Siberian irises

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

My favorite Siberian iris beds were in full bloom at Green Spring Gardens on Thursday. Got a slew of shots with my Nikon and my iPhone. These are phone shots, for you curious folks.

Daffodils!

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Nikon D850 / Nikkor 105mm micro

Featured on Shutterbug online!

Last summer I was contacted by an editor I work with through Nikon and also Shutterbug magazine. He wanted to run a photo and behind-the-shot story of one of my images in the July 2018 issue of the magazine. Then one month before its debut, the print version of the magazine folded (in other words, Shutterbug was shuttered!). This would have been the second time my work would have appeared in the print publication (the first time was when my fern stamps were featured). Last week I got an email asking if they could run it online and I said of course! So here’s the image and the behind-the-shot story. Special thanks to my friend Sherry Goldstein (the woman who pointed this beautiful critter out to me). Click on the link below to go to the post!

https://www.shutterbug.com/content/always-carry-your-camera-how-botanical-photographer-captured-beautiful-butterfly-image?fbclid=IwAR2JI7E7VTu3Ml9d3-QkTFQIHAUEGKwjWKdvMxJiwiCZcvrYjsLzaQMVJ9U

Peony ‘Cora Louise’

This one’s for you, Lisa Russell Jackson! ITOH (intersectional hybrid) Peony ‘Cora Louise’, photographed at Green Spring Gardens this afternoon. Nikon D850, Nikkor 105mm micro, 1/80, f/22, ISO 250

If you visit Green Spring Gardens in Alexandria, VA, check out Lisa’s wonderful gift store. She has my greeting cards available, and one of the newest cards has two of these beautiful blooms on it.

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Crab spider on Columbine bloom

Nikon D850, Nikkor 105mm micro, 1/100, f/18, ISO 500

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Crab spider on Columbine bloom

Nikon D850, Nikkor 105mm micro, 1/100, f/18, ISO 500

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Siberian iris

Nikon D850, Nikkor 105mm micro, 1/100, f/9, ISO 250

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

 

Bearded iris

Bearded iris (unknown cultivar), photographed at Green Spring Gardens

Nikon D850 / Nikkor 105mm micro

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Japanese Roof iris

Japanese Roof iris, photographed at Green Spring Gardens

Nikon D850 / Nikkor 105mm micro

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Bearded iris ‘Megabucks’

Bearded iris ‘Megabucks’, photographed at Green Spring Gardens (Nikon D850 / Nikkor 105mm micro lens)

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Bearded iris

Bearded iris (unknown cultivar), Green Spring Gardens (Nikon D850, Nikkor 105mm micro)

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Bearded iris

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Bearded iris

I think this is a dwarf or intermediate bearded iris (hybrid name unknown).

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Camellia ‘Jerry Hill’

Jerry Hill Camellia (Camellia japonica ‘Jerry Hill’)

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Featured in “Snapshots” e-newsletter!

Here’s Part 1 of my article for Snapshots, an e-newsletter published by Fairfax County Park Authority. I believe Part 2 will debut in the next issue. This article offers tips for photographing with a smart phone in the garden. Thanks to editor Carol Ochs for including me in the publication! If you’re local and want to subscribe, click the link below:

 

https://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/parks/e-news

Eastern Amberwing dragonfly

Going through my dragonfly photo archives and came across this “high key” photo of an Eastern Amberwing dragonfly (Perithemis tenera) perched on a waterlily bud. Amberwings are one of the smaller dragonflies. The depth of field is shallow on its wings, but I like this shot because the body and head is still sharp. The high key/bright sunlight works in this photo, too. Normally I try to shoot on overcast days or use a diffuser—but you can’t really use a diffuser on moving subjects! This was shot at Green Spring Gardens a couple of years ago.

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Violas

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Larkspur blooms

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Poppy

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Urn orchid

Urn orchid (Bletilla striata); also called Hyacinth orchid; photographed at Green Spring Gardens in Alexandria, VA

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Blue wild indigo

Blue wild indigo or Blue false indigo (Baptisia australis), photographed at Green Spring Gardens

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

‘Tropic Night’ Iris sibirica

Iris sibirica ‘Tropic Night’ (Species is native from Europe to Western Asia and Siberia); photographed at Green Spring Gardens

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

‘Cora Louise’ peony

And here’s a giant peony—first time I’ve seen this one at Green Spring. The blooms were the size of salad plates!

UPDATE 5/1/2018: Special thanks to Lisa Jackson (she runs the store at Green Spring Gardens’ Horticultural Center) for the identification on this beautiful peony. It’s an “itoh” (intersectional hybrid) peony named ‘Cora Louise.’

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Rudbeckia blooms

Rudbeckia blooms; photographed at Green Spring Gardens

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Jerusalem artichoke

Jerusalem artichoke (Helianthus tuberosus); photographed at Green Spring Gardens

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Globe artichoke buds

Globe artichoke buds, photographed at Green Spring Gardens

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Blackberry lily

To give you a break from the onslaught of Slaty Skimmer images, I present to you Blackberry lily blooms (also known as Toad lily) photographed at Green Spring Gardens. Kudos to the horticulture staff for the juxtaposition of these bright orange flowers against the deep purple Smoke bush!

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Rudbeckia blooms

I spent quite a bit of time photographing this variety of Rudbeckia at Green Spring Gardens this past Saturday morning. The light was so beautiful! I experimented with a variety of angles, compositions and creating extreme bokeh in order to best capture what I saw.

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Hoverfly on Rudbeckia bloom

Hoverfly (or Flower Fly) on a type of Rudbeckia (don’t know specific type); photographed at Green Spring Gardens. Flower flies are very tiny (usually about 1/4 inch from head to tip of tail), but this one was even tinier!

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Mark your calendars for Garden Muse 2016 photography exhibit at Green Spring Gardens!

I’ll be having my second solo photography exhibit at the Green Spring Gardens Horticulture Center in Alexandria, VA from August 30 to October 23, 2016.

The reception is Sunday, October 9, 1-3 p.m. I’ll have some new images as well as old favorites. All images are for sale and a percentage of sales goes to FROGS (Friends of Green Spring Gardens). During the reception I will have a store set up with lots of inventory: matted prints, framed prints, greeting cards, gallery wrap canvases and photo jewelry. And of course, there will be ample food and beverages! The Horticulture Center is open Monday-Saturday, 9-4:30 and Sunday, noon-4:30. Green Spring Gardens is located at 4603 Green Spring Road in Alexandria, just off Little River Turnpike. There is ample free parking and entrance is free as well. The show will be up for two months, so you have plenty of time to see it!

 

Criss-cross

I like the graphic qualities in this composition with the tight cropping and criss-cross leaves in the background, so I thought I’d share.

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Delphinium

Is there a more stunning color combination than purple-blue against bright green? I think not.

© Cindy Dyer. All right reserved.

 

Northern Blue Flag iris

I think this is a Northern Blue Flag iris (Iris versicolor); photographed at Green Spring Gardens. I love the jumble of curving and radiating leaves framing this beautiful bloom (the raindrops in the foreground were a visual bonus!).

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Delphiniums and Love-in-a-mist

This morning was my first time shooting at Green Spring Gardens this season. I was way overdue to shoot there and the subjects did not disappoint. I shot with my Nikon D800, but also these shots with my iPhone 6s (border added in the Snapseed app). More photos to come from this morning’s session!

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

iPhoneography: Green Spring Gardens

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved. iPhone 6s / Snapseed

 

Just in time for spring…

RE-POST: In spring 2012, I had my first botanical photography exhibit, “Garden Muse: A Botanical Portfolio,” at Green Spring Gardens in Alexandria, VA. Barbara Kelley of Kelley Hospitality (who is also the editor-in-chief and my partner with Celebrate Home Magazine), did a phenomenal job of catering the reception in mid-April. There wasn’t a crumb left of anything when the event was over!

Barbara shares her yummy recipes and party tips in “Inspired by the Garden: Garden Muse Tea Reception,” in the summer issue of Celebrate Home Magazine. Barbara and I published four issues of Celebrate Home Magazine as a personal project in 2012-2013.

I am forever grateful to her for all her hard work and very major contributions to that very special day! Special thanks to Hollace Goodman, who served as catering assistant, for her work as well. Special thanks Ed Fagan of Columbia Photography and Margot Juliette Storch for photographing the event for us. I recapped the event on this blog in the links below:

http://cindydyer.wordpress.com/2012/04/18/scenes-from-an-exhibit-reception-part-1/

http://cindydyer.wordpress.com/2012/04/18/scenes-from-an-exhibit-reception-part-2/

http://cindydyer.wordpress.com/2012/05/07/more-scenes-from-a-reception-for-garden-muse-a-botanical-portfolio/

View the issue as reader spreads (my favorite!):

CHM Summer 2013 Spreads

View the issue as single pages (suitable for printing out the recipes):

CHM Summer 2013 Single Pages

Splurge and purchase a beautiful print copy on magcloud.com (no markup; at cost + shipping):

http://www.magcloud.com/browse/issue/600404

Help us spread the word! Share Celebrate Home Magazine with your family and friends.

 

Blackberry lily

Blackberry lily (Iris domestica, formerly Belamcanda chinensis), also known as Leopard flower or Leopard lily, photographed at Green Spring Gardens. The flowers are typically orange spotted with red, although there are yellow-flowered varieties. The seed pods open in the fall, showing clusters of black seeds whose fancied resemblance to a blackberry gives the plant its common name, “blackberry lily.” The plant is hardy to zone 5 and is propagated by seeds or division.

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Carpenter bee on ‘Towering Orange’ Cosmos

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Honeybee and Pineapple lily

Honeybee headed for a Pineapple lily (Eucomis comosa) at Green Spring Gardens

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Crab spider on Ornamental onion

Teeny, tiny crab spider (maybe 3/8″ span!) on Ornamental onion (Allium senescens), photographed at Green Spring Gardens. My friend Michael Powell and I went to shoot there about 4:00 this afternoon—there is so much in bloom now!

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Trout lily

I photographed this trout lily at Green Spring Gardens this morning after a light rain. The bloom is about 1″ in diameter. Look at the petal on the far right. About halfway up the edge of the petal, you’ll see a tiny bug. This little guy was so tiny, he was barely viewable when I looked away from my macro lens. He was probably about 3/16 of an inch long!

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Fleabane daisy

Fleabane daisy (Erigeron glaucus); teeny-tiny, very delicate and often overlooked (but not by me!); photographed at Green Spring Gardens this morning

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Forget-me-nots

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

iPhoneography at Green Spring Gardens

Although I shot nearly 500 photos with my Nikon D800 in about two hours at Green Spring Gardens this morning, I also shot a couple dozen with my iPhone 6 and processed them on the spot with Snapseed2. The two members of my “photo posse” below are my intern, Andrew Savino, and my friend and frequent photography partner, Michael Powell. You can view Andrew’s portfolio here and Michael’s blog here.

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Re-post: Eastern Tiger Swallowtail on Zinnie ‘Zowie’

Temps have been in the 30s and 40s here in (usually sunny) Texas, with murky gray skies almost every day. I’m in need of some color!

Originally posted July 27, 2010

Overcast and very pleasant day, perfect for a quick (and fruitful) lunchtime shoot at Green Spring Gardens. This is an Eastern Tiger Swallowtail on a ‘Zowie’ Zinnia.

Note: I was actually trying to get a shot (with the tripod in place) of just the two Zinnias when the Swallowtail landed on one of the flowers. I held my breath and got just two shots before it flew off. I live for moments (and wild color) like this!

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Green Spring Gardens Fall Festival

ATTENTION! I will have a booth at Green Spring Gardens’ Fall Festival this year! Come on down and see old and new botanical photographs (gallery wrap canvases, framed prints, matted prints), gorgeous greeting cards, and colorful photo bezel necklaces. I also have a full outdoor portrait session package up for bidding in the Silent Auction.

Fall is a great time to plant, and Green Spring Gardens is hosting numerous local plant vendors to satisfy your gardening needs. Live music, a silent auction and bake sale add to the festivities. Come and support one of Virginia’s most innovative public gardens. FREE. Green Spring Gardens Fall Festival, Saturday, September 13 from 9 am – 4:30 pm. For directions, visit: http://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/parks/greenspring/#map

‘Profusion White’ zinnias

Zinnia elegans x Zinnia angustifolia ‘Profusion White’, photographed in the rock garden at Green Spring Gardens

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Interview on Our Stories and Perspectives blog

I was recently interviewed for the blog, “Our Stories and Perspectives,” by Dominic Lodato, a summer intern for the Fairfax County Park Authority’s Resource Management Division. I was very happy with the results and wanted to share it with my readers!

Cindy Dyer: A Photographer at Green Spring

Cardinal Flower

Cardinal Flower (Lobelia cardinalis); photographed at Green Spring Gardens

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Pineapple lily

Closeup of Pineapple Lily (Eucomis comosa); one of my favorite plants to photograph—the flower stalks are like high rise condominiums full of ants, beetles and other critters, weaving in and out of the blooms!

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.