Moments That Make You Go WOW!

When I’m out photographing – there’s always a moment when I know exactly what I’m trying to share with you in my photos. As I look at a flower, I take a moment to figure out what attracted me to that particular subject – and how can I show that in my image. Features like color, shape, texture, repetition and a specific detail are what make one flower stand out from all the rest. And when I get that aspect in focus in my mind – and then in my camera – there’s always a WOW! moment – where I’m in absolute awe of the beauty in front of me.

Color is one of the first things that my eye is drawn to in a garden. Bill claims I can’t walk past a brightly colored flower without stopping to photograph it – I have no idea what would ever make him say that!

It can be a single color like the blue in the blue poppy or a combination of colors like in the Princess Irene Tulip that catches my eye. When a flower is about color – that’s what I want to show you in the photograph.

And then there are times I’m absolutely fascinated by the shape of a flower. Butterfly weed and other members of the milkweed family have a very distinctive shape. I’ve photographed several members of this family – and every time I get drawn in by the shape of the flowers.

Textures are what catch my eye with bearded irises. I just want to reach out and touch the ruffled edges and fuzzy beards on the petals of a bearded iris.

Sometimes it’s not a single flower that makes me go WOW – instead it’s a grouping of multiples of the same flower. A single thyme-leaved bluet isn’t that exciting – but when there’s a mass of them – it makes for a fascinating photograph. When I look at a group of little flowers, my eye roams from one to the next seeing patterns, differences and similarities.

And sometimes it’s just a specific detail of the flower that makes me go WOW. For the spiderwort – I’m fascinated by the little fuzzy stamen hairs contrasting with the bright yellow anthers. When I spotted the ranunculus, my eye was immediately drawn to folds and bends in the petals.

Color, shape, texture, repetition, and little details are some of the things that make me go WOW when I see them. What are the features your eye and makes you go WOW when you’re in nature? I’d love to hear about them.