Notes from the field :

There are a couple of points to be made with this image, both pertaining to perception. First of all is the perception that you must travel to some destination for nature photography. This image was made about 100 feet off our back door in our typical suburban neighborhood lawn, where we typically get a good eruption of dandelions.

Secondly, the dandelion is an interesting subject in that it is viewed in many different ways by different people. Some consider it a pesky "weed," the sure sign of an unkempt lawn! Allergy sufferers might avoid them like the plague. Others have learned that dandelion greens are actually quite good in salads. We know our woodchucks like them! For a photographer, they can also represent many intriguing compositions.

No matter how we look at things, there always seems to be another enlightening view awaiting our discovery.

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About the subject :

A common dandelion that has gone to seed. This one had one single seed that was just barely hanging onto the major clump, awaiting the next breeze to release it on its journey. The barbs on the seed base are interesting, no doubt an evolutionary feature to help it take hold in the next unsuspecting neighbor's lawn!

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Technical details :

This image was made using a Nikon F5 35mm camera, with a Nikkor 105 mm f2.8 Micro lens, and two close-up diopters attached to the front (Nikon 4T & 6T) to obtain more magnification. Film is Fuji Provia 100F. A large diffuser was used on 2 sides to soften the light, and to reduce any breezes that would cause the seedling to move, or dislodge. The image was scanned from film using a Polaroid Sprintscan 4000 scanner at 4000 dpi, and then resized to a 72 dpi web resolution image. No manipulation or cropping took place.

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About the composition :

1] This hanging seed was interesting it itself, precariously on the edge of flying away. The question was how to make the seed into an interesting photograph.

2] Trying to communicate the concept of separation from a group, the cluster was placed off to the side, but directionally towards the individual seed.

3] Clean background was an absolute must in trying to make this image work. Any unnecessary detail would have been a distraction.

4] The magnification used conveniently allowed placement of the features of the seed on the rule of thirds power points. Picture the seed anywhere else in the frame and it doesn't seem to work as well.

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