Rest Week from Filoli

After visiting Filoli for the past three weeks, it was nice to take a break. The Tulips there need another couple/few weeks to push through the soil, find the sun and show themselves.





So we had some time to visit our own garden, which, being in Contra Costa County, has more sun. Our daffs are just about gone, but our tulips went beyond themselves, announcing the Spring. The red tulips were gargantuan, beyond our high expectations. What fascinated me about them, however, was not the size, but the details of the buds. The reds flashed in the morning and afternoon sun. I tried light modifiers, but the splendor of the colors screamed for plain sunlight! Sometimes photography just doesn't get better than this.

I practiced my handholding techniques and found that if I just better concentrated--and didn't force any shots, my steadiness came back. By force I mean handholding a macro-lens 2 inches from a patient bug. I still shake for thing like that. But that's what a tripod is for. Other shots, when I was able to pin myself against the boards of the planter box, came out just fine. Hope to visit Filoli in the coming weeks, to show a parade of tulip colors.





Next Blog: TBD

Filoli - Two Weeks Later

Today Filoli didn't change much. The Daffs were fuller, just about their peak.





Potted pink tulips were past their prime. The real prospect were the full-bodied Tulips in the planter beds. You know they will blossom fully in a few weeks. Then the full color of Filoli will jump into everyone's mind. Crowds will be there, but hey, that's okay. Everyone will have a good time, and be polite to everyone else, taking pictures or chasing kids and infants bent upon pulling the flowers to see and smell them. Stay tuned for some wonderful colors.





Next BLOG: Rest Week from Filoli

Filoli - A Week Later

What a difference a week makes!

We visited Filoli again this past weekend. The color just tripled, especially with the Daffs. Filoli advertisements drew in crowds. I found the gardens a happy place, with kids squealing and running all over the place, playful in anticipation of an early Spring. Groups of flower-lovers huddled around knowledable docents. Everyone seemed to enjoy the quiet and beauty of the place. I took a break from photographing the yellows, the whites and the pinks, just to enjoy myself.



The guards gently rounded us late-comers to observed the 3:30pm closing. All of us found the day too short.

I can't wait until they bring out the tulips. This Spring should bring out the full Splendor of colors and shapes, as Lurline Roth (the founder of Filoli) wished.



Next Blog: Filoli Two Weeks Later