter solstice, the shortest day of the year. Then the days will begin to lengthen and we can look forward to the gardening season once again. Whoo-hoo!  This year the solstice occurs on December 21st, and to celebrate I'm posting a photo-a-day countdown with some of my favorite photographs of 2012.  Enjoy!

Anethum graveolins

Those of us  who are avid gardeners and living in the Northern Hemisphere can't wait for the winter solstice, the shortest day of the year. Then the days will begin to lengthen and we can look forward to the gardening season once again. Whoo-hoo!  This year the solstice occurs on December 21st, and to celebrate I'm posting a photo-a-day countdown with some of my favorite photographs of 2012.  Enjoy!

Begonia spp

Those of us  who are avid gardeners and living in the Northern Hemisphere can't wait for the winter solstice, the shortest day of the year. Then the days will begin to lengthen and we can look forward to the gardening season once again. Whoo-hoo!  This year the solstice occurs on December 21st, and to celebrate I'm posting a photo-a-day countdown with some of my favorite photographs of 2012.  Enjoy!

Asclepius tuberosa

Those of us  who are avid gardeners and living in the Northern Hemisphere can't wait for the winter solstice, the shortest day of the year. Then the days will begin to lengthen and we can look forward to the gardening season once again. Whoo-hoo!  This year the solstice occurs on December 21st, and to celebrate I'm posting a photo-a-day countdown with some of my favorite photographs of 2012.  Enjoy!

Iris germanica

Those of us  who are avid gardeners and living in the Northern Hemisphere can't wait for the winter solstice, the shortest day of the year. Then the days will begin to lengthen and we can look forward to the gardening season once again. Whoo-hoo!  This year the solstice occurs on December 21st, and to celebrate I'm posting a photo-a-day countdown with some of my favorite photographs of 2012.  Enjoy!

Acer saccharinum

Those of us  who are avid gardeners and living in the Northern Hemisphere can't wait for the winter solstice, the shortest day of the year. Then the days will begin to lengthen and we can look forward to the gardening season once again. Whoo-hoo!  This year the solstice occurs on December 21st, and to celebrate I'm posting a photo-a-day countdown with some of my favorite photographs of 2012.  Enjoy!

Bergenia cordifolia

Those of us  who are avid gardeners and living in the Northern Hemisphere can't wait for the winter solstice, the shortest day of the year. Then the days will begin to lengthen and we can look forward to the gardening season once again. Whoo-hoo!  This year the solstice occurs on December 21st, and to celebrate I'm posting a photo-a-day countdown with some of my favorite photographs of 2012.  Enjoy!

I recently took a class at Denver Botanic Gardens with their official photographer, Scott Dressel-Martin, that focused (heh) on capturing images of their Blossoms of Light holiday landscape lighting presentation. I have very little experience with low-light or night-time photography, so I was open to any and all ideas that I could glean in a 3 hour, hands-on setting.  My goal was to learn a few tricks that would let me take the best photos possible without making fiddly adjustments to my camera.  In other words, stick with my usual grab-and-go, mode settings.  Scott was a fun and informative teacher and was able to emphasize the main points that apply universally while also including some more detailed specifics for the advanced photographers in the group (not me!).
Note: The photos you see here have not been photo-shopped, other than to reduce their size a bit for use here on the blog...

Here are a few pointers that I gleaned from the class:
#1 You must use a tripod. In low light situations the shutter speed is very slow, and it's impossible to hold a camera completely still.  Although I've owned a nice tripod for many years, I never use it (just too darn lazy).  This was the most awkward thing for me to adjust to, but it does make a huge difference in the clarity of the photos.  A hands-off shutter release is also helpful (make mine a remote, please, Santa?) in preventing wobbles.

#2 The best light is during deep dusk — after sunset but before it's totally dark. At this time of year that's between 4:45 and 5:30 (with only about 10 minutes of perfection!).  At this point there is still color in the sky. That color and light create depth of field — a foreground, middle ground, and background —  for a much more engaging image.  Interestingly, the sky looks dark to our eyes much sooner than it does to the camera lens.  Scott had us set up our cameras at 4:45 PM and continue taking the same shot (looking north-northeast) every few minutes to monitor how the light looked via the camera's screen:

4:50 PM MST

5:00 PM MST

5:07 PM MST

The lesson here is to stake out and compose your "perfect" shot a bit early, then take multiple images as the light changes until you see the perfect amount of contrast between the lights, the landscape, and the sky.

5:40 PM MST, looking west

By 5:40 PM the color was gone from the sky, but there was still enough light to distinguish the trees in the background.  Ten minutes later it was full-on dark, and the landscape — particularly without any snow — was transformed into pinpoints of colored lights. (Scott gave us some tips on controlling colors and light via ISOs and white balancing, but that's something I'll have to practice more on my own time.)

5:51 PM MST

#3 Reflective elements such as snow, water, or even wet pavement can really improve the WOW! power of your photograph.

5:15 PM MST looking south

5:17 PM MST looking north

#4 Have fun.  Even a blurry photo may have use as a background image...

original image

super cropped image

I hope my wing-it results will inspire you to get outdoors with your camera this winter to capture the beauty of the lights.

Perky pansies in my patio pots.  Yes, today!

Sedum rupestre 'Angelina'

 Sorry for the blurry photo, but I wanted to share this wonderful winter color. A great succulent for a sunny, dry, and windy site.

Lonicera japonica purpurea

 Today  I spotted this purple-leaf honeysuckle vine thriving - and evergreen - on a south facing house facade.  The deep purple foliage is a welcome blast of winter color. During the growing season the foliage will revert to green, as seen in this old photo from my own garden: