Clifty Falls Wildflowers…Trout Lily

Another great wildflower that grows in our area is the Trout Lily. Found in large clusters this beautiful little flower gets it’s name for the trout like pattern on the leaves of the newly emerging wildflower.

The trout lily sprouts and flowers in early spring, before new tree leaves grow. Plants grow from a white bulb that have a tooth-like shape. This wildflower will usually grow when underground rhizomes spread and form clusters or colonies. Mature plants also spread by seeds. Ants can scatter the seeds, eating part of the seed and leaving the rest to germinate. And some trout lily colonies can be 200 to 300 years old.

The plants are found in woodland habitats and moist hillsides the stamens can either be yellow or black and can be quite large for such a small plant. The Trout Lily is just another great example of all the wonderful wildflowers that are on display right now just waiting for you to view.

Smoky Mountain Iris

I thought I might share another image from my recent trip to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. This time we will meet the Dwarf Crested Iris another one my favorite wildflowers that grace the mountains of Tennessee.

Wildflowers

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

This slideshow is an example of just a few of the many wildflowers that I captured this year here in Jefferson County Indiana. They were all photographed in Clifty Falls State Park earlier this spring.

Some of the best wildflower displays I have ever witnessed came from our own backyard and if giving a chance you should get out and experience the wonderful natural diversity that this area has to offer.

Clifty Falls State Park, Splinter Ridge FWA and Big Oaks NWR are just a few places to go and view the beautiful display of wildflowers that inhabit our home.

“Beautiful Wildflowers”

As of this Saturday I will have done my third wedding in seven weeks with more to follow in the fall, I have also shot numerous portrait and other miscellaneous photographic work,  and I am really starting to miss what I first got into photography for and that was the nature side of it.

I have actually enjoyed the portrait side of photography, except for the endless editing, but you just can’t beat a cool spring morning hiking into  the wet green world of a Clifty Falls Canyon and photographing a beautiful stand of Wild Columbine or Trillium.  As beautiful as the weddings I have been a part of so far the real beauty of the natural world far outshines anything man can put together, not that I don’t enjoy my new gig, you just can’t replace the world outside our doorsteps.

This is a image of one of my favorite little wildflowers..The Blue-Eyed Mary, these little beauties grow in clusters along the creek bottoms that carve their way thru the hills and gorges that make up Southern Indiana. I shot these in Clifty Falls State Park near Madison Indiana one beautiful spring morning, it was one of those mornings when the fog hung close to the ground and the colors in the woods were so saturated and vivid you just  couldn’t feel more alive !!

That’s one of my favorite things about photography, just when I needed a break from the hectic world I live in now all I have to do is pull out some old files and the memories of a great day in the woods come flooding back to help you get thru the boredom of everyday life. Thanks for stopping by and taking a look, as always click on the image for best viewing !!

“Wild Columbines”

Just returned from a recent vacation to the Great Smoky Mountain National Park, it was more of a family gathering so I wasn’t able to get out and work the park much but did make time to get a few decent shots. I will post some soon but for now here is a Wild Columbine I shot earlier this spring, these little gems are really hard to shoot and if you get any wind you can forget about getting any images at all.

Patience is the key to this wildflower, try shooting in low light with calm winds and low iso settings to get the beautiful colors to pop in your images. Tripods are a must with a cable release if at all possible. I shot this one at Clifty Falls State Park near Madison Indiana when they were are their peak seasonal bloom, these are just a few tips to help you out when shooting wildflowers, just take the time to get out there and shoot and with a little practice and patience you can get some great results !!

Thanks for stopping by and taking a look, and don’t forget to view this large for the best viewing !!