A recent visit on a rainy day to the Volunteer Park Conservatory was filled with Spring flowers, and also these tropical beauties, Anthuriums. Exciting, aren’t they? My mom used to grow them in South Florida, so I’m always partial to them.

Visit Ruby Tuesday for more red visions, Color Carnival for more brilliant color, Window Wednesday for windows and doors, and SOOC for more straight-out-of-the-camera shots.

This early spring shot of Lake Garrett Park has those great Red Twig Dogwood branches decorating the scene. Visit Ruby Tuesday for more luscious redness of all sorts.

Weekend Reflections has more intriguing reflections waiting for you, too.

I was at the Volunteer Park Conservatory, right near the Asian Art Museum, having a fine old time with my little Canon and the help of a monopod to help brace the shots. I actually hate shlepping and setting up tripods. I want to take too many shots from too many angles for them to work for me, except in special situations, of course.

I am trying to get the Conservatory to feature a wall calendar for 2011 with photos of their incredible plants and flowers, a calendar created by yours truly. When you visit a place like that, are you tempted by a photo calendar? (Assuming it’s wonderful.) What do you think of that idea?

Visit Ruby Tuesday for more photos featuring the color red, and SOOC for more straight-out-of-the-camera shots.

This was taken in the Portland Japanese Garden in May, not now in January, but I thought we could use some spring and sunshine today. Here is Seattle in the real world, all is gray. For more fascinating flowers, visit Today’s Flowers, and be sure to visit Scenic Sunday as well.

That amaryllis bulb from a week or so ago is continuing to open. It’s in a south-facing window, but it’s mostly been cloudy and rainy, which is actually great if you are a plant like this one. I’ll keep you posted.

For more rubine redness, visit Ruby Tuesday. Color Carnival is always a thrill. And go check out SOOC for more straight-out-of-the-camera shots.

This is the plate I made for New Year’s eve to go with our ritual crab and creamcheese dip and potato chips. I love veggie platters. People only really eat raw vegetables when they are cut up pretty and on a plate in front of them. This assortment is especially fine because the carrots and purple cabbage came FROM MY GARDEN. That is so exciting to me, especially since we had a serious cold spell last month. But the cabbage waited in the fridge and the carrots waited in the ground! Their green tops were ratty from the freezing weather but the carrots are just fine, if not even better than in the summer. I will grow them again, that’s for sure.

For more ruby redness seen in photos around the world, visit Ruby Tuesday. And Color Carnival is back!

This is my first flower photo of the new year, and my first with the new camera. How appropriately a bud! It is an amaryllis, and should open to a big showy blossom with a bright red color (‘Red Lion’), very soon. I’ll keep you posted.

For more flowers from around the world, visit Flowers For Today.

I’ve tagged this image as Best Post of the Week.

I saw this dappled sunlight (my favorite) on a path back in September. What a beautiful day it was, and the scene seems to call for dancing fairies, or pan pipes.

For more shadows of all kinds, visit Shadow Shot Sunday. And it’s certainly a good post for Scenic Sunday, and SOOC (straight out of the camera) as well.

PLEASE IGNORE IF READ BEFORE about the 2009 Photoblog Awards. If you like my photos, please vote for this photoblog and leave a comment in the link  below. You have to register (name and password only) and then click on the word Vote in the upper left. Thanks very much! Photoblog Awards 2009

The forecast earlier today was for gusty wind and rain this evening. Just before the wind picked up, I went outside and took this of the storm clouds approaching. It was almost dark outside but I liked the look of the threatening sky.

For more skies around the world, visit Skywatch Friday.

This was in a garden I visited last month. It’s been typical fall (gray) weather in Seattle for the last week or two and this kind of brilliant sunshine seems far, far away. For more shadows seen with awakened eye, visit Shadow Shot Sunday. And for more scenic shots, visit Scenic Sunday.

I’ve entered the 2009 Photoblog Awards. If you like my photos, please vote for me and/or leave a comment in the link  below. You have to register (name and password only) and then click on the word Vote in the upper left. Thanks very much!

http://vote.photoblogawards.com/photoblog.php?name=saras-fave-photos