Considering this is the middle of March in Pennsylvania, the weather has been incredibly warm the past week. The forecast for the next week calls for more of the same, so one can’t help but think spring. Even though it technically becomes spring this week, I just hope nothing happens, like a freak snowstorm in April, to destroy the mood.
One sure sign of spring is when small flowers and buds on the trees start to bloom. It’s usually a slow process most years but I’ve already spotted a few here and there, like todays subject. I spotted these little flowers on the edge of my driveway today. A cluster of hundreds of little tiny flowers measuring around 3 or 4mm each. They were incredibly tiny but I thought I would attempt to capture them anyhow. Since I don’t own a proper macro lens, I resorted to my reverse-mounted Super-Takumar 50mm lens. When mounted reverse it shoots at about a 1:1 (life-size) ratio. It was tough to compose anything since the flowers are at ground level, so I used the live view on my camera and trued my best to get something decent.
Although the original camera shot looked OK, I thought that this photo was a good candidate for a texture treatment. After adding a few layers of texture, I went even further and decided on a black and white conversion. That didn’t look too exciting until I added the strong blue tone. I know it’s pretty extreme, but the more I looked at it the more I liked it. It reminds me of some kind of Asian artwork. What do you think? Did I take it too far?
Little Things
© David Guidas
What I Pic 
I also thought it resembled Asian-inspired art. Great photo David!
Thanks. It wasn’t my original thought or intention, merely a happy accident 🙂
And what a lovely accident it is! 🙂
I like the end result, but I would love to see a side-by-side.
Thanks. I may post the original straight shot for comparison.
I like it. It’s a little dark for spring but I like how my eye drifts right from the softer blurred flowers to the two that are in focus.
Thanks. I know it doesn’t look too “springlike”, and I guess I could have lightened it up a bit for that type of feel. Either way, it looks like I’ll have plenty of spring scenes in the next few weeks.
I do love it though!
Absolutely gorgeous!
Thanks!
I think it turned out great! I love the blue tones and find the blurred effect makes your composition ever more enchanting and mysterious. Delicate, eerie and whimsical. Great post! 🙂
Thank you Polly. I love your descriptions. An image that emits emotional responses and descriptions is a success in my book. That is the end result I strive for but I’m not always sure how I get there 😉
stunning photograph!