First Wednesday of the month means it is Close-Up or Macro Day for Cee’s Midweek Madness Challenge. These were all taken during July 2022 in Billings, Montana.
CMMC – August 2022 Close Up
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Tag Archives: flowers
Flower of the Day: Daisy
My favorite picture from my field trip to Zoo Montana / Yellowstone Arboretum on Friday, July 21, 2022.
Posted in Cee’s Flower of the Day challenge.
CMMC: July Pick a Topic – Flowers, Trees and Hats
Cee’s Midweek Madness Challenge – July Pick a Topic from [her] Photo prompted me to head to Zoo Montana / Yellowstone Arboretum with camera in hand. I knew I would find flower beds with trees in the background and hoped there might be a person or two wearing hats.
Volunteers – wearing hats! – with the Botanical Society of Zoo Montana were tending the Sensory Garden.
May there be sunshine and flowers to brighten your day!
CMMC: Milkweed Flowers
Just a few weeks ago these milkweed plants at Riverfront Park in Billings, Montana were inundated by the Yellowstone River.
Today the milkweed flowers are opening and I’m hoping some monarch butterflies will soon come through. Did you know milkweed leaves are the sole source of food for monarch butterfly larvae?
In the meantime, I’m enjoying the shapes and textures of the flowers.
Posted in response to Cee’s Midweek Madness Challenge July Close-up or Macro.
CMMC November Close Up: End of Summer
With the first hard freeze of the season earlier this week, we have definitely said good-bye to summer here in central Iowa. The forecast calls for a few more warmish days but the nip in the air says it is definitely autumn.
The pictures are posted in response to Cee’s Midweek Madness Challenge – November Close Up or Macro. The first photo in each row was taken in late September. The others were all taken in toward the end of October.
I think you should be able to click on one photo to see the full image and then scroll through all of them.
ADDED: So interesting that the images are square when post is read through the WordPress Reader. When read on the Another LQQK page, the photos are cropped round and can be pulled up one by one in their original rectangular shape. – Teressa
CMMC: August Color Red
Tulips. Reiman Gardens, Ames, Iowa. April 26, 2021.
Red is the August color for Cee’s Midweek Madness Challenge. I browsed my digital files and found more red in 2021 than I imagined I had!
Flowers first: tulips, a fairy duster (who knew there was such a thing?!!), and a rose.
Baja Fairy Duster. Desert Botanical Garden, Phoenix, Arizona. May 16, 2021.
Red Rose. Des Moines Rose Garden. May 26, 2021.
Next up: a glimpse of my visit to the Iowa Arboretum. The school house is so small there’s just enough room for a student or two with the teacher. The metal sculpture of a cardinal is the best cardinal photo in my collection – maybe someday I’ll get the right equipment to take live bird pictures.
Little Red Schoolhouse. Iowa Arboretum. July 20, 2021
Metal Cardinal. Iowa Arboretum. July 20, 2021.
For a little fun, here is a new fire hydrant looking at an older relative to see if it is safe to remove its covering.
Fire Hydrants. Hamilton, Missouri. July 16, 2021.
And, finally, the side of a red barn.
Barn. Jasper County, Iowa. April 22, 2021.
CMMC: August Close-Up
It was the first week of August so Cee’s Midweek Madness Challenge is Macro or Close-Up photographs. I took these Tuesday morning (August 3rd) at Big Creek State Park. The dew drops in the sunlight caught my attention; click on each image to enlarge.
CMMC – May Color – Purple: Flowers
Posted in response to Cee’s Midweek Madness Challenge – May Color Purple.
Reiman Gardens: “Mirror, Mirror on the Phal”
Last Friday – the day before the first day of spring – was windy but warmish. With hopes of buds on trees and new plants poking out of the ground, I grabbed my camera and headed to Reiman Gardens on the campus of Iowa State University. The discovery of the day was a special exhibit in the Hughes Conservatory: “Mirror, Mirror on the Phal.”
“Phalaenopsis orchids are like faces: if divided from top to bottom, one side reflects the other. Such symmetry occurs throughout nature. Just look around – mammals, insects, and many leaves exhibit this quality. Where can you spot symmetry?”
Reiman Gardens Website, https://www.reimangardens.com/exhibition/2021-patterns-unfolding/, 3/23/21.
“Of course, another place to see a reflection is in a mirror. The Evil Queen in Snow White made famous the phrase, “Mirror, mirror, on the wall, who is the fairest one of all?” We think nature presents us with the greatest beauty, whether symmetrical or not. We see it reflected in the drama of a sunset, the simplicity of a Phalaenopsis, and even within ourselves. At the start of 2021, we invite you to reflect and seek all the beauty you can find. Even just by looking in a mirror.”
Reiman Gardens Website, https://www.reimangardens.com/exhibition/2021-patterns-unfolding/, 3/23/21
The reflections in the hexagonal mirrors were so much fun! I’m planning to go back some afternoon – rather than the morning – just to take pictures when the sun is coming from a different direction.
They have set it up for one-way traffic through the Conservatory and masks are required. But it’s not a large place, so I was thrilled when I was the only one in there. The last photo is looking back through the exit doors.
Hoping you’ll take a few minutes to reflect on all the beauty you see – especially when looking in the mirror!
CMMC: February Color – Blue Green
Blue-Green was the February color for Cee’s Midweek Madness Challenge. I gathered the pictures and had them uploaded to share on a blogpost, but did not get around to finishing it. (Sigh.) Though more than a week behind, here it is.
Another LQQK 