Airports and blog entrys

I'm sitting in the Portland Airport writing this blog post and I suddenly realized how awesome it would be to be a traveling botanical blogger. Pretty much fly around the world and take flower photographs and write about them. Waiting for flights would give one plenty of time to post process the images. And the flight would allow plenty of time for writing about them.

Columbines in the rock garden

 I think I mentioned I was able to borrow a high quality lens from a friend of mine and I've been having a wonderful time shooting some high quality photo's. I really wish I had invested in good equipment a few years ago now. These shots were taken with a 105mm Macro lens, shot at about 8:30 at night using a tripod. I ended up taking a pretty long shutter speed, and stopped all the way down to the lens value of 2.8.

Columbines in the rock garden

 I'm super greatful for the loaner lens because now I think I know what I want to get, i'm saving for the sony 90mm macro, I originally thought I was going to want to go with a wider focal point lens but after seeing what you can do in low light because of the increased focal length I think it really makes sense to increase it a bit. I figure if I ever end up doing the travel thing, having the ability to do some handheld stuff and in low light seems very necessary for the changeable conditions encountered during travel.

Fritillaria biflora var. ineziana

The last of the Fritillaria are starting in now and the above is the final one to start into bloom. The calochorthus will be along shortly and I'm super excited to get some high quality photo's of these species with the borrowed lens or perhaps I will strike it big in Reno and I'll be able to get that Sony lens.

So I'm off to a wedding of two very special friends in lake tahoe this weekend, I left the camera at home but maybe I'll run into something photo worthy.

I can't not mention the weather, It hasn't rained for three straight weeks and if it does hit 89 degrees today it will break a record, things are very, very dry and the plants haven't had a chance to harden off the new growth so everything is flagging. Expect to see a remarkbly dry and painfully hot summer. Fingers crossed the weather gods are just bluffing this time.

Signing off from coach class row 9 seat D.

Mark