Coffee Share 200229

This is a Weekly Coffee Share Essay. I’m part of a small group of bloggers who stay in touch and chat about blogging, writing, or just about anything else that might be of interest. Here’s mine for the week ending Feb. 29, 2020.

Link to This week’s full list

Link to my Story Blog. Come share a laugh with me.

Good day.  Today is the last day, an unusual leap-day that does not normally exist.  Some call it an extra day, but unless I some how get another day of the week (which better be a weekend / non-work) day, it’s not ever going to feel “extra”.  But what would I do with an extra weekend day. . . ?  ‘Who cares’ would be my answer.  It would be soothing just to have an extra day to rest, write or even just do some laundry and let my mind de-stress a bit.

Okay, I was surprised that so many folks enjoyed my simple photos of the back yard plum tree.  After I shared those shots, I found a feature on my phone that allowed me to really zoom in for some amazing magnified detail.  For the shots below, I used my android phone ‘magnifier’ app which allows me to play with what I see on the screen and then capture (photograph) anything I like.

So, I decided to share a few more shots, because I think they stand a pretty good chance of giving you a quick smile and maybe even encourage you to look more closely at the miracles of nature that may be right outside your back door.

First up, I’ll start from where my previous post left off; back at the plum tree.  For the featured photo above, I used an additional shot of a branch which I thought the composition was pleasing.

Next up, a few more shots of the plum blossoms, magnified.  At this degree of magnification, I think the magic really begins because this beauty can be right in front of you and, unless you pause to consider it, you will completely miss it.  Here they are:

I know.  It’s a bit blurry.  I really need a tripod to maintain the focus at this level because the focus point between the camera and the blossom is very tight.  Still this shot begins to show of the real beauty of the blossom.

The next shot came out perfectly focused on what I wanted to capture.  I had to back off the zoom to make this shot possible.

The most interesting shots are, in my opinion, use the higher degree of zoom because so much unfamiliar detail jumps out at you.

The most satisfying shots are more of composition that includes both a medium zoom and enough of the surrounding branch and leaves against a variegated and blurred background.  The result is a comfortable degree of familiarity and and normally missed detail.

Next up, we move over to the rosemary bushes.  The former owner of our home, some 25 years I’m guessing, planted these bushes and they have been a honey bee heaven ever since.  This first shot is zoomed in only enough to see the part of the plant you normally care about, the needles of the bush.  Those tiny green spikes are the tasty spice you (hopefully) recognize from a well made spaghetti sauce.

But the blossoms!  Have you ever looked this close at them, and are they not amazing!?  If they weren’t so tiny, you could much more easily see them and might even be tempted to wear them as a corsage.

Zoom in more and you can enjoy views like this next shot which captures a common cluster of orchid-quality masterpieces.

But again, for overall composition, I think I like the inclusion of more of the rosemary needles.  If you look closely, near the bottom, you can see a vague, dew-covered spider web.

Spider webs, especially when covered with early morning dew can also be fascinating and I could not help but grab one more shot of the plum tree where one spider has started a foundation for a new web.

Next up are a couple of geek shots.  Because I can’t walk you outside to see these wonders in person, I like to square my own and maybe your, sense of perspective.  Just how small are these blossoms?  Here’s what they look like side by side against a quarter coin. In both shots, the coin and the blossom are the same distance from my lens.

And the big closing shot is not magnified at all.  It’s just amazing.

I have only two issues with this plant.  1) These blossoms last in this pristine state for only a few days.  After that, their petals quickly turn brown and don’t look anywhere near as nice.  2) I don’t know the name of this flower.

Perhaps you recognize it and can inform me – solving one of the two problems.

I hope you enjoyed this quick visit to our back yard. Thanks for stopping by.  I’ll be by to check out your coffee share shortly – if you have one.

Blessings.

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