Mendocino Coast Botanical Garden

Regional Parks Botanical Garden, Tilden Park.

I first saw this flower in Oregon and added it to my own garden some years later. It grows from corms and self propagates. In New Zealand it is considered an environmental weed. Photographed at a school near my home.

All day long honeybees worked the mustard behind our tent while we stayed at Montaña de Oro. While it’s fairly easy to get photos of them, it’s harder to get nice ones. All too often, I end up with perfectly exposed photos of bee’s butts and they are not all that attractive.

JCK_100312_0247 uploaded by admin.

Canon EOS 5D Mark II+EF70-200mm f/2.8L IS USM – f/8@1/125
Last summer, on a visit to the Grand Canyon, I attended a Canon seminar that offered the chance to try out Canon equipment and learn from the instructors. There was no charge and it lasted half a day. I used a 70-200mm f2.8 IS lens and was very reluctant to give it back. I resisted as long as I could. Mine arrived today and the weather was kind enough to give me something to shoot this evening.

Canon EOS 5D Mark II + EF24-105mm f/4L IS USM, 1/320 @ f/8

Canon EOS 5D Mark II + EF24-105mm f/4L IS USM, 1/640 @ f/8

Color is starting to show up in a big way around my neighborhood. The rain and mild temps are encouraging plants and trees and bushes to put forth a great show. I’ve yet to identify either of these. The purple is a vine that is seen on fences all around and the yellow is a 4′ bush with crazy leaves and these yellow flowers at the ends.

Canon EOS 5D Mark II + EF180mm f/3.5L Macro USM, 1/80 @ f/11

Canon EOS 5D Mark II + EF180mm f/3.5L Macro USM, 1/160 @ f/11
I really was attracted to the concentric nature of the outer petals.

Canon EOS 5D Mark II + EF180mm f/3.5L Macro USM, 1/200 @ f/11
Camellias are beginning to flower around here and they have many, many forms. I found three today. All of them were very different from each other.

Canon EOS 5D Mark II + EF24-105mm f/4L IS USM, 1/60 @ f/8