Closing TIme

Gallery: FloraPosted June 27, 20183,503 views8 comments

The annual cereus cactus bloom happened over the weekend in Tucson. Right on schedule, one week after our fist summer rain. These flowers only open after the sun goes down and close up very quickly in the morning as soon as the sun touches them.

This one was closing as I and my friend were preparing to leave. The side facing the sun was closing faster than the shaded side. I thought it made a nice ball-shape when viewed from this position even though it was unsymmetrical when viewed from a higher position.

This was shot into the sun. Several other exposures had a lot of flare that made them unusable, but for this last set I shifted the tripod a bit and got lucky that the light didn't flare.

D7200, 18-300mm lens, ISO 100, f/16.
Three exposures combined: 1/6, 1/13, and 1/50 sec

Comments

8 comments

Comment posted by Gary Minish on June 28, 2018 at 2:49 AM

The back lighting really makes this shot special, Tony! The flower is gorgeous but the back lit spines really add extra interest and a balance to the image. Very nice!

Registered on February 4, 2006, 625 Posts, 3583 Comments

Comment posted by Giuseppe Guadagno on June 29, 2018 at 10:33 AM

The transparences against the sun are beautiful. The skillful job on all the light tones of the dynamic range and the splendid color saturation are at your high level. I love the photo.

Registered on February 3, 2007, 827 Posts, 5052 Comments

Comment posted by Philip Hodgkins on June 30, 2018 at 7:01 AM

Meticulously and perfectly made! A light treat for the eyes. devil

Registered on July 24, 2006, 2741 Posts, 12349 Comments

Comment posted by Larry Lynch on June 30, 2018 at 3:24 PM

Love the backlight. superb color, detail and comp. Just an outstanding image!!

Registered on September 16, 2006, 773 Posts, 9940 Comments

Comment posted by Bill Fach on July 1, 2018 at 4:41 PM

Tony: Having never seen one of these in the flesh this is a real treat and your light management is masterful. Unique and compelling subject superbly captured and presented.>=))>

Registered on November 1, 2003, 1805 Posts, 26981 Comments

Comment posted by Norma Tareila Matl on July 4, 2018 at 9:49 AM

Tony, back lighting is awesome. What a beautiful flower image.

Registered on October 27, 2016, 229 Posts, 393 Comments

Comment posted by Elizabeth Arellano on July 6, 2018 at 12:14 PM

Beautiful capture! The light is intriguing.

Registered on February 18, 2008, 35 Posts, 302 Comments

Comment posted by Igor Doncov on July 6, 2018 at 2:56 PM

A real beauty! I love this image.

Registered on November 22, 2014, 189 Posts, 2733 Comments