As winter is nearing its end I am looking forward to spring wholeheartedly! I thought I’d bring you just a little taste of late spring from last year. These images were all made in and around The Royal Botanical Gardens near Hamilton, Ontario. Honestly I could spend hours a day in each of the many garden areas they have! These images are just a few to give you a jump start on your spring. I hope they give you a feeling of happiness!
“Rock Garden Peace and Beauty”“Follow the Reflections” “Finding Our Way”“Orange Poppy Twirl” “Light Pink Peonies in Sunlight”“Pink Peony Cluster”
I wish you all a very happy end of winter as we head into warmer and more colorful times!
I seriously can’t believe it’s that time again, but here we are at the end of 2016 and (drum roll) Â it is time for the Best of 2016! The time when we all must sort through hundreds, or thousands of photographs to narrow it down to our five or ten best, or favorite images of the year. In my case these are my favorite images of 2016. In the past I have usually posted 10 images, this year I found only nine to be my favorites.
This is the 5th year that I have participated in Jim Goldstein’s annual Best Photos Project that he hosts for all photographers who would like to participate.
Thank very much for all of your hard work Jim! I really appreciate it!
Before getting to my Best of 2016  images , you might like to take a look at my favorite images from last year.  You can view that post here in my 2015 Year in Review.
“Golden Burst of Morning” An absolutely spectacular early fall morning with golden fog and trees in silhouette!
I had several occasions this summer and in early autumn to witness some amazing fog! I made a huge print of this for myself!
“Edge of Red Dawn” This was a particularly beautiful sunrise on Grand Traverse Bay in Traverse City, Michigan during late spring.
I was able to spend some time during spring in Traverse City and vicinity. I had come in hopes of experiencing the cherry blossoms but I was just a tad too late. The sunrises on the bay, like you see here, and time spent at Sleeping Bear Dunes was beautiful though!
“Lake Superior Colors” Wow, this day was simply wonderful! The winds were whipping, the waves on Lake Superior were coming in strongly, and the colors were popping in the whole scene!
While driving up H58 from Munising MI. to Grand Marais I just had to stop at this location and feel the strong winds pushing the waves ashore. The colors of the water, and sky were both amazing and there was a pop of orange color in small scruffy maples in the sand grass that just made the scene for me! I can seriously just allow myself to get lost in this photograph!
“Golden Sunlight Blessings” Another one of those days that start out heavy with fog and then all of a sudden the sun comes out and brings with it, magical rays of golden color and warmth!
This was yet another day that started with heavy low lying fog that rose higher just as the sun began to shine! It created a delightful atmosphere with it’s warm hues! I really loved the sunbeams streaming through the tree and fog! It looks amazing in a print or canvas!
“Autumn Winds and Color” Brisk winds on an autumn day in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan bring waves crashing against the rocky shore!
One of my favorite places to stop at along highway 28 just outside of Munising, MI. It’s always beautiful in autumn with the fall color set against the evergreen trees and rocks!
“Stairway to Lake Superior” Follow the stairs leading down to Lake Superior on a windy and stormy fall day with gorgeous colors in the waters of the lake, clouds in the sky, and fall foliage!!
Along H58 from Munising MI. to Grand Marais there are many beautiful places to stop, all within Pictured Rocks National Lake Shore area. This wonderful location had superb conditions when I arrived there! I just recently made a large print of this photograph.
“Fall within Lake of the Clouds” Peak fall color at Lake of the Clouds in the Porcupine Mountains in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula!
This autumn I spent several hours at Lake of the Clouds with the weather changing from full rain to completely sunny and everything in between. It is spectacular no matter what the weather!
“Laughing Whitefish Falls” Beautiful water flowing at Laughing Whitefish Falls near Munising, Michigan this autumn.
Having been to Laughing Whitefish Falls before, I have often found it to have quite a low water flow. I know my timing has been off because after a rain this place can present with torrents of water. I happened to catch it at a good time this year with a nice, full, but not overwhelming, flow of water.
This concludes my Best of 2016 favorite images. I hope you’ve enjoyed seeing them as much as I enjoyed the opportunity to experience these places and make these photographs!
Finally as we enter into the new year, I would like to wish all of my family and friends, all of you who read my blog, and everyone from near and far a most wonderful and adventurous 2017!!
I’ll end this post with one of my favorite quotes:
“May your trails be crooked, winding, lonesome, dangerous, leading to the most amazing view. May your mountains rise into and above the clouds.” Â ~Â Edward Abbey ~
Spring seems to start of pretty slowly here in SE. Michigan, but once the temperatures warm a bit, which they did to a very large degree this year, the garden blooms begin to appear quickly!
These are some of the first flowers to bloom in the garden this spring, after the initial daffodils and crocus.
The lovely light purple Iris basking in the warm light of the morning sun makes a lovely image!
“Dahlia Darling” Beautiful mauve and white petaled Dahlia!
The Dahlia were especially beautiful with their large blossoms, and stunning colors!
“Iris abstract” I love the different varieties of Iris, and this one was one of the first to bloom this year!
The small details in this purple Iris was one that was perfect for a macro shot!
“Peony in Peachy Pink” A beautiful macro of a peach and pink hued Peony!
The peonies are still blooming, but this one was the absolute first to blossoms this spring. The hue was a bit different this year, with more of a peachy hue. I think it makes a beautiful macro!
As spring draws to an end, I’ll be photographing all the many blossoms that pop up, and sharing more garden photos here on my blog.
I hope that you too are enjoying whatever is blooming in your area, and your garden! You just gotta love those garden blooms!
This summer has been a floral summer for me. Instead of the traveling I usually do, I’ve ended up spending much more time with garden flowers, and trips to botanical gardens. Here are just a few of the images I’ve taken recently. A little summer color for you!! Enjoy 🙂
“Zinnia Orange King” A Stunning deep orange hued Zinnia!!
“Summer Tiger Lily” Also known as Day Lily, Tawny Lily, and Ditch Lily.
“Sangria” A Rose among many colorful flowers!!
An imperfect Marigold in lovely morning sunlight and dew!!
