WordPress weekly photo challenge: Curves

Zazzle online shop If you enjoy my photos and would like to purchase some, I want to thank you! Simply visit my Zazzle online shop and browse the product offerings. If there’s a photo you would like to purchase but don’t see it in my shop, please contact me by using the Contact form at the bottom of my home page and let me know which photos you are interested in purchasing, and in what format / medium.

Today I’m participating in the WordPress weekly photo challenge and this week’s theme is “curves”. Remember you can click on each image to see a larger view. If you like what you see, feel free to subscribe and receive nature photography updates a few times a week.

Nature is full of curves and I love capturing them on camera, including these giant fern fiddleheads.

WordPress weekly photo challenge: Curves of giant fern fiddleheads
WordPress weekly photo challenge: Curves of giant fern fiddleheads

I love the curves the pistils of this beautiful purple and yellow lily form.

WordPress weekly photo challenge: Curves of purple lily pistils
WordPress weekly photo challenge: Curves of purple lily pistils

Flower petals often display some type of curve. The petals of this yellow rose are a lovely example of curves.

WordPress weekly photo challenge: Curves of yellow rose petals
WordPress weekly photo challenge: Curves of yellow rose petals

Of course, roses are not the only flowers to display curves. Here are the fancy curves of an orange protea pin cushion flower.

WordPress weekly photo challenge: Curves of orange protea pincushion flower
WordPress weekly photo challenge: Curves of orange protea pincushion flower

Many types of fruit display beautiful curves, like this ripe yellow lemon ready to be picked from the tree.

WordPress weekly photo challenge: Curves of a yellow lemon
WordPress weekly photo challenge: Curves of a yellow lemon

As for animals, some of them can be pretty curvy, like these cute little seahorses with their curved tails and curved bellies.

WordPress weekly photo challenge: Curves of seahorses
WordPress weekly photo challenge: Curves of seahorses

Flamingos have such long necks they tend to walk around with them in a curved position. Check out the little duck at the bottom left, he’s got some curved neck going too!

WordPress weekly photo challenge: Curves of a flamingo's neck
WordPress weekly photo challenge: Curves of a flamingo’s neck

Of course human beings can create a lot of curves too. Check out this beautiful chandelier in the lobby of the Hotel Del Coronado in San Diego. It’s full of curves!

WordPress weekly photo challenge: Curves of the chandelier at the Hotel Del Coronado
WordPress weekly photo challenge: Curves of the chandelier at the Hotel Del Coronado

The beauty of light pink waterlilies

Zazzle online shop If you enjoy my photos and would like to purchase some, I want to thank you! Simply visit my Zazzle online shop and browse the product offerings. If there’s a photo you would like to purchase but don’t see it in my shop, please contact me by using the Contact form at the bottom of my home page and let me know which photos you are interested in purchasing, and in what format / medium.

I recently shared a few photos of waterlilies I stumbled upon and I realized I have a few more photos to share, so here we go. These waterlilies are all light pink, with a little hint of orange, creating a nice contrast with the bright green of the lily pads and the dark of the water.

Remember you can click on each image for a larger view.

Light pink waterlilies in a pond
Light pink waterlilies in a pond

The petals almost look like a bunch of little fingers sticking out of the water to say hi.

Close-up of a Light pink waterlily
Close-up of a Light pink waterlily

I like the way the shadows play with this waterlily, including the spiky dark shadows at the bottom left of the photo.

Pink and orange waterlily with lily pads
Pink and orange waterlily with lily pads

Macro Monday: A hodgepodge of floral colors

Zazzle online shop If you enjoy my photos and would like to purchase some, I want to thank you! Simply visit my Zazzle online shop and browse the product offerings. If there’s a photo you would like to purchase but don’t see it in my shop, please contact me by using the Contact form at the bottom of my home page and let me know which photos you are interested in purchasing, and in what format / medium.

Today I’m taking part in the Macro Monday photo challenge. If you like what you see, I encourage you to subscribe so you can enjoy the new photos I post a few times a week.

Since I have no idea what the flowers below are (if you know, please share with me in the Comments section), I’ll focus on the colors. Flowers are  beautiful sign of nature winking at us as we walk along. When you think how many different types of flowers there are out there, it’s pretty amazing. So many sizes, shapes, colors and characteristics for our enjoyment – here are a few for you to enjoy right now.

These small pink and purple flowers look like orchids but I’m sure they’re not. I love the color patterns on the petals.

Macro Monday: small pink and purple flowers
Macro Monday: small pink and purple flowers

The next flower blooms in clusters of small purple flowers. This is what one single cluster looks like.

Macro Monday: cluster of purple flowers
Macro Monday: cluster of purple flowers

The flowers below are small and red and are from a crown of thorns plant. If you look carefully, you’ll notice each flower has only two large petals. What an interesting design!

Macro Monday: small and red red flowers - crown of thorns plant
Macro Monday: small and red red flowers – crown of thorns plant

The last flower is bright blue (not a common color in flowers) and I love all the fuzz on the stems.

Macro Monday: small blue flower
Macro Monday: small blue flower

WordPress weekly photo challenge: Fleeting

Zazzle online shop If you enjoy my photos and would like to purchase some, I want to thank you! Simply visit my Zazzle online shop and browse the product offerings. If there’s a photo you would like to purchase but don’t see it in my shop, please contact me by using the Contact form at the bottom of my home page and let me know which photos you are interested in purchasing, and in what format / medium.

Today I’m participating in the WordPress weekly photo challenge and this week’s theme is “fleeting”. Remember you can click on each image to see a larger view. If you like what you see, feel free to subscribe and receive nature photography updates a few times a week.

Nature is full of fleeting moments and that’s what makes it challenging to photograph. Of course, animals are the hardest to photograph as they may be right in front of you one moment, and gone by the time you pull your camera out. Bees collecting nectar are a good example of a fleeting moment. I got lucky with this shot, where I managed to photograph a bee collecting nectar in the bags on its legs.

Wordpress weekly photo challenge: Fleeting - bee collecting nectar in bags
WordPress weekly photo challenge: Fleeting – bee collecting nectar in bags

Dragonflies are notorious for flying around for hours without taking a break. I got lucky with this orange dragonfly who decided to take a very short rest on a tree branch not far from me.

Wordpress weekly photo challenge: Fleeting - orange dragonfly resting on a tree branch
WordPress weekly photo challenge: Fleeting – orange dragonfly resting on a tree branch

This baby koala was a nice capture of the fleeting moment a couple of weeks ago, as he turned his head towards me for a few minutes so I could capture this photo.

Wordpress weekly photo challenge: Fleeting - Baby koala sleeping
WordPress weekly photo challenge: Fleeting – Baby koala sleeping

Butterflies are the perfect expression of a fleeting moment, as they’re often difficult to capture since they don’t stand still for too long. I was lucky to get a photo of this giant owl butterfly.

Wordpress weekly photo challenge: Fleeting - giant owl butterfly
WordPress weekly photo challenge: Fleeting – giant owl butterfly

Not just animals are fleeting in nature. The morning dew is another example of something that doesn’t last a long time and is gone by the time the sun is out and shining.

Wordpress weekly photo challenge: Fleeting - morning dew on grass blades
WordPress weekly photo challenge: Fleeting – morning dew on grass blades

Our San Diego winters don’t get very cold but we manage to get frost several days a year. The frost melts as soon as the winter sun rays warm it up, but it’s very pretty while it lasts.

Wordpress weekly photo challenge: Fleeting - frost on ice plants in San Diego
WordPress weekly photo challenge: Fleeting – frost on ice plants in San Diego
Wordpress weekly photo challenge: Fleeting - frost on leaves in San Diego
WordPress weekly photo challenge: Fleeting – frost on leaves in San Diego

I think the most fleeting moments in nature are sunrise and sunset. They last only a few minutes but set the tone for the day and for the night.

A beautiful sunrise can inspire you for a whole day.

Wordpress weekly photo challenge: Fleeting - winter sunrise in San Diego
WordPress weekly photo challenge: Fleeting – winter sunrise in San Diego

A gorgeous sunset can give you hope for the next day.

Wordpress weekly photo challenge: Fleeting - San Diego sunset Christmas 2012
WordPress weekly photo challenge: Fleeting – San Diego sunset Christmas 2012

Macro Monday: Purple lily

Zazzle online shop If you enjoy my photos and would like to purchase some, I want to thank you! Simply visit my Zazzle online shop and browse the product offerings. If there’s a photo you would like to purchase but don’t see it in my shop, please contact me by using the Contact form at the bottom of my home page and let me know which photos you are interested in purchasing, and in what format / medium.

Today I’m taking part in the Macro Monday photo challenge. Remember you can click on each image to see it in a larger format. And if you like what you see, I encourage you to subscribe so you can enjoy the new photos I post a few times a week.

I ran across this beautiful purple lily recently and I knew I had to take a few photos of it. Here’s what it looked like as a whole.

Macro Monday: purple lily
Macro Monday: purple lily

And here’s what the inside and its pistils looked like from closer. I love to see how much pollen lilies can have.

Macro Monday: purple lily pistils
Macro Monday: purple lily pistils

And here’s another close-up of this purple lily and its yellow center.

Macro Monday: Close-up of the inside of a purple lily
Macro Monday: Close-up of the inside of a purple lily