flowers

Sometimes a little rain is your friend when taking photos.

We arrived about midmorning…definitely not the best time to avoid the crush of other tourists anxious to see the world famous Butchart Gardens in Victoria, BC.

And then it began to rain, just a constant gentle drizzle, very familiar to anyone who has lived on the ‘wet coast’ before. Of course this did not deter me or any of the other umbrella brandishing tourists from enjoying the gardens. Myself and my husband actually opted to keep our cameras dry and let our clothes get wet instead. Before leaving on the trip we had purchased two plastic rain covers for our cameras in case of rain on our big hike. They come in a pack of two and combined with my new monopod were a very successful way to keep my camera dry. Many other tourists commented on these inexpensive and very handy rain covers, I’m sure wishing they had one as well for their cameras.

I used my wide angle exclusively in the sunken gardens. The overcast sky and wet rain on the flowers and foliage provided even light without dark shadows and brilliant colours. It was worth getting a bit wet!

When we entered the Japanese Gardens I switched to my telephoto lens. It was very crowded and the wide angle wasn’t suitable to capture the intimacy of this lovely garden.

Lots of green and different shapes both natural and pruned.

Light being a crucial factor in outdoor photos, the time of day makes a big difference. Early morning photos at The English Inn again provided less harsh shadowing.

This is an absolutely charming inn in Esquimalt, BC just 10 minutes or so from downtown Victoria. It is set on a large acreage with extensive English style gardens, the main inn with breakfast and bar facilities, and very comfortable cottages on the grounds for more guests. It is popular location for weddings.

Midday photos are tough particularly when it is hot and sunny. A trip to Hatley Park near Victoria resulted in strong shadows from the harsh light. It is a very impressive castle with lovely gardens around. Now home to Royal Roads University, it is an important part of the history of BC.

Late in the afternoon one day, I got this shot in downtown Victoria. This time the shadows are a welcome addition to the composition.

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Goldmound Spirea
Originally uploaded by Janice Saunders

It’s almost summer and things are blooming. These aren’t exotic specimens, just garden variety… my garden variety… beauties. Ottawa is a tough environment for many plants and these guys just come back faithfully every year. The spirea has beautiful golden foliage and dainty purple flowers. You would think that Mother Nature knew something about colour theory…yellow and purple are complementary colours. The Mock Orange is an old fashioned shrub that is quite unremarkable most of the year except in June when it is a mass of single layer white blossoms.

Hostas are a garden favourite for many because they are super low maintenance and they provide great visual contrast between their large leaves and other plants with smaller leaves. I think Lady’s Mantle is a great addition to any garden. Again, it is an old-fashioned plant, but it provides visual contrast and blooms later in the summer. I had a little fun with the original Lady’s Mantle photo and used the Kaleidoscope Distortion Filter available in Microsoft Digital Image Suite10. It works best with large simple shapes. Now, I use Photoshop Elements and have been unaware that Microsoft has discontinued the Digital Image Suite product. Elements doesn’t have a Kaleidoscope filter but some people have suggested this site for a plug-in… http://www.mehdiplugins.com/. Maybe I will try it too.

For those tech geeks out there, my husband is one of them, there is a new application for the iPad aimed at artists and photographers, as a way to sell/promote their work through the iTunes store..a wallpaper app. It can be pricey and there are probably other options too but the link is worth checking out. The company is called Shanli Mobile Software.

I am looking forward to the fantastic blooms on my Trumpet vine, the buds are already forming. This voracious vine is threatening to take over the back of my house but it rewards us with non-stop blooms all summer long. And, it attracts Hummingbirds.

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