A tiny Prairie Blue-eyed Grass wildflower stands in contrast to the greens of the grasses at Forest 44 Conservation Area....
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A tiny Prairie Blue-eyed Grass wildflower stands in contrast to the greens of the grasses at Forest 44 Conservation Area.
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KristinaOers
October 29, 2019
A gorgeous capture!!! Thank you for joining my challenge :-) Good luck!!
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Behind The Lens
Location
This photo was taken at Forest 44 Conservation Area, a 10,000 acre rugged forest land in the foothills of the Ozarks about 20 minutes from my home.Time
I frequently hike the Dogwood Trail that winds up a step Ozark wooded hillside. On May 22, 2014 at three in the afternoon, the Prairie Blue-eyed Grass wildflowers were just beginning to open halfway up the hill along the side of the trail.Lighting
The tall oaks and hickory trees on the hillside were filtering the late afternoon sun where the Prairie Blue-eyed Grass wildflowers were beginning to open. This gave the wildflowers a deeper color.Equipment
I shot this photo with my Pentax K-x using my 50-200 mm telephoto lens and my tripod. With the more subdued lighting I needed my tripod. I took the photo at 160 mm, f/5.6 and an ISO 100 at 1/15 sec.Inspiration
Being close to my home I often hike the trails at Forest 44 Conservation Area looking for new photographic possibilities. This day I noticed for the first time the Prairie Blue-eyed Grass wildflowers beginning to bloom just off the trail. The delicate greens made the six star petals and deep yellow of the center of the flower stand out in the filtered light.Editing
I shoot in raw and using Photoshop Elements I slightly increased the exposure and the contrast and decrease the brightness to deepen the greens to help focus the attention on the delicate blues and yellow of the flower.In my camera bag
In my camera bag I always carry my Pentax K-x and three lenses: a Pentax 18-55 mm and 50-200 mm and a Sigma 70-300 mm telephoto. I also carry two Neutral Density filters and a circular Polarizer filter for my two Pentax lenses and a couple of sets of backup batteries. In a separate case I carry my tripod.Feedback
Keep your eye out for new and interesting possibilities. Don’t shy from visiting a place frequently and at different times of the day. Nature has its own way of surprising us with fresh and exciting beauty as the lighting and the seasons change. To photograph wildflowers be willing to get down and dirty. For this shot I had to use my tripod as low to the ground as it could go and then get down on the floor of the woods to find the best shot.