Keukenhof Tulip Petal Dreams

This image was created at the Willem-Alexander Pavilion at Keukenhof, Lisse, Holland with the tripod-mounted Canon Telephoto EF 180mm f/3.5L Macro USM Autofocus lens and the and the Canon EOS-5D Mark III. ISO 800. Evaluative metering +2/3 stop: 1/25 sec. at f/8 in Av mode. Central sensor AI Servo/Rear Focus on the closest large tulip petal on the left and re-compose. Click here if you missed the Rear Focus Tutorial. Click on the image to see a larger version. Image #1: Tulipa “Washington Orange”

Keukenhof Tulip Petal Dreams

While the outdoor tulip fields are currently 3-4 weeks behind average due to the coldest spring in 75-100 years, the tulips o+f the Willem-Alexander Pavilion (Conservatory) at the justly famous Keukenhof Gardens were in pristine condition during our visits. The variety of colors, shapes, and patterns of hundreds of types of tulips was indeed staggering. Denise and our 8 participants have been in tulip heaven and I had a ton of fun as well.

This image was created at the Willem-Alexander Pavilion at Keukenhof, Lisse, Holland with the tripod-mounted Canon Telephoto EF 180mm f/3.5L Macro USM Autofocus lens, the Canon 1.4x EF Extender III (Teleconverter) and the and the Canon EOS-5D Mark III. ISO 400. Evaluative metering +1 stop: 1/13 sec. at f/20 in Av mode. Manual Focus on the base of the stem and re-compose. Click on the image to see a larger version. Image #2: Tulip “Beauty of Spryng”

Seeing the Image

I would stroll around looking for a display of a particularly gorgeous tulip. Once I found one that interested me for whatever reason I would sit right down on the brick or tile floor behind my lowered tripod and see what was there to be seen. Once I spotted something of interest I would vary my perspective by moving left of right or raising or lowering the tripod a bit.

This image was created at the Willem-Alexander Pavilion at Keukenhof, Lisse, Holland with the tripod-mounted Canon Telephoto EF 180mm f/3.5L Macro USM Autofocus lens and the and the Canon EOS-5D Mark III. ISO 400. Evaluative metering +1 stop: 1/60 sec. at f/3.5 in Manual mode. Manual Focus on the left-hand petal knife-edge and re-compose. Image #3: Tulip “Beauty of Spryng”. Click on the image to see a larger version.

The Mechanics

Once I got in position and framed the image, I would lock up all the tripod controls and tighten the tripod collar. Then I would re-check the framing and tweak my set-up as needed. Most of the time I was working in Live View with the 2-second timer to ensure sharp images at any shutter speed. Then press the shutter button and smile. Most of the time I would make a series of images from wide open to the smallest aperture. As you can see here sometimes wide open or close to it was best at other times stopping down a little or a lot was the key. Finding the right perspective and setting everything up took lots of time but cranking out six or seven versions with vary depths-of-field was a relative snap.

This image was created at the Willem-Alexander Pavilion at Keukenhof, Lisse, Holland with the tripod-mounted Canon Telephoto EF 180mm f/3.5L Macro USM Autofocus lens, the Canon 1.4x EF Extender III (Teleconverter) and the and the Canon EOS-5D Mark III. ISO 400. Evaluative metering +1 1/3 stops: 1/20 sec. at f/13 in Av mode. Manual Focus on the tip of the pistil and re-compose. Click on the image to see a larger version. Image #4: Tulip “Lingerie”

Broken Petal Paradise

Denise Ippolito taught me and others to look for damaged tulips for wonderful views of the flower centers. This particular tulip has one drooping petal that provided a spectacular view of the pistil and the anthers.

This image was created at the Willem-Alexander Pavilion at Keukenhof, Lisse, Holland with the tripod-mounted Canon Telephoto EF 180mm f/3.5L Macro USM Autofocus lens and the and the Canon EOS-5D Mark III. ISO 400. Evaluative metering +2 stops: 1/10 sec. at f/13 in Av mode. Manual Focus on the right hand petal kife-edge and re-compose. Click on the image to see a larger version. Image #5: Tulip “Beauty of Spryng”

Your Favorite?

Take a moment to leave a comment and let us know which of the five images above is your favorite. And why.

All images courtesy of and copyright 2012: Denise Ippolito. Click for a larger version.

A Creative Adventure/BIRDS AS ART Swan Island Dahlia Farm Instructional Photo-Tour, September 11-15, 2013: 5 FULL DAYS: $1649

Join Denise Ippolito and Arthur Morris at the Swan Island Dahlia Farm in Canby, Oregon (just south of Portland) for a great learning and photography experience. Swan Island features more than 40 acres with over 350 varieties of dahlias in a plethora of colors, shapes and sizes, making it one of the largest growers in the United States.

Daily Photo Schedule

We will enjoy four morning (7:00am till 10:30am) and five afternoon (3:30pm till 6pm) photography sessions. While we will do most of our photography at the Swan Island Dahlia Farm, we will also visit the Portland Rose Garden and/or the Portland Japanese Garden on this IPT. The in-the-field instruction will include seeing the situation, the use of selective focus, creative use of depth of field, histogram and exposure guidance, designing creative images, choosing your background, isolating your subject, lens options, and the use of reflectors and diffusers. Our field sessions will include challenging photography assignments geared to make you think creatively. Both personalized and small group instruction will be provided. All times are tentative and subject to change based on the weather and on local conditions.

Seminar Morning: Friday, September 13: 8:30am till 12:30pm

Denise will begin by presenting her “Bloomin’ Ideas” program, an overview of the in-the-field and post-processing techniques that she has used and developed over the past few years to create her signature look. Artie will follow with a Photoshop session that will be geared towards all levels. He’ll be sharing some of his favorite techniques and tips while working on images from the first two days of the IPT. Denise will conclude the seminar portion of the IPT with a Photoshop demo; she will share her creative workflow using a variety of Photoshop filters and effects. The entire morning is designed to give you a peek into the minds of two very skilled and creative folks.

The group will have lunch together daily. All are invited to bring their laptops for image sharing. We hope that you can join us for an intense five days of learning and some of the best flower photography to be had in North America.

Deposit Info and Cancellation Policies:

A $449 non-refundable deposit is required to hold your slot for this IPT. Your balance is due 4 months before the date of the IPT and is also non-refundable. If the trip fills, we will be glad to apply a credit applicable to a future IPT for the full amount less a $100 processing fee. If we do not receive your check for the balance on or before the due date we will try to fill your spot from the waiting list. If your spot is filled, you will lose your deposit. If not, you can secure your spot by paying your balance.

Please print, complete, and sign the form that is linked to here and shoot it to us along with your deposit check (made out to “Arthur Morris.”) You can also leave your deposit with a credit card by calling the office at 863-692-0906. We will be short-handed in the office until January 21 so please leave a message and we will call you back. If you register by phone, please print, complete and sign the form as noted above and either mail it to us or e-mail the scan.

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me via e-mail

Like Flower Photography?

If you like photographing flowers, be sure to see the “Creative Flower Photography: blog post here.

Images courtesy of and copyright 2012: Bill Mueller. Card design by Denise Ippolito.

Old Car City Creative Photography In-the-Field HDR Workshop: Sunday, October 13, 2013/ 9am till 1pm.

White, Georgia: $250 plus a $15 entrance fee donation (cash only on the day of the event) that will go to charity. Limit: 16 photographers.

On October 13, 2013, Arthur Morris/BIRDS AS ART and Denise Ippolito/A Creative Adventure will be conducting an In-the-Field HDR Workshop at Old Car City in White, Georgia. Old Car City is about an hour north of Atlanta, GA and an hour south of Chattanooga, TN where they will, as noted above, be doing a full day seminar for the Photographic Society of Chattanooga on Saturday, October 12th. Click here for complete details.

Typos

On all blog posts, feel free to e-mail or leave a comment regarding any typos, wrong words, misspellings, omissions, or grammatical errors. Just be right. 🙂

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And from the BAA On-line Store:

LensCoats. I have a LensCoat on each of my big lenses to protect them from nicks and thus increase their re-sales value. All my big lens LensCoat stuff is in Hardwood Snow pattern.
LegCoat Tripod Leg Covers. I have four tripods active and each has a Hardwood Snow LegCoat on it to help prevent further damage to my tender shoulders 🙂 And you will love them in mega-cold weather....
Gitzo GT3532 LS CF Tripod. This one replaces the GT3530LS Tripod and will last you a lifetime. Learn more about this great tripod here.
Mongoose M3.6 Tripod Head. Right now this is the best tripod head around for use with lenses that weigh less than 9 pounds. For heavier lenses, check out the Wimberley V2 head.
Double Bubble Level. You will find one in my camera's hot shoe whenever I am not using flash.
The Lens Align Mark II. I use the Lens Align Mark II pretty much religiously to micro-adjust all of my gear an average of once a month and always before a major trip. Enjoy our free comprehensive tutorial here.
BreezeBrowser. I do not see how any digital photographer can exist without this program.
Delkin Flash Cards. I use and depend on Delkin compact Flash Cards and card readers most every day. Learn more about their great 700X and 1000X cards here or about my favorite Delkin card here.