Tag: rose

Autumn Rose

Autumn 2015 has been particularly great for roses here in Cambridge. My garden was full of roses in their second blooming flush this year and some are still in bloom (in November). This particular english rose has heavy blooms that almost bend the thin branches to the ground.

This photograph has a natural black background generated by the use of a off-camera slave flash at right angles combined with a small aperture f/11 and exposure time of 1/250. Click on the photo for options to view this in larger size on Flickr.
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Technical Details:

Nikon D7000, 105mm f/2.8 Sigma macro lens
f/11, 1/250, ISO100
Post-processed with Adobe Photoshop Lightroom CC

Vibrant Rose!

There is this rose bush in my garden which struggles to survive every year regardless of what I try to do make it feel happy. But year on year it produces one or two of these really vibrant flowers in autumn! Just one of two roses sadly before the winter frosts kick in.

Vibrant Rose
Click on the photo for a larger version on Flickr!

Technical Details:

  • Nikon D7000 with a 105mm f/2.8 Sigma macro lens
  • f/18, 1/250 second, ISO200
  • Remote slave flash SB800

The Food Chain..

One thing they teach in school biology is the concept of food chains and food webs – the links that show interdependence of organisms based on the foods they eat. The photo below shows one such food chain starting with the rose (the producer) providing nourishment in the form of sap for aphids. In turn aphids are milked by ants for honeydew, a secretion that aphids produce.  Ants are also known to “farm” aphids storing their eggs over winter and then carrying newly hatched aphids to emerging plant shoots in spring (called a mutualistic relationship).

The Food Chain
A mini food chain. In this picture clusters of aphids can be seen underneath petals of the rose, and ants that farm these aphids. Click on the photo for a larger version on Flickr.
  • Nikon D7000 with a 105mm Sigma f/2.8 macro lens
  • ISO200, f/22, 1/60 with remote slave flash to give a natural black background
  • Processed in Adobe Photoshop Lightroom

Respect the thorns..

He who wants a rose must respect the thorn – Persian Proverb

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Click on the photograph for a larger version on Flickr

Such a simple proverb but with such deep meaning!

Photographed in 2009 at Anglesey Abbey, Cambridgeshire, a property of the National Trust.

 

Winter Rose

It is a sign of the mild winter here in Cambridge so far. I photographed this rose in my garden over the weekend (14 December, 2013). It is rather strange to see a bright rose at this time of the year, and therefore merits a blog post of its own!

A rose in winter!!
A rose in winter!! Click on picture for a larger image..

Three-shot bracketed HDR processed in Photomatix and Adobe Lightroom.